Audi certified pre-owned warranty
Audi’s CPO warranty may not be all that it seems
Audi (pronounced “oww dee”) comes from the Latin word “audire” meaning “listen.” And on Aug. 1, 2023, the German automaker completely revised its certified pre-owned (CPO) warranty, terms and benefits.
Read on to see what this new program offers, how it stacks up to the competition and whether there’s a better way to get warranty coverage.
Audi Certified vehicles include a CPO limited warranty and one additional year of Audi Roadside Assistance.
Jump to insightHowever, this CPO limited warranty is not comprehensive and doesn’t cover the same components as Audi’s four-year/50,000-mile factory warranty.
Jump to insightThese gaps in the CPO warranty mean you could be stuck paying the high cost of Audi repairs even when your vehicle is under warranty.
Jump to insightIf you want better coverage, it may make more sense to schedule your own pre-purchase inspection and get an extended warranty instead.
Jump to insightAudi’s certified pre-owned program explained
Simply enough, Audi calls its used vehicle certification program Audi Certified. In order to qualify, a pre-owned Audi must be no more than five model years old (i.e., a 2019 in 2024), have fewer than 60,000 miles on its odometer and pass a thorough 125-point inspection at an Audi dealership.
As of Aug. 1, 2023, Audi Certified vehicles also include a one-year/20,000-mile certified pre-owned limited Warranty, which begins either on the date you purchase the car or the date your four-year/50,000-mile factory warranty expires — whichever comes later.
You’ll also get one additional year of Audi Roadside Assistance plus trip interruption benefits. (All new Audis come with four, so you’ll get five total.)
More on benefits later. For now, let’s see how Audi’s CPO warranty stacks up to the competition.
» LEARN: What does a car warranty cover?
How good is Audi’s CPO warranty?
Audi’s CPO warranty isn’t all that it appears to be.
For context, Audis already come with a solid four-year/50,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty from the factory and no separate powertrain warranty (the parts in your powertrain are included in your bumper-to-bumper coverage). If you buy an Audi Certified vehicle, the CPO warranty kicks in once your factory warranty expires (or right away, if it already has at the time of purchase).
Now, most decent CPO warranties offer at least one year/12,000 miles of bumper-to-bumper coverage on top of the remaining factory warranty from when the vehicle was new. Audi offers a one-year/20,000-mile term, but the coverage is not bumper-to-bumper.
It’s more like a ‘Silver’ plan than a ‘Platinum’ plan in terms of coverage.”
“It’s more like a ‘Silver’ plan than a ‘Platinum’ plan in terms of coverage,” an Audi dealer rep told ConsumerAffairs. “It’s not going to be as comprehensive as the factory warranty, but it’ll cover mechanical and electrical.”
Since Audi’s CPO warranty coverage isn’t bumper-to-bumper, you may still end up paying for repairs out of pocket while your warranty is active. This greatly diminishes the value of the CPO warranty and the CPO program as a whole.
(The CPO warranty is also no longer transferable as of Aug. 1, 2023, which may impact the resale value of your car to a private seller.)
How does Audi’s CPO warranty compare?
When it comes to luxury vehicle CPO programs, Audi falls behind other automakers because it lacks true bumper-to-bumper coverage.
| Make | Additional CPO warranty coverage |
|---|---|
| Audi | 1-year/20,000-mile limited warranty |
| Mercedes-Benz | 1-year/unlimited-mile stated component warranty covering about 300 parts* |
| BMW | 1-year/unlimited-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty* |
| Lexus | Extends remaining factory bumper-to-bumper warranty to 6 years/unlimited miles** or adds a 2-year/unlimited-mile warranty* |
| Genesis | 6-year/75,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty**; 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty** |
» MORE: Best CPO warranties
CPO Audi benefits
Besides warranty coverage, Audi CPO vehicles come with two additional benefits:
- 24/7 Audi Roadside Assistance for an additional year, including battery jump-starts, emergency extraction services, flat-tire assistance, fuel deliveries and towing to the nearest Audi dealer or Audi collision center
- Trip interruption reimbursements for the duration of your Audi roadside coverage, covering up to $200 per day (max $1,000 per incident) of meals, lodging and rental car expenses if your Audi suffers a warranty-covered breakdown 100-plus miles from home
These are excellent benefits for a CPO program. $1,000 in trip insurance is above average and should help provide peace of mind if you plan to take your CPO Audi on road trips.
Do you need an extended warranty for your Audi?
If Audi’s CPO warranty doesn’t offer the kind of comprehensive coverage you’re looking for, an extended warranty might be a better option.
Audi’s official extended warranties (called Audi Pure Protection) tend to cost an additional $1,500 per year of bumper-to-bumper coverage in our experience, and the quotes we received only rose about 10% as our sample vehicles got closer to running out of factory warranty coverage — so you may have some time to live with your Audi before you decide on an extended warranty.
In our full breakdown of Audi’s extended warranties, we also compared its plans with offerings from third-party warranty companies and determined that, despite the consistently high cost, an extended warranty might be worth it for Audi owners to protect themselves against extremely expensive Audi repairs.
Plus, a year of extended warranty coverage wasn’t more than the average surcharge for Audi CPO status (approximately $1,400 on some models, according to iSeeCars), and many extended warranties offer true bumper-to-bumper protection.
» FIND WARRANTY COMPANIES: Best extended car warranty companies
Article sources
- iSeeCars, “Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) Cars: Are They Worth the Extra Cost?” Accessed Aug. 7, 2023.
- J.D. Power, “Vehicle Dependability Improves Despite Continued Problems with Technology, J.D. Power Finds.” Accessed Aug. 7, 2023.
- Consumer Reports, “Who Makes the Most Reliable New Cars?” Accessed Aug. 7, 2023.
- Edmunds, “Certified Pre-Owned (CPO).” Accessed Aug. 7, 2023.
- RepairPal, “Audi Reliability Rating.” Accessed Aug. 7, 2023.
