Where generation-wide applicability ends
IIHS identifies the US MY2018 Q5 redesign and MY2018–2025 driver-side small-overlap applicability. Campaign 90S9/21V-947 is a different evidence branch covering Q5 MY2018–2022. Crash-test years do not extend campaign years.
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: IIHS: 2020 Audi Q5Volkswagen Group of America / NHTSA repository: Part 573 Safety Recall Report 21V-947 / Audi 90S9
Assessment needs exact body version, build date and work history. Q5, SQ5 and Q5 Sportback are separate configurations. Resolve conflicting year records before choosing a repair procedure.
Two liquid-entry paths
Volkswagen Group of America’s December 8, 2021 report describes liquid entering the gateway. Spillage on the rear seats is the main known scenario; water entering from below through an inadequately sealed body seam during heavy rain or deep puddles is separate. Neither is universal proof of cabin flooding.
Volkswagen Group of America / NHTSA repository: Part 573 Safety Recall Report 21V-947 / Audi 90S9
Record moisture specifically on upholstery, beneath it, at the module housing or its electrical connections. Describe underside traces and sealant damage separately. Their connection needs testing; previous body repair alone does not establish it.
Several warnings do not mean several failed modules
The document explains that implausible signals can disable gateway operation, interrupt communication and produce several messages. Not every system showing an error is physically damaged. The described engine operates at reduced power while steering and braking remain available according to the manufacturer.
Volkswagen Group of America / NHTSA repository: Part 573 Safety Recall Report 21V-947 / Audi 90S9
Retain original codes and communication data before clearing them, plus power-supply and connector findings. Replacing modules from a message list alone does not follow from this mechanism. Every replacement needs its own diagnostic basis.
Cover and seam sealing are different operations
This report’s remedy provides a gateway cover; it also specifies relevant seam sealing for vehicles built before the end of August 2021. It does not require a new gateway on every Q5. Confirm actual work and current VIN applicability.
Volkswagen Group of America / NHTSA repository: Part 573 Safety Recall Report 21V-947 / Audi 90S9
Separate water-path correction, protective-cover installation and electrical repair. Applied-sealant photographs do not prove module operation; successful scan-tool communication does not prove seam watertightness. Each task needs its own result.
What frontal research adds
VTN1709 used a MY2018 Q5 Premium quattro. IIHS assigned Good overall and Acceptable for structure; Volkswagen/Audi conducted the test. Those components of the rating are distinct and establish neither seams nor electronics on another crashed vehicle.
Every unopened cavity and unexamined assembly on the individual Q5 remains unknown. Model evidence helps frame questions; the final finding needs actual inspection, the established moisture source and documented repair verification.
Applicability to the individual vehicle
- MY2018–2025 test applicability does not extend the recall beyond Q5 MY2018–2022 and its VIN limits.
- Protective-cover and seam remedies have different build-date conditions.
- No flood, collision-cause or conflicting-year private-case conclusion is established.
Primary sources
Sources checked on . Model or recall information does not establish the condition of an individual VIN.
Volkswagen Group of America / NHTSA repository: Part 573 Safety Recall Report 21V-947 / Audi 90S9
Applicability and source location
Certain US Q5 MY2018–2022; Sportback/SQ5 cohorts listed separately. Cover and seam changes have distinct dates; exact VIN required.
Pages 2–3: liquid, spillage, underbody seam, warnings and cover/sealant remedy; page 4: production changes.
Document date: 2021-12-08. Checked: .
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: IIHS: 2020 Audi Q5
Applicability and source location
US MY2018 redesign; driver-side small-overlap ratings MY2018–2025, not repair-procedure applicability.
2018 Q5 Premium quattro, VTN1709; Volkswagen/Audi test, structure A and overall G.
Document date: not specified in the source. Checked: .