Volkswagen prepares recall of a few thousand EVs over faulty battery cells
Handelsblatt reported on Thursday, 15 October, that Volkswagen will recall several thousand electric cars in Germany. Charging on affected vehicles is capped at 80% in the meantime.
A recall in preparation
Volkswagen is preparing a recall in Germany that covers a few thousand electric vehicles from its ID. family, a company spokesperson said. Handelsblatt first reported the plan on Thursday, 15 October, and the company confirmed it when asked. Internal quality checks found that individual high-voltage battery cells in certain ID. models do not meet the company's quality requirements. Volkswagen attributes the problem to production faults at suppliers and says only a limited production period is affected. Handelsblatt listed the ID.3, ID.4, ID.7 and ID. Buzz built between 2023 and 2025, along with several thousand Cupra Born, while the company did not name models at first. Skoda vehicles are not expected to be affected, according to the company's statement to NDR. How many vehicles are affected worldwide was not known at first.
- Recall of about 4.6 million vehicles over a corrosion-prone steering bolt
- Handelsblatt reports a planned battery-cell recall in Germany, which Volkswagen confirms
Why the batteries are a risk
The company spelled out the danger in a statement relayed by its spokesperson, which Handelsblatt cited.
In rare cases, this can lead to increased thermal stress on these batteries. In extreme cases, a fire could start.
Until a permanent fix is chosen, Volkswagen is limiting the maximum charge on affected cars to 80% through software sent over the air, so no workshop visit is needed for that step. Some cars will be taken to service centres, where the high-voltage batteries are tested. The charging limit can only be lifted once a battery is judged to be in order. Affected owners will receive a letter with the recall schedule and contact details, and drivers who do not receive one are not affected, the spokesperson said. Further remedies have not been finalised, and battery modules may not need to be replaced at all, since a software update could be enough.
Recalls already running abroad
In the United States, recall 26V630 (Volkswagen code 93EX) covers more than 22,000 ID.4 vehicles, according to the authorities. The UK recall covers the ID.3, ID.4, ID.7, ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo, with batteries from one supplier built between 2022 and 2025. In Austria, Volkswagen told the APA news agency that about 650 ID. models and 200 Cupra Born are affected, and that only 50 vehicles need to go to a workshop for now. The company said owners there will be told how the process works.
All vehicle owners will be informed in writing.
The planned German campaign does not yet appear in data from the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA), and a notice for the German market is expected to go through that agency. Volkswagen has said that similar actions for Germany and other markets are being prepared with the responsible authorities and should be activated at short notice.
A second recall in weeks
The battery campaign follows a much larger action from late September, when Volkswagen recalled about 4.6 million vehicles of several group brands over a steering bolt that can corrode. The KBA said that bolt has to be replaced with a more corrosion-resistant one. Volkswagen recommends its Battery Care Mode to all drivers, which caps daily charging at 80% to protect the battery. In the current case, however, the cap is explicitly meant for safety. The company has not yet said how the battery recall will be completed in detail, and the vehicle count it will publish remains open.