Happy Monday everyone... not for me unfortunately,

When i bought my 2005.5 A4 Avant, i naturally purchased the extended CPO warranty thru Audi, which covered me thru last March (2011). The Warranty stated that it covered maintenance thru 65K miles and the timing belt replacement at 75K. A couple years ago i received a letter stating that the timing belt warranty was extended to 110K miles because the Audi maintenance intervals had changed, and that my CPO would cover the belt replacement until the new 110K interval.

I now have 85K miles on the car, and want to get the belt replaced (getting nervous that it might fail). Audi dealer is saying that because the CPO is inactive (time period expired), the warranty on the timing belt thru 110K miles no longer applies, even though i have a letter direct from Audi saying the warranty was extended to 110K.

Anyone else have this issue? How was it resolved? If it was clear the coverage ended when the warranty period (not miles) ended i would have got it done last year. I only waited because of the letter .

Hoping this doesn't end in a lawsuit and me going back to BMW...

Thanks,
Mike

 

Perhaps I'm reading this wrong, but it sounds like you received the TSB stating the service interval for timing belt replacement was increased to 110K miles, and also that your CPO warranty would cover this. So it sounds like they'll cover the cost of your timing belt service at 110K, not before, unless you're experiencing problems or check engine lights related to it, in which case would force them to do the replacement.

Like the cam follower/cam/HPFP extended warranty. The cam follower is a known issue and now warrantied to 120k, but my dealer won't do it as a warranty item unless I'm getting check engine lights and performance loss.

If I'm interpreting this incorrectly and you should indeed receieve the belt service before the 110k mark, then it sounds like a call to Audi of America is in order. Good luck.

 

The letter specifically says it extends the replacement of the belt up to 110K miles. I'm hoping that doesn't mean that i either have to wait for the belt to fail and thus replace my engine, or wait 110K miles for a replacement in order to determine whether I'm covered by Audi or not.

 

Did you show them the letter....?

I would call Audi Of America..... It won't end in a lawsuit. The belt is maybe 80.00 and the labor is less than 4 hours. So nobody is going to make a big deal over 500.00. Call them and they will most likely make something happen for you or atleast give you a better understanding.

But you should know. The CPO ONLY covers the timing belt. NOT the water pump, serp belt, rollers or tensioner. The dealer will try to sell you the additional components..... and you should do it. Because most of the time its not the belt that fails its the water pump.

 

Appreciate the insight. Definitely showed them the letter, he said once my CPO expired so did the replacement, which is what makes no sense to me since it states the replacement is covered to 110K miles. They quoted me $2K for the belt, but im not sure if it includes everything you listed or not. Ill take your advice and go direct to Audi. Hopefully they have something better to say.

 

Geez for 2k that better include everything plus thermostat, 6-pack of favorite beverage and a free 18 holes with cart at a local country club.

 

its a 6.0 hour job. We charge 120.00 an hour so thats 720.00 for labor.... 1300.00 for parts is an outrageous ripoff. Sounds more and more like your dealer is full of **** on muliple levels

 

Are you sure that the extended warranty covers replacing the belt as part of maintenance? I thought it only covered to 110,000miles due to failure of the belt not just replacing it for preventative maintenance. You should read the paperwork carefully. General wear items such a brake pads aren't covered. The timing belt very likely is considered a general wear item and won't be replaced unless it fails before it's expected 110,000mile lifespan. If this wasn't the case then tens of thousands of A4 owners could demand this expensive service before the mileage limit, which I'm sure Audi would put a stop to.

 

My dealership quoted me $1700 for the timing belt, water pump, tensioner, etc and labor. I'm just gonna do it myself.

 

Thanks for all the input. Great news! Got a call from the dealership yesterday and they have agreed to take care of the timing belt and labor. Apparently the letter i got from Audi was sent out in error (lucky me), but did entitle me to a free timing belt replacement up to 110K miles. I'm still being charged $600 for the water pump, tensioners..etc (which i think is high), but not complaining at this point .