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Audi

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Audi • General Complaints • Sludge

Foster of Lorton, VA January 28, 2010

I was driving from Charlottesville, VA from a close friend's father funeral Halloween 08 when all the check engine lights came on. This occurred just two weeks after pulling the car out shop for schedule maintenance and replacing the timing belt at a mere 75K for 3600 dollars. I got three ignition coils replaced Nov 1.

The next month (Dec 08) three more went bad! Oh I called Audi USA and complained like hell on thier lame car. Was told nothing was wrong with the car. I informed them as a former military maintenance officer, there was no reason ignition coils should go bad at a mere 75K and that something was wrong with the car. Two months later two more plug when bad, but since they were under the 12,000 miles repair work it cost the repair shop this time.

Jump forward to Oct 2009 I get notified by a letter from Audi USA stating that my car had faulty ignition coils for a voluntary recall, (this after I told them this a year earlier on two separate occasions). I followed the instructions of the letter and produce the 3 separate times the car went into the shop. I got a check from Audi USA 1/26/10 for 204.40 dollars. This was after I produced three repair bills and receipts of payment showing that I paid some 1500 bucks to fix the car for related ignition coils. I called back with the questions to Audi USA.

Basically I got a song and dance had a taken it to the dealer it would have been 20 bucks a pop to replace the ignition coils. If anyone has take an Audi to the dealer, the per hour rate to fix it is more than a Porsche. I will NEVER buy another Audi. Guy at work had similar problems, but he dropped 2400 bucks to fix his 2004 A4 (certified used) and has had nothing but problems. My car was pampered and it made all of its scheduled maintenance periods.

I have spent some 1500 bucks on faulty ignition coils and the car still isn't running right. I called Mt Vernon Audi to inspect the ignition coils and was informed unless the engine light is on is to wait as there's a shortage of ignition coils and Audi is only repairing those cars with check engine lights one. I'm calling NHTSA on Audi USA.

paula of miami, FL January 19, 2010

my 2007 audi has been at the collection dealer for 4 months for transmission problems under warranty. they gave me back the car and a week later the transmision was skitting the motor light on the tail lights constantly needed to change burning out.

i am currently making payments with audi financial. the rep from audi tried helping me so they can assist me with getting out of the current vehicle and getting obviously into a new audi, but on top of that with a vehicle that has so many problems with only 27000 miles.

the same audi financial wants me to put down 10 percent down which that is crazy...after going thru so much hassle thru so many months. never will go again with the collection dealer nor an audi after this

Florentin of Hallandale, FL January 12, 2010

On December 19th my 2007 Audi Q7 didn't start .I called Audi roadside Assistance and had the car towed to the closest dealership, Prestige Audi , 14780 Biscayne Blvd. North Miami Beach, FL 33181.The car was in perfect condition(minor scratches)and my wife handed the key to the Roadside Assistance driver.

On December 21st, early morning I arrived at the dealership to see what is wrong with the car. I found the car with the key stuck in the ignition, front driver side tire flat, driver side wheels scratched and front bumper smashed. I informed Audi Roadside Assistance and they gave me a claim number- 142573 The service advisor informed me that the battery died and they have to replace it (400+ while is not covered by warranty).He also told me that he doesn't have a loaner so I have to handle it by myself. Later I also discovered that I have water in the flood lights and those are not covered by warranty either!!!??? I called Audi customer advocate and they told me I have a 50/day allowance for a rental. The only car I was able to find was a Mazda 6 witch I still drive.

Going back to the claim, I requested to have both front tire replaced (due to the difference between the used tire and the new one), the front of the care repaired; actually I requested to have the car back in the same condition I gave it. Since December 21st I am back and forth between Audi and Road side Assistance, both saying that the other one is handling the claim in the mean time I am paying a 700 lease and I am driving a 12,000 car. I am really disappointed

Marc of Ann Arbor, MI December 18, 2009

I bought a certified 2006 Audi A4 with 27000 miles on it. I thought I would have a quality car and if any problems, the certification, carfax, and factory warranty would back me bumper to bumper. I developed an oil leak 74 days after buying the car. Another dealer, Howard Cooper Audi fixed the oil leak and said it was an intercooler seal. Oil kept on dripping and I took it back. They said it was residual oil from the blown seal and it would stop.

I took it back again, still leaking, and they said it was due to a leak in the intercooler. They want 650 to fix the intercooler and told me that insurance may cover it. My insurance never heard of such a thing. I tried both Howard Cooper and Suburban based on a problem within 90 days after purchase. Basically they said they need 650 or forget it. Suburban says they know it did not leak when they sold it because they did the certification. Now the leak is still there but it is intermittent so perhaps it was not evident at certification.

I called Audi Customer Care and they said they called the dealer service manager who is their "expert" reference and the dealer service manager said it should not be paid under warranty. I asked the customer care guy, what his job is - it appears to be to get agreement with the original decision and close the "complaint."

To top everything off, I just found out that the front end of the car has been repainted. This was confirmed by Howard Cooper Audi service department. I believe there was an incident which compromised the intercooler and they stuck me with the defective car. I have a defective, repainted car which I paid a price that one would expect a quality vehicle.

I am now afraid of the car as it has had to have a throttle body and 4 igition coils replaced under warranty. It has died on the road once since we bought it. Mil lights keep coming on which result in no code detected. I will have to drive with an unreliable car or else sell it at a loss and buy a quality vehicle from a reputable dealer.

Bill of huntsville, AL December 6, 2009

I have a Audi A4 1.8t which Ive been told the engine needs to be replaced by my personal mechanic do to engine oil not getting to the engine properly. I was told by the dealer there is a 8 year/ unlimited warranty on the car due to engine sludge. Once I towed it to the dealer for a checkup they have told me the dipstick had broken off into the engine which was the primary cause of the damage. Remember at this point, the car has been at the dealer for over a month.

I went back to my personal mechanic and he said have them take off the oil pan and also they're is no possible way the dipstick can chip or have this impact. So the dealership still has my car and never checked the engine for the oil sludge warranty and denies they will replace the car with the engine under the warranty.

This just does not add up and I believe the Audi dealership is responsible but I am caught between a rock and a hard place because they refuse to stand behind there product which failed the customer (me) after only having 60k miles on the engine. I have all the records for the vehicle and am at the point of hiring a lawyer or suing Audi which is above and beyond my time and expense. Any guidance or advice is appreciated. Thank you.

Kevin of Austin, TX December 6, 2009

I purchased an 2003 A4 from a used car dealership in February. Since then i have had to have 2 clutch jobs (garage said flywheel was made with inferior materials), ALL 4 coil paks have had to be replaced (within 3 weeks), and now the coolant resevoir split, which caused the car to overheat. I now have water and coolant in my oil.

I have put in 7k into a 10 k car and now to repair it, the bill is 9k. all of thi shas happened within the last 8 months. The vehicle has about 74k miles.

CJ of East Randolph, VT November 15, 2009

2001 Audi A4 1.8T At 66K miles the oil pressure light came on. The car had plenty of oil. Car went to a shop immediately which diagnosed the dreaded "sludge problem" and oil starvation. The pulled the top and said the cams looked good. I called Audi and found out about the manufacturer defect with the oil pickup/too-small oil screen/inadequate filter/new requirement for synthetic oil. We did a VIN check and discovered that the car had been in service for 8 years and 3 months.

Audi said they would not even consider helping unless the car was diagnosed by an Audi dealer so we paid the first (independent) shop had it towed to the dealer as required, at a cost of 100s of s. The dealer re-diagnosed sludge and said the engine appeared un-damaged and it would cost 3600 to clean out the sludge.

We provided all receipts to show that the car had oil changes at the recommended intervals (more actually). By this time we had lost use of the car for more than 3 months and had continued to pay insurance, registration, et al not to mention the tow truck and the initial mechanic. Audi finally came back and offered to pay 50% of a 3600 bill - for a problem caused by their own defect.

adam of e dennis, MA October 29, 2009

This is actually my son's car. He is a paraplegic and went to the hefty expense of having the car equipped to adapt to his needs. From the beginning, he had to have the turbo replaced which was under warranty at around the 30,000 mile mark. Now at 70,000 they say he needs a new motor and electrical panel and something else. They say he has "sludge" build up.

After researching, we realized they have had issues and there was some type of program to fix the issue. They instructed us to gather the oil change receipts at specific intervals. We complied, he obtaining receipts in AZ where he goes to school, and I here in Massachusetts. We were told after we accomplished that he would be eligible for the program for them to replace the motor. When we issued the reciepts we were told that they werent accceptable, that one place which is a local gas and service station that has been in business for many years was " not exactly reputeable". They stated that the reciept numbers were in sequence.

When I told him they to not have a computer and had to literally look up everything which was quite time consuming on their part, they said that they should and that was their problem, the reciepts not acceptable. I offered to bring them back and obtain the missing information and they practically accused me of having made them up myself. They were a reciept from a company with its name imprinted on the reciept. There was no warrant to speak to me in this manner. I am simply a mother trying to help my son out.

The engine is in the 7-8 thousand dollar range. My son depends on this car as it is handicapped accesible. This car clearly has had this problem as there is a program to remedy, although their criteria is questionable and inaccesible to us in our circumstance. They are telling us where we can and in this case cannot change our oil?

Lidia of Norco, CA October 24, 2009

While driving on the 101 fwy the vehicle (2005 Audi A4, 36,000miles) began to hesitate and smoke from the back. Emergency exit off the freeway, the vehicle's transmission oil drained out completely and the car smoked. The vehicle did not give any electronic warning on the highway of changes in oil status. The vehicle had to be towed to the nearest Audi dealer. Audi denies any customer recall or other incidence of this occuring with any of there Audi A4 models. Very disatisfied customer, stranded 100 miles from home.

Christopher of Marlton, NJ October 20, 2009

I've had enough Audi pain for the past 7 years. Problems from the very start - multiple trips to the dealer because of an illuminated traction control light (eventually they traced it to a bad sensor in the steering column). Just about every part in the cooling system went bad - three plugs and the water pump itself - also after multiple visits. Got the impression the techs were learning on the job with my car. The secondary air pump blew out. Ignition coil went, leaving me to drive home with a shaking car and a blinking "CHECK ENGINE" light. Low oil lights from time to time. Windshield wiper problems. The car had an insatiable appetite for light bulbs. Routine maintenance is expensive as hell - 1000 timing belts and 70 oil changes. For the longest time my chump dealer wouldn't give Audi loaners either - they'd try to stuff you into some cigarette-laden loaner. No Internet access in the waiting area - this from a company whose products are 30K and up, and you can get free wireless Internet from a frickin' supermarket. Eventually traded out of it, and am MUCH HAPPIER NOW.

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