Auburn Hills, Mich. – July 31, 2018 – Volkswagen Group of America has recalled more than 6,600 vehicles potentially equipped with defective fuel pumps, according to documentation submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The campaign affects multiple models across the Audi brand, including:
- 2013 – 2015 Audi S8 sedans produced between June 27, 2012, and October 21, 2014.
- 2013 – 2015 Audi A8 sedans produced between June 11, 2012, and August 1, 2014.
The German automaker suspects that all the vehicles named in the recall contain the defective parts.
The defect
Affected vehicles contain high-pressure fuel pumps with porous fuel lines prone to leakage. These fixtures greatly increase the likelihood of engine fire and therefore pose a serious hazard to occupants.
However, Volkswagen has yet to receive reports connecting the defect to any accidents or injuries.
Timeline of events
Audi AG began receiving field reports outlining instances of fuel leakage throughout the fourth quarter of 2016. This trend continued into 2017, leading the brand to launch an official investigation.
In May 2017, members of the Audi AG Product Safety Committee reviewed the issue and directed engineering teams to collect parts from the field for further analysis. This unfolded between June and September.
The tests that engineers conducted during this timeframe revealed that the high-pressure fuel pumps in affected vehicles were equipped with fuel lines that grew porous over time, leading to leakage. The Audi AG PSC evaluated these findings and called for an in-depth root cause investigation.
Between November 2017 and May 2018, Audi engineers analyzed additional field reports, all of which originated from the U.S. and Canadian markets, and conducted technical reviews of industry-standard fuel line assemblies.
However, these tests failed to reveal the root cause of the defect. On June 18, 2018, members of the Audi AG PSC convened again to make a final determination on the issue. The group ultimately chose to greenlight a voluntary safety recall.
The solution
Audi will direct dealers to replace the fuel lines in affected vehicles free of charge, according to an NHTSA recall acknowledgement document. The automaker intends to notify both dealers and owners on August 21, 2018.
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