I would very much welcome all views on this issue - I recently purchased from audi, roofbars for the A5. Unfortunately whilst fitting the bars i damaged the chrome trim by attempting to fit the bars around the outside edge of the chrome as detailed by the drawn instructions attached. In fact the bars are fitted very differently on the A5 as can be seen from the photographs of them fitted on the car. Audi parts experts at their head office state they cannot see any reason why the drawn pictures are misleading which amazes me, since they clearly lead the person fitting the bars to believe they fit over the chrome. They have also quoted 'we have sold 65 sets of bars in 2009 without any complaints' My suggestion is that they have a duty of care to their customers to make the instructions as easy and simple to understand as possible, and that the attached pictures are completely visually technically wrong. Your views as to whether i have a case and can take this further would be much welcomed.

 

Assuming you've now managed to fit the bars correctly, are they a good buy or not?

I've seen a couple of other roof bars claiming to be for the A5 and I'm generally worried that they just aren't up to the job.

 

I'd have to say, yes they are. I'm not sure exactly how much the other sets cost, these ones are £195 which is a lot of cash, but then, if you're going to invest in an A5 why get anything less than the official bars. Once you know how to fit them they are extemely quick to add and remove and are of decent quality. I also carry loads of stuff on my car which makes them essential, windsurf boards etc. It surprised though that the instructions said that nothing over 50kg should be carried on them, which doesnt seem that much. But, so far, so good. The problem ive had with other bars that arent specifically made for the car is that they are deigned to fit to a range of models, meaning that fitting is not exact and can result to rub and damage to paintwork. Hope that helps, my fight argument with audi goes on!