NHTSA campaign 17V196000 · Manufacturer campaign 69Q3

Audi Recall 17V-196: Frontal Air Bag may deploy too Forcibly/FMVSS 208

NHTSA recall 17V196000 (Manufacturer campaign 69Q3) was reported by Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. on March 22, 2017, with 11,618 vehicles potentially affected (per NHTSA). NHTSA's record lists the Audi A3 Cabriolet and Audi S3 for the 2017 model year. Owners were notified on April 20, 2017, per NHTSA.

Updated daily from NHTSA's recall files

Is my vehicle included?

This page lists, by model year, the vehicles NHTSA's recall record names for campaign 17V196000 in the model years try.vin imports (1995 and later); NHTSA's own record can list more. A model year on the list doesn't mean every vehicle of that year is included, and some may already have been repaired.

To see whether a specific vehicle is included and still needs the repair, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Audi VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.

Key facts

NHTSA campaign: 17V196000 (also written 17V-196 or 17V196)
Filed by: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Manufacturer campaign number: 69Q3
Report received: March 22, 2017
Potentially affected: 11,618 vehicles (per NHTSA)
Component: Air Bags — Sensor — Occupant Classification
Owners notified: April 20, 2017
Safety standard: FMVSS 208

Repair completion: 96.9% (latest rate the manufacturer reported to NHTSA; dataset updated October 21, 2026)

NHTSA cautions against comparing completion rates across recalls or manufacturers. How try.vin reads them.

Vehicles listed for this recall

NHTSA's recall record lists these vehicles for recall 17V196000. try.vin imports model years 1995 and later, so NHTSA's own list can be longer. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to it. Build dates are NHTSA's range for a model year (per NHTSA); a vehicle built in that range is not necessarily included.

Audi

Audi A3 Cabriolet
- 2017
Audi S3
- 2017

All Audi recalls

NHTSA's recall notice

As NHTSA's recall record states it for campaign 17V196000.

Defect description

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2017 Audi A3 and S3 Sedan vehicles. In a lower-speed crash situation, the air bag control unit software may deploy the passenger frontal air bag improperly if the front seat passenger is sitting on the edge of the seat or is laying in the seat with the seat reclined. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."

Safety consequence

If the air bag deploys with more force than intended, it can increase the risk of injury.

Manufacturer remedy

Audi will notify owners, and dealers will update the air bag control module software, free of charge. The recall began April 20, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69Q3.

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.safercar.gov.

Sources

Official NHTSA notice for recall 17V196000

Campaign details come from NHTSA's recall files, which try.vin imports once a day. The plain-language subject and the completion rate come from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Recalls Data dataset. How try.vin reads recall data.