Porsche’s smallest SUV, the Macan, has long been a performance-first vehicle, but now its safety is under the microscope in a new recall that affects the front passenger seat — and, by extension, the front passenger airbag.
More than 39,000 model-year 2017-18 Macan and Macan GTS variants, as well as model-year 2015-18 Macan S and Macan Turbo variants, are affected. The issue stems with the front passenger seat occupancy sensor mat in particular, a component that helps the car detect whether someone is sitting in the front passenger seat. The sensor mat may degrade and fail to detect if a passenger is present; as a consequence, the airbag may not deploy during a crash if a front passenger is undetected, increasing the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the sensor mat and seat cushion for free. The recall will begin May 2, but owners with further questions can call Porsche at 800-767-7243, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s vehicle-safety hotline at 888-327-4236 or visit its website to check their vehicle identification number and learn more.
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Patrick Masterson is Chief Copy Editor at Cars.com. He joined the automotive industry in 2016 as a lifelong car enthusiast and has achieved the rare feat of applying his journalism and media arts degrees as a writer, fact-checker, proofreader and editor his entire professional career. He lives by an in-house version of the AP stylebook and knows where semicolons can go.