i've owned my brand spanking new 2007 RS4 for 60 days and it's been the worst 60 days of ownership of any new car i've ever had. certainly worse than lexus, worse than mercedes-benz, worse than nissan, worse than subaru, even worse than land rover who was at the bottom of the JD Power 2006 initial quality survey. and it's not the problems with THE CAR that's got me frustrated. it's the problems with THE DEALER and with AUDI of AMERICA CORPORATE that has made this the most problematic and stressful ownership experience i have ever had.

i'm starting to realize why a great car like the phaeton failed, as the VW Audi group has demonstrated that they can certainly produce great cars, but they don't have the US dealer or corporate infrastructure in place to service luxury car clients. i never had customer service issues with lexus, mercedes-benz or land rover dealers or corporate and while i had my fair share of mechanical issues with their new cars, the service was always top notch. not the case with VW/Audi.

and for those of you who are quick to flame, just wait until you have a serious issue with the dealer or audi corporate and we'll see how you feel once you are on the receiving end of the VW/Audi shaft.

i'm not even going to complain or list the mechanical problems i've had with my brand new RS4, as i see them as being inconsequential: all new cars have little problems here and there (except lexus maybe). i used to own a range rover; i'm used to mechanical glitches that get serviced under warranty. what i will complain about are the issues i've had with my dealer McKenna Audi of Norwalk California and with Audi of America through their Western Region and their customer advocate service at their 800 number in Michigan.

the dealer, mckenna audi:
i've been through 3 service advisors so far in 60 days, and my complaint with the dealer has been that there is no accountability with any of their employees. they don't call me when i leave a voicemail to schedule a service appointment. they don't call me back when they say they will to tell me when a loaner car is available. they don't call me back to tell me my car isn't ready. they don't call me back to tell me when my car is ready. they don't have my paperwork ready when i pick up my car. they don't mail me the paperwork when they promise they will. the car has been back twice and will go back a third time for the same problem that fails to be properly serviced and resolved. after a letter to the owner of the dealership, i finally have the service manager himself handling my car. but it shouldn't have had to come to this. this would be unheard of at my lexus, mercedes-benz or land rover dealer who was on top of everything. even at my nissan dealer and they were pretty bad, but not this bad.

audi of america western regional management:
to fix a problem i had in the first 1000 miles, the car went in to the above dealer who in turn called in techs from audi of america. they in turn spent two days and 40 miles to fix ONE of the TWO problems the car originally went in for. i have never, out of all the times my cars have gone into a dealer, had more than 10 miles placed on a car for any service without being notified first. i found this to be excessive and never received a satisfactory explaination, from the dealer or from Audi of America, as to why 40 miles were subjected to my car. that's 20 miles out and 20 miles back from the dealership!!! i demanded that the dealer contact their regional AoA rep and have them credit 40 miles to my lease, as Audi of America finance would certainly FINE ME if i turned in this car with 40 additional miles above and beyond my lease amount. and it's not about the money; it's about the principle of someone joyriding in my brand new car that hadn't even been broken in yet. and to add insult to injury, the second problem wasn't fixed and it would have certainly been noticed if anyone was seriously paying any attention during those 40 miles.

audi of america customer service michigan:
having reached a dead end through my dealer and audi of america's western regional service, i contacted the 800 number for AoA customer service and filed a complaint on the excessive mileage, demanding an explaination for the miles and to have 40 miles added to my lease. they gave me a case number and after two weeks, they responded that they will take no action at this time and that their decision is final.

as an example of customer service from other manufacturers, i had a hydraulic problem with my 03 MBZ SL's retractable hardtop. it kept leaking somewhere and the computer would shut off the top mechanism. it was in service 5 times for the same problem and i contacted mercedes-benz corporate and asked for a resolution. they sent out a regional tech who identified the problem, fixed it and personally explained the problem to me. then mercedes-benz corporate in new jersey gave me ONE MONTH's LEASE PAYMENT for free to compensate me for the trouble!!! totally unexpected and unnecessary but left me as a happy customer. but it's not just luxury brands that have outperformed Audi of America. i had another instance of a regional service manager from subaru of america driving my 04 STI for 105 miles to try to replicate a throttle problem i was having. they asked for my permission FIRST to put that many miles, fixed the problem and ALSO ended up crediting me ONE MONTH's LEASE PAYMENT to compensate me for the mileage. this was again not through my request but voluntarily done by corporate to ensure customer satisfaction. i'm not even asking for anything remotely close to that but Audi of America has failed to achieve customer service where even Subaru of America suceeded (again, not about the money but the principle of asking to put miles on my car first and compensating me so the miles on the lease ultimately didn't cost me anything).

i've made two lease payments already and i'm willing to take some hit to relieve me of the headaches, as they're just not worth the otherwise fantastic driving experience of the RS4. a porsche dealer (not McKenna) has offered a pretty good trade in for it, and i'm wondering if i should look into something else too like a MBZ E55.

if this were just a dealer problem, it would be as easy as switching dealers, but when VW/Audi corporate refuses to stand behind their products and blatently abuses their customers by adding excessive miles to their cars without asking or compensating, and completely and deliberately ignores a problem by a new customer who took possession of a $73,520 product of theirs, it really leaves no alternative but to switch brands and abandon the company as they have abandoned me. at the end of the day, toyota has been able to strongly distinguish between their toyota and lexus lines through separate dealers and processes that meet and exceed the owner expectations of a luxury car marque. But VW/Audi has demonstrated to me that i'm driving nothing more than a really expensive rabbit. i urge anyone considering the purchase of a A8, RS4, Q7, A6 (or A4, TT or A3 for that matter) or anyone who is used to and expects luxury brand level customer service to seriously reconsider the Audi brand as they have demonstrated to me and others on this forum (and there are plenty of us, some exaggerated, but others valid and warranted) that Audi fails to meet the expectations of a premium brand buyer and falls short of the top tier brands like Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and BMW in customer service and satisfaction. to a degree, i blame myself as i obviously didn't do enough research into the brand before i bought. everyone will say things are peachy when nothing is wrong with their car, but when the chips are down, it really demonstrates which manufacturers stand by their products and are commited to customer service.

if anyone has any suggestion on what i can do, i'm all "ears" - that's a rabbit joke, as i'm obviously treated like i drive one. but at this point, i see a "for sale" sign as my only option.

 

I have a suggestion on what you can do

STOP CRYING BECAUSE THEY DROVE YOUR CAR FOR 40 MILES

You took your car in to get it fixed right?

Was your car fixed?

 

Dude, you sound pissed.

So how's the car running now?

 

sigh... if only people would read the threads BEFORE they respond to them. then this world would have more answers and less stupid questions....

 

i think i'm passed the "pissed" part. now i'm just depressed, let down, disappointed. at this point, all i'm trying to do is to share my story and maybe someone else who's having a similar problem or considering an audi can learn something from it. and if anyone who had a similar run in with AoA might be able to share some info as well. i read threads like this when i was shopping for the RS4 but i figured they were onsie, twosie issues. never thought it would happen to me, but it did.

i wish i could tell you how my car is running but it's at the dealer for service AGAIN!! it's for the same problem and this is the third time. and the audi of america techs are on it again so god knows how many miles they'll put on it this time.

the running joke at home is that my neighbors all think i got a job at audi because they see me in a different model almost every week.

 

simply ask them to replace the car ( not to bother fixing it because your not happy with their workmanship) also contact the lease company and notify them of your problem

 

Also try going for service to another dealer ... I had a Volvo S80 T6 firs year model , lots of bugs, got same attitude and treatment as you just replace Volvo and Audi and you'll have my story ... so I just went to another dealer ... the other dealer called, explained, asked and fixed and also offered free service for some items.
The crappy dealer was smaller, had Chevy, Subaru and Volvo in one .... the good dealer was bigger and had Volvo, Porsche and something else in one.

 

I would def go to another dealer. The one you are going to sux! I will say that I have known people that owned S600 benz's, Range rovers, Lexus LX 450 etc...and they all had poor quality and service. I think its just bad luck. Despite some of the problems I have had with my RS, it is a phenominal car. Just last week I was pulling out of a gas station and "had to" punch it so not to get hit. Well...all of the sudden (for the first time) my tire pressure alert system popped up. I was miles away from hitting the interstate on my way out of town but took it home immediatly, didn't want a flat in rush hour on those rims. Got home and fortuanatly there was another vehicle I could drive. I looked at all of the tires and they all were fine. I figured when I got back I would know if there was a leak or not. When I returned, the tires all looked them same, checked the psi (cold) and they all registered the same but, the alert (annoying as hell) was still on the screen. I did not want to have to take it up to my dealer so I played with the computer, "told" it to reset itself (tire pressure) and walla, problem fixed. Still don't know why it happend but didn't matter after that, I was happy to be alerted for whatever reason the car thought-this way I know the RS is doing its job. Whether I keep this car forever or sell it in 2 years I am going to speak highly of its ability, looks and charisma. It is by far one of the most sophistcated sports cars I have ever driven. Hope it all works out.
PS-my dealer rawks!

 

+1 on that.

That sucks that it's back in the shop.

 

Yeah, i read the entire wall-o-text, im pretty sure no where does it say what your problem was or if it was ever fixed

P.S. Its a good thing you havent blown this way out of proportion like Toysnob did with his...