Audi A4 Maintenance and Repair

jwdlem

I have a 2006 A4 with under 11,000 miles. Beginning at 4,000 miles the Tire Pressure Monitoring system randomly indicated a catastrophic tire failure or failure of the monitoring system. None of the dozens of times this has occurred have any of the tires been out of recommended pressure range nor has the spare. It has been back to Audi 4 times for about 20+ days in the shop to fix it. They have seen the warnings but never been able to get a "hard code" so say they can not fix it. Audi of America will not replace any of the components without the hard code. Has anyone else experienced similar problems? Thanks! :lemon:

fenway1

Audi service dept tells me they want $2700.00 to replace my broken air conditioning evaporator and an associated switch. I undertsand this is a "big job" -- but the car is a 1999 A4 2.8 Quattro in good shape ...but only worth 8K Bluebook in a trade.

Seems like a rip-off for an 8 year old car with below avearge mileage. Does this sound right to anyone who knows? Is this a total rip off? This doesn't even replace the compressor -- that could go next year! Any insights welcome!

shipo

It's time for you to find a good independent mechanic. Better still, given the nature of the repair, I'd go and find a good independent A/C shop and use them for the repair. It'll probably cost you half to three-quarters as much that way.

Best Regards,
Shipo

ryannail

UPDATE

Finally a success story. After having the car for about 4 days or so the dealer indicated the clutch replacement repair was covered under warranty. Apparently they sent pictures of the parts to Germany and although it was a close call the dealer indicated he talked Audi into covering the repair.

Saved me $3,100, thank goodness.

Cheers.

egentile

Kiki4 Can you provide me the name to that attorney? Audi has denied my claim with the sludge problem and it blew my engine.

If anyone has an more info about the class action suit on the 1.8T Audi/VW engines please email me at ed.gentile@gmail.com

Thanks!!

shipo

I'm curious, why did they deny your claim? Did you have all of your reciepts for your oil changes? Did you have your oil changed with 502.00 certified synthetic oil?

FWIW, as a general rule you don't want to include your E-Mail address in a public post like this. It's best if you simply make your E-Mail address public in your profile.

Best Regards,
Shipo

yifei

Hi guys,

I just bought an A4 and the salesman recommend the Audi Care for 500 bucks. Anyone has any experience of buying it or do you think I really need to buy it?

Thank you so much!

rascal99

Audi Care is what Audi used to provide for no charge, similar to BMW's free maintanence program. I did purchase it with my car and it is probably a decent deal IF you plan to have your car serviced at the dealer every time during the covered maintenance period. If you do the math it does save you some money. In retrospect I wish I didn't get it since I like to change my own oil and such. Taking the car to the dealer for an oil change I can do at home is a colosal waste of time IMHO, and I am locked into taking it to the dealer. FWIW a good number of Audi buyers get the Audi Care.

clarray

Rusty, have you had any responses, I have a 1998 A4 2.4 with the same issue, there is also a strong smell of fuel. My Audi dealer thinks it could be caused by the retained pressure in the fuel line but cannot guarantee any fix.

Regards Clarray

clarray

My A4 2.4 sometimes takes up to three tries before it starts. I get a fuel smell which is also noticeable when I am driving. The Audi dealer says it could be a pressure issue in the fuel line after ignition switch off. They are very good and will do all testing at no cost but I am interested whether anyone else has had similar issues and had them resolved.
I have just had the cam chain tensioner replaced because the old one was broken and the cams were out of sync. The symptoms were; it was very rough, was hard to start with a strong fuel smell and had the following fault codes;
16514 P030 — Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor B1 S1; malfunction in Circuit P0130 — 35—10 — — — Intermittent
17544 P1136 - Long term fuel trim too lean
17546 P1138 Long Term Fuel Trim Add. Fuel, Bank 2 System to Lean
17930 P1522 Intake Camshaft Contr., Bank 2 Malfunction
You can see where my concern is coming from. The dealer said that all the symptoms pointed to the cams being out of sync which they fixed!! but the car still is hard to start and the fuel smell is still there.
Any assistance would be appreciated.

3deeme

OK, it's been over 2 years since this thread's last posting. Any new news? Did you keep the car? Ever manage to fix the alarm problem permanently? Our 1999 A4 began having this trouble recently so we're very interested in finding out if a reasonably inexpensive solution was ever discovered.

arwaller

Hey know this is way later and you might not even have the car. this is a warranty issue and is covered under extended warranty. I had the same thing happen and Audi covered the whole thing

nvega

Greetings,
Just took my 97 Audi Quattro A4 to the mechanic for "check engine light". After hooking it up to the computer I was told that my Audi needed an Vaccum Elbow & a Leak Detection Pump Filter. Haven't a clue to what these are but know it will cost me a little over $800. Any discussion around this would be appreciated.

Thank,
Nelson

dkinmaine

The A4 Quatro has been towed to the shop three times because it won't start because the key interlock fails. The shop replaces the key at major expense and it fails again. They can't find a problem. How can I drive a car that won't start? What can I do??? It's a 2003 with 70,000+ miles.

clarray

Audi have a TSB stating that they will extend warranty on any issues resulting from timing belt problems to 165,000 Kms. I am not sure whether there is a time limit but you will have to look for the TSB using http://www.audiforums.com/recalls-and-tsbs/browse.htm
Regards rayclar

lutefisk69

I don't know about the trans, but my 99 A4 had the same brake/ABS thing. If you haven't fixed it yet, look at ebay for Audi ABS. You need to get the ABS controller rebuilt, I had mine done by ATE in Florida. Worked great after I put it back in.

jamiewu0203

I heard lots of people saying that A4 is not reliable. Turbo eventually break down, so extend warranty is recommend from the dealers…

- Are these truths?
- How long in average does a new Audi a4 can be drive without problems?
- With all the maintenances, does anyone have their A4 driven over 50,000 without serious problem?
- How can I prevent my A4's turbo break down faster?

Thanks advance!

shipo

- Are these truths?

As with everything in life, it depends.

- How long in average does a new Audi a4 can be drive without problems?

See above.

- With all the maintenances, does anyone have their A4 driven over 50,000 without serious problem?

There are reports from folks here at Edmunds that have cars with upwards of 150,000 relatively trouble-free miles.

- How can I prevent my A4's turbo break down faster?

Use an oil certified to meet the tough 503.01 VW oil spec, keep it topped up, change it per the factory schedule (i.e. on the "fives", 5,000, 15,000, 25,000...) and use OEM filters, and your turbo should last the life of the car.

Best Regards,
Shipo

conall

- How can I prevent my A4's turbo break down faster?

I didn't have an A4 but I had an Audi Urquattro Turbo Coupe.
These have larger turbos than the newer models.
I ran the car till it had over 63k miles before I sold it.
I had no turbo problems.
Just remember that you should let the engine idle about 2 minutes after running it to let the turbo bearings cool.
This is to prevent the turbo from seizing due to overheated oil caking the bearings.

athornton

Hi:
Our 2004 A4 Quattro (with manual transmission) has cost us $2600 in 26000 miles and less than 3 years. We had a distorted door, a failed clutch, and a broken catch on the center glove compartment (so far unfixed). My wife, who is a teacher, is 59 years old and drives the car 98% of the time.
Despite a 4-yr 50000 mile warranty, our dealership (Maplewood Audi, St. Paul, Minnesota) has refused to cover the first 2 under warranty. A different local dealership is unlikely to fix the 3rd problem.
From what we have heard and seen, we are experiencing policies set by Audi of America, and executed by Maplewood Audi and others.
We like the car, it is fun to drive. But we will NEVER buy an Audi again because of the experience we have had.
And, by the way, the warranty is worthless. In each case, they say that we caused the problem.
Hope this answers your question.
Sincerely
Dr. and Mrs. Arnold Thornton

jamiewu0203

Thanks to wolfsport, shipo, and athornton. They are useful!

benjamin5599

So, the check engine/fuel light came on and I took it to a mechanic who said the spray for the fuel injector/mass air sensor was clogged. He replaced with a used one and said I would need a new one sooner than later. I am wondering if this was a recalled part as I have heard of quite a few of these issues with the 2002 A4 models. The car is still chugging along currently, but I wanted to see if this was a dealer fix or if I can take it to any mechanic that specializes in foreign cars?

davida2

Hey Audi people,
I bought a 1999 Audi A4 Quattro about two years ago with 100k miles. Haven't had a problem with it until recently, the engine light came on. The codes read were transmission and some other stuff. Then the car started to stutter as if losing power. It is subtle at idle, but when I drive around 30-40 mph, it really shakes, then when I drive faster, it goes away.

The mechanic turned off the check eng light, and told me to come back when it goes on again to get a true reading, but it has not come on yet. does anybody have a clue as to what may cause this. The car now has 125k miles on it.

David :

:confuse:

benjamin5599

was it the yellow light on the dashboard that looks like a fuel cap? Thats the same light that was on with mine and they said I needed to get the fuel injector/air mass flow replaced?

davida2

It was the yellow light with the figure of an engine, I guess it looks like a fuel cap. Did you get it replaced and did it fix the problem? Cost?

I am afraid with these cars, if there's problem with fuel or air, the Oxygen sensors will burn out and then there goes the catalytic convertor. Expensive.

David

benjamin5599

I think that must be the same icon I got. I had the guy switch one in from another car, but he said it would need to be replaced. the light went off for about 4 days and now its on again. that only cost about 100 bucks, but to have the entire thing replaced, Im guessing will be a bit more.

Sounds like I should have this looked at pretty quick as to not loost the Cat.

ben

vicam01

I've been reading through many posts and don't figure I'll get AoA to help any but I figured I would share my recent incident and see if anybody has any new advice or information to share. Sorry this is kind of long...

I purchased a 2003 Audi A4 4 months ago without doing hardly any research prior to purchasing the vehicle. I guess I just assumed that Audi's were good vehicles. Anyway, I did have the Audi dealership do a full inspection on the car and I got a full history report. Nothing major had happened to the car.

Well, I ended up taking it on vacation and on our way home my husband was not able to accelerate when pushing the gas petal. A couple of seconds later the engine shut off. We managed to pull over on the side of the road. Stranded with no phone service someone finally pulled over. We had it towed to a local Budget Truck company and rolled it down a hill to get it on a trailer to tow it from N. Georgia to SW Florida.

Upon having it checked at home, I was told the timing belt broke and caused the engine to blow. I spoke to the dealership and they told me to contact AoA, which I did. Then in turn they asked me to have it towed to the dealership to get a diagnostic. I had it towed tonight.

I'm hoping for some good results but I don't have high hopes as it's just out of warranty. I purchased the car thinking I was buying something reliable since we have a baby on the way.

Thanks for reading this and if anybody has any advice, I would greatly appreciate it.

Amy

conall

I don't mean to sound cold,
but this is a good example of why most mechanics will tell you to change the belt before 50k miles,
even if the dealer recommends it at about 60k miles.

vicam01

I was told the recommended time for this timing belt to be changed is at 105,000 miles. And didn't even need to be concerned until 80,000. If my mechanic or the dealership would have said anything about 60,000, I would have changed it right away because I'm not one to take a chance.

pat

I wnet through the scheduled maintenance for an 03 Audi A4 listed here. Of course I don't know your trim level, engine or transmission so I was just guessing on them, but I did not find any mention of changing the timing belt until 120,000 miles.

You might want to try it yourself using your real specs. It seems to me if your timing belt broke this far in advance of when they say change it, they need to do something to help you out.

I found this link where you may be able to order an owners manual: Audi Service Publications. (I'm assuming you don't have one since you're not telling us what it says about the timing belt.) I'm sure there are other places too - eBay is always worth a try, for one. If you have the manual, you have a hard copy of their recommendation.

davida2

Ben,
So my mechanic told me to replace all the spark plug wires and one of the injectors. Seems to me it should be either/or, but I will take the wires as a tune up.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

David

conall

Sorry to hear that, vicam.
Best wishes on getting your problem resoved.

The timing sprocket tooth on my Audi broke at between 50 & 60k miles, very soon after I bought it used. My mechanic said that this was because the sprocket was probably not seated properly when the belt had been replaced. So this is another thing to try and watch for during your car repairs.

gciaccia36

I have a 2003 Audi A4 Cab and the transmission died at 36k miles! I serviced it faithfully too! I didn't get the extended warranty b/c I thought I would be fine b/c I had low mileage and had no intention of driving that much. Well now I'm not driving at all!!! Good luck and get the extended warranty!!!

davida2

So yesterday, my mechanic replaced only the spark plug wires and wa lah, it's fixed. He told me that the valve cover is leaking oil on one side onto one of the spark plug wires. The oil had damaged the wire causing resistance and therefore misfiring. So i'm having him replace both valve covers and hopefully this will be behind me.

Hope this helps everyone out there in the expensive AUDI land.

david

athornton

Hi:
AS you may have gathered from the experience that we reported with our 2004 Audi A4 6-spd, our clutch failure occurred well within our standard warranty period, (25000 miles and less than 3 years), but Audi would not honor the warranty, so I suspect that purchasing the extended warranty would be money down the drain.
Regards
athornton

audimom1

How can I get the information on the class action law suit? The same thing happened to my daughter who is leasing her car. She has been with out a car since May and her lease is up in Sept. They quoted her $8,000 for a new engine!

caps56

Yes, we have. They FINALLY honored the warranty and admitted to the "sludge problem". It took five months. It takes standing up to them!!! Don't back down. Good luck

jamiewu0203

Does anyone used any good wax, spray, or any other kind of tool to keep their car clean and shiny!?
BTW, how long does the car wax last?

It will be great to share your info with people
Thank You

davida2

Does anyone know anything about sealed transmission service? My 99 audi has 125k (I about it at about 100k).

all info is appreciated

D

colt2

you can obtain a copy of the First Amended Complaint at http://www.chimicles.com/audi/

mauaudi

what does it mean when the ABS and BRAKE light goes on? What do i need to do???

lutefisk69

You need to rebuild the electronic part of the ABS system. YOu can remove it and send it out, or have the dealer do it and pay a fortune.

mauaudi

Thanks. What caused it to happen? how much money is it to remove it and send it out myself? Its a 97 model. What is ABS?

shivdasa

Hi everyone. I have a 2004 A4 Cabriolet and the standard 4 yr 50,000 mile warranty is about to expire. Are the extended warranties worth it? They seem expensive - $3,000 to $4,000 but it also seems from reading this discussion, that Audis have lots of problems. Any suggestions/recommendations on whether the extended warranties are worthwhile? Thanks.

athornton

Hi:
Please see my replies # 1572 and # 1587 which are germane to your question.
Thanks
Regards
athornton

elikasadam

Do you know how to remove it? Thanks.

dkinmaine

Definitely get the extended warrenty! Our 2003 A4 Quatro has had extensive and major problems after 50,000 miles, including a broken axle, engine replacement, and electrical problems that know no end. You should also get the AAA Preferred plan in preparation for multiple tow-ins!

lutefisk69

I had mine rebuilt by a comany on ebay search for audi ABS and you should find several companies that do it. The company that did mine posted directions: http://www.bba-reman.com/content.aspx?content=Bosch_5.3_ABS_Removal

It was actually pretty easy.

204meca

2004 A4 1.8, CVT, 41K. Car has been great so far.
For the past few months we occasionally pretty rare) hear a medium pitched hum that seems to be coming from the back of the car. The sound does not change whether moving or still, at idle or acceleration & does seem to affect the performance of the car. If we turn the engine off & restart, it usually is not there.

I am thinking fuel pump, but all the posts I have read about fuel pump failures seem to imply that it just dies without warning. We have an appointment for the dealer, but the sound is so intermittant that I am concerned it would show up at the dealer.

Any ideas?

mdds

I don't have any faith in audi anymore. Have a 2006 1.8 A4 and the transmission is a nightmare for performance. In the shop 4 times in 8,000 miles and still can't be fix because it is "within Audi specs". We have had almost 4 wrecks in the car and caused a wreck by the poor performance in traffic. Audi could care less about the customer they have your money so go play somewhere else. I have a lawyer working on a possible lawsuit against Audi to get out of this death trap. I was once a fan and owned several Audis but never again.