2018 Porsche Panamera 4s recalls & complaints
Source: NHTSA, updated daily. Last checked 2026-10-18. Recalls apply to specific VINs — run your VIN to confirm.
4 safety recalls, most serious first
1. Suspension
What's wrong, in plain English: Parts can break and cause loss of control. The connecting links may detach from the rear-axle anti-roll bar potentially damaging the surrounding suspension parts and affecting the vehicle's handling.
What could happen: An unexpected change to the vehicle's handling can increase the risk of a crash.
The fix: Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will replace the connecting links for the anti-roll bar, free of charge. The recall began October 2, 2018. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AJ06.
What to do
- Check whether your car is affected: enter your 17-digit VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. A recall covers specific VINs, not every 2018 PANAMERA 4S.
- Book a repair at any authorized Porsche dealer. Quote NHTSA campaign 18V388000 (manufacturer code AJ06).
- The repair is free. By US law, safety recall repairs cost the owner nothing, no matter the car's age or mileage.
- Manufacturer hotline: 1-800-767-7243.
- Buying this car used? Ask the seller for proof the recall was completed, or run the VIN yourself before paying.
Official wording from NHTSA
Component: SUSPENSION:REAR
Summary: Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Panamera 4S, Panamera Turbo and Panamera Turbo Executive and 2018 Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid, Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Executive, Panamera 4S Sport Turismo, Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo, Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo, and Panamera 4S Executive vehicles. The connecting links may detach from the rear-axle anti-roll bar potentially damaging the surrounding suspension parts and affecting the vehicle's handling.
Consequence: An unexpected change to the vehicle's handling can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will replace the connecting links for the anti-roll bar, free of charge. The recall began October 2, 2018. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AJ06.
Notes: Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
2. Electrical system
What's wrong, in plain English: Wiring, modules, batteries. Short circuits can cause stalls or fires. Incorrect soldering of a control unit may result in the intermittent failure of various systems, possible affecting vehicle driveability.
What could happen: Impaired vehicle driveability can increase the risk of a crash.
The fix: Porsche Cars North America will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected control units, free of charge. The recall began May 17, 2019. Owners may contact Porsche's customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AKA5.
What to do
- Check whether your car is affected: enter your 17-digit VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. A recall covers specific VINs, not every 2018 PANAMERA 4S.
- Book a repair at any authorized Porsche dealer. Quote NHTSA campaign 19V180000 (manufacturer code AKA5).
- The repair is free. By US law, safety recall repairs cost the owner nothing, no matter the car's age or mileage.
- Manufacturer hotline: 1-800-767-7243.
- Buying this car used? Ask the seller for proof the recall was completed, or run the VIN yourself before paying.
Official wording from NHTSA
Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Summary: Porsche Cars North America, Inc is recalling certain 2018 Panamera, Panamera 4, Panamera 4 E-Hybrid, Panamera 4 E-Hybrid Executive, Panamera 4 E- Hybrid Sport Turismo, Panamera 4S, Panamera Turbo, Panamera Turbo Executive, Panamera 4 Sport Turismo, Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo, vehicles. Incorrect soldering of a control unit may result in the intermittent failure of various systems, possible affecting vehicle driveability.
Consequence: Impaired vehicle driveability can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Porsche Cars North America will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected control units, free of charge. The recall began May 17, 2019. Owners may contact Porsche's customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AKA5.
Notes: Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
3. Electrical system
What's wrong, in plain English: Wiring, modules, batteries. Short circuits can cause stalls or fires. The instrument cluster may not provide a visual warning when the brake pads are worn out. As a result, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 135, "Light vehicle brake systems."
What could happen: If the driver is not alerted when brake pads are worn out, the driver may lose control of the vehicle while attempting to brake, increasing the risk of crash.
The fix: Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will update the instrument cluster software, free of charge. The recall began April 19, 2019. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AKA1/AKA0.
What to do
- Check whether your car is affected: enter your 17-digit VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. A recall covers specific VINs, not every 2018 PANAMERA 4S.
- Book a repair at any authorized Porsche dealer. Quote NHTSA campaign 19V115000 (manufacturer code AKA1/AKA0).
- The repair is free. By US law, safety recall repairs cost the owner nothing, no matter the car's age or mileage.
- Manufacturer hotline: 1-800-767-7243.
- Buying this car used? Ask the seller for proof the recall was completed, or run the VIN yourself before paying.
Official wording from NHTSA
Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL
Summary: Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2018 Panamera 4 Executive, Panamera 4S Sport Turismo, Panamera 4 Hybrid, Panamera 4 Hybrid Executive, Panamera 4 Hybrid Sport Turismo, Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo, Panamera Turbo S Hybrid Executive, Panamera Turbo S Hybrid, Panamera 4 Sport Turismo and Panamera Turbo S Hybrid Sport Turismo vehicles, 2017-2018 Panamera, Panamera 4, Panamera Turbo Executive, Panamera 4S, Panamera Turbo and Panamera 4S Executive vehicles and 2019 Cayenne S and Cayenne vehicles. The instrument cluster may not provide a visual warning when the brake pads are worn out. As a result, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 135, "Light vehicle brake systems."
Consequence: If the driver is not alerted when brake pads are worn out, the driver may lose control of the vehicle while attempting to brake, increasing the risk of crash.
Remedy: Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will update the instrument cluster software, free of charge. The recall began April 19, 2019. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AKA1/AKA0.
Notes: Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
4. Electrical system
What's wrong, in plain English: Wiring, modules, batteries. Short circuits can cause stalls or fires. Please see the recall report for a complete list of specific model names and model years. Humidity may enter the external coolant pump for the climate control system and cause an electrical short circuit.
What could happen: An electrical short circuit increases the risk of a vehicle fire.
The fix: Dealers will replace the external coolant pump and inspect and replace the plug-in connection, if necessary, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed March 6, 2023. Owners will receive a second notice once remedy becomes available, anticipated July 2023. Own…
What to do
- Check whether your car is affected: enter your 17-digit VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. A recall covers specific VINs, not every 2018 PANAMERA 4S.
- Book a repair at any authorized Porsche dealer. Quote NHTSA campaign 23V033000 (manufacturer code APA1).
- The repair is free. By US law, safety recall repairs cost the owner nothing, no matter the car's age or mileage.
- Manufacturer hotline: 1-800-767-7243.
- Buying this car used? Ask the seller for proof the recall was completed, or run the VIN yourself before paying.
Official wording from NHTSA
Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Summary: Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2017-2021 Panamera, Panamera 4, Panamera GTS and Panamera Turbo vehicles. Please see the recall report for a complete list of specific model names and model years. Humidity may enter the external coolant pump for the climate control system and cause an electrical short circuit.
Consequence: An electrical short circuit increases the risk of a vehicle fire.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the external coolant pump and inspect and replace the plug-in connection, if necessary, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed March 6, 2023. Owners will receive a second notice once remedy becomes available, anticipated July 2023. Owners may contact Porsche's customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is APA1.
Notes: Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.
Useful for owners
- OBD2 code reader — see what the car's computer is reporting
- Compact car fire extinguisher
- Portable jump starter
- 2018 Porsche Panamera 4s owner's manual
Owner complaints filed with NHTSA
Most complained-about parts: Engine (3), Transmission / drivetrain (3), Electrical system (2), Brakes (1), Airbags (1).
Complaints are unverified reports from owners. A pattern (many complaints about the same part) matters more than any single one.
Read recent complaints (8)
07/27/2025 · Engine
This vehicle has an engine which has rocker arms that are known to fail. The manufacturer has not issued a recall to fix this issue which can result in a catastrophic engine failure. They have acknowledged the rocker arms in pre 2018 models to be defective and insufficiently reinforced to handle the strain of the valve train.
04/28/2025 · Brakes · crash
The contact owned a 2018 Porsche Panamera. The contact stated that when he was parking the vehicle, as he had shifted from reverse (R) to drive (D) to straighten the vehicle in the parking spot, the vehicle had inadvertently accelerated at an unknown speed. The contact stated that the vehicle ran through an intersection and crashed into five parked vehicles…
01/16/2025 · Transmission / drivetrain
On my 4th visit to the Porsche dealership and the problem is still not resolved. There are MANY references to the same problem online. The problem: error message on the dash stating REVERSE NOT AVAILABLE and car goes into 3RD gear only and stays there. Only final solution is new transmission which Porsche resists doing It has happened 6 times now. attachi…
07/19/2024 · Transmission / drivetrain
Transmission fault causes car to be stuck in gear and will not shift. This issue appears to be happening quite frequently with these ecars, regardless of mileage. It's dangerous, especially if it occurs on the highway .
06/25/2024 · Airbags
Porsche dashboard leather shrunk and pealing out. Vehicle will not deploy the airbags if in accident. It needs to be replaced. It is a common issue. It is a safety hazard.
05/08/2023 · Electrical system
The contact owns a 2018 Porsche Panamera. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V033000 (Electrical System) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was…
03/02/2022 · Electrical system
Technology change from 3g to 5g. This discontinues the safety notifications including crash /location alerts. Porsche offered a free replacement, and after dealers had difficulty in installing, Porsche offers a minimum compensation, instead of fixing problem. this will affect all Porsche from 2018 and prior that were set up for 3g network connection .…
10/07/2021 · Transmission / drivetrain
The auto in question was, and is, under the new car warranty - While driving forward, one of the automobile's display screens displayed an error message stating "Transmission error - Reverse gear not available"; this in itself is not a major issue as the car was in a forward gear. The major safety issue is that the car would not shift gears once this error…