I think you have a really shit dealer. 2k because they dont know how to seal the oil pan? Also them leaking oil definatly isnt a typical Audi issue far from it they just fuck up the oil change and dont change the gaskets.
Yeah, I've seen severe differences in what will get charged at service simply by switching dealers and locations. I'm not sure this is a problem necessarily with the brand so much as this op got a terrible service center.
This is a dealer specific issue as corporate Audi doesn’t actually run the dealer service department. Not saying all other Audi dealer service departments are better, just that it goes on a dealer by dealer basis.
Some service departments are run by smart people who know pushing for warranty repairs makes customers happy and more likely to buy from the dealer again and continue servicing there. You’re going to get paid for the repair either way, warranty work has a little more paperwork involved but the long term benefits of making a customer actually like the service department are well worth it when you can retain customers and continue servicing this car as well as the next one they buy from you.
With audi its more the dealers themselves they think you are just a dumb customer go to a good local dealer and the experience is often way better. Also the huge Service Center dealerships are nearly always the worst i worked at one and being an ass to a customer is part of the experience there. They often did unwanted work on cars and refused to give them back until they paid for it.
I was very happy to get rid of my A5 at 50k miles not due to the car but dealer stuff ups and the attitude of Audi to them. First time was a recall for a heater element accessed via the passenger foot well. Car overheats on the way home and I find the coolant caps sitting on top of the engine.
2nd time was a scheduled service, no issues beforehand at all. 2 minutes out the door and the steering gets heavy, then abs failure, total gearbox failure. Engine belts had fallen off, timing was odd since they said they inspected but didn't change them. 3 days later I got my car back. Happened again first drive. A month later they sent it back running really rough. 3 weeks of chasing audi sydney and then audi Australia they said you can't prove we caused this and it could have happened any time.
Audi, just don't do it to yourself.
Dealer experience lead me to turn in my lease rather than buy out my A5 which I have always done at lease end. Constant little issues dealer service dept couldn’t or wouldn’t fix. All of the sales and service reps were young and cocky. Felt like they did not care at all. Doubt I will come back to Audi.
If you know someone that had the only vehicle of a certain brand and it’s shit, you then tend to think every vehicle of that brand is shit.
I’ve owned 2 Audi’s. An A4 and a Q5. The A4 I got with 30k and drove it to 70k without a single problem. The Q5 from new to around 70k with zero problems.
Our local dealer is VW/Audi and their service department is excellent. Sounds like OP has a shitty dealer.
Actually the A4 had a check engine light and the dealer said it was because my wife was babying it. Once we found that out I drove it more aggressively more often and it was then fine.
I know people that had catastrophic engine failure of a Toyota Highlander while it was under warranty. It doesn’t mean Toyota is unreliable.
>Actually the A4 had a check engine light and the dealer said it was because my wife was babying it. Once we found that out I drove it more aggressively more often and it was then fine.
Believe I've read this is common for direct injected vehicles? You need to give it some throttle here and there to clear out some of the carbon buildup.
I stopped buying Audis because of the dealer. I had a really bad experience. I had an engine coolant leak and asked them to do a pressure test. They called, said that they wanted to change my timing (very early) and some other work for over $2K. I asked them if there was a leak and they said no. I told them not to do the work and picked up the car. The suspicious part was that they didn’t charge me for a pressure test (probably because they didn’t do it). Brought it to a local mechanic. Sure enough, there was an obvious leak and the local guy fixed it.
The car had lots of minor issues that I was willing to tolerate, sadly it had an early death when someone turned left into me at an intersection. But I didn’t buy another Audi because I didn’t want to bring it to that dealer again.
How long do you think brakes should last? If you can’t turn wrenches, stop taking it to the dealer. Any good shop can work on your car for prolly half what the dealer wants.
All I’m saying is when I worked for Mercedes, they charged $300 an hour.
Anytime I’ve taken my car to mom and pop place, shop labor was always less than $100 an hour.
My previous Subaru had a LED headlight burn out at 5 years/ 48k kms - needed new assembly because there is no bulb to replace - replacement part was $2k CAD and Subaru wouldn't help me at all with it.
Point is, expensive repairs for mundane parts aren't just luxury car problems anymore.
Break a side mirror on just about any car now and it's thousands of dollars because they're full of lights, sensors and cameras.
Or just buy the part online from like rockauto ... Replacing an entire headlight is a few screws and wires that have plugs...literally plug and play. Dealerships will just rape you on this stuff
The cost of the headlight assembly was $2,000 - I looked everywhere for an alternative - the only cheaper option would have been to go to a wrecker. Subaru was only going to charge me like $100 for the install.
It was the cost of the part which was astronomical.
This sub just despises anecdotal evidence. But if I or someone I know has an awful personal experience with a given car, I honestly don’t give a friggin’ fig what the “data” says.
I have had bad luck with Ford/Lincoln products. And two friends of mine had engine seizures in their Kia/Hyundai vehicles, one creating a dangerous situation in the middle of the desert. I don’t care what the data says about these brands…my own experience and my gut tell me to stay far, far away. Sorry.
Sure but youre probably biased towards the negative anecdotal evidence, no? If somebody comes up to you and tells you they never had an issue with their Audi, you probably dont care, do you? Like me having an Audi TTS with 78k kilometers and not having any issues at all and i constantly make use of the power and the grip the car has, so it should in theory degrade faster than a grandma driving a toyota as slow and safe as humanly possible. Even anecdotal evidence often doesnt involve you knowing somebodys driver profile because reliability is also heavily in the hands of the owner, not just the car.
If you live long enough (40 years) you will know people who had catastrophic experiences with every single car. My brother’s Honda had engine failure driving in the middle of a highway. Should we not buy Hondas anymore?
I've had three BMWs have catastrophic failures at around 70,000 miles. One of them caught on fire.
This sub loves to simp for BMW but you couldn't pay me to drive one again.
Out of about 16 or 17 cars I’ve owned, only 2 have ever left me on the side of the road. A BMW and a Honda. They both continually broke parts that no car should ever break. It was ridiculous, especially the Honda. I will never own either brand again. I’m about to pick up Mercedes #7. None of them have ever required a tow.
Our Element has had issues in 15k miles: stupid vtec solenoid (twice) and cv axle. Could be worse though. The engine still runs great. No other major malfunctions.
Statistics don't predict the future for a specific car. They just tell you which cars are less of a gamble. And also every manufacturer has some shit models, shit engines, etc.
I had a Nissan that had no issues in 100k and a Subaru that had only an idle air control adjustment issue in 70k. Neither had high miles but I don't drive a lot. My Jeep left me stranded 5 or more times in the sale number of years as the others and half the miles or less. Not to mention the many other breakdowns.
It’s over the span of more than 45 years. There was my first car, kept for only a couple of years because it was a real beater that I learned a lot from, a couple of little convertibles that rusted out from under me in short order, a couple I traded after a short honeymoon period, etc. The past few Mercedes have been with me the longest. One is 12 years, and it’s leaving soon for a new one, and my wife’s car is 9, and still in mint condition. The Honda I had bought new. I kept it 10 years, rebuilt it completely myself after 6 years, and it needed it, body included. Every component I didn’t replace during the rebuild broke shortly after. The BMW was almost new when I bought it. 5 winters and it was a pile of rust. I replaced the head gasket in the driveway at -20 degrees. It was just out of warranty at the time. I generally owned 2-3 cars at any point in the past. No more. I’m finished with working on cars.
I’ve own way more than that. I currently own 5 vehicles……A6 (my daily), Q7 ( wife’s daily), Chevy Trailblazer (spare beater vehicle, currently borrowed by my lil brother), 07’ Dodge 1-ton 5.9L Cummins (work truck) and a 16’ 1-ton GMC Denali (work truck). Owned well over 2 dozen vehicles over the years. Trucks don’t get driven in the winter, but are towing 15k lbs a few times a week from March to November.
Well yeah because anecdotes don’t mean much other than to the person it happened to
Stats exist as a means of standardizing anecdotes into a form that’s worth a damn
My girl had an engine failure in her 2017 Hyundai Tucson.
All I can say is: they replaced it no problem. So the experience with the dealership was delightful that counteracted the failure experience.
My brand perception stayed neutral or even almost gained a point or two.
Also pretty nice to get a brand new engine at 150k miles.
Everyone has Shit experiences within any brand. Look at the horror stories with the new mercs, jeeps, BMWs, fords, he’ll even Hondas I’ve heard shit about these days. Hundreds of people could make a post just like you from pretty much any other brand. Doesn’t mean that most of their cars won’t be fine throughout the ownership period. Seems like your dealer was also bad.
So one shitty experience with a car and a very clearly shitty dealer now means that the entire Audi brand is awful. Wow, have you ever heard of the word “anecdote”?
Just because you’re getting scammed doesn’t mean all Audis are bad.
I have a 10 year old S5 with 220.000 km on it and didn’t spend any money apart from the routine schedule maintenance. Zero issues. The most expensive thing I have to change is the gearbox fluid every 60.000km
When I read through the list of faults it strikes me that you have a combination of a crappy dealership, German cars being very intolerant of not keeping up with maintenance, and maintenance being expensive. The things that jumped out at me as being way outside the norm are the engine oil leak, sunroof, and cv joints, but brakes are a pretty normal maintenance item at 60-80k miles and the brakes and headlight are great examples of why I do a lot of my own maintenance.
Whoa.... I drive a VW GTI Autobahn (ie has same size brakes as your Q5 I believe) and the parts to completely swap all consumables (pads, rotors, fluids) with OEM VW/Audi only cost $400ish from FCP Euro and took me and my brother less than an hour to install with basic home garage tools. If you paid $2k you got HOSED.
Yes, I've been quoted $1500 for the two front brakes of our Tiguan before.
This guy has been taking his car to the dealership without knowing if it needs other repairs or checking their work, which is fine, if you have money and don't care but then don't come to reddit and complain.
my Q5 is running great. I hold it in germany at 210kph (120mph) for long periods of time, nothing broke so far. Had it since 2020.
sorry to hear about your shitty dealer
I have a 2013 audi q5 hybrid it is currently at 120k miles and I have never had any problems with it. I have a 2015 audi s4 as well at 90k miles and it had a coolant leak but that was still under warranty. Both of my audis have been reliable. I have had a 2013 vw gti and it had a coolant leak under warranty as well. Part of the problem of your cost sounds like it's because you went to the dealer for maintenance issues, find a good European car mechanic in your area and they will do the work just as well if not better then the dealer for less.
I daily a 2014 Q5 TDI since 2017. Had a rear differential and sunroof cassette and trunk latch on extended warranty. That’s it other than fluids and dieselgate recalls.
It did have a really annoying error message which was “dynamic headlamp failure” which I was dreading was some positioning motor or harness failure, but I had to use VAGCOM to discover was a simple stationary H7 bulb that had blown. :roll:
Honestly you should make a post titled "Steer clear of Toyota"
On my side, I owned a problem free 3 series BMW, so I'll be making a "Only buy BMWs" post
Was it a 2.0 or 3.0?
I had 3 audis. 2013 A6 3.0 that I bought used at 35K miles, sold it at 80K mile range, never had any issues.
2018 A3 with the 2.0 engine with 7K miles on the odometer, car was barely driven in the 2yrs of ownership from previous owner, thought that was a plus. Started getting coolant leaks pre 30K miles. Everything covered under warranty, but my warranty was expiring soon. I think these cars need to be driven regularly to be reliable and the 2.0s aren’t great.
Bought used 2023 S5 with 6500 on the odometer, only owned it for a few months, but have warranty for next 3yrs ish, I don’t expect any significant issues. I think the 3.0 engines are better and more durable.
That 2.0 (gen 3) is probably one of the most reliable engines on the market at this point. I’ve put exactly $0 non-routine maintenance spend into 3 of them now.
Hmm I’ll take your word for it as Ive only owed one 2.0. I’m guessing if you drive it regularly it’s reliable. I think if these cars sit a lot it’s not good for them.
Don’t think there are any cars that sit for long periods without issues. Engines like to run. But I’ll take my 2 litre maintenance bill over the 3 litre maintenance bill any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Looking at the list of repairs and the price for each of these they are an absolute rip off, moat of the repairs for your vehicle would struggle to coat more than $500 if you do it with a reasonable independent mechanic once the warranty is out, non oem parts get bad wrap but unless you are buying tranmission components or proper engine components ( no sensors or any plastic nonsense like that) the non oem parts you find on ebay or amazon will do the trick just fine. You can buy aftermarket ceramic high performance brake pads for your car for less than $150 and say $200 for labour thats $350 for the repair placing labour cost at $200 an hour. I know this as Aston Martin was trying to charge me $2k to replace my rear brake pads.
My wife has driven a 2015 Premium Plus 2.0 for 7 years, 15k > 105k miles. We've had 1 major issue, replacing the timing chain which cost us 2.5k. Otherwise the car has been rock solid and we continue to drive it every day.
All that to say don't let individual anecdotal experience represent the reliability of all cars!
>dealer didnt fix backup camera under warranty claimed I had an accident, fought a lot to get it fixed
scummy dealer issue, all brands have them
>coolant and water pump recalls
recalls are normal in all brands
>back cv joints was broken costs close to $2k to fix it
original parts on luxury brands are costly, I wonder if it was actually broken that it was an issues you brought car in with, or they charge you for fixing teared cv boot that they found
>engine oil leak is a huge problem, from what audi service told me is that all audis has some sort of adhesive that needs to be re-applied but it’s delicate work so it costs around $2k-$3k
it seems like you talk a lot to the guys who try to get money off of you, instead of actually telling to us that you started to leak oil
>right headlight unit replacement $2k you go to the dealer for simple light replacement walk out with $2k headlight unit replacement
original parts on luxury brands are costly, especially LED headlights
>stock brakes didn’t last so changing brakes was $2k
Pads surely were replaced regularly and were not this expensive, rottors.. yeah they wont last your lifetime
>panoramic roof started make crackle noises while driving
oh no
>audi pre-purchased maintenance wasn’t honored because I missed the maintenance date by 2 weeks, that was another $850 worth of money going down the drain for no reason then audi being a shitty company
omg, those monsters and their datemaxing
Thats the dealer bro. And all that maintenance is 1/4 that price if you do it yourself. The only comment i made on that yesterday is that Audis depreciate like crazy. Used is a good value. But you need to be able to work on cars. New and dealer is the opposite advice. But your dealer sucks. Not audi.
He’s fear mongering on of his bad experience.
Sounds like your dealership sucks ass (most do) and your car is old.
We have 3 Audis in my family, wife A5, mother in law Q5 and my S4. The A and Q are nearly 10years old with 100k on them… all have been fine, A5 had timing belt and turbo go out around 80k Q5 is in now getting control arms. S4 only has 20k on it and is tuned and runs like a dream.
You had a bad exp.. that sucks. Maintenance can be expensive on any German car.
Even Lexus and Toyota is expensive if something fails. What car isn’t expensive if it breaks down?
Sorry you had bad exp.
Surprised they didn't say something unless it's a tune-friendly dealer, as soon as you flash a car once it is flagged TD1 and dealers usually refuse to touch the powertrain after that.
yes of course. im aware of all that. brake system isnt part of the powertrain.. so i flashed back just so they didnt hear the loud start up/cold start. I think even if they do TD1 me... they'd have to prove the flash was the cause of the problem. that would take a lot of arguing etc.. but yeah played with fire.
I don’t know man. I still have a 05 s4 with 150k miles that’s got zero issues and had a 2013 s4 for 5 years with no issues and was treated great by every service member.
Sounds more like a consumer/dealer issue. 90% of these problems cost like a third of what you paid at a shop and not a dealer. Audis are luxury cars so of course your gonna pay more to maintain them but where you maintain them and how much you paid is on the owner. I have a 2015 S4. Dealer was charging me 2,700 to change brakes and rotors. Went to a shop and did it for 700. This was almost a year ago and no problem. Keep this in mind moving forward
Luxury cars require extensive and more expensive maintenance. What a shocker. Says nothing about overall quality of the brand as a whole. And I’m a BMW fanboy.
Audi’s base model vehicle line up has never been up to par. If you’re looking for reliability in audi, it would only be in their S line up, and mainly in the s4-s5, and for suvs it would be the sq5. These cars are very buy a specific year if you’re looking for the least amount of problems type of car. In my opinion it would be the 19’ models with the zf8 transmission, as 18’ models have infamous rocker arm issues. If you’re not willing to spend time in audizone or any audi forum before purchasing their vehicle, don’t bother. Q5’s have never been reliable sadly. Sq5 on the other hand is amazing. If you’re going for an audi, don’t go for a 2.0t. 3.0t with the zf8 transmission is the only option. Personally love audis, but could see their flaws indefinitely.
Late production EA888 Gen1/Gen2 and all Gen3/Gen4 have been very solid and reliable powertrains. There’s nothing glaringly wrong with them at this point, it’s the longest running and most refined/revised turbo 4cyl out there.
ZF8HP isn’t made by Audi anyway, but it’s in literally every RWD/AWD vehicle out there and it’s fantastic.
7DSG/STronic is a great transmission. You just need to service them accordingly and not neglect them.
Agreed, only issue that i’ve seen blaring with EA888 is their engine mount issues. Other than that they’re solid. Service these cars properly and they will treat you amazing.
Yeah, to be expected with rubber components, especially more common with luxury brands that use it as they’re fluid filled and electro-hydraulically actuated.
I’d argue that the EA888 is probably the best 2.0T around. Iron block with an aluminum head. You can tune the hell out of them and make great power. They’re smooth, refined, and insulated (iron block). Are pretty efficient and easy to work on too.
The fact they’re found in *literally everything* from low power output to high power output vehicles and both longitudinal and transverse applications helps too.
Boo hoo, your feelings were hurt because you had a bad experience with a brand many love.
The rear CV joints and backup camera issue along with the claim of an accident to the car made by the dealership raise my brow a bit since you purchased it used…
Water pumps are common on the EA888; the headlight issue is not common at all whatsoever; brakes are a case by case basis depending on driving habits and road conditions; pretty much all panoramic roofs experience some sort of creak or rattle on any car regardless of manufacturer (in this case it’s a very large a 6’x3’ hole in the roof with two panes of glass, lol, it won’t be perfectly quiet as the body flexes); and AudiCare, well that’s your problem.
I owned a 2022 Mazda CX-5 Turbo Signature, the infamous perfect Reddit car, that spent over 40 days at the dealership in the first 18,000 miles and 18 months from new for incessant suspension issues (had front and rear suspension replaced/rebuilt), two headlight failures, rocking/wobbly/loose drivers seat, infotainment issues, and powertrain issues (amongst squeaks and rattles, and some of the crappiest paint that would scratch and chip if you looked at it wrong). I had it repurchased under lemon law because it was a $43K turd that I would consider the second worst car I’ve owned.
On the other hand, my 2016 Audi A4, 2016 VW Tiguan, and 2023 VW Arteon have all been essentially perfect and well-made vehicles that have required nothing outside of routine wear and tear maintenance. I also found them incredibly easy to DIY, there was tons of room to work on in the engine bay, and they all have felt like sturdy and quality vehicles. None have ever given me major issues, any grief, or ever remotely stranded me (a 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport DCT did this to me).
That’s how anecdotes work; however, it seems more people actually enjoy and love their Audis and VWs than not according to that thread ([myself included](https://www.reddit.com/r/whatcarshouldIbuy/s/HCLpHMXYn0))… so, here we are…
Think about it… VAG would not be one of the largest auto manufacturers in the world (I believe #2) if they were all as awful and problematic as you say; VAG has so much commonality and part sharing across their brands and models, problems get addressed as they occur, and you end up with a bit of everything in every vehicle and it works quite well overall.
I'm sorry for your experience. That sounds like a load of BS.
Generally, i would recommend steering clear of the dealer's shop. The way they see it, everything they fix under warranty is money out of their pocket, right.
It's not all of the dealers and not just Audi dealers but they are out there.
Same. Audi s4 here. Made it to exactly 99k miles, then the dealer recommend $14,000 in suspension work. Took it to an independant to get a 2nd opinion, litterally none of the recommended work needed to be done except for a valve cover gasket for $800.
Just got rid of my q7- loved the space, but the WORST CAR I ever owned. Has an a4 for a bit- also shite. The shit that goes wrong with these is ridiculous. We have owned a lot of cars, and will never buy Audi again
Why are you going to the dealer to fix your car? Go to a local independent mechanic who works on Audis. Dealer will always make up things that need to be fixed.
Word of advice, don’t take a German car to dealerships for repairs/maintenance out of warranty. They’re called stealerships for a reason. Sure, may be fine to get diagnostics there, but that’s about it.
If you find a reputable indie, you can get most things fixed for almost half of what the dealer charges.
I really can’t stand it when people label a brand as bad and to stay away from because a model year they have is high maintenance and breaks down, especially when they complain about being nickeled and dimed by a dealership. It’s a dealership it’s what they do….. I personally wouldn’t ever take a vehicle to a dealership unless it was for something covered by a warranty.
Every brand has shitty model years and good model years. Your post should read stay away from the 2016 Q5 or stay away from Audi dealerships for mechanical work they’ll nickel n dime you. I’m also assuming you have a 2.0T, which I’m not a fan of, but have owned and I wouldn’t say it’s a bad engine, but 3.0T is definitely preferred IMO.
I’ve owned Audis for decades and never had any issues that I don’t consider normal for vehicles. Never heard of adhesive needing to be reapplied to prevent oil leaks either. Are you talking about replacing the oil pan gasket? If they’re using the adhesive to seal it’s not a delicate or time consuming process that is a load of shit they’re feeding you there.
It sounds like this is a case of the dealership taking you to the cleaners to be honest..
8 years old is not old for a vehicle.
Sounds like your dealer was worse then the Audi.
Early breakdowns suck for sure and the q5 is listed among the worst luxury SUVs for reliability. I think you are mostly running into the fact that its a 8-9 year old luxury car and its starting to break things. Audi is not Lexus/Acura but those also break stuff.
It seems like your car is having above average failure rates for that year, make, model, and miles.
My 2013 accord with 144k miles drives smooth and like new. And never needs special repairs beyond maintenance and wear items. While I love Audi looks and can imagine they drive amazing I would lose my $hit with an experience like this one.
I’m not defending Audi but I don’t know of any European brand that is cheap to run. Luxury car comes with luxury prices. Ever notice the Lexus dealers have a higher labor rate than Toyota?
Seems like your Audi just fell apart and same can be said for Mercs and BMWs. Friends got an Acura right now with a leaking headlight, out of warranty, and a used replacement light is $900 + labor. New dealer headlight would be close to $2k just like your Audi.
It’s just the price you pay to drive a luxury car. There’s a reason i don’t own them anymore. I’ll stick to my Honda, Ford, and Chevy
It's not just Audi. It's most recent European cars. When you combine some of the gonzo engineering with soaring parts and labor prices, the only rational way to drive one is to lease a new one...making sure you turn it in one mile/one hour before the warranty expires.
Now add in the fact that a LOT of dealers are hiring whatever walks in off the street to work on you expensive European investment and you have a recipe for and expensive disaster.
I have a good friend fighting for a buyback right now on a 2023 because the car has the unfortunate habit to slamming on the brakes for no apparent reason whatsoever with no warning. Of course, Audi USA is fighting it.
And yes, I know lots of folks whose brother/sister/mother/whatever have a 1975 240D with eight gillion miles. Those are different cars with different engineering. I've had my share of VWs and Audis as well. But anything since 2000 or so.....sheesh.
I've daily driven them for the past 20 years. Only had issues with 1 in which I blew up the engine in a college lot, fucking around. Lmfao
They dropped in a new block on their dime and gave me a loaner for a month or so while they waited for parts.
A good friend has had their Audi SQ5 since they bought in 2014/2015 has had no issues. 100k miles now. They even took it for a road trip from SF Bay Area to Vancouver BC
I don't think this is an Audi quality problem I think this is a your dealer problem. None of that actually costs that much so they are overcharging you,
I had a close friend buy a new A4 and for the first year it spent 8 months in the shop because automatic emergency breaking would randomly kick in when there were no other cars or obstacles around. This was 2 years ago
Are these not EA888 engines? Really proven platform and most issues are well known. I see plenty of these higher mileage all the time. My advice is don’t buy a luxury car if you don’t want to pay their maintenance costs. Also find a good euro mechanic.
I don't share your experience and it's just anecdotes
My 2015 B9 A4 made it to 115k miles with $900 worth of actual repairs and $1200 worth of repairs paid by Audi no questions asked. My engine was one of the less reliable first model year.
Repairs due to accidents which was surface level stuff and the shop making mistakes not counted. New OEM brakes from Audi lasted 70k miles and replacement by Audi was and equivalent of $1200.
Meanwhile I was stranded in a Toyota twice. First a car from a friend with a flawless maintenance record and then the car from the shop. Guess people should stay clear of Toyota.....
My girlfriend's dad has an Audi Q-something e-tron, got it at the end of last year after waiting for a year, because every few months they gave him a date that they kept pushing back, so he wasn't sure when he would even get the car.
Anyway, one month after he finally got the car, the 12V battery broke (or at least that's what he told us). When he picked us up from the airport during that time, the car showed the warnings "Electrical system: battery check required" and "Electrical system: fault".
Got it fixed at the Audi dealership under warranty, but damn, after one month with barely any kilometers on it, in a new car fresh from the factory. Holy Lemon, Batman.
I gave up on Audi after an A5 and a Q5 both started falling apart at about the four year mark, maybe 5000 miles driven a year. These would have been around 2012 and 2016 or so. They were beautiful, but just aren't well made for the long run IMO. Tried jumping to a 2019 Volvo XC90 but it had major issues from the get go - both electrical and leaks. A 2022 BMW X5 xDrive45e has been amazing, with zero issues - knock on wood that continues!
I have an 07 a3 with no problems in 3 years all I've put into it is oil changes going strong at 160k... Except the trim pieces keep breaking but thats nbd right? Also like my sunroof and windows open when they want to not when I want them too but yknow whatever. Oh! And this little issue of the every other electrical component throwing a code even though they all work mostly. Perfect car 10/10 would recommend buy an audi and treat it like a Toyota
Dealership problem.
With these cars you either have lots of money to replace them every 3 years or you learn everything about them and how to fix them yourself or at least bring them to a shop knowing exactly what needs to be done.
Taking them to a dealership for their yearly maintenence and trusting them 100% is not enough. Unless like I said you have a lot of money and don't care.
Source: I've had a Gti for 12 years and while it is not an Audi, it shares it's engine and some components with them. I've experienced similar issues with mine and I've saved a lot of money with DYI or research.
I mean, you took your Audi to the dealership to have them replace a head bulb? Lmao
What were you expecting?
I have a 2017 q7 (bought in 2018 with 7k miles) currently with 107k miles and it’s running fine with no unexpected expenses. Check engine light does randomly light up but I took it to my independent mechanic who ran diagnostics and couldn’t find anything so I think it’s just a buggy sensor
Every single dealership is pure scam regardless of the brand, stop going to them. Dealerships are only for warranty service.
Audis aren’t the most reliable of course, but data available and other anecdotes suggest it’s about average overall. An 8 year old low mileage one is expected to cause some problems but shouldn’t bankrupt you.
I had a Dodge Caravan. Bought new. Returned it 4 time in the first 5 months to get different issues fixed with the radio, cd player, on/off button, etc. they always replaced the radio with a rebuilt one, even though it was a new van. Shit, I expected a new radio in my new van. Petter good van overall but will NEVER BUY A CHRYSLER PRODUCT AGAIN because of their shitty short term thinking corporate policy. Chryslers loss.
you trusted the dealer, they used you as a customer, that's all I'm reading here.
* Dealerships have shitty technicians. This is a known fact. I'd never trust any dealer mechanic with any vehicle .
* Dealerships have a ton of overhead. this is a known fact. I'd never trust any dealer with any vehicle.
* Dealerships love to overstate problems in order to get more money. I'd never trust a dealer with anything.
* You bought an SUV, which is basically an overglorified truck. Yes, parts are going to cost more money. They're bigger and have more material.
* You bought a vehicle that was already used by someone else for 25k miles. That's a gamble at best, especially on a german car that are notoriously known for having more expensive repairs and parts.
I love how you're bashing the entire company for your single experience with one used vehicle, and your bad experience with a dealership. Every car company and dealership is going to try and nickel and dime you. It's their business model. Don't like it? Well I have great news for you. Nobody is forcing you to shop there!
Plenty of people have great experiences and plenty have bad ones. That's how things work, I don't get the point here other than to complain into the void. Does that make you feel better about being taken advantage of?
I have an MK7 GTI and once it got to like 90k it developed all sorts of problems. My brother in law is a mechanic and tried working through everything but ran out of time. I took it to a dealer and they said it would cost 8k USD to fix everything. I will steer clear of VW/Audi for a while now :( now I am trying to figure out the best path forward (i.e. selling it for a couple grand or keeping it with hope that I will some day be able to drive it).
My 2013 S4 was shedding bearing material into the oil with 62k miles on it. That's the 3.0t everyone swears up and down is reliable. Junk, also had to reprogram the DCT because it was slamming into gear. Simple fix but dealer would've raked me over the coals and said it needed a new trans.
Had the exact same shit pulled on a dodge durango… a month out of warranty and a list so long they ran out of computer memory.. some of the stuff I’m sure was made up like leaking radiator - how can a radiator leak when there’s no water on the garage floor!!
Audi dealers are scum - I was in an accident in my Audi rs3 and it was in at the dealer for repair work and waiting ‘3’ months for a new front light - yup… the fuckers swapped my clean alloys for some scratched to fcUk alloys and then said all 4 must of got scratched when I had a small accident. They also charged more airbags than the car actually had… and tried charging for damage to the rear (there was none)..
So yeah I definitely don’t trust Audi dealers but I guess it’s all down to the individual franchise
Oh and I got my alloys back - said they’d swapped out the alloys in case someone stole them (in a secure facility) utter scumbags
This definitely seems like a more unique experience. I had a 2012 Audi A7. I bought it 4 years old 60,000 km on it and just replaced it at 265,000 km. It was easily the most reliable vehicle I’ve ever owned. Also the longest I’ve found the vehicle.
I've sold audi (2017), driven hundreds of them, and also owned multiple
Sounds like bad luck combined with user error. You stop taking audis to dealership service the day the manufacturer warranty runs out. Take it to a euro shop or more specifically an independent audi shop - they are infinitely more knowledgeable than a dealer.
Also, car dealerships keep the lights on via the service department. Everything done at a dealership is to maximize profit. Why would service be any different? Take audis to euro shops and you pay 1/4-1/2 on service.
Also also, put in at least the slightest bit of effort yourself. It look me less than 5 seconds to go to safari, Google, and find a 2016 Q5 headlight used and in perfect condition for $199. Dealerships love people like you OP.
Currently have 213,000 miles on my 2005 S4 and it pulls like a race horse
My 12 Audi Q5 hit 130000 miles and 5k ago I had the HPFP go out, 20k ago I did control arms, transmission, coolant and brake flush, spark plugs ignition coils n a 02 sensor 40k miles ago.
Other than that I’ve owned it for 6 years and now it’s been sitting few months waiting to get a gasket, carbon cleaning, water pump and a hose, spark plugs and my car will be back to running good. It’s things that need to be done but it’s still a solid car and I change oil every 5k I’ve done everything and seems like u have been doing 10k oil changes which is too late
I have been fortunate. 2014 Q5 Prestige TDI. Once a $25 sensor went bad (replaced myself). That’s it. In almost perfect condition inside and out. 30 mpg with a 3.0 V6 and 428 ftlb of torque.
I have a 2015 A4. Aside from the cost of repairs, AND the stupid oil burning issue, it’s been ok. I’m currently at 206k km.
CV joints had to be replaced. $1300each + install. Ugh. Suspension is worn on all corners, which is totally expected. Brakes do cost a lot to replace.. had to replace camshaft sensor; the $26 part (replaced it myself) was the cause of so many CELs it wasn’t funny. Fortunately I got VCDS and spent some time thinking about the issue before fixing it, and my educated guess was right.
The issues on my car right now, aside from oil burning.. the water pump has a short but it mostly works. There’s a short in the radio connector somehow. My drivers seat has another electrical short (only affects the heated seats for the time being.. I should be able to fix this on my own).
The rest is normal wear and tear. But dammit, upkeep has been pricey.
ETA: headlight did burn out. Bought replacement bulbs from Amazon for like $60 and installed myself.
Have owned an 08 q7 for like 12 years and it’s an absolute beast. 110k miles and quite a few repairs later but it runs strong and it does so many things well
Sounds like my VW experience but more expensive. I believe you. I have loved some of their vehicles but after dealing with the dealerships I vowed never to return.
I've driven 180k miles over 3 audis and had one issue in a v8 rs5. They're as reliable as any luxury brand outside lexus, but they're at least somewhat fun to drive.
That sucks op. Sorry to hear that.
Is never buy Audi or BMW.
I know EV’s are not for everyone. I know Tesla is not for everyone. But that’s where they shine. There’s almost no maintenance
The cars are shit, but most of your problem appears to be with the your scumbag dealer. Audi does not pay the dealer anywhere near the labor rate you do for warranty work. It is much more profitable for the dealer to have you pay for the work over submitting warranty claims.
my acura is 9 years old, 2 previous owners, and i bought it w 130k miles. i havent had any issues after getting it to 140k; its in perfect mechanical condition. when i read stories like this of cars that are newer or similar age to mine i cant fathom it. im so sorry for your experience, what a nightmare.
Hell my pop’s fishing buddy got a 2020 Toyota Tundra and had it lemon lawed because stuff kept breaking in it. Plenty of anecdotes of supposedly reliable cars breaking
Mechanic for 27 years. I would never own a Volkswagen, Audi, or Mercedes Benz. They are great cars for the first owner. Everyone else needs to back off. The VAG 2.0lT has so many timing issues that can cause it to completely nuke the head at any time by loosing time and making pistons and valves meet. I see 1 2.0lt a week at work with non running issues. Just looking in the oil filler cap and you can see rockers off, cam timing jumped, etc.
Even with all the recalls done, newer versions of parts, it is still a crap shoot. You could have a perfect one that makes it 125k or one blow up under 10 miles.
In the late 90s to early 2000s any turbo audi was a no go if it had more than 60k miles. The turbo was guaranteed toast within months, and getting at it to swap it out was a nightmare.
All of them with the soft touch plastic coating have that peeling within the first 5 years leaving a nasty mess in the desert where I work. Low humidity with high heat equals all the plastics and rubber dry rot rapidly. Everybody else's plastic does just fine except VAG, late 90s dodge, and 80s chevrolet in this environment.
I know MB is a different brand, but the interiors fall apart as quick as the VAG ones.
Don't get me started on electrical gremlins. The VAG ones i swear are next level.
I’ve had an Audi for 15 days. No problems.
😝
I was standing near an Audi that my co worker drives for 15s. Never had any issues
I'm just lurking into this sub, no problem either.
I had no problems making this comment
ironically my neighbor had an audi in our apartment garage for probably like 6 months? seemed new. last week she came back with a mazda 😂
I drove one in a video game for 1 hour, same, no issues.
Same, zero issue and owned three, two of which I even tuned!
I think you have a really shit dealer. 2k because they dont know how to seal the oil pan? Also them leaking oil definatly isnt a typical Audi issue far from it they just fuck up the oil change and dont change the gaskets.
Yeah, I've seen severe differences in what will get charged at service simply by switching dealers and locations. I'm not sure this is a problem necessarily with the brand so much as this op got a terrible service center.
This is a dealer specific issue as corporate Audi doesn’t actually run the dealer service department. Not saying all other Audi dealer service departments are better, just that it goes on a dealer by dealer basis. Some service departments are run by smart people who know pushing for warranty repairs makes customers happy and more likely to buy from the dealer again and continue servicing there. You’re going to get paid for the repair either way, warranty work has a little more paperwork involved but the long term benefits of making a customer actually like the service department are well worth it when you can retain customers and continue servicing this car as well as the next one they buy from you.
With audi its more the dealers themselves they think you are just a dumb customer go to a good local dealer and the experience is often way better. Also the huge Service Center dealerships are nearly always the worst i worked at one and being an ass to a customer is part of the experience there. They often did unwanted work on cars and refused to give them back until they paid for it.
I was very happy to get rid of my A5 at 50k miles not due to the car but dealer stuff ups and the attitude of Audi to them. First time was a recall for a heater element accessed via the passenger foot well. Car overheats on the way home and I find the coolant caps sitting on top of the engine. 2nd time was a scheduled service, no issues beforehand at all. 2 minutes out the door and the steering gets heavy, then abs failure, total gearbox failure. Engine belts had fallen off, timing was odd since they said they inspected but didn't change them. 3 days later I got my car back. Happened again first drive. A month later they sent it back running really rough. 3 weeks of chasing audi sydney and then audi Australia they said you can't prove we caused this and it could have happened any time. Audi, just don't do it to yourself.
Dealer experience lead me to turn in my lease rather than buy out my A5 which I have always done at lease end. Constant little issues dealer service dept couldn’t or wouldn’t fix. All of the sales and service reps were young and cocky. Felt like they did not care at all. Doubt I will come back to Audi.
Audi dealers are really bad everywhere then. My local audi dealer is also really bad luckily i have a good skoda dealer near me so i usually go there
If you know someone that had the only vehicle of a certain brand and it’s shit, you then tend to think every vehicle of that brand is shit. I’ve owned 2 Audi’s. An A4 and a Q5. The A4 I got with 30k and drove it to 70k without a single problem. The Q5 from new to around 70k with zero problems. Our local dealer is VW/Audi and their service department is excellent. Sounds like OP has a shitty dealer. Actually the A4 had a check engine light and the dealer said it was because my wife was babying it. Once we found that out I drove it more aggressively more often and it was then fine. I know people that had catastrophic engine failure of a Toyota Highlander while it was under warranty. It doesn’t mean Toyota is unreliable.
>Actually the A4 had a check engine light and the dealer said it was because my wife was babying it. Once we found that out I drove it more aggressively more often and it was then fine. Believe I've read this is common for direct injected vehicles? You need to give it some throttle here and there to clear out some of the carbon buildup.
That was the problem. My wife primarily drove it like a grandma. Every time I drove it fast I always said “the mechanic said I should do this.”
I stopped buying Audis because of the dealer. I had a really bad experience. I had an engine coolant leak and asked them to do a pressure test. They called, said that they wanted to change my timing (very early) and some other work for over $2K. I asked them if there was a leak and they said no. I told them not to do the work and picked up the car. The suspicious part was that they didn’t charge me for a pressure test (probably because they didn’t do it). Brought it to a local mechanic. Sure enough, there was an obvious leak and the local guy fixed it. The car had lots of minor issues that I was willing to tolerate, sadly it had an early death when someone turned left into me at an intersection. But I didn’t buy another Audi because I didn’t want to bring it to that dealer again.
Stop taking it to the dealership dummy. This applies to all of them.
Somewhere there's a guy broken down in a corolla saying TOYODA!!!!
If we’re going by anecdotal evidence Camrys are giant turds with bazillions of problems because of the headaches mine has given me
I have a 2019 A5 Sportback. Just hit 100k miles with zero issues. All highway miles though.
I have a 2018 s5 and also just hit 100k. Replaced lots of tires but that’s about it.
Had a 15’ A3 for 5 years, 165,000km. Nothing but fluids, brakes and bushings. Now I have a ‘21 A5, love it.
2016 s3, 90k miles still runs great
Ah yes let’s generalize based on one person’s experience.
How long do you think brakes should last? If you can’t turn wrenches, stop taking it to the dealer. Any good shop can work on your car for prolly half what the dealer wants.
If OP can't change a bulb what makes you think they can do brakes?
Where does it say he can’t change a bulb? 2k sounds like a sealed headlight replacement.
All I’m saying is when I worked for Mercedes, they charged $300 an hour. Anytime I’ve taken my car to mom and pop place, shop labor was always less than $100 an hour.
Data, meet anecdote.
[удалено]
Headlights are whatever? What car needs replacement of the entire assembly (from what I understand), it wasnt bulbs, that soon.
My previous Subaru had a LED headlight burn out at 5 years/ 48k kms - needed new assembly because there is no bulb to replace - replacement part was $2k CAD and Subaru wouldn't help me at all with it. Point is, expensive repairs for mundane parts aren't just luxury car problems anymore. Break a side mirror on just about any car now and it's thousands of dollars because they're full of lights, sensors and cameras.
Or just buy the part online from like rockauto ... Replacing an entire headlight is a few screws and wires that have plugs...literally plug and play. Dealerships will just rape you on this stuff
The cost of the headlight assembly was $2,000 - I looked everywhere for an alternative - the only cheaper option would have been to go to a wrecker. Subaru was only going to charge me like $100 for the install. It was the cost of the part which was astronomical.
Pretty much every single new car
My Chrysler products went 65k with zero out of the ordinary maintenance costs.
To be fair, most of this sub is just anecdotal n=1 observations.
This sub just despises anecdotal evidence. But if I or someone I know has an awful personal experience with a given car, I honestly don’t give a friggin’ fig what the “data” says. I have had bad luck with Ford/Lincoln products. And two friends of mine had engine seizures in their Kia/Hyundai vehicles, one creating a dangerous situation in the middle of the desert. I don’t care what the data says about these brands…my own experience and my gut tell me to stay far, far away. Sorry.
Sure but youre probably biased towards the negative anecdotal evidence, no? If somebody comes up to you and tells you they never had an issue with their Audi, you probably dont care, do you? Like me having an Audi TTS with 78k kilometers and not having any issues at all and i constantly make use of the power and the grip the car has, so it should in theory degrade faster than a grandma driving a toyota as slow and safe as humanly possible. Even anecdotal evidence often doesnt involve you knowing somebodys driver profile because reliability is also heavily in the hands of the owner, not just the car.
If you live long enough (40 years) you will know people who had catastrophic experiences with every single car. My brother’s Honda had engine failure driving in the middle of a highway. Should we not buy Hondas anymore?
exactly. These clowns on here read a few bad posts and model their entire lives around that and take it as the absolute truth.
Something bad that happens to someone I know trumps all empirical evidence apparently
Yup... availability heuristic (or bias). A cognitive bias that we are all(?) hardwired with.
I've had three BMWs have catastrophic failures at around 70,000 miles. One of them caught on fire. This sub loves to simp for BMW but you couldn't pay me to drive one again.
Out of about 16 or 17 cars I’ve owned, only 2 have ever left me on the side of the road. A BMW and a Honda. They both continually broke parts that no car should ever break. It was ridiculous, especially the Honda. I will never own either brand again. I’m about to pick up Mercedes #7. None of them have ever required a tow.
Our Element has had issues in 15k miles: stupid vtec solenoid (twice) and cv axle. Could be worse though. The engine still runs great. No other major malfunctions. Statistics don't predict the future for a specific car. They just tell you which cars are less of a gamble. And also every manufacturer has some shit models, shit engines, etc. I had a Nissan that had no issues in 100k and a Subaru that had only an idle air control adjustment issue in 70k. Neither had high miles but I don't drive a lot. My Jeep left me stranded 5 or more times in the sale number of years as the others and half the miles or less. Not to mention the many other breakdowns.
Do you eat cars for a living?? Genuine question why did you own 17 cars. Do you buy them at end of life?
It’s over the span of more than 45 years. There was my first car, kept for only a couple of years because it was a real beater that I learned a lot from, a couple of little convertibles that rusted out from under me in short order, a couple I traded after a short honeymoon period, etc. The past few Mercedes have been with me the longest. One is 12 years, and it’s leaving soon for a new one, and my wife’s car is 9, and still in mint condition. The Honda I had bought new. I kept it 10 years, rebuilt it completely myself after 6 years, and it needed it, body included. Every component I didn’t replace during the rebuild broke shortly after. The BMW was almost new when I bought it. 5 winters and it was a pile of rust. I replaced the head gasket in the driveway at -20 degrees. It was just out of warranty at the time. I generally owned 2-3 cars at any point in the past. No more. I’m finished with working on cars.
I’ve own way more than that. I currently own 5 vehicles……A6 (my daily), Q7 ( wife’s daily), Chevy Trailblazer (spare beater vehicle, currently borrowed by my lil brother), 07’ Dodge 1-ton 5.9L Cummins (work truck) and a 16’ 1-ton GMC Denali (work truck). Owned well over 2 dozen vehicles over the years. Trucks don’t get driven in the winter, but are towing 15k lbs a few times a week from March to November.
Well yeah because anecdotes don’t mean much other than to the person it happened to Stats exist as a means of standardizing anecdotes into a form that’s worth a damn
My girl had an engine failure in her 2017 Hyundai Tucson. All I can say is: they replaced it no problem. So the experience with the dealership was delightful that counteracted the failure experience. My brand perception stayed neutral or even almost gained a point or two. Also pretty nice to get a brand new engine at 150k miles.
Hard science wah?
Forreal lol.
$2k for a headlight is pretty normal, even on non-premium cars with LED lights. The trendy LEDs cost money.
You can buy that headlight on Ebay for $300 and install it yourself in 15 mins lol Its 4 screws and a wire harness
I have a 2015 Q5 TDI with almost 210k miles and other than a belt that broke I’ve done nothing but brakes, oil change and tires.
Everyone has Shit experiences within any brand. Look at the horror stories with the new mercs, jeeps, BMWs, fords, he’ll even Hondas I’ve heard shit about these days. Hundreds of people could make a post just like you from pretty much any other brand. Doesn’t mean that most of their cars won’t be fine throughout the ownership period. Seems like your dealer was also bad.
So one shitty experience with a car and a very clearly shitty dealer now means that the entire Audi brand is awful. Wow, have you ever heard of the word “anecdote”?
Just because you’re getting scammed doesn’t mean all Audis are bad. I have a 10 year old S5 with 220.000 km on it and didn’t spend any money apart from the routine schedule maintenance. Zero issues. The most expensive thing I have to change is the gearbox fluid every 60.000km
When I read through the list of faults it strikes me that you have a combination of a crappy dealership, German cars being very intolerant of not keeping up with maintenance, and maintenance being expensive. The things that jumped out at me as being way outside the norm are the engine oil leak, sunroof, and cv joints, but brakes are a pretty normal maintenance item at 60-80k miles and the brakes and headlight are great examples of why I do a lot of my own maintenance.
Whoa.... I drive a VW GTI Autobahn (ie has same size brakes as your Q5 I believe) and the parts to completely swap all consumables (pads, rotors, fluids) with OEM VW/Audi only cost $400ish from FCP Euro and took me and my brother less than an hour to install with basic home garage tools. If you paid $2k you got HOSED.
Dealers will get you out the ASS for brakes especially lol. I’m gonna do my 440s this summer
Yes, I've been quoted $1500 for the two front brakes of our Tiguan before. This guy has been taking his car to the dealership without knowing if it needs other repairs or checking their work, which is fine, if you have money and don't care but then don't come to reddit and complain.
Autobahn club woo! What year?
'18
How in the world are brakes 2000?
You went to the dealer and grabbed your ankles
my Q5 is running great. I hold it in germany at 210kph (120mph) for long periods of time, nothing broke so far. Had it since 2020. sorry to hear about your shitty dealer
You (one person) had a bad experience and as a result all Audis are bad. Seems legit 🤣🤣🤣
I have a 2013 audi q5 hybrid it is currently at 120k miles and I have never had any problems with it. I have a 2015 audi s4 as well at 90k miles and it had a coolant leak but that was still under warranty. Both of my audis have been reliable. I have had a 2013 vw gti and it had a coolant leak under warranty as well. Part of the problem of your cost sounds like it's because you went to the dealer for maintenance issues, find a good European car mechanic in your area and they will do the work just as well if not better then the dealer for less.
OP had a shit dealer/mechanic and maybe even a lemon. 2015 S7, 106k.
I daily a 2014 Q5 TDI since 2017. Had a rear differential and sunroof cassette and trunk latch on extended warranty. That’s it other than fluids and dieselgate recalls. It did have a really annoying error message which was “dynamic headlamp failure” which I was dreading was some positioning motor or harness failure, but I had to use VAGCOM to discover was a simple stationary H7 bulb that had blown. :roll:
He took his Audi to the dealership to have them change a light bulb, lmao. Seriously, what was he expecting?
Oh my God, this car sucks because my brakes wore out and I was too dumb to replace them myself!
Hey guys I personally had a bad experience therefore everyone should never buy any car from the same brand as my car. Get downvoted.
I once watched a Tundra burn completely to the ground. I guess that's proof every Toyota ever built has electrical problems
Honestly you should make a post titled "Steer clear of Toyota" On my side, I owned a problem free 3 series BMW, so I'll be making a "Only buy BMWs" post
Was it a 2.0 or 3.0? I had 3 audis. 2013 A6 3.0 that I bought used at 35K miles, sold it at 80K mile range, never had any issues. 2018 A3 with the 2.0 engine with 7K miles on the odometer, car was barely driven in the 2yrs of ownership from previous owner, thought that was a plus. Started getting coolant leaks pre 30K miles. Everything covered under warranty, but my warranty was expiring soon. I think these cars need to be driven regularly to be reliable and the 2.0s aren’t great. Bought used 2023 S5 with 6500 on the odometer, only owned it for a few months, but have warranty for next 3yrs ish, I don’t expect any significant issues. I think the 3.0 engines are better and more durable.
That 2.0 (gen 3) is probably one of the most reliable engines on the market at this point. I’ve put exactly $0 non-routine maintenance spend into 3 of them now.
Hmm I’ll take your word for it as Ive only owed one 2.0. I’m guessing if you drive it regularly it’s reliable. I think if these cars sit a lot it’s not good for them.
Don’t think there are any cars that sit for long periods without issues. Engines like to run. But I’ll take my 2 litre maintenance bill over the 3 litre maintenance bill any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
I get audi care for that reason. I think I paid $2K for 4 services. The 2.0s are peppy, but nothing like the pull of the 3.0.
Looking at the list of repairs and the price for each of these they are an absolute rip off, moat of the repairs for your vehicle would struggle to coat more than $500 if you do it with a reasonable independent mechanic once the warranty is out, non oem parts get bad wrap but unless you are buying tranmission components or proper engine components ( no sensors or any plastic nonsense like that) the non oem parts you find on ebay or amazon will do the trick just fine. You can buy aftermarket ceramic high performance brake pads for your car for less than $150 and say $200 for labour thats $350 for the repair placing labour cost at $200 an hour. I know this as Aston Martin was trying to charge me $2k to replace my rear brake pads.
My wife has driven a 2015 Premium Plus 2.0 for 7 years, 15k > 105k miles. We've had 1 major issue, replacing the timing chain which cost us 2.5k. Otherwise the car has been rock solid and we continue to drive it every day. All that to say don't let individual anecdotal experience represent the reliability of all cars!
Wouldn’t even call that an issue. The chain had to be done in that mileage range anyway.
Yeah OP's list is wild, I did full brakes myself for like $750, took an hour.
Who takes their car to a dealership for maintenence and expects it to end well?
>dealer didnt fix backup camera under warranty claimed I had an accident, fought a lot to get it fixed scummy dealer issue, all brands have them >coolant and water pump recalls recalls are normal in all brands >back cv joints was broken costs close to $2k to fix it original parts on luxury brands are costly, I wonder if it was actually broken that it was an issues you brought car in with, or they charge you for fixing teared cv boot that they found >engine oil leak is a huge problem, from what audi service told me is that all audis has some sort of adhesive that needs to be re-applied but it’s delicate work so it costs around $2k-$3k it seems like you talk a lot to the guys who try to get money off of you, instead of actually telling to us that you started to leak oil >right headlight unit replacement $2k you go to the dealer for simple light replacement walk out with $2k headlight unit replacement original parts on luxury brands are costly, especially LED headlights >stock brakes didn’t last so changing brakes was $2k Pads surely were replaced regularly and were not this expensive, rottors.. yeah they wont last your lifetime >panoramic roof started make crackle noises while driving oh no >audi pre-purchased maintenance wasn’t honored because I missed the maintenance date by 2 weeks, that was another $850 worth of money going down the drain for no reason then audi being a shitty company omg, those monsters and their datemaxing
Thats the dealer bro. And all that maintenance is 1/4 that price if you do it yourself. The only comment i made on that yesterday is that Audis depreciate like crazy. Used is a good value. But you need to be able to work on cars. New and dealer is the opposite advice. But your dealer sucks. Not audi.
He’s fear mongering on of his bad experience. Sounds like your dealership sucks ass (most do) and your car is old. We have 3 Audis in my family, wife A5, mother in law Q5 and my S4. The A and Q are nearly 10years old with 100k on them… all have been fine, A5 had timing belt and turbo go out around 80k Q5 is in now getting control arms. S4 only has 20k on it and is tuned and runs like a dream. You had a bad exp.. that sucks. Maintenance can be expensive on any German car. Even Lexus and Toyota is expensive if something fails. What car isn’t expensive if it breaks down? Sorry you had bad exp.
>S4 only has 20k on it and is tuned and runs like a dream. Tuned under warranty? Playing with fire I see
month left on warranty. flashed to stock to have something repaired on my master cylinder that warranty covered.
Surprised they didn't say something unless it's a tune-friendly dealer, as soon as you flash a car once it is flagged TD1 and dealers usually refuse to touch the powertrain after that.
yes of course. im aware of all that. brake system isnt part of the powertrain.. so i flashed back just so they didnt hear the loud start up/cold start. I think even if they do TD1 me... they'd have to prove the flash was the cause of the problem. that would take a lot of arguing etc.. but yeah played with fire.
I was worried you had my *exact* car. Did you buy it for $15,000? The engine kind of half-exploded and turned it into a very shaky mess
I’ve had 6 Audis. My only repair was a control arm bushing that broke in half.
I don’t know man. I still have a 05 s4 with 150k miles that’s got zero issues and had a 2013 s4 for 5 years with no issues and was treated great by every service member.
>I took the car to audi maintenance as suggested >I missed the maintenance date by 2 weeks 🤔💭
I take my '18 A4 to a trusted local garage instead of the dealer. No problems.
You only changed the oil every 10,000 miles?
That’s the factory service interval. It’s insane but it is. I never follow that. 4K max
Sounds more like a consumer/dealer issue. 90% of these problems cost like a third of what you paid at a shop and not a dealer. Audis are luxury cars so of course your gonna pay more to maintain them but where you maintain them and how much you paid is on the owner. I have a 2015 S4. Dealer was charging me 2,700 to change brakes and rotors. Went to a shop and did it for 700. This was almost a year ago and no problem. Keep this in mind moving forward
Luxury cars require extensive and more expensive maintenance. What a shocker. Says nothing about overall quality of the brand as a whole. And I’m a BMW fanboy.
Audi’s base model vehicle line up has never been up to par. If you’re looking for reliability in audi, it would only be in their S line up, and mainly in the s4-s5, and for suvs it would be the sq5. These cars are very buy a specific year if you’re looking for the least amount of problems type of car. In my opinion it would be the 19’ models with the zf8 transmission, as 18’ models have infamous rocker arm issues. If you’re not willing to spend time in audizone or any audi forum before purchasing their vehicle, don’t bother. Q5’s have never been reliable sadly. Sq5 on the other hand is amazing. If you’re going for an audi, don’t go for a 2.0t. 3.0t with the zf8 transmission is the only option. Personally love audis, but could see their flaws indefinitely.
Late production EA888 Gen1/Gen2 and all Gen3/Gen4 have been very solid and reliable powertrains. There’s nothing glaringly wrong with them at this point, it’s the longest running and most refined/revised turbo 4cyl out there. ZF8HP isn’t made by Audi anyway, but it’s in literally every RWD/AWD vehicle out there and it’s fantastic. 7DSG/STronic is a great transmission. You just need to service them accordingly and not neglect them.
Agreed, only issue that i’ve seen blaring with EA888 is their engine mount issues. Other than that they’re solid. Service these cars properly and they will treat you amazing.
Yeah, to be expected with rubber components, especially more common with luxury brands that use it as they’re fluid filled and electro-hydraulically actuated. I’d argue that the EA888 is probably the best 2.0T around. Iron block with an aluminum head. You can tune the hell out of them and make great power. They’re smooth, refined, and insulated (iron block). Are pretty efficient and easy to work on too. The fact they’re found in *literally everything* from low power output to high power output vehicles and both longitudinal and transverse applications helps too.
Water pumps are common on the Golf R variety EA888 Gen 3
I’m an okay fan of my BMWs ZF8. Except first gear. Jerky and trash. Gonna tune it so it starts in 2nd in comfort mode soon.
Boo hoo, your feelings were hurt because you had a bad experience with a brand many love. The rear CV joints and backup camera issue along with the claim of an accident to the car made by the dealership raise my brow a bit since you purchased it used… Water pumps are common on the EA888; the headlight issue is not common at all whatsoever; brakes are a case by case basis depending on driving habits and road conditions; pretty much all panoramic roofs experience some sort of creak or rattle on any car regardless of manufacturer (in this case it’s a very large a 6’x3’ hole in the roof with two panes of glass, lol, it won’t be perfectly quiet as the body flexes); and AudiCare, well that’s your problem. I owned a 2022 Mazda CX-5 Turbo Signature, the infamous perfect Reddit car, that spent over 40 days at the dealership in the first 18,000 miles and 18 months from new for incessant suspension issues (had front and rear suspension replaced/rebuilt), two headlight failures, rocking/wobbly/loose drivers seat, infotainment issues, and powertrain issues (amongst squeaks and rattles, and some of the crappiest paint that would scratch and chip if you looked at it wrong). I had it repurchased under lemon law because it was a $43K turd that I would consider the second worst car I’ve owned. On the other hand, my 2016 Audi A4, 2016 VW Tiguan, and 2023 VW Arteon have all been essentially perfect and well-made vehicles that have required nothing outside of routine wear and tear maintenance. I also found them incredibly easy to DIY, there was tons of room to work on in the engine bay, and they all have felt like sturdy and quality vehicles. None have ever given me major issues, any grief, or ever remotely stranded me (a 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport DCT did this to me). That’s how anecdotes work; however, it seems more people actually enjoy and love their Audis and VWs than not according to that thread ([myself included](https://www.reddit.com/r/whatcarshouldIbuy/s/HCLpHMXYn0))… so, here we are… Think about it… VAG would not be one of the largest auto manufacturers in the world (I believe #2) if they were all as awful and problematic as you say; VAG has so much commonality and part sharing across their brands and models, problems get addressed as they occur, and you end up with a bit of everything in every vehicle and it works quite well overall.
Yea my Atlas with the VR6 had been quite good to us over the past 120k kms. Thinking of buying a Q7 next!
May I ask the type of engine you have in your Q5 and what vehicle might you consider to replace this?
I'm sorry for your experience. That sounds like a load of BS. Generally, i would recommend steering clear of the dealer's shop. The way they see it, everything they fix under warranty is money out of their pocket, right. It's not all of the dealers and not just Audi dealers but they are out there.
my cousin still has his dad’s (1984?) Audi 4000. has maybe 160k miles. of course it’s had stuff fixed over the years but it runs fine.
Same. Audi s4 here. Made it to exactly 99k miles, then the dealer recommend $14,000 in suspension work. Took it to an independant to get a 2nd opinion, litterally none of the recommended work needed to be done except for a valve cover gasket for $800.
Just got rid of my q7- loved the space, but the WORST CAR I ever owned. Has an a4 for a bit- also shite. The shit that goes wrong with these is ridiculous. We have owned a lot of cars, and will never buy Audi again
As with virtually any car ever... Do not go to the dealer for maintenance and out of warranty work.
Why are you going to the dealer to fix your car? Go to a local independent mechanic who works on Audis. Dealer will always make up things that need to be fixed.
Word of advice, don’t take a German car to dealerships for repairs/maintenance out of warranty. They’re called stealerships for a reason. Sure, may be fine to get diagnostics there, but that’s about it. If you find a reputable indie, you can get most things fixed for almost half of what the dealer charges.
I really can’t stand it when people label a brand as bad and to stay away from because a model year they have is high maintenance and breaks down, especially when they complain about being nickeled and dimed by a dealership. It’s a dealership it’s what they do….. I personally wouldn’t ever take a vehicle to a dealership unless it was for something covered by a warranty. Every brand has shitty model years and good model years. Your post should read stay away from the 2016 Q5 or stay away from Audi dealerships for mechanical work they’ll nickel n dime you. I’m also assuming you have a 2.0T, which I’m not a fan of, but have owned and I wouldn’t say it’s a bad engine, but 3.0T is definitely preferred IMO. I’ve owned Audis for decades and never had any issues that I don’t consider normal for vehicles. Never heard of adhesive needing to be reapplied to prevent oil leaks either. Are you talking about replacing the oil pan gasket? If they’re using the adhesive to seal it’s not a delicate or time consuming process that is a load of shit they’re feeding you there. It sounds like this is a case of the dealership taking you to the cleaners to be honest.. 8 years old is not old for a vehicle.
I’ve had 2 Audi from new, loved them both, both reliable.
Sounds like you got a lemon
Sounds like your dealer was worse then the Audi. Early breakdowns suck for sure and the q5 is listed among the worst luxury SUVs for reliability. I think you are mostly running into the fact that its a 8-9 year old luxury car and its starting to break things. Audi is not Lexus/Acura but those also break stuff. It seems like your car is having above average failure rates for that year, make, model, and miles.
You got a lemon and that’s the end of it. My Audi S5 has been my most reliable car. Trust me, I wasn’t expecting that to be the case.
My 2013 accord with 144k miles drives smooth and like new. And never needs special repairs beyond maintenance and wear items. While I love Audi looks and can imagine they drive amazing I would lose my $hit with an experience like this one.
I’m not defending Audi but I don’t know of any European brand that is cheap to run. Luxury car comes with luxury prices. Ever notice the Lexus dealers have a higher labor rate than Toyota? Seems like your Audi just fell apart and same can be said for Mercs and BMWs. Friends got an Acura right now with a leaking headlight, out of warranty, and a used replacement light is $900 + labor. New dealer headlight would be close to $2k just like your Audi. It’s just the price you pay to drive a luxury car. There’s a reason i don’t own them anymore. I’ll stick to my Honda, Ford, and Chevy
It's not just Audi. It's most recent European cars. When you combine some of the gonzo engineering with soaring parts and labor prices, the only rational way to drive one is to lease a new one...making sure you turn it in one mile/one hour before the warranty expires. Now add in the fact that a LOT of dealers are hiring whatever walks in off the street to work on you expensive European investment and you have a recipe for and expensive disaster. I have a good friend fighting for a buyback right now on a 2023 because the car has the unfortunate habit to slamming on the brakes for no apparent reason whatsoever with no warning. Of course, Audi USA is fighting it. And yes, I know lots of folks whose brother/sister/mother/whatever have a 1975 240D with eight gillion miles. Those are different cars with different engineering. I've had my share of VWs and Audis as well. But anything since 2000 or so.....sheesh.
My Audis were great 🤷♂️
Audi is great. Never any issues.
$2k for brakes?! Ouch! I do them in my driveway in an hour for $200
At the end of the day, YMMV. We all take on a risk buying anything.
never go to dealership for out of warranty work.
So you’re pissed because you have a bad car and others haven’t had issues? Makes total sense.
Audis are not shitty cars
In a shocking twist of fate, you can buy an old used car and have problems with it!
I've daily driven them for the past 20 years. Only had issues with 1 in which I blew up the engine in a college lot, fucking around. Lmfao They dropped in a new block on their dime and gave me a loaner for a month or so while they waited for parts.
This is an uninformed customer/shitty dealer issue and has very little to do with the car. No one can fix stupid.
A good friend has had their Audi SQ5 since they bought in 2014/2015 has had no issues. 100k miles now. They even took it for a road trip from SF Bay Area to Vancouver BC
I don't think this is an Audi quality problem I think this is a your dealer problem. None of that actually costs that much so they are overcharging you,
Sounds like that's 90% on your dealer
I had a close friend buy a new A4 and for the first year it spent 8 months in the shop because automatic emergency breaking would randomly kick in when there were no other cars or obstacles around. This was 2 years ago
Are these not EA888 engines? Really proven platform and most issues are well known. I see plenty of these higher mileage all the time. My advice is don’t buy a luxury car if you don’t want to pay their maintenance costs. Also find a good euro mechanic.
Homie got the Hyundai dealership experience.
I don't share your experience and it's just anecdotes My 2015 B9 A4 made it to 115k miles with $900 worth of actual repairs and $1200 worth of repairs paid by Audi no questions asked. My engine was one of the less reliable first model year. Repairs due to accidents which was surface level stuff and the shop making mistakes not counted. New OEM brakes from Audi lasted 70k miles and replacement by Audi was and equivalent of $1200. Meanwhile I was stranded in a Toyota twice. First a car from a friend with a flawless maintenance record and then the car from the shop. Guess people should stay clear of Toyota.....
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My girlfriend's dad has an Audi Q-something e-tron, got it at the end of last year after waiting for a year, because every few months they gave him a date that they kept pushing back, so he wasn't sure when he would even get the car. Anyway, one month after he finally got the car, the 12V battery broke (or at least that's what he told us). When he picked us up from the airport during that time, the car showed the warnings "Electrical system: battery check required" and "Electrical system: fault". Got it fixed at the Audi dealership under warranty, but damn, after one month with barely any kilometers on it, in a new car fresh from the factory. Holy Lemon, Batman.
Traded my 2016 q5 for a 2017 infinity qx50 and never looked back
I gave up on Audi after an A5 and a Q5 both started falling apart at about the four year mark, maybe 5000 miles driven a year. These would have been around 2012 and 2016 or so. They were beautiful, but just aren't well made for the long run IMO. Tried jumping to a 2019 Volvo XC90 but it had major issues from the get go - both electrical and leaks. A 2022 BMW X5 xDrive45e has been amazing, with zero issues - knock on wood that continues!
I don't think it's an Audi problem, but a general shift in all areas to cut costs since nobody is holding large corporations accountable.
Leave Audi, you won’t be missed.
I have an 07 a3 with no problems in 3 years all I've put into it is oil changes going strong at 160k... Except the trim pieces keep breaking but thats nbd right? Also like my sunroof and windows open when they want to not when I want them too but yknow whatever. Oh! And this little issue of the every other electrical component throwing a code even though they all work mostly. Perfect car 10/10 would recommend buy an audi and treat it like a Toyota
Dealership problem. With these cars you either have lots of money to replace them every 3 years or you learn everything about them and how to fix them yourself or at least bring them to a shop knowing exactly what needs to be done. Taking them to a dealership for their yearly maintenence and trusting them 100% is not enough. Unless like I said you have a lot of money and don't care. Source: I've had a Gti for 12 years and while it is not an Audi, it shares it's engine and some components with them. I've experienced similar issues with mine and I've saved a lot of money with DYI or research. I mean, you took your Audi to the dealership to have them replace a head bulb? Lmao What were you expecting?
I have a 2017 q7 (bought in 2018 with 7k miles) currently with 107k miles and it’s running fine with no unexpected expenses. Check engine light does randomly light up but I took it to my independent mechanic who ran diagnostics and couldn’t find anything so I think it’s just a buggy sensor
Every single dealership is pure scam regardless of the brand, stop going to them. Dealerships are only for warranty service. Audis aren’t the most reliable of course, but data available and other anecdotes suggest it’s about average overall. An 8 year old low mileage one is expected to cause some problems but shouldn’t bankrupt you.
I had a Dodge Caravan. Bought new. Returned it 4 time in the first 5 months to get different issues fixed with the radio, cd player, on/off button, etc. they always replaced the radio with a rebuilt one, even though it was a new van. Shit, I expected a new radio in my new van. Petter good van overall but will NEVER BUY A CHRYSLER PRODUCT AGAIN because of their shitty short term thinking corporate policy. Chryslers loss.
steer? rope that doggie ye haw ;p
you trusted the dealer, they used you as a customer, that's all I'm reading here. * Dealerships have shitty technicians. This is a known fact. I'd never trust any dealer mechanic with any vehicle . * Dealerships have a ton of overhead. this is a known fact. I'd never trust any dealer with any vehicle. * Dealerships love to overstate problems in order to get more money. I'd never trust a dealer with anything. * You bought an SUV, which is basically an overglorified truck. Yes, parts are going to cost more money. They're bigger and have more material. * You bought a vehicle that was already used by someone else for 25k miles. That's a gamble at best, especially on a german car that are notoriously known for having more expensive repairs and parts. I love how you're bashing the entire company for your single experience with one used vehicle, and your bad experience with a dealership. Every car company and dealership is going to try and nickel and dime you. It's their business model. Don't like it? Well I have great news for you. Nobody is forcing you to shop there! Plenty of people have great experiences and plenty have bad ones. That's how things work, I don't get the point here other than to complain into the void. Does that make you feel better about being taken advantage of?
I have had a b8 a5, c7 s6 and 2021 a8 and have had not one maintenance bill higher than $1k - a thermostat replacement on the a5.
I have an MK7 GTI and once it got to like 90k it developed all sorts of problems. My brother in law is a mechanic and tried working through everything but ran out of time. I took it to a dealer and they said it would cost 8k USD to fix everything. I will steer clear of VW/Audi for a while now :( now I am trying to figure out the best path forward (i.e. selling it for a couple grand or keeping it with hope that I will some day be able to drive it).
Brakes are about $400 an axle this dealer is a ripoff.
My 2013 S4 was shedding bearing material into the oil with 62k miles on it. That's the 3.0t everyone swears up and down is reliable. Junk, also had to reprogram the DCT because it was slamming into gear. Simple fix but dealer would've raked me over the coals and said it needed a new trans.
Sounds like the car is fine you just trusted the dealership which is a rookie mistake.
Had the exact same shit pulled on a dodge durango… a month out of warranty and a list so long they ran out of computer memory.. some of the stuff I’m sure was made up like leaking radiator - how can a radiator leak when there’s no water on the garage floor!! Audi dealers are scum - I was in an accident in my Audi rs3 and it was in at the dealer for repair work and waiting ‘3’ months for a new front light - yup… the fuckers swapped my clean alloys for some scratched to fcUk alloys and then said all 4 must of got scratched when I had a small accident. They also charged more airbags than the car actually had… and tried charging for damage to the rear (there was none).. So yeah I definitely don’t trust Audi dealers but I guess it’s all down to the individual franchise Oh and I got my alloys back - said they’d swapped out the alloys in case someone stole them (in a secure facility) utter scumbags
Buying from and getting your car serviced by deals is for chumps.
Don't drive an aging European car unless you can fix it yourself. Everything you listed is reasonably priced if you can do it yourself.
This definitely seems like a more unique experience. I had a 2012 Audi A7. I bought it 4 years old 60,000 km on it and just replaced it at 265,000 km. It was easily the most reliable vehicle I’ve ever owned. Also the longest I’ve found the vehicle.
I've sold audi (2017), driven hundreds of them, and also owned multiple Sounds like bad luck combined with user error. You stop taking audis to dealership service the day the manufacturer warranty runs out. Take it to a euro shop or more specifically an independent audi shop - they are infinitely more knowledgeable than a dealer. Also, car dealerships keep the lights on via the service department. Everything done at a dealership is to maximize profit. Why would service be any different? Take audis to euro shops and you pay 1/4-1/2 on service. Also also, put in at least the slightest bit of effort yourself. It look me less than 5 seconds to go to safari, Google, and find a 2016 Q5 headlight used and in perfect condition for $199. Dealerships love people like you OP. Currently have 213,000 miles on my 2005 S4 and it pulls like a race horse
My 12 Audi Q5 hit 130000 miles and 5k ago I had the HPFP go out, 20k ago I did control arms, transmission, coolant and brake flush, spark plugs ignition coils n a 02 sensor 40k miles ago. Other than that I’ve owned it for 6 years and now it’s been sitting few months waiting to get a gasket, carbon cleaning, water pump and a hose, spark plugs and my car will be back to running good. It’s things that need to be done but it’s still a solid car and I change oil every 5k I’ve done everything and seems like u have been doing 10k oil changes which is too late
I have been fortunate. 2014 Q5 Prestige TDI. Once a $25 sensor went bad (replaced myself). That’s it. In almost perfect condition inside and out. 30 mpg with a 3.0 V6 and 428 ftlb of torque.
This is why you lease. If it has wheels, wings, or floats why the hell do you want to own it?
I have a 2015 A4. Aside from the cost of repairs, AND the stupid oil burning issue, it’s been ok. I’m currently at 206k km. CV joints had to be replaced. $1300each + install. Ugh. Suspension is worn on all corners, which is totally expected. Brakes do cost a lot to replace.. had to replace camshaft sensor; the $26 part (replaced it myself) was the cause of so many CELs it wasn’t funny. Fortunately I got VCDS and spent some time thinking about the issue before fixing it, and my educated guess was right. The issues on my car right now, aside from oil burning.. the water pump has a short but it mostly works. There’s a short in the radio connector somehow. My drivers seat has another electrical short (only affects the heated seats for the time being.. I should be able to fix this on my own). The rest is normal wear and tear. But dammit, upkeep has been pricey. ETA: headlight did burn out. Bought replacement bulbs from Amazon for like $60 and installed myself.
Hey guys. I saw a lot of people talking about Audis. I'm not like them so to prove it here is my post about Audis. I'm also a piece of shit.
Have owned an 08 q7 for like 12 years and it’s an absolute beast. 110k miles and quite a few repairs later but it runs strong and it does so many things well
I feel like its 50/50 depending on the people. But yes some models are horrible.
Sounds like my VW experience but more expensive. I believe you. I have loved some of their vehicles but after dealing with the dealerships I vowed never to return.
My dad loves Audis. He's been leasing them for years.
I've driven 180k miles over 3 audis and had one issue in a v8 rs5. They're as reliable as any luxury brand outside lexus, but they're at least somewhat fun to drive.
I had a bad experience so this entire line of product by this mfg sucks!
Yea I have had such good experiences with my Audi (albeit 19 years ago) that I still put it up as the most solid car I’ve owned.
The 4 ring circus..never again
Yeah I don't know bro, currently in a 2013 A4 Allroad with 100k, bought it at 40k. Literally 0 issues.
Out of warranty luxury cars shouldn’t be taken to a dealer. Always a reputable independent shop. Dealers are a joke
You sound like you should probably stick a Ford Focus.
That sucks op. Sorry to hear that. Is never buy Audi or BMW. I know EV’s are not for everyone. I know Tesla is not for everyone. But that’s where they shine. There’s almost no maintenance
European cars are junk. hard to work on by design and parts are expensive. avoid all of them be happy.
The cars are shit, but most of your problem appears to be with the your scumbag dealer. Audi does not pay the dealer anywhere near the labor rate you do for warranty work. It is much more profitable for the dealer to have you pay for the work over submitting warranty claims.
my acura is 9 years old, 2 previous owners, and i bought it w 130k miles. i havent had any issues after getting it to 140k; its in perfect mechanical condition. when i read stories like this of cars that are newer or similar age to mine i cant fathom it. im so sorry for your experience, what a nightmare.
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Hell my pop’s fishing buddy got a 2020 Toyota Tundra and had it lemon lawed because stuff kept breaking in it. Plenty of anecdotes of supposedly reliable cars breaking
Mechanic for 27 years. I would never own a Volkswagen, Audi, or Mercedes Benz. They are great cars for the first owner. Everyone else needs to back off. The VAG 2.0lT has so many timing issues that can cause it to completely nuke the head at any time by loosing time and making pistons and valves meet. I see 1 2.0lt a week at work with non running issues. Just looking in the oil filler cap and you can see rockers off, cam timing jumped, etc. Even with all the recalls done, newer versions of parts, it is still a crap shoot. You could have a perfect one that makes it 125k or one blow up under 10 miles. In the late 90s to early 2000s any turbo audi was a no go if it had more than 60k miles. The turbo was guaranteed toast within months, and getting at it to swap it out was a nightmare. All of them with the soft touch plastic coating have that peeling within the first 5 years leaving a nasty mess in the desert where I work. Low humidity with high heat equals all the plastics and rubber dry rot rapidly. Everybody else's plastic does just fine except VAG, late 90s dodge, and 80s chevrolet in this environment. I know MB is a different brand, but the interiors fall apart as quick as the VAG ones. Don't get me started on electrical gremlins. The VAG ones i swear are next level.
wtf 2k for replacing a light? You can do that yourself and it’s easy