The Recall Desk
Our severity:SevereNHTSA·10V252000·Announced 2010-06-10

Volkswagen Recalls 2009 Routans for Sliding Door Wiring Fire Risk

Volkswagen is recalling 2009 Routans because a wire harness may wear through, causing a short circuit and potential fire in the rear sliding door.

What this means for you

Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 4/5 (Severe).

The hazard poses a serious risk of illness, injury, or structural failure. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.

Our severity reasoning: The recall involves a defect that could result in a fire within the vehicle, which meets the rubric criteria for 'significant injury/property-damage reports' or structural/functional defects leading to severe hazards.

Plain-English summary

Volkswagen of America, Inc. is recalling certain model year 2009 Routan vehicles manufactured between June 2008 and July 2009. The recall involves a total of 15,902 vehicles.

These vehicles may have been built with an improperly routed wire harness. The lower sliding door hinge bracket can make contact with the wire insulation and wear it through. This contact with a 12V power feed circuit can cause a high resistive short circuit within the latch mechanism located inside the sliding door, which could result in an overheated latch and a fire within the rear sliding door.

Volkswagen will inspect the sliding door wire track wire assembly and the sliding door power drive unit wire assembly for damage, repair or replace as necessary, tie strap the two harnesses together, and route the harnesses under the sliding door weather strip. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on October 15, 2010. Owners may contact Volkswagen at 1-800-822-8987 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.

The recalled product

Product
VOLKSWAGEN ROUTAN
Brand
VOLKSWAGEN
Manufacturer
VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC
Category
Vehicle — Minivan
Hazard
Affected units
15,902

Is your product affected?

Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.

Model numbers (1)

  • ROUTAN

Distribution

Distributed nationwide across the United States.

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