VW has a fix for its ID.4 recall, and sales are starting back up now

Volkswagen has identified a solution for its ID.4 recall and is ready to start producing post-recall ID.4s, with sales restarting now or soon at a dealership near you.

In September, VW identified a problem with its ID.4 EVs which resulted in a recall of almost 100k vehicles. Apparently, the door handles could leak and allow water into the circuit board controlling the handle, leading to the doors opening unexpectedly.

At the time, VW said the production halt could last until the beginning of next year (so, it’s just about on schedule) and resulted in about 200 workers being furloughed for the time being.

Now, three months later, the fix is ready and has been installed in some cars, with more heading out to dealers and being installed at VW’s factory in Tennessee as well.

Sales started back up this week, with dealerships applying the fix to some of their cars already. A local dealer told us that they’ve applied the fix to about 10% of their inventory so far, and that some cars have already been sold this week. So if you were looking for an ID.4, you should be able to find one in a local dealer now or soon.

The cars affected are model year 2021-2024 ID.4s. Owners should receive notifications from VW soon to get fixes applied to their vehicles – but there was never a stop-drive on the vehicles, so owners can continue driving their cars until the fix is applied.

Electrek’s Take

Prior to the recall, ID.4 sales had been down significantly for the year. Despite a big update to the 2024 model year vehicles which fixed some issues owners had and added a bunch of big improvements, the model seemed not to capture the imagination of the American public. Even though EV sales are rising, the ID.4 had experienced one of the highest drops in sales of any model.

But this is a bit puzzling, because the ID.4 is a competent vehicle. Especially after those aforementioned fixes, I was quite impressed by this model year. It’s a good choice for someone who just wants a reasonable vehicle with a good amount of space. And Electrek’s very own Michelle Lewis has one and loves it.

That said, three months always felt a little slow for this fix. While VW did say that the production pause and stop sale would last until the end of the year, it’s not like door handles are a new thing, and VW certainly has made plenty of vehicles over the years. We can’t help but wonder if the aforementioned down sales year might have contributed to a lack of urgency.

But, now that process is done and VW is ready to start 2025 strong with a car ready to go (and, as our local dealer reminded us, the ID.BUZZ just started selling last month, so now you’ve got multiple EV options from VW).

To contact a local dealer and see if they have any VW ID.4s ready to sell, feel free to use our link. You can also reach out about the ID.Buzz, if a quirky electric minivan is more your speed.

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