share the problem.. prospective rs4 owners will appreciate it once the information becomes relevant

P.S. you can't be a nice guy.. you pay that kind of money you gotta walk up in that place like ur the shyt and u know u gonna get the right service

 

I haven't been able to drive my car enough to see/experience any major problems, mainly due to the idiot title laws in OH, & the flat tire that the tire store could fix, but didn't have it in stock (still waiting). Since I've put less than 1000 miles on my car since 2 Sep (& ~ 300 of those were on the drive back from Chicago), I still don't have a good idea if I have a "good" car or not. Any issues (maintenance or otherwise) would be welcome.

BYW, ignore the whiners -- most of us appreciate hearing issues, good or bad!



[IMG]local://upfiles/23613/27A2080E77FC4D9298445AB4481CB299.jpg[/IMG]

 

i've had the same problems with my audi.
i ordered mine 2 and i had so many problems with it
i ended up taking audi to court 4 it
as a lemon law result
i wanted to return the car but the didnt want 2 they gave me 4000 grand instead
costumer service sucks.

i would call Germany directly in Ingoldstadt since you paid almost 75000 for an audi RS4 (A4 model )

 

no update on my problem yet, but i've called in all my favors and have an "insider" looking into the problem for me (i used to work for an auto manufacturer and still know alot of people in the business and auto journalists too). it's very sad i had to resort to this as any normal owner would never have access to such a resource. but i wanted to go through normal channels and allow due process to work before i went to my last resort.

this might help explain part of my frustrations, as formerly in the business, i am well aware of "normal" types of problems with new cars and the capabilities of the dealer and the auto manufacturer. let me just say that if it were on my watch, and i heard such a problem from a customer, i'd personally step in and handle the problem, review over our company policies and practices, have some strong words with my dealer and my regional managers, and use this as a case study on what not to do in the future. maybe it's just because i worked for a company headquartered in southern california that took customer service seriously. and maybe that's why that company is consistently at the top of the JD Power surveys and why Audi isn't.

because i've gotten so many PMs asking about the problem, i'll post it. i'm sharing my problem so others can look out for it and know what it is if it ever happens to them. let the whining about ruining the RS4's value begin...

it was a persistent rattling noise coming from the right rear of the car. every time it went over a crack in the road or other imperfection. happened more frequently when the car was cold, so it originally led the dealer to think it was coming from the exhaust. then it spread to the left rear and even the left front.

it was the result of a catastrophic failure of the cylinder that holds the hydraulic fluid for the cross-diagonal suspension managment system. the left front and right rear, as we know, are controlled by the same hydraulic system and is designed to counteract the other during cornering. hydraulic failure caused the right rear strut and the front left strut to have zero pressure and overcompress over bumps, causing the noise. the fix was to replace the cylinder holding the hydraulic fluid, replace the front left and right rear struts and check the lines for leaks. this started happening before my car had 500 miles on it.

i said this in another post but despite having all these problems, the RS4 is fantastic and i can't think of another car to own right now. and trust me, i thought of every car on the road to replace it with. so you can read all the warm and fuzzy reviews from people who've never had a problem with their car. but for someone who's gone through so much to say they love the car but hate Audi's customer service should serve as strong testament to the amazing driving experience that is the RS4.

 

Very happy to hear the problem was found and fixed finally. As another RS4 owner I am glad you chose to share experience and he nature of the problem. I've had no such problem but I have to say that there is no question the Audi dealer network could use some work. I think the problems go back many years to when Audi struggled with all the 5000 issues and the kind of people they allowedto have dealeships was not what you could call firfst tier in many cases. While many of the other brqands you mention Lexus, Acura, MBZ, BMW seem to have taken an altogether different track. Audi of America needs to take notice. So far so good with my dealer but not like the service you'd get from any Lexus, BMW oe Benz shop by any measure.

 

**** that, I don't want some douche bag driving around in my $80,000+ car. You're a moron if you don't see something wrong with that, not only is he paying for the miles in the lease but they could be driving it very hard and its not even broken in.

I didn't read your full post but I can't seem to find where you said what problems you had. How can you be having problems with a new car so early? I thought Audis were "reliable" heh.

 

I also don't understand all the flames towards Tsunami Racer and I think if anything he has been super patient with the dealership. I am new to the whole Audi scene and am going in tomorrow to try and lease an rS4. I have always been skeptical of not only audis but european cars in general and Tsunami's experience simply reinforce my thoughts about european car reliability. I currently drive a 2005 G35 Coupe but am looking to move up and get something better, originally I was going to wait for the Nissan Skyline GT-R but ultimately I would like something with 4 doors, comes in manual and is fun to drive, hence the decision to go to the rS4.

This will be my first european car ever, I've always had Nissans and Acuras/Hondas, I hope I don't regret it and don't experience the same thing Tsunami did, I can tell you that I wouldnt be nearly as patient and probably woudl even consult a laywer over it.

Cyc.

 

i admit my "rants" have been a bit longwinded so i'm guessing people are skimming the thread and basing judgement on the bits they pick up. i don't take it personally because i know each and every one would be equally if not more pissed if the same happened to them.

at this time, i wish i had an end result to this whole issue, and though they were finally able to fix the problem, and though i've been promised some "compensation" for my time, mileage, trouble and frustrations, i haven't seen anything materialize just yet so i'll hold judgement until it all comes down.

i want to restate that, aside from the mechanical issues, the car itself has exceeded all my expectations. it's a fantastic drive and i can't think of anything else i'd rather be driving right now (check back with me on that statement after the new M3, IS500 and GT-R arrive, cuz there'll be a used RS4 priced for quick sale!!) my ownership experience has been a complete let down but i blame myself as i should have researched the audi brand more. after i started experiencing all these problems, i began to see and read all these horror stories about dealer service and lack of manufacturer support. i just assumed audi made cars on par with mercedes-benz and bmw and that their customer service would be equally impressive. boy, was i wrong.

all i can suggest is make sure you research your dealer carefully. make sure others on this and other forums have good things to say about them. get to know the service manager directly. and make sure you buy a later production, higher VIN car and avoid early RS4s like mine.

so long as the driving dynamics of the car itself can provide you with satisfaction, you go into the audi brand with lackluster customer service expectations, and your car doesn't give you problems, you'll be a happy camper.

 

Sorry to hear your having so much trouble. In my experience the quality of service can very drastically from one dealer to another. My S4 was purchased from a dealer in Palo Alto CA, Carlson Audi, which provided very quick and quality service as well as a loaner car for the day. On the other hand i brought my car to an audi dealer in Santa Barbara earlier this week and their service was horrid. I had them fix a burnt out bulb and adjust a headlight which was aimed incorrectly under warranty. When i got my car back the headlight was not mounted correctly and now sticks out of the fitting about 1/4 cm.

Try a different dealer before you give-up on such an amazing car! Or keep going to the same place until the lemon law kicks in and get a new one.

 

I agree that Audi service is the worst service that I have ever had. They are the bottom of the barrel. I own a luxury vehicle and I should be treated as so. My local Audi stealership treats me like dirt and really could care less about my business. What makes me more upset about the whole situation is that my local Audi Club gives me crap about my rant because Audi is a sponsor. I don't care who you are or who you sponsor, poor customer service should be dealt with and not tolerated because we spend so much for our vehicles. Audi has been a huge dissapointment to me. I love my car but what does it matter when there isn't any local support when something goes wrong with it. I agree with every word you have to say. Audi has some serious issues when it comes to it's customers. They really do suck.