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Comments
Well, three months later we happened to have the unfortunate driving experience of coming to the end of a steep hill, and the bumper scratched and came off again. Then, since this is a 4-wheel drive vehicle, we thought we could drive a day after a 6 inch snowstorm. Wrong. Bumper got knocked off by a one-day old snow drift that my son could knock over....
So, the second time we brought it to the dealership I demanded they fix it for free. They claimed it was not under warranty. However, EVERY Audi dealer knows this is a problem with this car and fails to disclose or even recognize it. My brother had an A8 with 70K miles, and loved the thing (which is what steered me towards the A6 in the first place). I quietly walked back into the showroom and informed the salesman we worked with that he was about to lose an $70,000+ sale because his service department didn't want to fix a bumper that is a defect to the car's construction to begin with....
Suffice it to say, we haven't paid for a new bumper yet. I know- some people have never had this problem. But those who have realize it is not poor driving- these things are horribly attached, with a horrendous amount of clearance for a 4-wheel drive vehicle.
Personal friend has both a 2000 and a 2002 A-6 - he's never heard of it in his driver groups.
On your other cars, it could be you drove them more conservatively. This is also a relatively new issue; last 6-8 years on most cars, a little longer on Ford products.
Dealer doesn't understand what happened, but it looks like you simply have a coincidental failure. Did it cost you $560 because you're out of warranty, or the dealer was trying to blame someone else?
The fuel tank situation DID NOT cause the problem - if you're still in warranty, reapproach the service manager.
On an aside, your manners will dictate whether you get your money back or not.
Thanks for the advice about keeping a cool head.
I still don't see how extra fuel would cause these items to fail. Normal sloshing about from driving would have caused this damage a long time ago if that were the case.
Talk to the service manager and dealership GM - it's certainly worth it.
In their written express warranty, they do not cover any damage to the vehicle, no matter how slight the initial incident. It's grouped into the column with paint scratches, rock chips and windshield cracks.
I understand your frustration - the bumper shouldn't come off that easily, but Audi is in the clear, no matter how that feels to you or I.
The car is two years old. In total, it has spent over four months at the dealer. It has become painfully obvious that the problems are never going to be fully resolved. They are all relatively minor, but over time have compounded into serious frustration.
I have thirteen months left on my lease, but am not sure I can tolerate this car for that long. I have spoken with both the owner of the dealership and with Audi Customer Care. I could write a whole book about the frustration of dealing with these supposed "Customer Advocates," but I'll refrain. I'll sum it up with the latest communication from them--a phone call a few days ago telling me I obviously don't understand how to operate the sunshade properly. The "Customer Advocate" told the dealer he thinks I'm a deadbeat trying to get out of my lease. I have never been so insulted in my life.
To date, nobody (the dealer or Audi Customer Care) has done anything to resolve my issues. They keep telling me the only solution is to keep taking it back to the dealer for repair. In the meantime, I am getting more and more frustrated with the vehicle (and with what I'm paying to drive their loaner--a Kia minivan).
I spoke with the dealer about trading it in, but since it's leased and they are aware of its issues, there's a significant gap between payoff and trade-in value ($7-10K).
I am 29 years old and this is my fifth Audi. I would consider myself somewhat of a fanatic, but am becoming convinced this will be my last one if I have to live through another 13 months with this car.
Any suggestions on what I should do or try--either to get the problems finally resolved or to get out of the car?
I would certainly appreciate any feedback or advice that you may have.
I've about had it - I have a '98 A6 Sedan Quattro (65K miles) and it seems to spend more time in the shop than out. I wanted to find out if the problems I'm experiencing are "normal" and it's just that my expectations are out of line. In the last 3 years, and mostly since the warranty has ended, I've had the following problems:
- Xenon light problems (brought in 3 times)
- Water Pump replacement (2 visits)
- CV Boots replaced
- Belts Replaced
- All Brakes done (plus rotors on front)
- "minor electrical" (back window problems)
- Recall notices (which is to be expected)
- Alignment problems
- Air Mass Sensor
- Purge Cylinder
And my A6 is in the shop as I type with an unknown problem! The service person said, "I need to wait for my head technician to arrive in the morning to better diagnose the problem."
Please tell me if this is a similar experience that people are having or if this is completely out of the ordinary. And, if so, what is my best tactic to "discuss" with Audi.
Anything would be helpful.
Other than the water pump, Mass air, purge solenoid, and rear window, you've got normal maintenance items like brakes, belts, CV boots (they get cut by rocks) and alignment (yes, they are a maintenance item, not a "problem").
4 service visits on a 5 year old car is not bad at all. Recalls don't count.
If anyone can recommend a good service mechanic/shop in the SF Bay Area (East Bay preferably), that would be helpful.
I saw the chrome grill option in the Audi accessory book that I just received in the mail. I don't have any other experience with it, and have never seen it on any Audis up to this point.
The first time I was pulling into a parking space and heard a major grinding noise- and found that a normal sized cement parking block had ripped off most of the front bumper. I took it in the next day to the dealership, and asked how often they repaired the bumpers.
The response I received was not what I was expecting. The service manager admitted that this was a design fault in the car- that the front bumper clearance was a few inches lower than it really should be on the 2001 A6. He repaired it at no cost, but with a warning to be careful.
Well, a few months later my wife had a similar experience. We very nicely went back to the dealer and asked for a replacement again. After several minutes of cordial disagreement, the service manager again agreed to fix the problem at no cost. Now....whether it matters that a family member purchases an A8 from the dealership whenever he hits his 50,000 end of warranty, I'm not sure. But this is a problem that is not uncommon, and if you are under warranty I'd demand they fix it.
When I picked up the car in February '01 ('01 2.7T w/6-speed) the salesman cautioned me about the low front end. In New England we have granite curbing in many places so most are careful anyway. I've had no problem.
Question - lately when I start my car there is a loud whining coming from under the hood - turbo or turbo fan? Doesn't happen every time. Not always noticeable while driving but sometimes. Any ideas??? Should I call the service manager?
Even though the car was wonderful, I simply couldn't put up with paying $50k for a car and receiving "economy car" service. With even routine maintenance, Audi just couldn't get it together. When I got a nail in a tire, a new one had to be ordered from Germany. When I took the car in to have the tire replaced, the Parts Department had lost the new one. Even a routine oil change took 3 hours!
The service I received was so poor, the Service Manager gave me a free 4-hour detailing, and in true Audi form, they detailed the car beautifully, then rotated the tires afterward and left the wheels filthy!
Even Audi of America was incompetent. They called me to follow up on service visits I never had and when they followed up on actual visits they referred to my "A4"!
The Service Advisor told me one time that the Germans (Audi) introduce the new technology and the Japanese (Lexus) perfect it. Well, why then wouldn't I rather have something that has been perfected rather than in the experimental stages? The "old" technology is fine with me as long as it works.
So I've come full circle... I traded a '99 Lexus SC300 for the Audi. Now I've traded the Audi for an '03 SC430. Do I miss the teutonic feel, unbelievable handling, and growl of the A6 V-8? Absolutely. Do I need the aggravation and lack of support from their entire organization? Absolutely not.
Even when I called Audi of America (and faxed them) to let them know why I'd traded the car, no one ever followed up.
I see Audi advertising much more these days and selling more A6's (rightly so). They are also moving a lot more A4's. However, I don't see significant expansion in their service/support facilities. That makes me glad I traded mine in. They can't even handle the current service demands. I can only imagine what future owners will go through.
Thanks for letting me put in my 2 Cents!
Audi covered a tire under warranty that had been pierced by a nail? For free?? And you're complaining?
I don't know of another manufacturer that would do that.
OEM tires are junk, unfortunately, and aren't carried in regular shops.
Good luck with your Lexus. I work exclusively in lemon law and breach of warranty cases (no, I'm not a lawyer, I'm an automotive consultant) and I see LOTS of A6s.
I would be interested to know which dealer gave you such poor service that you decided to get rid of your A6 4.2. You can e-mail me at: phonemax1 @aol.com if you would rather not post on this medium. It sounds like you deserved better service for your $50,000 Audi "investment."
The 1996 was built on the previous Audi 100/200 platform, & it has a lot more in common with those cars. http://www.audiworld.com is a great resource to learn more. I have owned a bunch of older Audis & in fact I have a 1996 A6 right now which I recently bought. I paid $15k for a 30,000 original mile car. My only major concern with these cars is the transmission (I have the older 4 speed automatic, it's not the tiptronic). They are sort of delicate & I've had to replace one before. However, I feel it's a reasonable trade off for an engine that will give you 200,000 miles or more with no problem, & solid, luxurious, all weather mobility with quattro. As far as your sunroof & heater problems, yes, repairs are expensive. But also dealers seem to have an uncanny knack for finding the most complex & expensive solution to any given problem. I don't know where you took it, but I never use Audi dealers except as a last resort. There's really not much reason to with older cars. I recommend you try to find a good independent mechanic with some experience with Audis. Good luck
Our 2000 A-6 2.7 (33,000 miles) has been plagued with problems since the day we picked it up. It started with the recall related to the fuel gauge (we bought it in February - the part arrived at the dealership in late August). The cluster has been replaced four times. $5,000 worth of warranty work on the front end. In seven times in the last six months for an EPC light that will not stay off for more than three days (it just came on again - I can't WAIT to see my buddies at the dealership). Leak in the cooling system. On and on and on.
I asked the dealership to print out our repair history. It is pages and pages long. While we like driving this car and it IS comfortable inside, no one should have to spend this much time driving to and from the dealership and in loaner cars. Funny about the guy complaining about Acura loaners. We get little Chevys, Fords, Mitsubishi Gallants and Dodge Intrepids. That's what I paid $40,000 for. This is a great country!
All problems were fixed in a reasonable amount of time with not too much hassle dealing with loaner cars, etc.
No breakdowns, turbo failures, or warning lights coming on in the dash up to this point.
If you would like further, detailed info about this car, click "marleybarr" and I will be happy to e-mail back!
I leased a 2000 A6 2.8 Quattro in March 2000, coming due in June of this year - 2003. I've loved my car for many reasons, and so was in the market to either go up to a 4.2 or even take a look at the new A8s.
Early last year, I experienced an odor of some sort in the car, that caused my eyes to water and my nose to burn. The problem was somewhat alleviated by opening the windows, but as I'm wont to, I ttok the car in - made it an early service trip. the dealer checked it out and found nothing, and indeed when I drove off, the smell wasn't there.
I attributed it to any number of things: leaking windshield wiper fluid, or as I'd washed the car before the incident, maybe some solvent or the other. I even ludicrously assumed it was the sun mixing with residue of wiper fluid! Long and short, had no clue and the dealer didn't find anything.
This past Friday, my fiancee and our 3 month old are in the car and I get a call. She starts to describe a smell which I finish for her - the odor was back. I told her I'd experienced the same thing and that I was going to schedule and appointment with the nearest dealer, which I did.
1 hour later, she calls me to tell me my car is on fire. black smoke came out of nthe air-conditioning vents, and then flames followed. Bottomline: traumatized passengers, totalled car, scared and royally pissed fiance.
Who can relate?
I bought my A6 in Sept. 2002 and I have about 1200 miles so far. I think my A6 also has the same CVT problems that you mentioned. Occasionally, when I put in the reverse (R), the car jerks a few times, and if I put in Park (P) then reverse, the jerking stops. Took to the dealership twice and nothing was done. The results were like yours: computer showed everything is OK. Do you still have that problems? Have not seen your posting lately. Besides this, it is a great car. Keep posting.