Volkswagen has issued a stop-sale notice and is recalling 17,662 ID.4 electric SUVs in Canada and the US over concerns the doors may open while driving. The stop-sale notice and recall have been posted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website, but no similar notices have been posted by Transport Canada by the time of publication.
According to the stop-sale notice 1,455 Canadian vehicles and 16,207 US vehicles were built at VW’s new facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee with defective parts that might allow water ingress into the door handles. If this happens the water could come in contact with the circuit board assembly of the door handle, resulting in the door opening unexpectedly if it is subjected to high lateral forces at speeds below 15km/h (9mph).
This obviously puts any sitting in that seat at risk of injury, as well as increasing the risk of a collision with another vehicle as you drive down the road with the door wide open.
VW says a fix is not yet available, but is working to make one available as soon as possible. As a result they have issued a stop-sale notice to their dealers. The issue can be identified in vehicles already delivered to customers by listening for a clicking sound, similar to the sound of a vehicle door being locked or unlocked, the automaker explained in the notice.
After becoming aware of the issue VW says they found 10 cases in ID.4 vehicles produced in the Chattanooga plant. There was no mention of any known cases of injuries, crashes, or deaths as a result of the issue.
You can read the full recall notice below. (h/t: Automotive News)
RCLRPT-23V213-9751
