Volkswagen Group has reportedly alerted its dealers across the U.S. and Canada to pause selling its ID.4 fully electric SUV. The automaker said the doors on some of the electric crossovers could potentially open while the vehicle is moving slowly. There's not yet a solution for the issue.
Volkswagen provided InsideEVs with the following statement:
"Volkswagen has notified NHTSA of a voluntary safety recall affecting approximately 16,207 MY 2023 VW ID.4 vehicles.
"Due to quality control issues at a supplier, parts that did not conform to our specifications were delivered to the Chattanooga, TN, plant. Among other issues, the part may allow moisture to enter the electronic board integrated in the door handle. In turn, this may allow the vehicle door to open unintentionally while driving or the vehicle door may no longer be opened from the outside and/or inside.
"We are not aware of any accidents or injuries related to this defect.
"Volkswagen will notify owners of the affected vehicles on or before May 26. Owners will be able to schedule an appointment with an authorized dealer who will inspect and repair the vehicle if necessary as parts are available."
Various reports of the Volkswagen ID.4 EV's doors opening on their own started surfacing as early as January. About a month later, Volkswagen reportedly spoke to the NHTSA about the concern, and VW supplier U-Shin Ltd. began to work on an analysis of the potentially failing door parts.
Since then, the automaker issued a recall based on initial findings of 10 ID.4 SUVs with doors that may come open on their own. All were produced at the company's factory in Chattanooga.
At this point, Volkswagen said, some 16,000 ID.4 electric SUVs produced at the factory in Tennessee may have the potential issue with the doors. VW said the door handles may stop working properly thanks to water making its way in.
The automaker added this could “cause a situation where a vehicle door could open unexpectedly.” VW reportedly issued a stop-sale related to the door concerns on April 3. The notice for the stop sale indicates that there is not yet a fix ready to solve the problem.
This comes along with a number of recalls on the Volkswagen ID.4, a few of which are highlighted in the articles above. That said, VW isn't alone when it comes to mounting issues and recalls in the industry. With many brand-new EVs coming to market, there continue to be bugs and issues to work out.
