# Recalls that may apply to the 2018 Audi RS 3

A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.

## United States (NHTSA), as of 2026-10-19

- [21V198000](/recalls/nhtsa/21V198000.md), 2021-03-22: AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER; AIR BAGS:ON\-OFF SWITCH ASSEMBLY. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. \(Audi\) is recalling certain 2015\-2020 Audi S3 Sedan, A3 Sedan, 2016\-2018 A3 Etron, 2017\-2020 RS3 Sedan, and 2015\-2019 A3 Cabriolet vehicles.  The passenger occupant detection system \(PODS\) may malfunction and switch off the passenger air bag even when the seat is occupied.
- [19V474000](/recalls/nhtsa/19V474000.md), 2019-06-19: AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. \(Audi\) is recalling certain 2015\-2016 Audi S3 Sedan, 2015\-2019 A3 Sedan and A3 Cabriolet, 2016\-2018 A3 e\-tron, and 2017\-2019 RS3 vehicles.  An improper electrical contact may cause the Passenger Occupant Detection System \(PODS\) to falsely detect a malfunction and deactivate the passenger air bag. Built 2017\-03\-28 to 2018\-07\-13.
- [19V095000](/recalls/nhtsa/19V095000.md), 2019-02-13: SEATS:MID/REAR ASSEMBLY. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. \(Volkswagen\) is recalling certain 2018 Audi A3 sedan and RS3 vehicles.  The latching pins for the center rear seat head restraint may be missing. Built 2018\-04\-12 to 2018\-07\-02.
- [18V803000](/recalls/nhtsa/18V803000.md), 2018-11-14: SEATS:MID/REAR ASSEMBLY. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. \(Volkswagen\) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen e\-Golf and Golf R vehicles, and Audi A3 Sedan and RS3 vehicles.  The rear seat frame head restraint guide sleeves may be incorrectly welded to the seat frame. Built 2018\-06\-09 to 2018\-07\-02.

## Canada (Transport Canada), as of 2026-10-19

- [2021169](/recalls/tc/2021169.md), 2021-03-22: Airbag. Issue: On certain vehicles, the passenger occupant detection system \(PODS\) may not work properly. This could cause the airbag system to turn off the passenger\-front airbag even when a person is seated in the front passenger seat. Note: This problem would cause an error message to display on the instrument panel and a warning chime to sound. The airbag indicator light would also display "passenger airbag off".  Safety Risk: An airbag that is turned off when it should be turned on could increase the risk of injury to a passenger in a crash.  Corrective Actions: Audi will notify owners by mail. The corrective actions for this recall are under development. To reduce the safety risk, Audi recommends that if the PODS in your vehicle is not working properly, you should contact an Audi dealer for assistance right away and not transport a person in the front\-passenger seat until the PODS has been repaired.
- [2020499](/recalls/tc/2020499.md), 2020-10-20: Lights And Instruments. Issue: On certain vehicles, when switching the distance display setting from kilometers to miles, the speedometer displays the vehicle speed in miles per hour \(mph\) only. Canadian regulations require that speed be displayed in either kilometers per hour \(km/h\) or in both km/h and mph.  Safety Risk: This small error does not affect vehicle safety.  Corrective Actions: This is not a recall. Volkswagen has made changes to ensure that all new vehicle speedometers display mph and km/h when the display distance is set to miles.
- [2019308](/recalls/tc/2019308.md), 2019-06-19: Airbag. Issue: On certain vehicles, there could be a loose wiring connection for the passenger occupant detection system \(PODS\). This could cause the airbag system to turn off the passenger\-front airbag even though the seat may be occupied. Note: This problem would cause an error message to display on the instrument panel and a warning chime to sound. The airbag indicator light would also display "passenger airbag off".  Safety Risk: An airbag that is turned off could increase the risk of injury to a passenger in a crash.  Corrective Actions: The company will notify owners by mail and instruct them to take their vehicle to a dealer to install a new connector for the passenger occupant detection system. The wiring will also be re\-routed under the seat.
- [2019068](/recalls/tc/2019068.md), 2019-02-13: Seats And Restraints. Issue: On certain vehicles, the center\-rear seat head restraint may detach in a crash.  Safety Risk: If the head restraint detaches in a crash, it could increase the risk of injury to occupants.  Corrective Actions: The company will notify owners by mail. Owners will be instructed to take their vehicle to a dealer to have the center\-rear seat head restraint inspected. If the latching pins are missing, the head restraint will be replaced.
- [2018626](/recalls/tc/2018626.md), 2018-11-14: Structure. On certain vehicles, the rear seat head restraint guides may not have been properly welded to the seat frame. In a crash, the rear seat head restraints may not remain in place, increasing the risk of injury to vehicle occupants. Correction: Dealers will inspect the rear seat frame, and if the head restraint guide sleeve welds are found to be insufficient, it will be replaced.

## Check a VIN

- [NHTSA recall lookup by VIN, United States](https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls)
- [Transport Canada recall search, Canada](https://wwwapps.tc.gc.ca/Saf-Sec-Sur/7/VRDB-BDRV/search-recherche/menu.aspx?lang=eng)

Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.

JSON: [/v1/vehicles/2018_audi_rs-3/recalls](/v1/vehicles/2018_audi_rs-3/recalls)

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