In Canada, the Audi A3 subcompact sedan is the German brand's entry-level model. It's one of a fleet of small, upscale cars in the marketplace whose pricing aims to attract shoppers who might otherwise consider a well-equipped small car from a mainstream brand. The A3 is notable for being one of just a handful of Audi models that doesn't come standard with Quattro AWD, allowing for a more accessible price point.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the owner's manual incorrectly describes the function of the passenger airbag indicator light.
Safety Risk:
This error does not affect the safety or function of the airbag.
Corrective Actions:
This is not a recall. The company has made changes to ensure that all new vehicles have owner manuals that correctly describe the function of the passenger airbag indicator light. The company will also instruct dealers to add an insert to correct owner's manuals for all unsold vehicles.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, a seal for the suction jet pump inside the fuel tank could fail. As a result, fuel may flow directly into the evaporative emission control system (EVAP). If this happens, fuel could leak from the charcoal canister.
Note: This problem could cause a fuel odor, the fuel nozzle to stop early and/or fuel to spill when refueling.
Safety Risk:
A fuel leak can create the risk of a fire.
Corrective Actions:
The company will notify owners by mail and advise you to take your vehicle to a dealership to replace the suction jet pump.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the compliance label, located on the B-pillar, doesn't list the vehicle weight ratings. As a result, you could overload the vehicle.
Safety Risk:
Overloading the vehicle could increase the risk of a crash.
Corrective Actions:
Audi will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to install an overlay (label) on the compliance label with the correct weight ratings.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, after shifting into reverse or manually activating the parking function, the rearview camera image may not display. Canadian regulations require the rearview image to display when the transmission is shifted into reverse.
Safety Risk:
A rearview camera image that does not display could reduce a driver's ability to see behind the vehicle while backing up. This could increase the risk of a crash.
Corrective Actions:
The company will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealership to replace the rearview camera.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the passenger-front airbag may not have been folded properly. As a result, the airbag may not inflate properly in a crash.
Safety Risk:
An airbag that does not inflate properly could create an increased risk of injury in a crash.
Corrective Actions:
Audi will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to replace the passenger-front airbag module.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the passenger-front airbag inflator could rupture when the airbag deploys in a crash. If this happens, the airbag may not inflate properly and small pieces of metal could be propelled toward vehicle occupants.
Safety Risk:
An airbag inflator that ruptures can create a risk of injury or death.
Corrective Actions:
Volkswagen and Audi will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to replace the passenger-front airbag module.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, there may be a problem with the driver and front passenger seat belt pretensioners. As a result, the seat belt pretensioners may not work properly in a crash.
Safety Risk:
A seat belt pretensioner that does not work properly could increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Corrective Actions:
Audi will contact owners by mail and instruct you to bring your vehicle to a dealership to replace the driver and front passenger seat belt assemblies.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the connection points for the lower universal anchorage system (UAS), for securing a child or booster seat, may not be labelled correctly on the rear seat. This could cause confusion when installing a child seat.
Safety Risk:
A child or booster seat that is not properly attached or positioned could increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Corrective Actions:
Audi will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealership to replace the covers for the lower universal anchorage system (UAS) connection points in the rear seat.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may not work properly. This could cause the airbag system to turn off the passenger-front airbag even when a person is seated in the front passenger seat.
Note: This problem would cause an error message to display on the instrument panel and a warning chime to sound. The airbag indicator light would also display "passenger airbag off".
Safety Risk:
An airbag that is turned off when it should be turned on could increase the risk of injury to a passenger in a crash.
Corrective Actions:
Audi will notify owners by mail. The corrective actions for this recall are under development. To reduce the safety risk, Audi recommends that if the PODS in your vehicle is not working properly, you should contact an Audi dealer for assistance right away and not transport a person in the front-passenger seat until the PODS has been repaired.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, when switching the distance display setting from kilometers to miles, the speedometer displays the vehicle speed in miles per hour (mph) only. Canadian regulations require that speed be displayed in either kilometers per hour (km/h) or in both km/h and mph.
Safety Risk:
This small error does not affect vehicle safety.
Corrective Actions:
This is not a recall. Volkswagen has made changes to ensure that all new vehicle speedometers display mph and km/h when the display distance is set to miles.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the warning label for the engine block heater cable is written in English only. As a result, a French user may not receive important safety information about how to use the engine block heater. A label that is not provided in both official languages could create confusion.
Safety Risk:
User confusion could increase the risk of injury when trying to use the block heater.
Corrective Actions:
The company will mail each owner a new label for the block heater cable. If you would like help installing the label, you can contact a dealer for assistance.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, there could be a loose wiring connection for the passenger occupant detection system (PODS). This could cause the airbag system to turn off the passenger-front airbag even though the seat may be occupied. Note: This problem would cause an error message to display on the instrument panel and a warning chime to sound. The airbag indicator light would also display "passenger airbag off".
Safety Risk:
An airbag that is turned off could increase the risk of injury to a passenger in a crash.
Corrective Actions:
The company will notify owners by mail and instruct them to take their vehicle to a dealer to install a new connector for the passenger occupant detection system. The wiring will also be re-routed under the seat.
Issue:
On certain vehicles, the center-rear seat head restraint may detach in a crash.
Safety Risk:
If the head restraint detaches in a crash, it could increase the risk of injury to occupants.
Corrective Actions:
The company will notify owners by mail. Owners will be instructed to take their vehicle to a dealer to have the center-rear seat head restraint inspected. If the latching pins are missing, the head restraint will be replaced.
On certain vehicles, an underhood fuel connector may not have been securely attached to the fuel supply line and could result in a fuel leak into the engine compartment. A fuel leak, in the presence of an ignition source, could create the risk of a fire causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will inspect the fuel line connection and ensure it is securely attached.
On certain vehicles, the rear seat head restraint guides may not have been properly welded to the seat frame. In a crash, the rear seat head restraints may not remain in place, increasing the risk of injury to vehicle occupants. Correction: Dealers will inspect the rear seat frame, and if the head restraint guide sleeve welds are found to be insufficient, it will be replaced.
On certain vehicles, long-term exposure to high absolute humidity and temperature, combined with high temperature cycling, could eventually degrade the propellant contained in the driver frontal airbag. This could cause the airbag to deploy with more force than normal. As a result, if the vehicle were involved in a collision that warrants airbag deployment, fragments could be propelled toward vehicle occupants, and the airbag assembly could be damaged, preventing proper function. These issues could increase the risk of injury. Correction: Dealers will replace the driver frontal airbag inflator. Note: Canadian climate results in the propellant degrading slowly. The recall is being conducted as a precaution to address future risk, and is expected to replace airbag inflators before their function would be affected. Additional Note: For the Audi A4, S4, A5 and S5 models, this campaign only affects the Cabriolet versions of these models. Also to Note: This recall supersedes the Audi brand vehicles subject to recall 2016-064 (Audi Recall 69N1) and 2016-065 (69N2). Audi brand vehicles completed under the previous 2016-064 and 2016-065 recalls require repair under this recall, as the previous recall remedy was an interim repair. Interim repair parts must be replaced with final repair parts.
On certain vehicles, during engine start-up or low RPMs, the engine air/fuel burning stability strategy may not be robust enough. This could cause the system to misinterpret conditions as the dual mass flywheel begins to rotate, which could result in a loss of motive power, increasing the risk of a crash causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will update vehicle software.
On certain vehicles, the certification label may have an incorrect vehicle production date printed on it, contrary to the requirements of the standard. Correction: Dealers will install an overlay label containing the correct information.
On certain vehicles, the airbag control module may not properly classify an out of position front passenger seat occupant. In the event of a crash, the airbag could deploy the front passenger airbag with more force than required, increasing the risk of injury to the front seat occupant. Correction: Dealers will update the airbag control module software.
On certain vehicles, a fault within the antilock brake system (ABS) may cause the module to fail during ABS and/or electronic stability control (ESC) activation. This will cause warning lights for ABS, brake and the ESC systems to illuminate. If this happens, the brake system related vehicle stabilizing functions (ABS/ESC) may not be available, increasing the risk of a loss of vehicle control and could lead to a crash causing injury and/or property damage. Correction: Dealers will update the ABS control module with improved diagnostic capability to detect insufficient PCU ground connection. ABS modules with insufficient ground connections will be replaced.
On certain vehicles, the suction pump inside the fuel tank designed to purge fuel from the evaporative emissions (EVAP) system may be compromised. This could cause fuel to flow directly into the EVAP system which could, over time, accumulate and cause a leak through the charcoal canister filter element. Leaking fuel, in the presence of an ignition source, could lead to a fire causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will replace the suction pump inside the fuel tank.
Certain vehicles may not comply with the requirements of Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (CMVSS) 108 - Lighting System and Retroreflective Devices. In a situation where the parking lights are switched on and the vehicle is locked, the side marker lights do not illuminate, which is contrary to the requirements of the standard. This could reduce vehicle visibility, which could increase the risk of a crash causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will update vehicle software.
On certain vehicles, the driver frontal airbag inflator could produce excessive internal pressure during airbag deployment. Increased pressure may cause the inflator to rupture, which could allow fragments to be propelled toward vehicle occupants, increasing the risk of injury. This could also damage the airbag module, which could prevent proper deployment. Failure of the airbag to fully deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted) could increase the risk of personal injury to the seat occupant. Correction: Dealers will replace the front driver airbag inflator. Note: This only affects the Cabriolet versions of the Audi A4 and S4 models.
Certain vehicles may have been manufactured with an incorrect or out of specification stitching in the driver and/or front passenger seat cover. In the event of a crash, this could prevent the side impact airbag from deploying correctly which could increase the risk of injury. Correction: Dealers will replace the driver and/or passenger seat back covers as necessary.
On certain vehicles, improper nickel plating of certain fuel pump internal components could contaminate the pump, potentially resulting in an inoperative fuel pump. This could result in a no-start condition, or an engine stall without warning and without the ability to restart the vehicle, which could increase the risk of a crash. Correction: Dealers will replace the fuel pump.
On certain vehicles equipped with a 2.0L TDI diesel engine, the fuel injection lines could crack. Diesel fuel leakage may ignite on a hot engine surface and cause a fire, which could result in property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will install vibration dampers on all four fuel injection lines. Additionally, on some vehicles (depending on the date of manufacture) the #2 fuel injection line will be replaced.
On certain Audi A3 Quattro, TT Quattro and TT Quattro roadster, the closing force of an internal spring of the fuel tank ventilation valve is not adequate enough to hold the valve closed under extreme conditions. During certain driving manoeuvres, liquid fuel may enter the fuel tank venting system and migrate into the evaporative system, saturating the carbon canister. Should this occur while driving, the vehicle may experience performance issues (i.e. vehicle jerking) and the Malfunction Indicator Lamp (MIL) in the instrument cluster could illuminate. In certain instances, fuel could leak from the evaporative system leak detection pump filter. A fuel leak, in the presence of an ignition source, could result in a vehicle fire causing property damage, personal injury or death. Correction: Dealers will replace the fuel tank ventilation valve with an improved version.
On certain Audi A3, TT, TT Roadster, and Volkswagen EOS, Golf wagon, GTI, Jetta and Jetta wagon equipped with a Direct-Shift Gearbox (DSG), the wiring harness of a temperature sensor in the DSG may have connector wires that were insufficiently crimped during assembly. As such, the temperature sensor could falsely detect a high gearbox oil temperature, causing the transmission to abruptly shift to the Neutral position. A loss of propulsion, in conjunction with traffic and road conditions, and the driver's reactions, could increase the risk of a crash causing personal injury or death. Correction: Dealers will reprogram the transmission control module with updated software..
On certain vehicles, the left and/or right curtain airbag inflator module(s) may leak. In the event of a crash, the airbag may not inflate as designed. Correction: Dealers will replace affected side curtain airbag(s).
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