Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.: Air Bags › Frontal
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. reported this defect to federal regulators on Dec 16, 2020 and put the number of vehicles at risk at 105,652. The repair is free for as long as the recall stands.
The defect
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2012-2014 Volkswagen Beetle and Beetle Convertible vehicles. The driver's side air bag inflator may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
The risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
The remedy
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag, free of charge. The recall began March 19, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69BC.
6 model years covered
Newest first| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Fires | Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 Volkswagen Beetle | 50 | 6 | 2 | 3 |
| 2014 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 Volkswagen Beetle | 93 | 7 | 0 | 4 |
| 2013 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 Volkswagen Beetle | 65 | 7 | 0 | 4 |
| 2012 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
What this page is, and what to do next
A recall is not an opinion. It is a Part 573 report a manufacturer is required by federal law to file once it decides a defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety, and it commits them to repairing the vehicle at no cost to the owner. The three passages above are the manufacturer’s own wording as published by NHTSA.
This page describes the campaign. It cannot tell you whether one particular car has already been through the shop — that is tracked by VIN, and only the manufacturer knows it. Check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a franchised dealer, quoting campaign number 20V785000.
Full record for the 2014 Volkswagen Beetle → · Recalls carrying a do-not-drive advisory → · Where this data comes from →