You're right about how it keeps functioning.
Mine never locked in the "on" position. I just turned the car on one day and my electrical parts stopped working. Car ran fine though.
I'm sure many crack initially then burn up... the one I pulled has no cracks, no visual defects except a blob of melted plastic and burnt terminal.
Audi wanted 80 bucks for it... said there are 2 models and mine is more expensive. The cheaper one is 50.
Other places online are for 35-40.

 

Yea it is an issue. I had mine changed.

 

Oh, I got mine at the VW dealer.
The VW dealer has always been cheaper for me than the Audi dealer, and they are usually cheaper than the web too.

 

So here is the update. Audi called me promptly the next day. And after telling me not to do anything with the car until they discussed the matter, well, essentially they are not going to do anything about the problem.

But rest assured... They "appreciate me bringing it to their attention".

******...

I keep waiting for one good thing to come from owning this thing. 3 years now and its been nothing but trouble.
Good thing the company stands so strongly behind their product.

Hope none of you readers go out one day to find your A4 burnt up. But in case you do, call Audi customer relations and they will profoundly say "Thank you for bringing it to our attention".

 

Yeah man, once your out of warranty, audi doesn't give a flying fu<k... even if it is a known defect.

 

Start a Petition on that, probably you be able to find enough signatures.

 

Well my friends, just wanted to provide all of you with an update.

Tonight I finished replacing the ignition switch and ALL IS WORKING WELL AGAIN.

I got the switch online for $35 and the housing clip from the local dealer for $8. I had to buy new terminal connectors which were $3 each. All in all I spent about $70.

Dealer would have ended up being at least $300 to fix so I saved some cash.

IF ANY OF YOU HAVE THE ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS I DISCUSSED IN THE PREVIOUS FORUM GO STRAIGHT TO THE IGNITION SWITCH. Even with all the discussion about a Load Reduction Relay, I have yet to see anyone who found this to be the problem.

Hopefully this fix, which is still a sore spot for me, will help some of you out.

Thanks to all who offered advise!

--- I do have a new problem but I will post it in a new forum ---

 

Wow saw your pictures and also your complaint about lack of support once the warrantys over. Im kinda going through the same realization. My Engine wiring harness is failing on top of the cylinder head from heat. My car has 58K miles on it. Audi is basically giving me the finger with any assistance and they want $1500-2K to replace it. So much for standing by their product. Im curious, did you smell anything ever???

 

Ya know, funny enough I thought I smelt a little burning plastic about a month before the problem but since everything kept working I didn't think anything of it.

I feel your pain. And your problem is worse (more $$$).

They don't give a damn about customer loyalty. It really makes me question if keeping this car is worth it.

Hope you get the problem worked out.