2020 Audi RS 3

Routine

Owners filed 1 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the engine. It has been recalled 1 time.

What fails

Component	Reports		Crashes	Fires	Injuries
Engine	1		0	0	0

1 safety recall

Part 573 reports

Air Bags › Sensor › Occupant Classification › Front Passenger21V198000

Filed Mar 22, 2021153,152 vehiclesVolkswagen Group Of America, Inc.

Defect. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Audi S3 Sedan, A3 Sedan, 2016-2018 A3 Etron, 2017-2020 RS3 Sedan, and 2015-2019 A3 Cabriolet vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may malfunction and switch off the passenger air bag even when the seat is occupied.

Risk. A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.

Remedy. Dealers will replace the PODS sensor mat and update the PODS control module, free of charge. Owners letters were mailed December 23, 2021. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Audi's number for this recall is 69BY.

What owners reported

Newest filings

Engine

Filed Sep 20, 2021KS

Water pump leaking very slowly. Dealer admitted that they had several cars with the same issue. Water pump failure could cause motor to seize Dealer confirmed water pump leak Warning message in the dash cluster warned of low coolant Searching the internet, there is a very large problem dozens of owners of Audi RS3 cars having water pump issues. Attached video from the dealer https://api.mykaarma.com/video-walkaround/details?inspection_uuid=61313c6b5a870b0001f117db&fileType=image_and_video

1 of 1 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2018

Year	Complaints	Recalls	Assessment
2026	1	0	Routine
2025	1	0	Routine
2023	0	1	Routine
2022	0	2	Routine
2020 — this page	1	1	Routine
2019	5	2	Routine
2018	13	4	Routine
2017	1	2	Routine

Compare every RS 3 year →

Other Audi models

All Audi models →

A4 2,893 A6 1,656 Q5 1,333 Q7 1,037 A3 727 S4 588 A5 325 TT 319 A8 252 A4 Allroad 251

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Mar 22, 2021. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.