New York (AFP) - German carmaker Volkswagen will recall nearly 600,000 vehicles in the United States, most of them its premium Audi brand, over defects that could lead to fires or airbag malfunctions.

However no fatalities related to the problems have yet occurred in the country, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on its website Saturday.

The US recall comes after a series of incidents in China and Israel in 2016.

Dealerships will carry out the necessary repairs and replace parts free of charge, the carmaker said.

A corrosion problem that could prevent airbags from deploying affects more than 234,000 Audi 2011-2017 A5 models, it said.

Faulty coolant pumps that can overheat and cause fires were installed in more than 342,800 Audi A4s, A5s, A6s and Q5s produced in or after 2012.

Another 5,901 Audi A4, A6, Q7 and Q5 2017 and 2018 models risk faulty airbag deployment and seat belt problems.

Among Volkswagen brands, the 2017 Golf and the 2016 e-Golf as well as the 2017 Tiguan all suffer from the same potential defects.

The NHTSA did not specify whether the defective airbags were made by Japanese firm Takata, which is at the center of the most complex and largest defective product recall ever conducted in the United States.