Volkswagen Recalls 2006-2007 Passat Vehicles Due to Air Bag Inflator Defect
Volkswagen is recalling 2006-2007 Passat sedans and wagons because the driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, posing a risk of 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 from an exploding air bag inflator, 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 2006-2007 Volkswagen Passat sedan and wagon vehicles. The recall involves 71,335 vehicles. The defect concerns the driver's frontal air bag inflator module, which may experience excessive internal pressure upon deployment, causing the inflator to explode.
In the event of a crash that necessitates the deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the exploding inflator could send metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants. This hazard has the potential to result in serious injury or death.
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver air bag inflator with an alternate inflator free of charge. The recall began on April 30, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69Q8, which partially supersedes recall 16V-079.
The recalled product
- Product
- VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT, PASSAT WAGON
- Brand
- VOLKSWAGEN
- Manufacturer
- Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
- Category
- Vehicle — Air Bag / Inflator
- Affected units
- 71,335
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)
- PASSAT
- PASSAT WAGON
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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