The defect
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Audi S6 and S7, 2012-2018 A7 and A6 Sedan, and 2014-2018 RS7 vehicles equipped with basic seats (with or without heating). Stress or wear of the body-sensing mat within the front passenger seat may cause the Passenger Occupant Detection System (PODS) control module to malfunction.
The risk
If the PODS module malfunctions, the front passenger air bag may not deploy properly in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
The remedy
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will install a PODS system repair kit, free of charge. The recall began November 29, 2018. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 74D5.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Audi A6 | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Audi A7 | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Audi RS 7 | 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Audi S6 | 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Audi S7 | 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
Components: AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audi A6 | 2012 | 60 | 8 |
| Audi A6 | 2013 | 52 | 6 |
| Audi A6 | 2014 | 41 | 4 |
| Audi A6 | 2015 | 22 | 4 |
| Audi A6 | 2016 | 51 | 3 |
| Audi A6 | 2017 | 20 | 3 |
| Audi A6 | 2018 | 11 | 2 |
| Audi A7 | 2012 | 30 | 5 |
| Audi A7 | 2013 | 19 | 5 |
| Audi A7 | 2014 | 11 | 2 |
| Audi A7 | 2015 | 5 | 3 |
| Audi A7 | 2016 | 15 | 3 |
| Audi A7 | 2017 | 1 | 4 |
| Audi A7 | 2018 | 3 | 2 |
| Audi RS 7 | 2014 | 5 | 2 |
| Audi RS 7 | 2015 | 2 | 2 |
| Audi RS 7 | 2016 | 6 | 3 |
| Audi RS 7 | 2017 | 0 | 3 |
| Audi RS 7 | 2018 | 0 | 2 |
| Audi S6 | 2013 | 42 | 3 |
| Audi S6 | 2014 | 20 | 3 |
| Audi S6 | 2015 | 5 | 2 |
| Audi S6 | 2016 | 19 | 2 |
| Audi S6 | 2017 | 5 | 2 |
| Audi S6 | 2018 | 4 | 1 |
| Audi S7 | 2013 | 16 | 3 |
| Audi S7 | 2014 | 14 | 4 |
| Audi S7 | 2015 | 1 | 3 |
| Audi S7 | 2016 | 15 | 2 |
| Audi S7 | 2017 | 6 | 2 |
Other air bags recalls in 2018
85 of the 912 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2018 concerned the air bags; Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. filed 321 campaigns in all.
| 18V912000 19 Dec 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V905000 19 Dec 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V887000 13 Dec 2018 | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing |
| 18V883000 12 Dec 2018 | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing |
| 18V868000 6 Dec 2018 | General Motors LLC |
| 18V838000 27 Nov 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V836000 27 Nov 2018 | Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. |
| 18V806000 14 Nov 2018 | Ford Motor Company |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2018