The Porsche Cayman has 6 NHTSA recall campaigns on record covering 2012–2016. On average a defect was admitted 4.2 years after the car was built, the slowest took 7 years. The most recalled system is Air Bags (1 campaigns). Owners also filed 31 complaints on this model — see what breaks.
What was recalled on the Porsche Cayman
Grouped by system. Open any row for the campaigns themselves — what failed, what it risks and how the dealer fixes it, straight from the NHTSA filing.
Air Bags 1 Read
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2016-2017 911 and Boxster, 2016 Cayman and Panamera vehicles. The air bag Electronic Control Unit (ECU) may have a defective power supply capacitor that can result in air bag deactivation or inadvertent deployment of the air bags
Risk. Deactivated air bags increase the risk of injury. Inadvertent deployment of the air bags increase the risk of a crash
Fix. Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will install new software and replace the air bag ECU as necessary, free of charge. Interim notices informing owners of the safety risk were mailed September 13, 2019. Owners received a second notice and the recall began February 12, 2020. Owners may contact Porsche customer…
Latches/locks/linkages 1 Read
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Porsche 911, Boxster, and Cayman vehicles manufactured May 7, 2014, to September 23, 2014. The front hood upper lock components were not manufactured to specification and may fail to securely latch the vehicle's hood during operation
Risk. A failure of the hood latching mechanism may cause the hood to suddenly open during vehicle operation and will severely impede the driver's ability to see out the front windshield, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash
Fix. Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will replace the lock on the front hood, free of charge. The recall began December 12, 2014. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AE04
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Porsche 911, Boxster, and Cayman vehicles manufactured May 7, 2014, to September 23, 2014. The front hood upper lock components were not manufactured to specification and may fail to securely latch the vehicle's hood during operation
Risk. A failure of the hood latching mechanism may cause the hood to suddenly open during vehicle operation and will severely impede the driver's ability to see out the front windshield, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash
Fix. Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will replace the lock on the front hood, free of charge. The recall began December 12, 2014. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AE04
Power Train 1 Read
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2013-2015 Boxster, 2013-2014 Boxster S, 2014-2015 Cayman, Cayman S, 2015 Boxster GTS, and Cayman GTS vehicles. The rear-axle carrier side sections may fracture
Risk. A carrier fracture may cause a loss of control, increasing the risk of a crash
Fix. Dealers will replace the rear-axle carrier side sections, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 6, 2022. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AMB7
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2013-2015 Boxster, 2013-2014 Boxster S, 2014-2015 Cayman, Cayman S, 2015 Boxster GTS, and Cayman GTS vehicles. The rear-axle carrier side sections may fracture
Risk. A carrier fracture may cause a loss of control, increasing the risk of a crash
Fix. Dealers will replace the rear-axle carrier side sections, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 6, 2022. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AMB7
Equipment 1 Read
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain 2014 Cayman and Cayman S, 2014-2016 911 GT3, 2016 911 GT3 RS and 911 R, 2018 911 GT3 and 911 GT2 RS and 2019 911 GT3 RS, 911 GT3, and 911 GT2 RS vehicles. The Child Restraint System (CRS) instructions within the Owner's Manual may not provide enough specificity for proper installation. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 225, "Child Restraint Anchorage Systems."
Risk. Improper CRS installation increases the risk of an injury to the occupant in the event of a crash
Fix. Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will provide a an Owner's Manual supplement with proper CRS installation instructions, free of charge. The recall began February 7, 2020. Owners may contact Porsche customer service at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's number for this recall is AKC0
Electrical System 1 Read
What's wrong. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (Porsche) is recalling certain model year 2014 Boxster, Boxster S, Cayman, Cayman S and 911 Carrera (S, Cabriolet, S Cabriolet, 4, 4S, 4 Cabriolet, 4s Cabriolet) vehicles manufactured September 2, 2013, through September 23, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the passenger seats may be equipped with defective wiring harnesses resulting in intermittent contact with the harness plug
Risk. The intermittent plug may cause the passenger seat frontal and knee airbags may be deactivated. In the event of a crash necessitating airbag deployment, this may increase the risk of injury to the front passenger
Fix. Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger seat free of charge. The recall began on December 11, 2013. Owners may contact Porsche at 1-770-290-3500. Porsche's recall number is AD04
Seat Belts 1 Read
What's wrong. Porsche is recalling certain model year 2011 911 speedster and 911 gts rs 4.0; and model year 2012 boxster (including s and spyder); cayman (including s and r); 911 carrera (including s, gts, 4, 4s, and 4 gts); 911 targa 4 and targa 4s; and 911 turbo and turbo s models manufactured from may 31, 2011, through june 10, 2011. There is a possibility that the mounting holes in the seat belt anchor plates fitted to the vehicle are too small. If the hole diameter is too small, the anchor plate may not be able to rotate about the fastening bolt as designed
Risk. Should this occur, the seat belt may not be routed optimally around the occupant, or may potentially loosen at some point in the future increasing the risk of injury during a crash
Fix. Porsche will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the seat belt anchors and, if necessary, replace the seat belt. The repairs will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on september 2, 2011. Owners may contact porsche at 1-800-767-7243
How long a defect stays unadmitted
Campaign numbers encode the year of the announcement, so each recall on this model can be dated against the car it applies to.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Average gap before admission | 4.2 years |
| Slowest campaign | 7 years |
| Admitted 5+ years later | 60% |
| Campaigns on record | 6 |
Which Cayman years were recalled most
Campaigns per model year. A year with more campaigns is not automatically worse — it may simply have sold in far greater numbers.
| Model year | Campaigns | Most recalled system |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Air Bags | |
| 2015 | Latches/locks/linkages | |
| 2014 | Electrical System | |
| 2012 | Seat Belts |
Check your own car
A campaign applies to a range of production, not to every car of the model. The only way to know whether yours is affected — and whether the repair was already done — is by VIN.
| Step | What you get |
|---|---|
| Enter the VIN above | Open campaigns for that exact vehicle, straight from NHTSA |
| Check the repair status | Whether the free fix has already been carried out on this car |
| Book at any franchised dealer | Recall work is free regardless of age, mileage or owner |
Go deeper
A campaign covers a production range. Yours is one car.
- Check whether this exact VIN is affected — and whether the fix was done
- Alerts if a new campaign lands on a car in your garage
- Full research report as a PDF you can hand to a mechanic
- Decode a whole list of VINs at once
- No ads, on every page
- No ads, no tracking — and much more
Frequently asked questions
How many recalls does the Porsche Cayman have?
6 NHTSA campaigns on record, covering 2012–2016. Not every campaign applies to every car — coverage is by production range, so check your VIN.
Is recall work free?
Yes. Safety recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer regardless of the car's age, mileage or how many owners it has had. That is a federal requirement, not a courtesy.
How do I know if my Cayman still has an open recall?
Enter its VIN above. We show campaigns that apply to that exact vehicle and whether the repair has already been recorded as done.
Why did a defect take years to be recalled?
On this model the average gap between the car being built and the defect being admitted is 4.2 years, and the slowest campaign came 7 years later. Defects usually surface as they accumulate in the field: complaints pile up, an investigation opens, and only then is a campaign issued.