Porsche Cayenne and Volkswagen Touareg recalled for brake pedal problems

Volkswagen and Porsche are recalling more than 800,000 Touareg and Porsche Cayenne SUVs – all built between 2011 and 2016 - because of a fault with the pedal mechanism. The carmakers said 391,000 Touaregs and 409,477 Cayennes would be recalled because “a circlip could be loose on the bearing bracket for pedals.”

In an official statement Porsche said, “The problem was found during internal inspections and remedied in the ongoing series. Vehicle owners will be contacted directly by the Porsche dealer responsible for them. A workshop appointment that will be free of charge will be arranged as quickly as possible and will take less than half an hour."

This is a preventive measure as internal studies found that the retaining ring could loosen on these models, Volkswagen and its 100%-owned unit Porsche AG said. The problem has already been corrected in the current production. The carmakers will contact customers directly, the check will take less than half an hour, they said.

Audi’s sister model Q7 isn’t affected by the recall, Volkswagen said. The Cayennne, Touareg and the Q7 from sister brand Audi share technology as well as some parts, and all three are manufactured at Volkswagen’s factory in Bratislava, Slovakia. Porsche’s other SUV, the Macan, was recalled in October last year for a potential fuel hose problem.

This is the second time that the Volkswagen group recalls vehicles this week. It brings the total number of this week's recalls close to 1 million. Last week, Volkswagen recalled 177,000 of its Passat model cars built in Europe in 2014 and 2015 due to problems with the vehicle's electronics.

The recalls are also a fresh setback for the carmaker, which faces a wave of worldwide legal action after admitting to cheating on diesel-engine emissions tests in the U.S. The Cayenne and Touareg recalls aren't related to the emissions scandal.

If you have one of these SUVs, give your dealer a call. They’ll inspect the pedal box and replace the clip if necessary.