Volkswagen Group is recalling approximately 94,000 electric vehicles built on its MEB platform across six models after the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) identified battery modules that do not meet specification and may pose a fire risk.
The recall covers 74,579 vehicles from Volkswagen‘s ID. series — including the ID.3, ID.4, ID.5, ID.Buzz, and ID.Buzz Cargo — and 19,452 units of the Born model from the Cupra brand.
Of the total, roughly 28,000 vehicles are registered in Germany, with 22,182 from Volkswagen and 5,976 from Cupra allocated to the domestic market.
All affected vehicles were produced between February 7, 2022, and August 23, 2024.
Defect and Fire Risk
According to the KBA’s defect description, individual modules within the high-voltage battery may not meet specification.
Non-compliant modules can result in reduced driving range and trigger a yellow warning indicator on the dashboard.
“There is also a risk of fire,” the authority stated, as first reported by the local media outlet Focus.
No cases of property damage or personal injury have been reported in connection with the defect.
As part of the recall, Volkswagen will install a software update designed to detect battery irregularities, inspect the high-voltage battery modules, and replace any that deviate from specification.
The KBA documents do not specify the exact nature of the deviation.
Production Plants
The ID.3, ID.4, ID.5, and Cupra Born were all produced at Volkswagen’s Zwickau plant in eastern Germany, the company’s primary MEB production facility. The ID.Buzz and ID.Buzz Cargo were manufactured at VW Commercial Vehicles in Hanover.
For the affected model years, Volkswagen sourced battery cells from external suppliers and assembled the modules in-house at its own facilities.
Unexplained Discrepancies
Several inconsistencies in the recall scope remain unexplained.
The Cupra Born is affected for vehicles built between February 7, 2022, and April 21, 2024. However, the Volkswagen ID.3 — produced alongside the Born on the same assembly line at Zwickau — is only affected for vehicles manufactured between June 24, 2023, and August 23, 2024.
The KBA documents do not explain why the ID.3’s affected period is shorter despite sharing the same production line.
A similar gap appears with the ID.4 and ID.5. Both models are typically built on a second Zwickau production line together with the Audi Q4 e-tron and its Sportback variant.
However, neither Audi model is included in the recall. The reason for their exclusion has not been disclosed, according to Focus.
Broader Battery Issues
The European recall follows a separate action in the United States, where Volkswagen recalled 44,551 ID.4 vehicles in January over battery fire risk.
That recall was traced to misaligned electrodes in battery cells supplied by SK Battery America, a subsidiary of South Korean manufacturer SK On.
The US recall prompted a “park outside” advisory for affected owners and restrictions on DC fast charging until a remedy was available.
Volkswagen submitted the US recall to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on January 21 after a multi-month investigation with SK that began in late September 2025.
It is unclear whether the European and US recalls share the same root cause.
The European recall covers a broader range of MEB models — including the ID.3, ID.5, ID.Buzz, and Cupra Born, none of which were part of the US action — and the KBA documents do not identify the battery cell supplier.
China
As reported on Monday, VW CEO Oliver Blume urged the country to learn from China’s “strong discipline and commitment to implementation.”
“Developing and producing vehicles in Germany and then exporting them no longer works the way it used to because global regions have changed,” he noted, adding that Volkswagen “created a transformation plan that tailors products much more locally to each region.”
