AUDI A4 cab disaster
Discussion
Hi all am wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience and could maybe offer some advice. I bought A4 reg in 2004 41,000 on clock from Satfford audi Aug 2009.Supposed to be MOT'd n cam service done but had not so complained n went back. Promised mats came months later and am still waiting for the correct wind diffuser. Since purchase it has needed new ECU for the hood, water pump, electronic themastat, carbon filter for exhaust system. Plus two roadside callouts to replace number 3 coil and repair issue with brakes.It was identified in feb that the clutch needed replacing and in may brakes on rear were 80% worn and needed replacing and front discs were very badly lipped and needed replacing.
This is my first ever Audi and dealship purchase and it has not gone well, many issued were covered by warranty but not the brakes and the clutch Stafford Audi not exactly good on customer care and have said i need to contribute to cost of clucth and brakes. Are this sort of issues to be expected on a car like this
Any help/advice is much appreciated.
This is my first ever Audi and dealship purchase and it has not gone well, many issued were covered by warranty but not the brakes and the clutch Stafford Audi not exactly good on customer care and have said i need to contribute to cost of clucth and brakes. Are this sort of issues to be expected on a car like this
Any help/advice is much appreciated.
FFS it is a 2nd hand car, brakes and clutches are wear parts as for 80% worn that means 20% left 
. On a second hand car you will have issues, some people drive them till the big service is needed or it starts throwing up errors then trade in on something else, others just change cars when they fancy or need a new one. To a degree it is luck of the draw as to whether it was traded in because the owner wanted something different or because there was a potential big bill looming.
. On a second hand car you will have issues, some people drive them till the big service is needed or it starts throwing up errors then trade in on something else, others just change cars when they fancy or need a new one. To a degree it is luck of the draw as to whether it was traded in because the owner wanted something different or because there was a potential big bill looming.Water pump and thermostat should have been changed at 5 years.
An exhaust part is a consumable.
A clutch is a consumable (and not surprising on a 6 year old car with low miles, lots of town driving?)
Ditto brakes, underuse means corrosion which is not good for their life.
Roof fault is just unlucky and sounds like it was covered by the warranty.
An exhaust part is a consumable.
A clutch is a consumable (and not surprising on a 6 year old car with low miles, lots of town driving?)
Ditto brakes, underuse means corrosion which is not good for their life.
Roof fault is just unlucky and sounds like it was covered by the warranty.
Assuming since you had some warranty work done it was sold under the "Approved Used" scheme? it seems like they have fixed faults even if you had to beg/push them... that's the thing with any warranty, its in their interest not to pay out.
Like everyone else says its a 6 year old car with low mileage, it will have a amount of wear and tear since its not showroom new, if anything you've had quite a good ride as if you bought it private or from a indy dealer you might not have had the benefits of a main dealer warranty or free brake down service for the first year.
Also since you seem unimpressed with the dealership in question you first post will probably be breaking the "Naming and Shaming" rule.
Edit: EFA
Like everyone else says its a 6 year old car with low mileage, it will have a amount of wear and tear since its not showroom new, if anything you've had quite a good ride as if you bought it private or from a indy dealer you might not have had the benefits of a main dealer warranty or free brake down service for the first year.
Also since you seem unimpressed with the dealership in question you first post will probably be breaking the "Naming and Shaming" rule.
Edit: EFA
Edited by DaveL86 on Thursday 17th June 17:41
Coils and roof ECU...sounds like a typical A4 cab to me. I bet it eats tyres too.
Used to be an Audi service advisor....I wouldn't touch one with a barge pole. But you've had the main things replaced by warranty from the sound of it, and as said you just need to bear in mind that brakes and clutch are consumables.
...although what gearbox has it got? If it's the silly semi-auto thing the gearbox fluid needs changing every 60,000miles and not a mile later. But if the clutch failed before that I think it ought to have been covered in full. If it's a manual gearbox though it's pretty much you get what you're given, as the last owner may just have been ham fisted/footed and worn it out.
Re: the brakes, how many miles did you do in the 6-7 months before you found out they were worn?
Are those wear percentages from the dealership? Depending on your mileage it's not inconceivable that they were less than half worn when you got the car, and the cab is a heavy old thing and wears its brakes relatively quickly if you're what I'd call a typical Audi driver...
So to answer your question: yes, that's pretty much all to be expected with that sort of car.
Have you got the extended warranty or have they just been fixing things under the statutory post-resale warranty so far? If you don't have an extended one, GET one. It's expensive but if the car drops its guts in a few months you'll be very pleased you paid for it. And make sure it's the proper Audi one as third party ones aren't worth the paper they're written on and will have all sorts of get-out clauses and payout limits.
Final top tip - if you're not happy with the judgement or contribution offered on extended warranty repairs, ask your service advisor to contact Audi Customer Services and request a contribution from Audi UK. It may not work, but it's worth a try sometimes if you've got a genuine case.
Used to be an Audi service advisor....I wouldn't touch one with a barge pole. But you've had the main things replaced by warranty from the sound of it, and as said you just need to bear in mind that brakes and clutch are consumables.
...although what gearbox has it got? If it's the silly semi-auto thing the gearbox fluid needs changing every 60,000miles and not a mile later. But if the clutch failed before that I think it ought to have been covered in full. If it's a manual gearbox though it's pretty much you get what you're given, as the last owner may just have been ham fisted/footed and worn it out.
Re: the brakes, how many miles did you do in the 6-7 months before you found out they were worn?
Are those wear percentages from the dealership? Depending on your mileage it's not inconceivable that they were less than half worn when you got the car, and the cab is a heavy old thing and wears its brakes relatively quickly if you're what I'd call a typical Audi driver...
So to answer your question: yes, that's pretty much all to be expected with that sort of car.
Have you got the extended warranty or have they just been fixing things under the statutory post-resale warranty so far? If you don't have an extended one, GET one. It's expensive but if the car drops its guts in a few months you'll be very pleased you paid for it. And make sure it's the proper Audi one as third party ones aren't worth the paper they're written on and will have all sorts of get-out clauses and payout limits.
Final top tip - if you're not happy with the judgement or contribution offered on extended warranty repairs, ask your service advisor to contact Audi Customer Services and request a contribution from Audi UK. It may not work, but it's worth a try sometimes if you've got a genuine case.
Edited by Doniger on Friday 18th June 15:09
How can the rear brakes be at 80% with only 40k miles. my a4 saloon is on 280k and still on its original rear disks and pads after 10yrs???
granted they are now due changing which should happen in the next few weeks unless i can get it through mot in which case will be in another 2/3 months.
granted they are now due changing which should happen in the next few weeks unless i can get it through mot in which case will be in another 2/3 months.
Several factors answer that:
The cabrio is heavier than the saloon.
If your car is 10 years old it is also a different model to the one in question.
Later Audis, particularly Quattros also have a rear brake bias which can see them wearing out quicker than the fronts.
An 80% wear estimate from a dealer might actually just mean anything over 50% - they always cover themselves with a safety margin (as well as to drum up a sale)
And finally, 280,000miles in 10 years and still on your first set of brakes? Impressive, but you obviously live on motorways - this cabriolet may have done mostly town driving which is obviously much harsher on brakes.
The cabrio is heavier than the saloon.
If your car is 10 years old it is also a different model to the one in question.
Later Audis, particularly Quattros also have a rear brake bias which can see them wearing out quicker than the fronts.
An 80% wear estimate from a dealer might actually just mean anything over 50% - they always cover themselves with a safety margin (as well as to drum up a sale)
And finally, 280,000miles in 10 years and still on your first set of brakes? Impressive, but you obviously live on motorways - this cabriolet may have done mostly town driving which is obviously much harsher on brakes.
Doniger said:
Several factors answer that:
The cabrio is heavier than the saloon.
If your car is 10 years old it is also a different model to the one in question.
Later Audis, particularly Quattros also have a rear brake bias which can see them wearing out quicker than the fronts.
An 80% wear estimate from a dealer might actually just mean anything over 50% - they always cover themselves with a safety margin (as well as to drum up a sale)
And finally, 280,000miles in 10 years and still on your first set of brakes? Impressive, but you obviously live on motorways - this cabriolet may have done mostly town driving which is obviously much harsher on brakes.
Fair dinkum. Pretty accurate assesment tbh. I to spend a lot of time on the motorway though i also spend a fair bit of time on a and b roads. I was working on the assumption its a b6 chassis cab as my a4 is a b6 saloon however 6years old puts it just around changover time so not sure which variant cab.The cabrio is heavier than the saloon.
If your car is 10 years old it is also a different model to the one in question.
Later Audis, particularly Quattros also have a rear brake bias which can see them wearing out quicker than the fronts.
An 80% wear estimate from a dealer might actually just mean anything over 50% - they always cover themselves with a safety margin (as well as to drum up a sale)
And finally, 280,000miles in 10 years and still on your first set of brakes? Impressive, but you obviously live on motorways - this cabriolet may have done mostly town driving which is obviously much harsher on brakes.
BTW i assume you mean first set of rears????
I may be a driving god but theres no way i could 280k miles out of a set of fronts.Tallbut Buxomly said:
How can the rear brakes be at 80% with only 40k miles. my a4 saloon is on 280k and still on its original rear disks and pads after 10yrs???
granted they are now due changing which should happen in the next few weeks unless i can get it through mot in which case will be in another 2/3 months.
I'm not dissing your input here at all, but I've had to change pads on regular A4's and cabs as low as 30,000 miles. Its all down to how they get driven. We had customers that can do 3 years and 80,000 miles without needing brakes, and others that require them ever other service. granted they are now due changing which should happen in the next few weeks unless i can get it through mot in which case will be in another 2/3 months.
S and RS 4's can need brakes every service.
Typically we change rear brakes at 40k, fronts generally 40-60k. The rears seem to go first these days and it always used to be the other way round.
happyfiasco said:
Hi all am wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience and could maybe offer some advice. I bought A4 reg in 2004 41,000 on clock from Satfford audi Aug 2009.Supposed to be MOT'd n cam service done but had not so complained n went back. Promised mats came months later and am still waiting for the correct wind diffuser. Since purchase it has needed new ECU for the hood, water pump, electronic themastat, carbon filter for exhaust system. Plus two roadside callouts to replace number 3 coil and repair issue with brakes.It was identified in feb that the clutch needed replacing and in may brakes on rear were 80% worn and needed replacing and front discs were very badly lipped and needed replacing.
This is my first ever Audi and dealship purchase and it has not gone well, many issued were covered by warranty but not the brakes and the clutch Stafford Audi not exactly good on customer care and have said i need to contribute to cost of clucth and brakes. Are this sort of issues to be expected on a car like this
Any help/advice is much appreciated.
As mentioned above, clutch and brakes + exhaust are consumables, so unless you notice problems very soon after taking delivery only paying a contribution is good. This is my first ever Audi and dealship purchase and it has not gone well, many issued were covered by warranty but not the brakes and the clutch Stafford Audi not exactly good on customer care and have said i need to contribute to cost of clucth and brakes. Are this sort of issues to be expected on a car like this
Any help/advice is much appreciated.
Waranty is there for issues like coil packs and the roof ECU. Most cars of that age will need items like this from time to time. It is a reletivly old car at 2004 and the Cab is generally a bit more trouble than a hard top, sounds pretty typical to me.
Trouble is they should have know the service and belt werent done and done them first, so thats a failure on the Audi centres parts, and perhaps why they are willing to contribute towards the brake and clutch costs.
I like to think this doesnt happen any more but I can think of an instance or two (NOT MY CENTRE) where techs reported items requiring attention on a used car check, but they were not done, sales managers desions, not enough margin in the car to spend £000's preping it. If you feel this is likey, go to Audi customer services and complain. If however we are talking about general wear and tear It would be unfair to blaim the dealer and I think you're just experiencing "the joys of motoring".
Tame Technician said:
Tallbut Buxomly said:
How can the rear brakes be at 80% with only 40k miles. my a4 saloon is on 280k and still on its original rear disks and pads after 10yrs???
granted they are now due changing which should happen in the next few weeks unless i can get it through mot in which case will be in another 2/3 months.
I'm not dissing your input here at all, but I've had to change pads on regular A4's and cabs as low as 30,000 miles. Its all down to how they get driven. We had customers that can do 3 years and 80,000 miles without needing brakes, and others that require them ever other service. granted they are now due changing which should happen in the next few weeks unless i can get it through mot in which case will be in another 2/3 months.
S and RS 4's can need brakes every service.
Typically we change rear brakes at 40k, fronts generally 40-60k. The rears seem to go first these days and it always used to be the other way round.
Escort2dr said:
Tame Technician said:
The rears seem to go first these days and it always used to be the other way round.
Might be missing something obvious, but why is this?Anser.... er well I dont really know TBH.
Workshop theorys are.
(1) ESP and other stability programs apply the rear brakes to stabalise the car.
(2) Hand brake mechanisms using the same caliper tend to drag a bit, even though working correctly. Especially electronic park brakes.
(3) The pads are made softer these days, as they dont get as hot as the fronts, to be as efficient at a lesser temperature they have to be a softer mix/compound.
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