Audi members: I need some help.

I have a 2011 A5 2.0T which has the oil consumption problem (Class Action settlement). It seems that Audi avoided accepting responsibility for this until persuaded by the Courts.

The vehicle has just 70,000 miles and now the Timing Chain appears to have failed (and probably wrecked the engine). This vehicle was meticulously serviced by the Dealer throughout it's (short) life and the 'ticking time bomb' was never mentioned to me - Yes, they know the characteristic and so does the auto engineering market...

see: 2.0T TSI Timing Chain Tensioner Failure - Redline Speed Worx (RSW) : Redline Speed Worx (RSW)

The vehicle now has a failed engine and the vehicle sits at the Audi Dealer in Austin Texas. I believe they have to dig into the engine to rectify the oil consumption problem. Why don't they take responsibility for the Premature Timing Chain failure and Fix it at the same ?
The QUESTION: How do to persuade Audi to take responsibility for the latent problem that they have engineered into the engine, and the catastrophic result that it causes. What we ask is that Audi stands behind it's "Truth in Engineering..." claim. That's all.
Anyone experience the same problem with the timing chain? Anyone have any advise on who to contact to get reasonable treatment?

 

Hi RunFromAudi,

I have had almost the exact same thing happen with my 2010 a4. I had the same oil consumption problem finally after 3 years of me owning the car, they changed the pistons and gaskets.

3 weeks ago my car wouldn't start mysteriously and now it sits at Audi Uptown needing a whole engine replacement due to the chain jumping 3 teeth due to a tensioner failure. Have you had any luck dealing with Audi?'

Has anyone else had similar failures?

 

At this point Audi is design in Denial - and it appears that they are also systemically 'shielding' their sales persons and other employees from "knowing" about this 'ticking time bomb'.... Deceptive Trade practices like this are highly illegal and invite a lawsuit (leading to class-action). It is unfortunate, but this IS the check and balance against large corporations which make claims like "Truth in Engineering"... then deceive by making a defective component which is internal - therefore, hidden from sight.

This kind of redefines "Truth in Engineering" (what did it mean anyway?

In my case Audi qualified Service personnel Knew this defect existed, they know the effect of not correcting the design flaw. There are shops that make a living from retrofitting the engine (to avoid this catastrophic engine failure). They all KNOW!

Here comes the class action suit (I am in touch with the lawyers who were successful the first time around.....
"Thank God for Trial Lawyers" (never thought I would say that!).

Best!

 

I have a Q5. 2011 with 106k mikes. Car was services as suggested by Audi. Pistons/gears changed at 55k. Car is obviously out of warranty. Audi is providing very little support. Need to contact attorney to file suit. Who have you used in the past regarding these issues?

 

Yes: We have had success.
The dealer called and said "your car will be ready Friday".... there was no call to say that they would be repairing the Damage caused by Failure of the timing chain tensioners (free of charge).
These are teh actions we took:
1. tried to convince the dealer Service Manager - her referred me to the 800#
2. Called the local Audi Customer 800# (that is designed to tell you NO!)
3. Left the car there at the Dealership (ignored it which it festered in their Lot)
4. Crafted a letter to a Audi Exec - FedEx to Herndon VA (HQ)
5. Followed up with calls/messages to the Exec to confirm the letter reached him.
6. Let the car fester some more with Audi....

Then we got the. Audi really does not want this truth to be told... it is not defensible. Especially using the moniker:"Truth in Engineering".

 

Our daughter's 2009 A4 CPO was part of the oil consumption problem. Audi replaced the bottom half of the engine around 60,000. Car was maintained according to their directions. Now at 114,000 miles the tensioner failed and the timing chain broke and threw shards of metal throughout the engine. She still has $8,000 left to pay on the loan and they are telling her it will be $12,000 to replace the engine. Got Audi corporate involved and they are acting like they are helping, but spoke to the dealer and Audi is putting it on them. They are trying to find a used engine and will charge us $6,000. Ugh any solutions out there?

 

what a bummer!!

timing chain failures almost always wreck the engine sadly. I would go for a reconditioned engine replacement

 

We have a 2009 Audi A4 2.0T wagon. Audi replaced the piston rings due to the excessive oil usage issue outside the warranty. The car is 98K miles and the timing chain tensioner failed and the engine is toast. Audi South Austin took the head off and said the only solution is a new engine which is $13K. Also they want $1300 to pay for their time taking the head off to see if there was serious damage to the engine.

Right now the car remains at Roger Beasley South Austin.

RunFromAudi, who did you contact in corporate to get things moving? Was your car also in the same dealer in Austin? If so would you be willing to PM me your real name, then I could drop it saying I know how you were treated and expect the same. It's clear the dealer knows about this common issue, so if it's not rectified then it's a lawsuit. Ideally I'd like to join an existing class action if possible though.

 

As I former Audi dealer tech from 2007-2012 (and not trying to stir anything up here!) it was frustrating when customers knew of problems before we did. There was a lot of things we (meaning the dealer) weren't informed of. Damn embarrassing. One of many reasons I left and went "indy" 2 years ago.

Other thing is, in most cases a good dealer will do everything in their power to help rectify the situation but if Audi says "NO" what can they do? The dealer can't be expected to pay for the engine (or whatever) plus labor. I'm sure you all know that, just stressing the point. Again, not stirring anything up but my 21 years (1986-2007 when the dealer closed) as a Ford tech, we NEVER had problems like I keep reading about with Audi, ever. Guess we can't forget, Audi is German and German companies operate different than U.S. companies.
Sorry for going off on a tangent. Thanks!

 

Yes I know it's not the dealer's fault and I wouldn't expect the dealer to repair it at their own cost. I'd expect them to repair it and Audi to reimburse them since this is a known fault due to defective parts and design.We leased the car for 3 years in 2009 and then at the end of the lease we purchased it. At the time we purchased the car in 2012 off lease Audi would have known about the oil consumption issue and also the timing chain tensioner issue but chose not to disclose it, contrary to the Deceptive Trade Practices Act so I would expect them to be a bit more helpful.