Volkswagen Recalls 2025 Tiguan in the U.S. Over Risk of Airbag Non-Deployment

Volkswagen Group of America has announced a recall of 3,138 model-year 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan crossovers sold in the United States due to a defect that could prevent the front passenger airbag from deploying in a crash.

The recall has been registered with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and is identified internally by Volkswagen under campaign code 74HE. According to the automaker, the issue may be present in all vehicles included in the recall.

The recall applies only to Tiguans built between March 24 and May 12, 2025. All affected vehicles were assembled at Volkswagen de Mexico’s plant in Puebla. Crossovers produced outside this time frame are not included in the campaign.

The issue stems from a malfunction in the Passenger Occupant Detection System (PODS), which determines whether the front passenger airbag should be activated. Volkswagen says the defect is related to improper crimping of a wiring harness in the passenger seat heating element. As a result, the system may register faults and, as a safety precaution, disable the airbag even when the seat is occupied.

If the malfunction occurs, an airbag warning light will illuminate on the instrument panel, indicating that the airbag is unavailable. Under these conditions, Volkswagen advises against seating a passenger in the front seat until the issue is resolved, as the airbag may fail to deploy in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

The problem was first identified in July 2025 following reports from vehicles in service. Subsequent inspections confirmed the crimping defect, after which the supplier conducted a root-cause analysis. The final decision to initiate the recall was made on December 3, 2025. Volkswagen reports 58 related complaints in the United States.

Volkswagen dealers will replace or repair the wiring harness free of charge, using updated parts manufactured with an improved crimping process that has already been implemented in production. Dealers were notified on December 12, 2025, and owner notification letters are scheduled to be mailed on February 6, 2026.