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When a driver is looking for a luxury SUV, it’s common to look at the 2018 Audi Q5. It’s been known as a high-end vehicle that meets the needs of a picky driver. In fact, the tagline on the newer models states that this Audi helps owners “stay ahead of the curves.” What we found is that there’s no limit to the curves that come with this model. In the moments that this SUV isn’t sitting at the service center, it’s dealing with electrical problems, malfunctioning service brakes and a faulty forward collision avoidance configuration.
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NHTSA Complaints for the 2018 Audi Q5
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Electrical System | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Engine | |
| Structure:body | |
| Vehicle Speed Control | |
| Suspension | |
| Wheels | |
| Steering | |
| Air Bags |
Problems with the Electrical System
When driving a luxury SUV, it’s expected that all of the high-tech features should work as they intend. That’s not what the owners of the Q5 find.
Just look at this Edmunds review. “I blame myself for not listening to the many negative reviews of the MMI (infotainment system). I’ve had the car for a month and the MMI keeps doing a hard reset. It’s currently at the dealer, and they called to tell me that the MMI isn’t generating any errors, so they have no idea what to do, other than to drive it to try to replicate the crashing. I told them if it’s not generating codes, why on earth would it magically generate a code for them? They had no response. I mentioned all the negative reviews of the same MMI issue all over the internet. They acknowledged it and repeated the same BS. I am so mad at myself for buying such a piece of junk. UPDATE: after owning the car for 8 months, my impression of the MMI and Nav haven’t changed. The MMI is horrible and resets about once per month. The nav takes you virtually anywhere except for your desired destination.”
The company has nearly 100 service bulletins related to troubles with the electrical system. One of the many dealing with the MMI, #A9119732052896_3 talks about how the system regularly starts in the wrong menu. This is one time that the technicians need to reprogram the software to get it working correctly. Of course, it’s not the only time. In fact, customers spend plenty of time having electrical components reprogrammed to make them work correctly. Maybe the reason this SUV keeps owners ahead of the curve is by keeping them off the street entirely.
Here are some actual complaints logged with the NHTSA about the 2018 Audi Q5 Electrical Problems
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 AUDI Q5. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WENT BLANK WITHOUT WARNING AND THE INDICATORS AND GAUGES COULD NOT BE VIEWED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO MCKINNEY AUDI WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE COMPUTER NEEDED PATCHING IN THE “S 5 CHIP”. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 4,392.
VEHICLE TRAVELING STRAIGHT ON HIGHWAY AT 70MPH WITH PHONE PLUGGED IN TO ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM AND CONNECTED TO CARPLAY. CENTER SCREEN SHUT OFF, AND AUDIO CONTROLS UNRESPONSIVE ON BOTH THE DASH AND STEERING WHEEL. THE INSTRUMENT PANEL, WHICH WAS DISPLAYING GOOGLE MAPS, THEN BLACKED OUT, WITH ONLY THE SPEEDOMETER AND TACH DISPLAYING. AGAIN, CONTROLS WERE UNRESPONSIVE. THE SYSTEM THEN RESTARTED, SIMILARLY TO INITIALLY TURNING ON THE VEHICLE. THE “INITIALIZING MAP” MESSAGE APPEARED IN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL, AND SHORTLY THEREAFTER BOTH THE CENTER SCREEN AND INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WERE FUNCTIONING NORMALLY, AND ALL CONTROLS WERE RESPONSIVE. THIS WAS ESPECIALLY STRESSFUL AS I WAS EXPECTING SOMETHING ELSE TO FAIL BUT COULDN’T PULL OVER.
Problems with the Brakes
The brakes are required to stop a vehicle and prevent a collision. When anything goes wrong with this vital system, a person’s entire world can change.
One NHTSA user writes about a problem they experienced. “Squealing brakes at slow speed. Dealership able to replicate issue but unable to resolve adequately. They are asking us to replace rotors and pads with several hundred dollar cost to us. Car is only 2 years old now. We bought CPO after car was used by dealer salesman for 6 months. Brakes have been squealing soon after we got the car.”
While this person only experienced squealing, there are two major brake recalls on this vehicle. With NHTSA Campaign Number 19V277000, it’s addressed that the brakes might fail because the brake master cylinder casting may be too short. With NHTSA Campaign Number 18V369000 that talks about some that contain an insufficient coating, which reduces the brake performance. Both of these are serious concerns that put people in danger. For many people, this SUV doesn’t feel luxurious at all. It has the same problems that a cheaply-made SUV would be expected to have. Maybe that’s because this is just a cheap SUV wrapped up to look pretty.
Here are some actual complaints logged with the NHTSA about the 2018 Audi Q5 Brake Problems
I HAVE REPORTED TO MY CLOSEST DEALER, ON SEVERAL APPOINTMENTS THAT MY BRAKES SEVERELY GRIND UPON APPLICATION. I WOULD BELIEVE THAT THE ROTORS ARE SEVERELY SCORED OR WARPED. IT HAPPENS UPON FIRST USE EVERY DAY, AS WELL AS A LOUD GRINDING UPON EVERY STOP ESPECIALLY FROM HIGHWAY SPEEDS. I HAVE BEEN TOLD THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MY BRAKES ALTHOUGH I COMPLAINED FROM MY INITIAL VISIT , MY LAST INSPECTION AND RECENTLY BROUGHT IT IN SPECIFICALLY FOR THAT. THE NOISE/ GRINDING IS BAD, BUT THE LACK OF QUALITY BRAKING HAS ME MORE CONCERNED. I AM GOING TO TAKE IT TO “MIDAS MUFFLER” OR SOMEONE ELSE TO CHECK. I BELIEVE OTHER Q5 AND CROSS LINKED VOLKSWAGENS HAVE CALIPER PROBLEMS AND I BELIEVE MY CAR DOES AS WELL BUT THEY ARE UNWILLING TO REPAIR IT UNDER WARRANTY TO SAVE COST.
SQUEALING BRAKES AT SLOW SPEEDS. DEALERSHIP ABLE TO REPLICATE ISSUE BUT UNABLE TO RESOLVE ADEQUATELY. THEY ASKING US TO REPLACE ROTORS AND PADS WITH SEVERAL HUNDRED DOLLAR COST TO US. CAR IS ONLY 2 YRS OLD NOW. WE BOUGHT CPO AFTER CAR WAS USED BY DEALER SALESMAN FOR 6MO. BRAKES HAVE BEEN SQUEALING SOON AFTER WE GOT THE CAR.
Problems with the Forward Collision-Avoidance System
As part of the modern safety suite that vehicles come with, a popular addition is Forward Collision Avoidance. This is supposed to prevent people from running into something on the road. What’s happening with the Q5 though, is something entirely different.
Just look at this review from the Edmunds website. “Driving down the New Jersey Turnpike I proceed to pass another car. Turn signal on, drift in the left, start to accelerate and BAM! ABS is activated intent on stopping this car. Well. needless to say I get the sign a peace from the gentleman behind and really Obnoxious horn beeping. Rightfully so. I look like an idiot that pulled out and tried to stop. That happened twice. The dealer tells me they’re aware their pre sense is very sensitive and it’s for my protection.”
It seems the automaker has a lot of trouble with various assistive technologies. Even Service Bulletin #A911736 2024323 discusses how parking sensors might be misaligned causing trouble parking. Maybe in the company’s attempt to prepare for the curves ahead, they have ensured that the vehicle doesn’t miss any object anywhere in the vicinity of it. In the meantime, it is causing Audi drivers to have a panic attack behind the wheel.
Here are some actual complaints logged with the NHTSA about the 2018 Audi Q5 Forward Collision-Avoidance Problems
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 AUDI Q5. THE CONTACT STATE THAT THE VEHICLE INDEPENTLY ENGAGED THE COLLISION BRAKE SYSTEM ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS THE FIRST WAS THE EVENING OF FEBRUARY 12TH AT APPROXIMATELY 19:00 EST. WHILE TRAVELING SOUTH ON LAHSER ROAD AT APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH WITH NO OTHER VEHICLES IN THE AREA THE VEHICLE SENSED A POTENTIAL FRONT END COLLISION AND APPLIED FULL BRAKES. THIS CAUSED LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE THE SECOND EVENT WAS MARCH 4 AT APPROXIMATELY 16:00 EST. WHILST DRIVING HOME I CAME TO A STOP AT THE LIGHT WITH A TRUCK IN FRONT OF MY VEHICLE. NO WARNING WAS DETECTED. AS THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME DEPARTED THE VEHICLE WARNING SYSTEM CAME ON. IT DID NOT APPLY BREAKS AT THIS TIME JUST A FALSE POSITIVE SENSOR WARNING. THE FIRST INCIDENT WAS PASSED OFF AS THE RESULT OF ICE, WHILE NOTICE SENSOR WARNING WAS EVIDENT THE SECOND INCIDENT WAS REPORTED TO THE DEALER ON MARCH 4 AND NO RESPONSE HAS BEEN RECEIVED. I FEEL THIS VEHICLE HAS TWICE PROVIDED UNSAFE ACTIONS AND NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE I HAVE A CHILD IN THE VEHICLE AND HAVE AN INCIDENT THAT HARMS AN INDIVIDUAL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AUDI OF ROCHESTER TO HAVE A DIAGNOSTIC PERFORMED THE DEALER ADVISED THAT THE VEHICLE COLLISION SYSTEM MALFUNCTION DUE TO ICE ON THE SENSOR. THE VIN INFORMATION WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 600.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 AUDI Q5. WHILE DRIVING 65 MPH, THE COLLISION ALERT SYSTEM INDEPENDENTLY ENGAGED THE BRAKE SYSTEM, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SLOW DOWN. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO KEEP THE VEHICLE UNDER CONTROL AND REGAIN HIGHWAY SPEED. THE CONTACT BELIEVED THAT THE COLLISION SYSTEM MAY HAVE SENSED AN OBJECT IN THE ROAD AND CAUSED THE COLLISION SYSTEM TO ENGAGE. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE COLLISION ALERT SYSTEM ENGAGED WHEN THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO PARALLEL PARK. THE CONTACT SPOKE WITH AUDI BIRMINGHAM TO INQUIRE IF THE COLLISION ALERT SYSTEM COULD BE DISABLED. THE DEALER STATED THAT NOTHING COULD BE DONE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 12,000.
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Complaint Data
| Category | Engine, Unknown Or Other, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Mar 08, 2023 |
| State | FL |
| Description | Jan. 2023 my coolant pump had blockage which caused the coolant hose to break and discharge coolant all over my engine and overheat. I have the repair receipt from audi dealer and requested a copy of the inspection report from them. Pictures also attached. I also have my car at the audi dealer as we speak due to a week later the car would not accelerate properly with a drive system malfunction error light, which is now the turbo charger needing replacement. Towed to audi dealer on 2. 7. 2023 and waiting for turbo charger delivery, currently on back-order. These are not normal wear and tear items on a vehicle with 53,000 miles. |
| Category | Engine |
| Date | Feb 22, 2023 |
| State | RI |
| Description | The contact owns a 2018 audi q5. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power and made an abnormal sound. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 55,000. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings |
| Date | Jan 20, 2023 |
| State | VA |
| Description | Two issues. My temperature housing unit is leaking coolant. This car has very low mileage and is barely driven so it is very strange that this part is already defective. Seems the original integrity of the part may not have been good. Second, my audi pre sense comes on while the car is driving and brings the car to a screaming halt as is there is something in the cars path. The problem is there is nothing in the cars path when this feature kicks in . It's quite dangerous as this has happened to me while driving on busy roads . |
| Category | Suspension |
| Date | Dec 21, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | During a normal service visit it was brought to my attention that the rear suspension coil was broken. They attributed this to normal wear and tear after only 52,000 miles. Upon research it seems this is far more common in 2018 q5s than it should be this is early. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings, Service Brakes |
| Date | Dec 19, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | I was trying to park my car in my office parking space, after right turn to parking space, I applied brake to stop, but the car suddenly accelerated and within few seconds it crashed into the office building. I was still applying brake when it accelerated and I could not do anything else. The fact that vehicle climbed two levels of curbs to hit the building shows that the acceleration was out of my control. And even vehicle's collision system did not kick in when car was climbed over the curb. Polic report #: 22-350-0239c agency: sccso |
| Category | Suspension |
| Date | Dec 05, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | Rear coil spring on passenger side broke and became detached, wedging against lower control arm. Coil spring had no signs of other damage; seems to be defective metallurgy (see attached photographs). Vehicle had 55,645 miles on it. Dealer charged 0 to repair. From online search, there seems to be a high number of audi q5's from 2018 model year with this problem, but audi dealers claim it is a 'normal wear' item and is not covered. |
| Category | Service Brakes, Suspension |
| Date | Nov 30, 2022 |
| State | FL |
| Description | Two issues: 1. We have needed to repeatedly replace brake booster. 2. Passenger side rear spring has broken and dealer is indicating the driver side should also be replaced. |
| Category | Back Over Prevention: Warnings, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Oct 25, 2022 |
| State | MI |
| Description | Hello, my q5 top view(360) camera. The mmi wont be able to save my settings - when it is changed from graphic to camera. It always goes back to default as graphic. I need to adjust almost every time when I park the car. It is distracting and safety conerning. This issue came with the car since it was bulit. And this is the common issue across the my18 for audi products. Audi dealer needs to charge me to fix the issue, due to the car is out of warrenty. But this is not caused by wear and tear. Thanks, |
| Category | Air Bags |
| Date | Oct 06, 2022 |
| State | WA |
| Description | When a front seat passenger is present, the passenger airbag warning light comes on with a "malfunction" error displayed, then goes off. |
| Category | Air Bags, Electrical System |
| Date | Sep 30, 2022 |
| State | TX |
| Description | Have been receiving an intermittent warning: safety malfunction for the passenger airbag. The light comes on intermittently. Comes on most often when no one is sitting in the front passenger seat. If I place a small bag (handbag, purse etc.) on the seat sometimes the light goes off sometimes it does not. If someone is sitting in the seat the malfunction light is not present. The dealer confirmed the malfunction stating: they found the safety malfunction light is being triggered by a faulty passenger front seat pod and needs to be replaced for text="Who are we? We are Lemberg Law, a Consumer Law Firm" smalltext="Lemberg Law is a consumer law firm helping victims of bad manufacturing and run-arounds from auto companies. We are ranked A+ by the BBB. Call our Helpline today! There is no charge unless we win." img="balance" color="green",233. Doing a quick audi forum search have found numerous individuals with similar complaints and many have even reached out to audi. This appears to be a significant safety issue as it calls into question the reliability of airbag operation in the case of an accident. |
| Category | Suspension |
| Date | Sep 21, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | Both rear coil springs observed to have failed (broken) upon bringing car to mechanic for brake job. Less than 60k miles. |
| Category | Suspension |
| Date | Sep 12, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | Both rear springs broke. Possible risk to wheel and arm support. No towing, road hazard or excessive load. Car has 48,000 miles. Others reported same problem on audi members site. Unable to reach audi usa. Dealer says my problem. |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Jun 29, 2022 |
| State | TX |
| Description | While driving at a relatively low speed, approximately 30 mph, I approached a red light and proceeded to slow down. The brakes did not engage, so I continue to pump them but had to swerve into the right lane to avoid hitting the car in front of me. Fortunately, there wasn't a car in the right lane. It was raining but not heavily, although earlier we did go through heavy rain on the freeway. After this incident we still had to drive about 5 more miles to get to our destination. The brakes worked the rest of the way. I took the car to audi to have them check it and they said they didn't find anything; however, this was certainly some sort of brake malfunction. |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine, Steering |
| Date | Jun 08, 2022 |
| State | FL |
| Description | On 02/14/2022. Car just died while waiting for cars to pass to turn at light. Dashboard started flasing "engine start system: malfunction! - please contact service" then "parking break malfunction!" then, "steering: malfunction! - you an can continue driving" panicked because was holding up traffic. After a couple minutes trying car then just started drove home and put on battery charger overnight. Hoping that's all it was. Next morning 02/15/2022 started right up early morning no issues to be concerned with was on highway doing approx 69 mph, drove approximately 42 miles then then while only driving 35 mph 4 lane highway. Again, no warnings, but while driving engine and steering, just shut down. Almost causing me to be reared and then hit on passanger side. I don't even want to think what could have happened had this happened on interstate or if my children were in the vehicle. It was a very dangerous and scary situation even happening while only doing 35 mph. This should be considered a major recall. Vehicle was towed on 02/16/22 to clearwater audi. We did not receive vehicle back until after over 9 weeks, 04/22/22. Yesterday, 06/07/2022 sensors glitching again and being called back into dealership. I want this life threatening recall documented. There is absolutely no reason why a well cared for vehicle with less than 18,000 miles should be having these issues. We we keep losing out on time from work and driving back and forth to dealership. We need to be able to rely on the safety and integrity of this vehicle not only for the driver/passangers but for the safety of others on the road. Thank you for your time to hear our concerns |
| Category | Engine |
| Date | May 25, 2022 |
| State | IL |
| Description | Took the vehicle to the local dealer for a car damage repair but notified at multi-point checks that the thermostat housing is leaking coolant. It ran 43k miles only and this is a known issue so should be recalled. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking |
| Date | Mar 09, 2022 |
| State | WI |
| Description | The cars emergency brake system malfunctioned on our 2018 audi q5 premium plus, causing the brakes to lock up for no reason while traveling on a busy street at 35 mph. The force of the braking was enough to cause a bruise from the seatbelt. The risk is potential loss of control of the car, especially if this occurred at a higher speed, or being rear ended. We immediately took the car to an audi dealer who could not id an issue from looking at fault codes. We have been experiencing other bogus warning messages: light system warning (nothing wrong), engine rpm exceeded warnings (engine rpms never close to being exceeded), phone sos errors. No warnings or symptoms regarding the brake system. Dealer says to monitor. We have been driving the car for about a week since, and have not experienced the same issue again. |
| Category | Structure:body |
| Date | Feb 02, 2022 |
| State | GA |
| Description | Rear hatch randomly open during operations and while sitting parked. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Feb 02, 2022 |
| State | CO |
| Description | Our 2018 audi sos signaling device was built on 3g. Audi now tells us it is no longer available and will not fix the problem. For the record 3g was introduced in 2001 and 4g in 2009. Why did audi use 3g in my 2018 model? Was it was some executive who made the choice because I can't fathom an engineer choosing 4g over 3g. This is the message we are receiving from audi usa. Https://www. Audiusa. Com/us/web/en/inside-audi/innovation/audi-connect/layer/legal/3g-downturn-faq. Html ... The following audi connect services will no longer be available following at&t's 3g turndown: audi connect care's sos and emergency call feature, online roadside assistance, audi service request, and audi incident assistance, remote lock and unlock, vehicle status report, and stolen vehicle locator... |
| Category | Structure:body |
| Date | Nov 11, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Panoramic sunroof leaked water into the car's electrical system during a rainstorm (despite being closed tight), resulting in a total failure of the car's electrical system, potentially a catastrophic occurrence. Fortunately the electrical failure happened when the car was stationary. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Oct 11, 2021 |
| State | WA |
| Description | As I was driving down the freeway, I heard a loud boom/explosion sound. I was instantly covered in glass, as my sunroof had exploded. I was not driving under an overpass, and there was no truck throwing rocks around me. Upon inspection, the remaining glass around the hole in the sunroof was pointed upward, showing that the glass exploded up, rather than something breaking down into the sunroof. I am very lucky that I was able to keep my car on the road and not cause an accident, as the sheer loudness of the explosion, and the glass falling all over me were huge safety risks. There have been zero warnings/symptoms with the sunroof prior to this incident, and I had the fabric cover opened, as I did not know that this could happen, which allowed the glass to fall all over me as I was driving on the freeway. |
| Category | Electrical System, Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Jul 30, 2021 |
| State | NJ |
| Description | It says driver system malfunction. Day before that it says auto start and stop malfunction failure. When you are the traffic light and slow down and take a turn then the car gives kinds of couple of pushes as if the it gearbox is not able to adjust the speed automatically . You need to accelerate to keep the balance of the car. Every passenger of the car feel the same. After 2 days I started getting driver system malfunction warning. The car is not safe to drive on highways or local road as gearbox has some issues. There is a class action lawsuit for the similar problem which audi did not address yet. Https://margarianlaw. Com/audi-class-action-lawsuit/ |
| Category | Electrical System, Service Brakes, Steering |
| Date | Jun 29, 2021 |
| State | TX |
| Description | The 2nd generation audi q5 (roughly 2017-2021+) has a major susceptibility to immediate, catastrophic failure as evidenced from my own experience and dozens of episodes reported online. This failure typically causes a 00-00 repair bill that audi will not cover and will claim is the fault of the owner. My wife was driving the vehicle with our 5-year-old daughter in the car in the middle of the rear seat. The daughter spilled part of a 500 ml water bottle onto the seat next to her. Within 20 seconds of this happening, the car began alerting about steering malfunctions, braking malfunctions, and the windows began seizing up and down repeatedly. The car was completely inoperable. We are lucky this was on a slow city street and not on the interstate or tollway! Once stopped, we no buttons generated any actions from the vehicle. We couldn't power it on, put it into neutral to be towed away, raise the windows, or perform any other function at all. The car was a useless brick. We were charged 5 for the towing service and another 00 from audi plano in texas. After countless conversations, even debates, with david (director audi plano) and even audi usa customer experience team, they refused to admit any fault in a poor design and help cover any of the costs whatsoever, and we are even still in warranty. The part that was damaged is directly below the cupholders and has no effective liquid protections - what did they think would happen! Here are other examples from online: https://www. Audiworld. Com/forums/q5-sq5-mkii-discussion-218/water-bottle-leak-%241800-damage-3009540/ https://www. Audiworld. Com/forums/q5-sq5-mkii-discussion-218/control-module-ruined-moisture-corrosion-3001605/page5/ https://www. Mumsnet. Com/talk/shopping/3641294-audi-q5-taken-out-by-dd-water-spill-in-rear-seat https://www. Nhtsa. Gov/recalls? Nhtsaid=11350209 |
| Category | Tires |
| Date | Jun 21, 2021 |
| State | WV |
| Description | We got a screw in our tire while driving on the highway and received a low tire pressure indicator. We kept driving, not knowing it was a screw, until we could find a rest stop. Before we were able to reach a safe place to stop, the entire tread of the tire came off while we were driving, immediately disabling the car. |
| Category | Electrical System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jun 16, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | There is a module under the back seat called the j533 that I am told got wet. This completely shut down the entire car as my wife and child were driving down the highway. We were very disheartened to find out that this is an out of pocket expense for a common thing to happen in the back of an suv. After searching online, I came across this link, which is an identical account: https://www. Audiworld. Com/forums/q5-sq5-mkii-discussion-218/control-module-ruined-moisture-corrosion-3001605/ I'll highlight one area in this link thread, as it most strongly relates to your questions above: "audi (voa) faces considerable legal exposure for any injury caused by a liquid finding its way into a component that poses such a high risk of harm if the module fails. . Which evidently it does via corrosion following moisture intrusion of some sort. This is particularly the case given the absence of any mention or warning in the manual about avoiding spillage, and more pertinent to liability, audi's failure to anticipate the considerable risk of harm stemming from a readily foreseeable occurrence, ie, spillage. To frame it in more stark terms, no one reasonably expects to face a death ride when they spill their soda." |
| Category | Electrical System, Structure:body, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | May 11, 2021 |
| State | GA |
| Description | I was about to get on the freeway when my car's electrical system failed and I got several warning lights. The braking/stop start system, lights and a few other lit up. I pulled off the road and had it towed. The dealership said water (rain) got in through my sunroof and shorted my system (warranty won't cover). There are several class action suits re. This issue already and audi knows about it, but there's no recall and cars have stopped suddenly on the freeway. It's very dangerous. |
| Category | Engine, Fuel System, Gasoline |
| Date | May 03, 2021 |
| State | OK |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. The contact stated that while driving at 65 mph, the engine shut-off as the contact was forced to coast the vehicle to the shoulder of the highway. The contact attempted multiple times to restart the vehicle. Engine failure - contact dealer, message was displayed on the instrument panel. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to audi tulsa (4208 s memorial dr, tulsa, ok 74145) where the vehicle was diagnosed with a defective fuel sensor. The dealer replaced the sensor and the fuel tank and the vehicle was returned to the contact. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 27,260. |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Apr 21, 2021 |
| State | PA |
| Description | When pressing the brake pedal at times you hear a metal clang sound like something hitting a tin can. This happens often but is not consistent. I have video evidence of this as well as have seen this item discussed in detail of audi forums. Audi claims regardless of my evidence nothing can be done. My concern is it has to do something with the brake and to me is a saftey concern*dt |
| Category | Air Bags |
| Date | Jan 19, 2021 |
| State | FL |
| Description | Car stationary on highway after traffic came to a stop due to a traffic incident ahead. Rear ended by vehicle going in excess of 40mph. Car pushed into car in front (car 3), spun around and hit the same car (car 3) in the front. Airbags did not deploy. Both driver and passenger were admitted to the hospital with injuries. |
| Category | Electronic Stability Control, Service Brakes, Steering |
| Date | Sep 27, 2020 |
| State | NH |
| Description | Twice in 2019 my car slammed to a stop while backing up at 2-3 mph. I had not hit anything and no damage to car. There was nothing to hit, just a vacant area. Yesterday while driving forward at 35-40 mph on a main street with the closest oncoming car 1 block away my car slammed to a dead, wall slamming stop. If a car had been behind me there would have been an accident. I emphasize: this was a dead, no slow-down stop. I refused to drive it 50 miles to the dealer. The dealer has picked it up and told me the sensors were set too sensitive. If so, why did this not occur every time I drove? Frankly, I am afraid I will be forced to drive this car for the next 3 months until my lease expires. The dealer will not give me a loaner. I think this is a very unsafe car. I have no confidence in the way this is being handled. For your interest, I was given a ride today in the 2019 sedan model. Unbelievably it slammed to a stop while backing out of my driveway. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Aug 19, 2020 |
| State | IL |
| Description | Car suddenly tied while driving in city; engine/all systems shut off. It took several hours for roadside assistance to arrive, and the 1st 2 towing companies could not disengage the braking system to load onto truck! Once vehicle towed to audi dealer, their diagnosis was "gateway control module j533, water in control module, corrosion in connector, causing fuse for gateway control unit to blow" we were told by dealer that "liquid must have spilled into area behind rear seats". We have no young children, and nobody was recently sitting in rear seat. Vehicle is parked in garage and is in excellent condition; 2 years old / 24,000 miles. This was a ,200 repair not covered under warranty. This sounds like a design defect. After several communications I had with audi usa and local dealer, those (2) parties told me this repair would be covered as a "goodwill adjustment" not a "warranty item". I found similar reports online: here is a discussion I started on an online forum: https://www. Audiworld. Com/forums/q5-sq5-mkii-discussion-218/control-module-ruined-moisture-corrosion-3001605/page3/ another one I found: https://www. Audiworld. Com/forums/q5-sq5-mkii-discussion-218/complete-engine-control-module-failure-2952745/ attached is invoice. System will not allow me to upload photos they sent me due to file sizes. Repair took almost a month to complete. We ended up renting a car for a week-long road trip as the dealer loaner is only for local use. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Jun 27, 2020 |
| State | MA |
| Description | Navigation locks up, driver cockpit and dash screen shuts down when carplay is activated. At time the car doesn't recognize carplay. Additionally the volume control will only increase and not decrease volume. Sometimes it says speech recognition not recognized when adjusting volume. Has not resolved for the 10 months I have owned the car. *tr |
| Category | Service Brakes, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | May 08, 2020 |
| State | GA |
| Description | Audi pre-sense braking fault; recall needed! 1- while moving forward on an empty, flat, 2-lane, suburban road at approximately 35mph, the brakes suddenly activated, bring my vehicle to a near stop, with a loud, grinding sound. Terrifying. There were no objects or vehicles on the road, no glaring sunlight or other problems that could have caused this. April 15, 2020. 2- twice or more, in the few weeks or so prior to this event, while backing up into my garage, the vehicle suddenly stopped with a loud grinding sound. There were no objects, vehicles, glaring lights, or anything that would have caused the vehicle to brake this time vs. The hundreds of other times the same process had been completed. Between january 1, 2020, to present. Vehicle was approximately 1. 5 years old and approximately 10,000 miles when these braking events happened. I believe the problem is caused by an error in the audi pre-sense system, which causes the vehicle to brake to prevent a collision. *tr |
| Category | Electrical System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | May 03, 2020 |
| State | VA |
| Description | I've had several issues with my vehicle when backing up and the presence going off without a reason. When backing up on several occasions, the sensors will beep and bring the vehicle to grinding stop. When I check the area, there are no vehicles, person, or objects in the path of the vehicle. Recently, when driving on the highway, the pre sense went off when no vehicles were around and slowed the vehicle down at a rapid rate. Twice when driving, the pre sense will activate and bring the vehicle to a complete stop when there are no vehicles in front, behind, or beside me. |
| Category | Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Feb 23, 2020 |
| State | TX |
| Description | My vehicle was in motion after starting from a complete stop. I took my foot off the accelerator and the vehicle continued to accelerate without my foot on the gas pedal. It seemed liked the gas pedal was stuck. I then put my foot on the brake and slammed on the break to get the vehicle to stop. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Feb 03, 2020 |
| State | CO |
| Description | A feature called rear cross-traffic assist triggers erroneously sometimes. The feature is designed to detect objects such as cars or pedestrians that may be moving behind the vehicle while it is reversing. The default action is to engage the parking brake, which is a very jarring experience and leads the driver to believe a serious problem has occurred. Of the times this system has triggered, over 50% seem to be false positives; however, sometimes it does trigger as intended. It is unknown what conditions must be present for a false positive to occur. I have experienced this while reversing in parking lots, either into or out of spaces. Speeds are usually around 1-6 mph. It has occurred several times since owning the car, but I have not kept a log indicating how often or other conditions at the time. I have asked my audi service center about the ability to disable this and it doesn't appear that there's a way to selectively turn this exact safety feature off. The owners manual admits that it's not a fool proof system. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Feb 03, 2020 |
| State | CO |
| Description | The vehicle can, at times, sound alarms indicating a risk of getting into an accident when there is no risk present. This can happen while driving at highway speeds or while stopped. My guess is that this is due to similar safety sensors installed on other vehicles on the road which my car may mistake for signals from its own. I have notices this occurring around teslas mostly, but it has happened around other makes/models as well but those are more rare. This problem has specifically happened while driving on the highway more than once, and has happend also while sitting stopped at a traffic light while not moving. I was not (in my opinion) dangerously close to other vehicles at the time. How the car reacts in this situation is to beep loudly, halt all audio (e. G. Radio), and change the center console view to a mode where the car is attempting to show how close objects are to it. This view is normally displayed while pulling into or out of a parking space and is not normal for it to trigger while driving, or while stopped at a light. This may be related to a feature called pre-sense but I am unsure if that is the case. It may simply be sensors from other cars that trigger certain safety warnings in the vehicle, but they shouldn't be triggered in this manner. I have not kept a log of these incidents, so I do not have exact speeds or dates to list (I put one on the form since it was required.) but every time this has occurred it has been a false positive. I have had a service shop at the audi dealer investigate this issue, but they were unable to replicate it. I doubt they would but I wanted some documentation that showed I had observed odd behavior in the past in the event that the car takes an evasive action on my behalf that results in an accident on the road - especially it it was done in error. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Feb 03, 2020 |
| State | CO |
| Description | This is not an urgent safety issue, but just a dumb decision that should be rectified. It is also limited to drivers utilizing hitch or other rear-attachments. There are certain situations where the parking sensors can be told to stop beeping, but that action also disables the backup camera, which is needed. There is no mechanism to turn off the beeping and keep the backup camera on. Service centers have confirmed this. The main scenario where this is a problem is where there is something connected to a hitch, such as a bike rack that may cause the car to think that there's an object dangerously close to the vehicle. These backup sensors are unable to distinguish between a hitch-based mount (without power connected) and something that is legitimately too close while reversing. When power is connected, such as with an actual trailer to supply power to brake lights, the owner's manual states that the backup warnings will be disabled automatically. But when something like a hitch-based bike rack is attached that doesn't need power, the warning alarm sounds continuously while backing up. This is annoying, and for passengers in the back is actually extremely loud. Turning off the alarm disables the camera as well, which is.... Less than ideal at least. The desired mode should be to turn off the alarm while keeping the backup camera active during the entire reversing process. The beeping will stop automatically once the vehicle starts moving forward faster than something like 6mph. However, when the vehicle slows down again, it may start a continuous tone alarm again due to this hitch attachment. Please help audi realize that disabling the camera is inappropriate. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Jan 08, 2020 |
| State | MD |
| Description | I was driving 65 miles an hour on I-95 in the left lane approaching the exit for I-695 north on saturday, january 4th at 5:00pm. It was raining. No one was in front of me or behind me when my car dash lit up with an audi pre sense red sign on a black background. The brakes stopped the car suddenly on their own and my seat belt slammed me tightly into my seat. Fortunately no one was behind me or this could have caused a multi car accident. There was nothing visible on the road to set this system off. Monday morning I went to the dealer to see if they could disconnect this system since I was now afraid this would happen again and I would not be so lucky with the traffic situation the next time. They lowered the sensitivity but they could not disconnect the system. I also called audi to inform them about this hazard. They noted it on their record but said it is part of the car and it could not be disconnected. When I looked on line there were many complaints about this problem; however none of the other drivers were on the open highway full speed ahead. Can this problem be looked into before someone's car causes a major pileup with serious injuries. Thank you! *js |
| Category | Service Brakes, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Nov 05, 2019 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. While the vehicle was in a parking lot with the brake pedal depressed, the vehicle accelerated without warning and crashed into a stairway rail of an apartment building. There were no injuries and a police report was filed. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to a body shop. The contact called audi livermore (3400 las positas rd, livermore, ca 94551) and informed them of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 9,000. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Oct 30, 2019 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Audi usa issued a safety recall for the wheel wells of my car, and despite my repeated attempts over the past several months to get audi san francisco to schedule an appointment to complete the repair, they have not returned my calls or scheduled an appointment to fix the problem. I'm concerned that I'm driving around with a safety issue, and audi san francisco doesn't seem to care or to be living up to their responsibility to fix safety recall issues as soon as possible. |
| Category | Power Train, Service Brakes, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Sep 26, 2019 |
| State | TX |
| Description | 1. I had an accident at approximately 10:45 a. M. On thursday, september 19, 2019 in the parking lot for the medical offices located at 2000 south mays street, round rock, texas. 2. I parked in a space on the south side of the building, which is part of their property. 3. My normal habit is to place the car in 'park' when I stop in a parking spot. 4. Since it was very warm, I left the motor running so I'd have air conditioning as I placed the sun screen over the windshield. 5. The sun shade is one piece and takes a lot of time and effort to properly install. 6. When I completed installing the sun shade, I noticed the car was moving backwards at less than 5 mph. 7. I tried repeatedly to stop the car by pressing on the brake and slamming on the brake. 8. What was happening made no sense to me; it was surreal. Why was the car moving backwards and why couldn't I stop the car? 9. The car stopped when it hit a parking lot light pole on my left rear and the left front of a toyota on my right rear. 10. The car is equipped with every pre sense, driver assistance, and collision avoidance system audi offers; however, all systems failed to detect or avoid the collision. 11. The accident was caused by some weird problem with my 2018 audi q5. There was nothing I could do in the time I had without the brakes working. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Aug 13, 2019 |
| State | NJ |
| Description | On july 16, 2019 when my wife was driving 2018 audi a5 one of the rims blow off (cracked) fortunately, my wife was not injured since it was the rear rim, she was able to maintain control of the car. There is no external damage to the rim or tire typical marks when you hit pothole on the road. I believe it is manufacture issue of the rims. I sent written compliant regarding safety of driving this car to audi usa and asked for investigation. Knowing the other three rims are from the same manufacture batch I would expect audi usa will at least investigate this issue. After almost four weeks I have been informed by representative from audi customer experience center that complain I filed has been decline base of two evidences. Evidence one: pictures I provided and evidence two: my feedback from visiting the authorized audi dealer chosen by audi customer experience center the person I visited even didn't ask for my name, check the vin # or miles on the car all what he ask do you purchased additional insurance for rims and tiers. |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Aug 09, 2019 |
| State | PA |
| Description | I have reported to sewickley audi, my closest dealer, on several appointments that my brakes severly grind upon application. I would believe that the rotors are severly scorerd or warped. It happens upon first use every day, as well as a loud grinding upon every stop especially from highway speeds. I have been told there is nothing wrong with my brakes although I complained from my initial visit , my last inspection and recently brought it in specifically for that. The noise/ grinding is bad, but the lack of quality braking has me more concerned. I am going to take it to "midas muffler" or someone else to check. I believe other q5 and cross linked volkswagens have caliper problems and I believe my car does as well but they are unwilling to repair it under warranty to save cost. |
| Category | Fuel/propulsion System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jul 31, 2019 |
| State | FL |
| Description | When depressing gas pedal from stopped (or near stopped) position, the vehicle fails to respond before moving forward. This most frequently occurs when pulling onto or crossing a street, and I'm concerned it will eventually be the cause of an accident. The dealer has checked this several times, but says that the recorder shows no problem. It does not occur every time, and no default is recorded, but it continues to occur even after almost two years. Dealer has a number of service requests for this issue, all marked as ntf. I also have copies of 10 or more email complaints to dealer that can be made available is requested. Only the latest date is noted below - it happens almost every week. *tr *as 'parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).'*jb *tt |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Jul 16, 2019 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 19v416000 (wheels). The contact stated that royal auto group service (located at 1525 howard st, san francisco, ca 94103, (415) 241-8100) exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified. The dealer stated that the part was not available for the repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Jun 29, 2019 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Squealing brakes at slow speeds. Dealership able to replicate issue but unable to resolve adequately. They asking us to replace rotors and pads with several hundred dollar cost to us. Car is only 2 yrs old now. We bought cpo after car was used by dealer salesman for 6mo. Brakes have been squealing soon after we got the car. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | May 21, 2019 |
| State | WA |
| Description | On the morning of apr. 24, I was on my way to drop off my kids at their school when I heard an explosion and realized the rear window of my car shattered and left glass on my son's lap and all over the backseat and floorboard. I was driving on se 20th st., sammamish, wa at about 30 miles/hr. There was no rock to cause the explosion. Thankfully, my son was facing his sister, talking to her, when the explosion occurred. Otherwise, the glass might have gotten into his eyes. My kids were extremely frightened by this traumatic experience, and I had to console and reassure them. I was frighted but relieved they were not injured. I went to audi bellevue and told them the window exploded by itself. They suggested me leave the car with them. They called the next day to say the audi factory declined to cover the cost. They told me there must have been an outside influence to cause the explosion, which is not the truth. The window explosion scratched the paint off the rear door on the driver's side. I filed a claim with my insurance company and had audi fix the window. I paid for the 0 deductible. Unfortunately, even with the window replaced, I don't feel safe to drive my kids in the car. Furthermore, my kids worry another window might explode on them. There was no safety check performed following this incident on the other windows. On may 7, I went to gerber collision and glass in bellevue for an estimate on the body damage. The cost is estimated at 00. The probability is that audi has defective windows and they should be held responsible for the repairs. It was a very frightening experience and dangerous. We are very disappointed with audi. We hope they will ultimately be held responsible and wish for this never to happen to another family or risk injury to children. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | May 18, 2019 |
| State | PA |
| Description | The audi pre sense was activated without any vehicle in front of the car when it was at speed ~50 miles/hour. The road was empty when this happened. The car broke really hard and the speed reduced to less 20 miles/hours in 1-2 second. This is a serious safety issue, as the driver behind would not have enough time to respond to the sudden breaking. The car had only ~1000 miles on it when this happens. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | May 02, 2019 |
| State | TX |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. The contact stated that the instrument panel went blank without warning and the indicators and gauges could not be viewed. The vehicle was taken to mckinney audi (6650 texas state hwy 121, mckinney, tx 75070, (972) 390-2100) where it was diagnosed that the computer needed patching in the "s 5 chip". The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 4,392. The vin was unknown. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Apr 22, 2019 |
| State | TX |
| Description | Going down the road and moon roof exploded. Audi says it was a rock, but no other vehicle was around. We were driving between 50 and 60 mph. Sounded like a shot gun went off in our car. Glass went everywhere. High safety issue. Once again a rock didn't hit us the moon roof's are not safe. |
| Category | Electrical System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Apr 18, 2019 |
| State | MI |
| Description | 5)establishing a bluetooth connection is intermittent with a samsung galaxy s9. Often the mmi will indicate that it can't connect. If the car is in reverse with the parking assist displaying the rear view camera, the bluetooth connection screen can suddenly appear replacing the rear view image while the car is actively backing up. The rear view camera image is no longer available while the vehicle is in rearward motion. This has happened on multiple occasions. |
| Category | Seat Belts, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Apr 18, 2019 |
| State | MI |
| Description | 1)audi pre-sense activated while vehicle was stationary, in drive, with driver's foot on the brake. This occurred while waiting in the left turn lane of a traffic light. The seat belt pre-tightened suddenly, and forcefully. While the vehicle is stopped at a light the occupants could be expected to be leaning over, looking in the glove box etc., and the pre-tightening of the seat belt could cause an injury. This is also startling, since it seems indicative of a collision, and could cause the driver to remove their foot from the brake losing control of the vehicle. The pre-sense system is supposed to only be active above 20mph. Its activation when the vehicle is stopped implies a serious safety defect. Could this defect cause other safety related systems to activate incorrectly like the air bags? |
| Category | Engine |
| Date | Apr 02, 2019 |
| State | MA |
| Description | The mil light is on, previous owner returned the car in 8 months, when I bought the car they told me the engine was replaced with another new engine and it's all set, yet after one months of buying the 10k miles car the mil light came on??? |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Mar 24, 2019 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Vag has known and addressed this problem in previous models. The rubberized material on interior trim pieces is peeling or delaminating. No caustic chemicals or cleaning agents have ever been used to clean or protect the pieces. |
| Category | Electrical System, Electronic Stability Control, Service Brakes |
| Date | Mar 12, 2019 |
| State | OR |
| Description | On multiple occasions when driving the audi q5 the pre-sense engages inappropriately (no trigger) resulting in an immediate and harsh braking of the car to a complete stop. In traffic, this poses a significant risk of a crash resulting in damage and potential bodily injury. The audi pre-sense is designed to stop a car from an imminent crash, however an apparent flaw in the technology engages the pre-sense without totally unnecessarily (no cross traffic, at least 10 feet from a bush or other object). Not only does the unexpected and unnecessary hard auto-braking add wear and tear to the brakes and suspension, it poses a real risk of an accident as other drivers do not expect the sudden and unnecessary braking. This happens intermittently without a pattern in dry and wet weather on a flat surface or an incline. Always occurs when in reverse. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking |
| Date | Mar 06, 2019 |
| State | MI |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. The contact state that the vehicle indepently engaged the collision brake system on several occasions the first was the evening of february 12th at approximately 19:00 est. While traveling south on lahser road at approximately 45 mph with no other vehicles in the area the vehicle sensed a potential front end collision and applied full brakes. This caused loss of control of the vehicle the second event was march 4 at approximately 16:00 est. Whilst driving home I came to a stop at the light with a truck in front of my vehicle. No warning was detected. As the vehicle in front of me departed the vehicle warning system came on. It did not apply breaks at this time just a false positive sensor warning. The first incident was passed off as the result of ice, while notice sensor warning was evident the second incident was reported to the dealer on march 4 and no response has been received. I feel this vehicle has twice provided unsafe actions and needs to be addressed before I have a child in the vehicle and have an incident that harms an individual. The vehicle was taken to audi of rochester hill 45441 dequindre road rochester hill michigan 48307 phone nunber (248)-997-7400 to have a diagnostic performed the dealer advised that the vehicle collision system malfunction due to ice on the sensor. The vin information was not available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted. The failure mileage was 600. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Jan 18, 2019 |
| State | MI |
| Description | Yesterday while driving on us hwy 41 in marquette, michigan (below the posted speed limit - I was traveling at 40 mph) and while braking for a traffic light the vehicle lost traction and did not enter the skid control mode. Upon approaching the signal to a stop, the vehicle skid into the adjacent right lane. There was no car in the adjacent right lane and no collision. My audi is equipped with audi's recommended winter wheels and winter tires (audi winter wheel and tire package number: npn071069), I strongly suspect that the dealer's recommendation to match the winter tire pressure to that of the all-season oem tires cause the winter tires to be over-inflated, and thus not make proper contact with the road. Dealer and the manufacturer do not provide manufacturer recommended inflation pressures specific to the winter tires 1) on the tire and loading information tag on the b-filler, 2) nor in the owner's manual, 3) at the dealership, nor on 4) the manufacturer's online maintenance and repair database audi erwin portal (www. Erwin. Audi. Usa. Com). I have asked the dealer service department for assistance on 2 occasions, and have received the same answer - the cold inflation pressure of 33 psi front and 36 psi rear for the original factory tires (225/45 r20 101h) should be used for the winter tires (235/65 r17 104h m+s). Even if this answer would be found to be correct, it should be supported by appropriate resources readily available to the customer. If the erwin portal did provide this information (which is does not), the customer should not have to pay for a subscription to access this information. I've attached three (3) items for your reference are attached. |
| Category | Exterior Lighting, Structure:body |
| Date | Jan 04, 2019 |
| State | VA |
| Description | As I was preparing to park at my local grocery store in an assigned space I experienced a sudden unintended acceleration. The front end slammed into a concrete retaining wall, causing major damage to both my vehicle and the retaining wall. The car was practically at a complete stop when this occurred. Additionally when I reversed the car it accelerated back at a rapid speed. It was very scary and thankfully nobody was injured or worse. This could have been a serious or fatal situation and I feel that there was some kind of electronic failure. Considering the safety record on this car I felt very unsafe and not in control. |
| Category | Structure:body |
| Date | Jan 03, 2019 |
| State | WI |
| Description | On three occasions beginning in the spring of 2018, the tailgate has randomly opened with no command from the owners. Each time the car has been in our garage and we have been elsewhere. Each time the tailgate collided with the garage door when we opened the garage door was opened causing body damage. A quick google search shows that this is a recurring problem for the audi q5 and other models and that this problem has occurred outside on streets and roads as well as inside. The dealer said that audi has a provided the dealer with a technical bulletin to make software changes remedy this problem. However, even after the software changes, this problem has recurred. Audi has refused to pay for the body work. On the first occasion, I paid for the body work. On the second occasion, the dealer paid for the body work after audi refused to pay. The car is now going into the dealer for an extended period so that the dealer can work with audi engineers to hopefully solve this problem once and for all. If the tailgate opens on a highway and luggage falls out, someone could be hurt or killed. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance |
| Date | Dec 21, 2018 |
| State | MA |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. While driving 65 mph, the collision alert system independently engaged the brake system, causing the vehicle to slow down. The contact was able to keep the vehicle under control and regain highway speed. The contact believed that the collision system may have sensed an object in the road and caused the collision system to engage. The contact also stated that the collision alert system engaged when the contact attempted to parallel park. The contact spoke with audi birmingham (1314 grants mill way, irondale, al 35210, (855) 627-3378) to inquire if the collision alert system could be disabled. The dealer stated that nothing could be done. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 12,000. |
| Category | Power Train |
| Date | Nov 17, 2018 |
| State | NY |
| Description | Purchased a 2018 audi q5 in july 2017. The engine lost power or acceleration when making a turn. Took it to the dealer 2 times for the same problem and cannot reproduce the problem. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Sep 29, 2018 |
| State | TX |
| Description | Vehicle traveling straight on highway at 70mph with phone plugged in to entertainment system and connected to carplay. Center screen shut off, and audio controls unresponsive on both the dash and steering wheel. The instrument panel, which was displaying google maps, then blacked out, with only the speedometer and tach displaying. Again, controls were unresponsive. The system then restarted, similarly to initially turning on the vehicle. The "initializing map" message appeared in the instrument panel, and shortly thereafter both the center screen and instrument cluster were functioning normally, and all controls were responsive. This was especially stressful as I was expecting something else to fail but couldn't pull over. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Sep 29, 2018 |
| State | NY |
| Description | When driving, there was no indicator light illuminating to alert us of low tire pressure or a flat tire. After driving for 2-3 miles, with no flat tire indication, we smelled a burning odor and heard loud noises. We stopped to see a flat tire down to the rim. There was never a warning light on the dash board about a tire problem. Audi says that the light only illuminates at the first time the tire pressure goes low and never illuminates again. We never saw this first indicator light and when we drove on a dark rural road - we had the flat tire described above, without any indicator lights illuminated. If we had ever seen any indication ( visually, or in the handling of the car)we never would have driven on a dark evening. We were left to wait alone on this dark road until 1 hour when aaa arrived. Both the dealership in albany, ny and audi corporate states that no light remains illuminated - we have never had a car without the tire pressure light staying on until you get the tire fixed. The light always stayed on and this is a new design in the 2018 audi q5. I think it is a design flaw and can cause the possiblity of a dangerous tire blowout that could cause swerving into another lane, and/or a worse more dangerous situation. We were driving on a rural upstate ny road going straight. There was absolutely no indication to us that our tire was loosing pressure and would go completely flat. This was a horrifying experience for us as we are experienced and competent drivers and have never had this lack of alert on a car in many years of driving. |
| Category | Fuel/propulsion System |
| Date | Sep 11, 2018 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The car has about 10k miles. It smells like unburnt raw fuel when the car is parked in residential indoor garage. When there is no car in the garage, the odor is not present. The car was taken to the audi dealer but they claimed the smell cannot be reproduced. It is a safety, health and environment issues hence reporting. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Aug 12, 2018 |
| State | CA |
| Description | When going into reverse. The rear view camera mode will not stay with the "carmera view" but instead, reverts back to the "graphiv view". Extremely annoying. |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Jun 15, 2018 |
| State | UT |
| Description | The vehicle was stopped and I was intending to turn left at a signal light. When the signal changed for me to proceed I accelerated into my left turn when the car suddenly braked on its own and pulled me back into the seat. The audi sense indicator came on being activated as if it sensed I was about to make impact with another vehicle. However, I was the first vehicle turning left and there were no other vehicles in front of me nor any other vehicles opposite of my lane of travel so there were no vehicles anywhere near my vicinity that should have triggered the audi sense. There were no vehicles behind me also turning or I'm sure they would have rear-ended my vehicle given the severe braking action. The system initiated a severe braking action as if I was about to rear-end another vehicle. This occurred on june 14, 2018 at at approximately 10:30 am. Weather conditions were warm, dry and clear with no precipitation. I believe this was caused by a malfunction in the audi sense causing the braking system to initiate. |
| Category | Electrical System, Visibility |
| Date | May 23, 2018 |
| State | AR |
| Description | 2018 audi q5 prestige. Consumer writes in regards to the heads up display function on vehicle. *ld the consumer stated when the sun reached a certain angle, a white solid reflection box appears on the windshield. This created a visibility issue for the driver. *js |
| Category | Electrical System, Exterior Lighting, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | May 09, 2018 |
| State | NY |
| Description | Hey, im carmen, im german and I m diplomatic, I work at the permanent mission of germany for the united nations till march 2019. My question is, I want to bring a audi q5 , brand new model , a german model, from germany to new york. And afte my job in 2019, I want to take it back to germany. Is there any problem?? Must I change any stuff because of other safety rules or something? Other lights, miles per hour, electricity? |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Apr 19, 2018 |
| State | PA |
| Description | I am writing to formally report an incident of concern. I parked my audi q5 in my daughter's driveway, leaving my (very minimal, no metal, just flannel) pocketbook in the car with the audi fob. In about 15 minutes, I brought my granddaughter who is 4 down to the car and strapped her in her car seat in the back seat on the passenger side. When I went to open the driver's door, the car locked up. It stayed locked. None of the doors or the hatchback would open. The keys were inside. Fortunately, my granddaughter is 4 and can understand commands. She got herself out of the car seat and unlocked the doors from the inside. But this was very troubling. What if she were 18 months or younger still? What if she panicked? I think this is a very bad design feature. Do you have any idea what happened? What if I were in a remote location and got out of the car to check on something and then couldn't get back in. I never touched the fob from the time I exited the car until I opened the back door for my granddaughter. It wasn't locked then; it locked itself after I belted her in. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Apr 17, 2018 |
| State | MA |
| Description | Since we leased this car last year in april, we have had many issues with the pre-sense prematurely going off in the late setting ( automatic braking system to prevent rear collisions. There have many times where my wife was backing out of our driveway and even in the late setting it picked up vehicles from the opposite lane and abruptly slammed on the brakes, scaring my wife. One of these times when it did this, it came extremely close to where by the time she was able to gain control , engaging it in drive she was almost hit in the back of the car until she could accelerate to the speed limit of the road we live on which is 35 mph. There has been other times, like backing up in our driveway and it just decides to go off with no vehicles in the the driveway??? I have had the dealer look at this twice and have been in conversations with audi corporate. Their last comment to me is the system is working as designed. This is my 20+ audi and currently have one other 2018 audi and 2018 vw. Last year alone I had 4 audi's so I am familiar with the product, this is working properly and is a safety issue which concerns me that could cause my wife to be in an accident because of the premature engagement. I want to mention that my wife is now inconvenienced having to back into our driveway thus preventing it to go off when leaving for work every day. Since we live on a scenic byway, there is a steady flow of cars but again at a slower speed of 35 mph. Lastly this system is set to late warning but can not be turned off permanently or we would. I have sent many emails to audi , spoken with the dealer and the executive assistant. There are other complaints online with people having issues with the new pre-sense system. |
| Category | Steering |
| Date | Apr 06, 2018 |
| State | WI |
| Description | Tl* the contact owns a 2018 audi q5. While driving approximately 55 mph, the steering wheel seized and the traction warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. In addition, the steering wheel was difficult to steer. The vehicle was taken to audi eau claire (5201 fairview dr, eau claire, wi 54701) where it was diagnosed that the electric power steering rack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 900. |
| Category | Structure:body |
| Date | Mar 05, 2018 |
| State | NY |
| Description | I purchased my vehicle on 4/21/2017, I was sold by the dealership on the advertised safety feature called the audi pre sense. Audi pre sense detects collision hazards all around the car and initiates specific preventive measures. On 1/20/2018 at 9am I was involved in an accident where I was driving on a city street going about 10-15 mph, I was stopped at a red light and was driving off from the intersection due to the glare in my eyes I was not able to see a cement pillar in front of me. The car collided and there the entire front was smashed in, the engine belt was clipped. I contacted audi head quarters and described to them the incident, provided pictures, and police report. Audi customer care told me that the safety feature does not work in sunlight and that in this cased the audi pre sense would not of detected anything. This is far different from what the dealership told as well as what is published on their website. The audi pre sense should be 360 view and my car should have alerted me that I was in an accident. |
| Category | Electronic Stability Control, Engine, Power Train |
| Date | Mar 02, 2018 |
| State | IL |
| Description | While driving down the expressway in chicago, transmission, and all safety features completely shut off. Pressing on accelerator had no effect, and with limited steering was able to pull to roadside barely missing high-speed traffic. Expressway roadside is narrow, so was nearly hit by many cars while waiting for tow service. Car would not restart and with full electronic transmission, no ability to put into neutral. Audi roadside assistance did not provide timely tow service. Extremely dangerous and unsafe. |
| Category | Service Brakes, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jan 22, 2018 |
| State | TX |
| Description | My vehicle has a safety feature called audi presence. My new vehicle q5 prestige (less than 150 miles, just 6 days old) had malfunctioned with an unexpected automatic break on jan 17th 2018 at around 7:29pm central time while on service road of highway 114 going towards west (straight road in motion) before reaching the intersection of freeport in irving, tx. There was nothing in the street that could be identified as an object that would cause a collision or any kind of accident. The sudden break really caused a mental shock to me. I was lucky to have no vehicle just behind me. I was driving at around 40 miles per hour. I have used collision avoidance technology for the last 3. 5 years (mercedes benz, subaru forester and the latest being toyota corolla) and I am very familiar with the technology and never ran into such issues. I contacted audi support and they mentioned it is not unusual and you should take it to dealer. I took the vehicle to dealer and they informed it happens all the time and audi is very sensitive to this compared to other brands to be more safe. They were not even willing to check the vehicle and wanted me to come back if it happen again. They also told they have no way to figure out what happened. On my escalation one of the senior manager in sales told me he owns audi and pre sense run into this issues but need not be worried. Finally they ran an automated test and confirmed their report does not show any issues with the vehicle. I am driving the vehicle now but has the following concerns:1) audi customer support not dealer is appears to be not trained how to handle safety issues when reported. 2) dealer did not register my reported issue. Their report provided did not capture what issue was reported. To me this is a bad practice. It is unclear if this was deliberate. I appreciate what nhtsa do. |
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About the Author:
Brian Jones spent more than 20 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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I purchased an Audi Q5. Ive driven about 22000 miles and have been back to the dealership 7 times for the same related problems, some new. The car has been in and out since October, but recently about a total of 5 weeks in all. I want to get rid of the car and get my money back. Would like to know my options. I believe I my contract requires arbitration