Audi A4 Speedometer

irmob

I recently purchased a 2007 A4 with 17" wheels and sport suspension. The speedometer says I am going 65mph when I am actually going only 60mph. The speed given by the trip computer is accurate. The dealership says that this 5mph error is within tollerance and shrugs its shoulders. Anyone have experience with this?

dan48646

I think mine is about 4mph off. i found out when i set the speed reminder to tell me when i'm going over 85mph but on the speedometer it says 89 when it goes off. annoying yes, but i'll live. what really pissed me off was my Oxygen sensor needing replacement at 5,000 miles.

irmob

After comparing the speedometer and the trip computer to my external GPS system, which I assume is perfect, I realized that the speedometer is 2mph fast and the trip computer is 3mph slow (at 70mph), well within the reported industry standard of 10%. So, all is well.

walter48

I just purchased a 2007 A4 and find I have exactly the same problem. GPS says 66 MPH while speedo says 70 MPH (about 6% high). Has anyone noted whether of odometer is also off 6%? On a 36,000 mile lease this is 2160 miles. I could be charged over $400 for miles I never drove.

Walt

zmp

Hi there. I just read your posting where you mentioned you had to replace the O2 sensor. Did you notice anything wrong with the car before replacing the sensor? Have you noticed any improvement in the car after replacing the O2 sensor?

I'm asking because I just bought a 2007 A4-2.0T Quattro 6M this month, and I noticed the car is experinecing a turbo lag (delay) and no low end torque. I test drove another car same model different color and didn't notice the turbo lag at all. I took it back to the service department, they drove both cars (test drive and mine) and said there was nothing wrong with my car but the only difference they noticed was that mine drives more like an automatic because you can't feel the change of gears I like feeling the kick when switching gears up and down. Please let me know. Thanks.

psiklops

I have a 2008 A4 with the same problem. I first noticed it was off when my GPS said 73 and the speedometer said 77. I checked with the dealership and they said they can't look into it based on just a GPS reading. I then found one of those police radar units that sit by the side of the road and tell you your speed. Sure enough, it said 56 while my speedometer said 60.

I called the dealership and told them to check it during my 5,000 checkup. They checked and said that it was operating within 1 or 2 mph of the other two cars they drove it against. Well, of course they read the same - they all came from the same place! This is despite the dealerships claim that the speedometer is "precision calibrated and sealed" at Audi's factory. Audi should recognize that they're not as "precise" as they think they are.

So now I just have to do math every time I go down the road...

shipo

FWIW, many German cars (Mercedes, BMW, VW, and Audi to name a few) are optimistic by a few MPH about how fast you are going, that said, the odometer and the trip computers are usually dead on accurate.

Best Regards,
Shipo

irmob

When I told my dealer that my 2007 A4 speedometer was reading 70 when I was only going 67, they replied that the industry standard is to be within 10% of actual speed, so my speedometer is OK. I realize now that this is the first car in which I have ever checked the speedometer, so all of them have likely had an error in them. At least now I know how to judge my speed.

walter48

The reply from the dealer is a bunch of crap. I've had a GPS for years and used it on a lot of American "cheaper" cars. It was ALWAYS within 1 MPH. I have a new Toyota RAV4 and the speedo totally agrees with my GPS while my much more expensive AUDI speedo reads 5 MPH high at 70 MPH. This is unacceptable, I thought German engineers were into precision. When I'm going to bring my A4 in for my 5K check I'm going to tell the dealer to fix this problem. If they tell me that the industry standard is 10% accuracy I'm going to ask for the AUDI specs in writing. I want to hear this from the factory. Also if it reads fast then my 36K miles lease is only 33K miles. That is fraud. I'm going to ask them to explain that.

shipo

Like I wrote earlier, every German car I've evern owned or driven has been optimistic in the Speedometer department. I believe they are actually designed that way on purpose and as such, your Audi dealer won't be able to "fix it".

steve150m

I have an 03 A4, 04 S4 and a 01 Jetta all with spedo. readings of 4 to 5 mph high. All were checked with gps. computer in car seems accurate. A good friend of mine who is in the automotive OEM business says by law, spedo accuracy must be +or - 4 percent for cars sold in the U.S. When I compared my odometer to the freeway markers my car only recorded 9.6 miles over a 10 mile stretch. The above speed check was at an indicated 80 mph.

dspaul

Same problem here. I've owned Audis for years and the speedometer has always matched trip trip computer exactly, on A4'4, A6's, even the current A3 loaner that I'm driving. I recently purchase an "Audi Certified" 2005.5 A4 2.0T 6MT with 32,000 miles on it. With in 5 minutes of picking up the vehicle I noticed that he speedometer was reading high (+5mph) when compared to the trip computer. This was tested w/ the cruise control on at highway speeds of 60-65mph. It was also verified against a roadside radar speed check, and an external GPS unit. All matched the trip computer, and the speedo reads +5-6 mph. The car is currently at the dealer while they try to figure out the problem.

walter48

Let me know what the dealer says. I brought my A4 in at the 5k check and told them to fix the speedo also. They checked it with radar ar 40 mph and said to speedo was reading 42 so they did nothing. I've always checked mine at highway speeds and at 70 the GPS says 65. I did the same test with the GPS reading 40 mph on cruise control and the speedo reads 43 mph. I have a ;ease car and if I actually drive 36,000 miles the odometer would say 38,000 and at 20 cents/mile that would cost me $400. So please let me know what your dealer says.

walt@nikesch.com

dspaul

Will do ! I'm interested to see what their "supertech" has to say.....

This has never been a problem before on my 2000 A6 2.7T, or the wife's TT. Even the loaner A3 I'm driving right now is dead on when comparing the trip computer's average speed indicator (in cruise control) to the speedo.

:mad:

bmlexus

I have a new Toyota RAV4 and the speedo totally agrees with my GPS while my much more expensive AUDI speedo reads 5 MPH high at 70 MPH. This is unacceptable
Very unacceptable
I have to be honest I have never heard this problem before
I have never used GPS I guess I have to get 1 any suggestion which 1?
Since you mentioned that toyota rav4 totally agrees with your GPS then what can I say 1 more reason to buy a toyota,lexus cars. japanese cars seem to do everything better

Does any1 know if bmw has this problem?

dspaul

No way !!! I've had the AWD Lexus IS300, and although it is nice I much prefer the way the Audi's drive. We get 5 months of winter in New England, and nothing beats the Audi Quattro for traction in the winter. But, that being said the speedo. issues annoys the hell out of me. Audi is bringing in a "supertech" to look at it tomorrw. I'll keep you guys posted as to what transpires...

bmlexus

I've had the AWD Lexus IS300, and although it is nice I much prefer the way the Audi's drive

Ever checked your speedometer of your lexus with a GPS?

How accurate is it?

dspaul

Nope got rid of it a "company car" - for another Audi....

It couldn't hack the NE winters.... I admit it was more luxurious, but the Audi's are sportier, and drive better.

dadas78

I have an 2008 A4 2.0T Quattro with 1,800 miles on it. My speed is off by +2 when checking it against a garmin nuvi 360 purchased last year. Thought I was the only one with issues until i saw this thread

dspaul

Well they replaced the entire instrument cluster - With No Improvement at all . Still 5mph over according to my Garmin 360, and the road side radar traps. I do appreciate their effort for the 4 days that it took, and the loaner, but am not thrilled about having a nice car w/ a lousy speedometer. They now say it's w/in the acceptable range..... Had they mentioned it, or I noticed it during the test drive, I would not have bought the car !

Guess I'll have to live w/ it....

kirenojnosliw

Same Problem for my '08 A4. I first noticed it when I would go past the electronic speed signs that have radar, and they would always be lower then what my speedo was saying. SO I asked the dealer to check it out at my 5k service...and they said it was within the 10% error that the maker says is acceptable. They also said they paced it with another A4 and they showed the same speed.
Mine is a 36k lease, so im a little confused as to when my mileage reads 36k if thats not accurate?
Has anyone actually had this problem resolved? Let me know what they did so I can have the same done!

walter48

First of all a 10% error is totally unacceptable. I read in a previous post that the US regulations were accuracy to within 4%. I checked my A4 with 2 different GPS units on a straight road using cruise control. The results were that the speedo was consistently 7-8% high between 40 and 70 mph. Repeating this test on my Toyota Rav4 (2008) and Pontiac Grand Prix (2005) showed agreement within 1 mph between the speedo and GPS. I don't understand why Audi refuses to admit they have a problem. When I took my A4 to the dealer for the 5K checkup they said the same thing, it was within specs. However when I asked what were the specs, they didn't know. When I called the factory customer representative they didn't know either but said that the local service manager should have all that info. The bottom line is nobody from Audi or the dealer would tell me the specs or would give me the speedo accuracy specifications in writing. So if the dealer said it was 10% ask for the document that said it was 10%. This is not just an annoyance. I also have a lease. If I drive an actual 36000 miles my odometer will read 38,700. I would be charged an extra $540 at the end of the lease.

tunderbord

i dont think it is a real problem at all. in Europe there is specific law that regulates the speedometer accuracy. The displayed speed must never be lower than actual, and never be greater than 1.1 * Actual Speed + 4km/h. That means, going at 60mph, might be displayed as up to 68mph... So the max error actually is more than 10%.

Excellent article about speedometer readings and errors

And what you see on speedometer is not exactly related what is logged by odometer, as far as i know. Im sure the exact explanation can be found somewhere in the interwebs...

cjohn6

Great article on speedo readings and errors. Thanks!
I have a 2006 A4 Avant with performance suspension. The car consistently shows 3 mph over actual from 20 to 75 mph. It is not a % of speed. Interestingly the mileage is actually reporting low by about 2%. If this is consistent for the cars being leased the concern of over reported miles is unfounded and would be in your favor.

dspaul

I've given up.... Just brought the car back 10,000 miles later for the warranty service. The service manager admitted that it IS a problem, BUT it is within the Audi spec's of 10% off. My GPS (Tom Tom 1), says 5-6mph less than the speedo at highway speeds. Had an '08 A4 Loaner for the day, and it was exactly the same - Speedo read +5mph at 65mph

The odometer seems to be accurate according to the GPS, and the highways mileage markers which are posted every 1/10 mile. -- Go Figure ??

Love the car ! except for the speedo issue.

kirenojnosliw

Thanks...

Ive had them check it twice now, and the second time they said that it was actually set to do that to accomodate for tire use. They guy basically gave me the run around on the phone, then the service manager told me it was just within the 10% margin of error like everything else on the car. There are so many things that are wrong with it that Ive given up. Burns oil faster then I can put it in. Raddles like crazy, Electronic seats dont stay in place (no memory seats either) Bluetooth is horrible, Ipod connections is worse then a record players hiss. I cant wait to be done with this lease!

Good luck with your car!