NHTSA Campaign 08V178000

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE-INACTIVE

Issued by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC · Reported Apr 17, 2008 · 76,900 vehicles affected

What's wrong

VOLKSWAGEN IS RECALLING 76,900 MY 2004-2005 NEW BEETLE AND MY 2003-2005 NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLES EQUIPPED WITH AN ADVANCED (DUAL-STAGE) AIR BAG SYSTEM. THIS SYSTEM MAY HAVE AIR BAG FRONTAL CRASH SENSORS THAT CONTAIN A SOLDER JOINT ON THE CIRCUIT BOARD THAT MAY CRACK UNDER CERTAIN HIGH TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS. IF THIS OCCURS, THE AIR BAG INDICATOR LIGHT WILL ILLUMINATE AND THE FALLBACK ALGORITHM WILL ENSURE THAT THE FRONT AIR BAGS ALWAYS DEPLOY IN A FRONTAL CRASH IN WHICH THE VEHICLE'S DECELERATION IS HIGH ENOUGH TO ACTIVATE THE FRONTAL AIR BAGS.

Consequence

IN LOW-SEVERITY FRONTAL IMPACTS, THE FRONT AIR BAGS MAY DEPLOY MORE FORCEFULLY THAN DESIGNED, INCREASING THE POSSIBILITY OF INJURY TO OUT-OF-POSITION FRONT SEAT OCCUPANTS.

Remedy

DEALERS WILL INSPECT EACH VEHICLE TO DETERMINE THAT THE SPECIFIC DEFECT CRASH SENSOR IS PRESENT ON ONE OR BOTH SIDES OF THE VEHICLE. ALL OF THE DEFECT CRASH SENSORS WILL BE REPLACED FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN ON OR BEFORE JULY 31, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLKSWAGEN AT 1-800-822-8987.

Vehicles affected by this recall

Make Model Year Units
VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE 2003 76,900
VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE 2004 76,900
VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE 2005 76,900

Source: NHTSA Campaign 08V178000 on nhtsa.gov. To check the current repair status for a specific vehicle, use our free VIN decoder.