The Recall Desk
Our severity:SevereNHTSA·16V045000·Announced 2016-01-28

Volkswagen Recalls 2015 Tiguan and Audi Q5 for Air Bag Defect

Volkswagen is recalling 2015 Tiguan and Audi Q5 vehicles because seat-mounted air bag inflators may rupture in a crash, potentially causing serious injury or death.

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 source text explicitly states that the defect could result in 'serious injury or death' due to metal fragments striking occupants, which aligns with the rubric criteria for a Severe (4) rating involving significant injury reports or potential for serious harm.

Plain-English summary

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. is recalling certain model year 2015 Volkswagen Tiguan vehicles manufactured between January 15, 2015, and January 21, 2015, and 2015 Audi Q5 vehicles manufactured between January 13, 2015, and February 3, 2015. The affected vehicles are equipped with driver and front seat passenger seat-mounted air bag inflators that may rupture in the event of a crash.

In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of a seat-mounted air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.

Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the side air bag modules free of charge. The recall began on July 7, 2016. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-822-2834 or Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69M1 (for Audi) and 69L9 (for VW). Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

The recalled product

Product
AUDI, VOLKSWAGEN Q5, TIGUAN
Brand
AUDI
Manufacturer
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Category
Vehicle — Air Bags
Hazard
Affected units
734

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 (2)

  • Q5
  • TIGUAN

Distribution

Distributed nationwide across the United States.

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