Audi / Volkswagen recall: Seat belts
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Volkswagen ID4, Audi A4 Allroad, A4 Sedan, A5 Cabriolet, A5 Coupe, A5 Sportback, A6 Allroad, A6 Sedan, A7, A8, E-Tron Quattro, E-Tron Sportback Quattro, Q3, Q5, Q5 Sportback, Q7, Q8, RS5 Sportback, RS5 Coupe, RS6 Avant, RS7, RSQ8, S4 Sedan, S5 Cabriolet, S5 Coupe, S5 Sportback, S6 Sedan, S7, S8, SQ5, SQ5 Sportback, SQ7, SQ8, and 2021-2022 S3 Sedan vehicles. The rear seat belt automatic locking retractors may deactivate early, which can prevent the child restraint system from securing properly. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
What could happen
An unsecured child restraint system can increase the risk of injury during a crash.
The fix
Dealers will inspect, and replace as necessary, the middle-rear seat belt assemblies, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 27, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 and Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 69CR (VW) and 69CS (Audi).
Vehicles covered
- Audi A4 2021
- Audi A5 2021
- Audi A5 Cabriolet 2021
- Audi A6 2021
- Audi A6 Allroad 2021
- Audi A7 2021
- Audi A8 2021
- Audi E-Tron 2021
- Audi Q3 2021
- Audi Q5 2021
- Audi Q7 2021
- Audi Q8 2021
- Audi Rs 5 2021
- Audi Rs 6 Avant 2021
- Audi Rs 7 2021
- Audi Rs Q8 2021
- Audi S3 2021–2022
- Audi S4 2021
- Audi S5 2021
- Audi S5 Cabriolet 2021
- Audi S6 2021
- Audi S7 2021
- Audi S8 2021
- Audi Sq5 2021
- Audi Sq7 2021
- Audi Sq8 2021
- Volkswagen Id.4 2021
Facts
- NHTSA recall number
- 21V606000
- Type
- Vehicle
- Filed by
- Volkswagen Group Of America, Inc.
- Reported to NHTSA
- Aug 5, 2021
- Owners notified
- Aug 27, 2021
- Vehicles or items affected
- 45,496
- Started by
- The manufacturer
- Built
- –
- Part
- Seat belts › Rear/other › Retractor; Seat belts
- Maker's own recall number
- 69CR, 69CS
- Safety standard
- FMVSS 208
Notes
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.nhtsa.gov.
Other recalls for the same vehicles
- Audi recall: Seat belts Dec 19, 2025
- Audi / Volkswagen recall: Seat belts Sep 24, 2025
- Audi recall: Air bags Apr 3, 2024
- Audi recall: Equipment Oct 26, 2022
- Audi recall: Back over prevention Oct 5, 2022
- Audi recall: Tires Jan 26, 2022
To check one car, enter its 17-character VIN on the official NHTSA page: a recall may cover only some vehicles of a model year.
Recall data: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by NHTSA.