2011 Audi A4 Avant
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
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Vehicles › Audi › A4 Avant › 2011
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Owner complaints
32 complaints2 involved a fire
What owners report most
Latest complaints
- Engine
The contact owns a 2011 Audi A4. The contact stated she needed to add 1 quart of oil frequently to the vehicle. The contact stated that the oil warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer and had the oil consumption test completed twice but was not able to…
The contact owns a 2011 Audi A4. The contact stated she needed to add 1 quart of oil frequently to the vehicle. The contact stated that the oil warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer and had the oil consumption test completed twice but was not able to diagnose the failure. The contact stated she continued to add 1 quart of oil frequently, but the failure started to progress. The contact stated that the oil pressure warning light was illuminated and the turn-off engine warning message was displayed. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer and had an unknown sensor replaced. The vehicle was repaired but continued to experience the failure. The contact also stated that while making a left turn, the engine seized. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drove to her destination. The contact attempted to call the manufacturer but was unable to reach a Representative. The failure mileage was unknown.
- Electrical system · Structure › Body
Car was parked outside our apartment building. It was off and hadn't been driven in over 20hrs. At 11AM a fire broke out in the rear driver side seat. Fire department arrived put out the fire, said it was not arson but rather electrical issue. The car front dash was partially melted, rear seat big char black seating material and showed exposed wires.
- Engine · Unknown or other
It appears that due to a manufacturing/engineering defect, the timing chain on certain audi and volkswagen models fails after a certain number of miles. this timing chain failure has been determined to cause substantial damage to the vehicle's engine, in many cases requiring a complete engine…
It appears that due to a manufacturing/engineering defect, the timing chain on certain audi and volkswagen models fails after a certain number of miles. this timing chain failure has been determined to cause substantial damage to the vehicle's engine, in many cases requiring a complete engine replacement. regrettably, this IS what recently happened with my 2011 audi A4. in fact, there was a fairly high-profile class action filed against volkswagen (civil action no. 16-2765 (jll)(jad) that was recently settled. (see https://timingchainlitigation.com/home/faq#faq6). unfortunately, the settlement IS extremely flawed and leaves vehicle owners inadequately compensated if their vehicles are above a certain number of miles or if the owners missed the deadline for filing claims. the timing chain issue constitutes a significant and dangerous manufacturing/engineering flaw that should warrant a recall of all affected vehicles. the engine failure that can occur as a result of the timing chain issue can easily lead to auto accidents and possible fatalities. I urge the dept. Of transportation to take this matter very seriously and investigate. a full recall and compensation to affected vehicle owners should be ordered.
- Fuel/propulsion system
My vehicle was burning oil faster than normal. I have since had my car in the shop several times before oil changes were due to top off oil do to several lights coming on: "min oil", "oil pressure too low"
- Steering
As I am making a turn onto another street in town my steering wheel locks up, when I complete a turn it won't walk it's way back around, you have to force it around. I have never felt something like this before, it IS definitely a safety issue.
- Engine
My vehicle was burning oil faster than normal. I have since had my car in the shop several times before oil changes were due to top off oil do to several lights coming on: "min oil", "oil pressure too low". I have had several oil consumption tests each year as well as parts replaced: pressure…
My vehicle was burning oil faster than normal. I have since had my car in the shop several times before oil changes were due to top off oil do to several lights coming on: "min oil", "oil pressure too low". I have had several oil consumption tests each year as well as parts replaced: pressure regulating valve, crankshaft damper and seal. Had a 40 point inspection in 2014 at 44K miles and in 2015 requested a multi inspection at 55K miles. I had several oil consumption tests around theses dates: 3/714, 5/7/15, 11/12/15. After they changed out parts I had to change 4 fuel injectors in 2016. To fast forward I had all oil changes on time and had to add oil several times in-between services. On jan 11, 2019 I had another oil change, they replaced my oil sensors and breaks. 4 months later my "low oil light" kept popping up when I would turn. After checking the old 4 times it kept reading 3/4 full of oil. After I felt the car running strange I pulled over to buy oil and at this point I checked and it was bone dry. I put a quart in and at this point the car wont start. I had it towed to the nearest audi dealership who told me I need a new engine and a new timing sensor. They said the amount of damage the timing belt had done caused the engine to need total replacement. Yet never spoke about why the oil sensors kept giving the wrong reading. Since I have owned my car from aug 2013 it has burned more oil than I want to believe which makes this car bad for the environment and the air quality.
- Steering
Electronic power steering causing unsafe instability on freeways. Intermittently the power steering assist IS failing intermittently causing the driver to apply excessive force to move the steering wheel but soon after this the power steering assist comes back on and hence turning the steering more…
Electronic power steering causing unsafe instability on freeways. Intermittently the power steering assist IS failing intermittently causing the driver to apply excessive force to move the steering wheel but soon after this the power steering assist comes back on and hence turning the steering more than required and ending up in an unsafe position or swerving on freeways and even at low speeds. The issue seems to be a well documented issue and can happen at any mileage with reports out there on cars with less than 5K miles. Audi should have a tsb and recall for this.
- Engine
Takata recall. I noticed that my car consumes lots of oil due to the engine oil consumption. Anytime I perform oil change, it won't last longer than 7 days.
- Engine · Unknown or other
I recently purchased the vehicle from an independent dealer three weeks ago. 200 miles into driving the vehicle the oil light came on. I took the vehicle for an inspection and oil change. The vehicle passed inspection, but the mechanic noted very little oil in the vehicle, even though the next oil…
I recently purchased the vehicle from an independent dealer three weeks ago. 200 miles into driving the vehicle the oil light came on. I took the vehicle for an inspection and oil change. The vehicle passed inspection, but the mechanic noted very little oil in the vehicle, even though the next oil change wasn't for 4,000 miles. After driving the vehicle 600 more miles, the car indicated low oil again. In 2015, audi lost a class action lawsuit for this issue. In the service records, this vehicle underwent the first stage of repairs to correct the issue in jan 2017, when the vehicle was covered under the warranty extension granted by the lawsuit. The repairs did not work. Audi has confirmed that this IS the issue most likely affecting my vehicle, and they refuse to cover it. My vehicle IS below the mileage specified under the warranty, but has missed the year specified by less than 3 months. This means that audi knowingly auctioned a defective vehicle without fulfilling their warranty obligations and deceptively passed those obligations on to independent dealers, knowing that the issue wouldn't be uncovered in an inspection. I've attempted to contact audi to resolve this amicably, but they wont grant an exception. They told me to just keep putting oil in the car, but the oil burns at such a rapid pace, I will have to add new oil every 2 tanks of gas. This will result in thousands of extra dollars spent a year. The dealer I purchased the vehicle from IS claiming that they're not responsible, but I suspect that both parties were aware of this issue and have decided to pass on the burden to the consumer. All I am asking for IS for them to correct an issue they were already aware of and had attempted to fix. The warranty may have been missed by less than 3 months, but this issue had been identified prior to that. Otherwise, I will need to spend $4,000+ to have this repair.
- Engine · Fuel/propulsion system
Hello. this model of audi A4 2.0T 2011 hase a big problem with oil consumption which I think IS a thing that the nhtsa needs to look in to. for example : I drive the car 500 miles and the oil light comes up and IS asking for 1QT of oil which I think IS absolutely not normal . ive change the…
Hello. this model of audi A4 2.0T 2011 hase a big problem with oil consumption which I think IS a thing that the nhtsa needs to look in to. for example : I drive the car 500 miles and the oil light comes up and IS asking for 1QT of oil which I think IS absolutely not normal . ive change the oil in october and in 2 months december I use 5QT of oil to refill or to add on because the oil light was turning on . ive took the car to audi and did a full inspection to see if I'm losing any oil anywhere and the result was negative. I've herd that my model audi A4 2.0T 2011 had a problem with the pistons rings or something like that and because of that he oil consumption was very high. But just on some audi A4 2.0T 2011 models not all . I think and I can prove that my care has this issue and needs to be reccal because the oil goes in the environment in the air which IS a very big problem for the quality of the oxygen . I'm not saying that only my car but if you google my model you will be shocked of how many people are complaining about the oil consumption on audi A4 2.0T 2011
- Engine
TL* the contact owns a 2011 audi A4. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced excessive oil consumption and the engine warning indicator remained illuminated constantly. The contact stated that the failure occurred twice. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 89,000. *tr
- Engine
This past sunday, my audi self-accelerated in busy traffic. only because I drive a manual was I able to prevent an accident. I had the car towed from sacramento ca to audi oakland. they diagnosed it saying the piston blew threw the engine, depressurizing the engine. they claim the don't know…
This past sunday, my audi self-accelerated in busy traffic. only because I drive a manual was I able to prevent an accident. I had the car towed from sacramento ca to audi oakland. they diagnosed it saying the piston blew threw the engine, depressurizing the engine. they claim the don't know why and have failed to contact me since. I had to contact audi USA which hasn't been responsive. this was a catastrophic engine failure while I was driving three boys. nonetheless, audi oakland--and I had to call them!--just told me its my problem and I need to pay $16K for a new engine. They told me this IS an odd occurrence and since there's no warranty, its not their problem.
- Exterior lighting · Suspension
Front lower rearward control arms make sqeaking noise very annoing
- Steering
While driving on I75 in florida at 70 mph on june 18, 2017, the steering suddenly failed. I managed to keep control and get the car home with strong physical effort in keeping the steering straight. I took car to audi naples on monday june 19, 2017. I was told the entire rack and pinion shaft…
While driving on I75 in florida at 70 mph on june 18, 2017, the steering suddenly failed. I managed to keep control and get the car home with strong physical effort in keeping the steering straight. I took car to audi naples on monday june 19, 2017. I was told the entire rack and pinion shaft failed and needed complete replacement. Audi replaced the rack and pinion shaft and u connector. the car only had 42, 800 miles and has been maintained by audi by the book since I bought it new from audi.
- Air bags · Visibility/wiper
TL* takata recall. The contact owns a 2011 audi A4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 17v001000 (visibility, air bags ) and 16v078000 (air bags ) however, the parts to do the repairs were unavailable. The contact mentioned that the dealer stated that the parts will not be…
TL* takata recall. The contact owns a 2011 audi A4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 17v001000 (visibility, air bags ) and 16v078000 (air bags ) however, the parts to do the repairs were unavailable. The contact mentioned that the dealer stated that the parts will not be available until september of 2017. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
- Air bags · Engine · Power train
In nh and bought A4 used; within 2 weeks noticed oil leaking from tailpipe, dealer said it was nothing; then started burning quarts of oil in weeks, dealer said the pistons were not the right match and it was a recall that had expired, "fix" was $4000, months later engine light comes on, car still burning oil.
- Engine
I own a 2011 audi A4. I purchased the car in 2013. It was okay with oil for a year but after that I noticed it would need oil more often than before. I took it to the dealership every time it needed oil, which was around 900 miles driven, and the dealer told us it was normal. As of today I am putting one quart of engine oil every 500 city miles. I think it IS using way too much oil
- Engine
The engine would stop running while driving on a street and the freeway, everything else IS on. Happened today 10/24/16 and three times within 10 minutes. Restarted car and drove home. Check engine light came on. This happened before on the freeway. *tr
- Engine
Timing belt tensioner failing at under 70K miles but audi suggests that no need to perform any timing belt related work before 120K miles. This causes catastrophic failure on the engine and entire engine needs to be rebuilt or replaced. There are several lawsuits and complaints in several states. I…
Timing belt tensioner failing at under 70K miles but audi suggests that no need to perform any timing belt related work before 120K miles. This causes catastrophic failure on the engine and entire engine needs to be rebuilt or replaced. There are several lawsuits and complaints in several states. I wanted to officially start this complain and I'm in missouri. These tensioners and chains should have been replaced under the original warranty or an extended warranty program since volkswagen knew these components were defective and would cause premature and often unannounced expensive engine failure. this IS evidenced by the subsequent revisions to the tensioner and chain performed in late 2011 in an effort to correct the original defects.
- Exterior lighting
"Dipped right headlight" warning popped up on my car, on and off for months. my right front headlight would work one day and then "fail" the next. it had been happening for several months until it finally completely stopped working. my ballast failed which caused hid/xenon light to burn out on…
"Dipped right headlight" warning popped up on my car, on and off for months. my right front headlight would work one day and then "fail" the next. it had been happening for several months until it finally completely stopped working. my ballast failed which caused hid/xenon light to burn out on front right headlight. I have read this has been happening a lot with the hid/xenon light systems and that it was previously a recall on earlier models. when speaking to audi, they said this hasn't been an issue and they will not help with the repair costs. I would feel a front headlight IS an important safety tool to have when driving, and having to pay $700+ for a headlight repair IS not normal in my opinion. for me this IS an electrical failure and audi should be assisting with the repair costs.
- Engine · Fuel/propulsion system
Follow up to complaint 10852082. once again my car lost all power including power steering, this time in the middle of multiple lanes of fast moving traffic. after the first two times, the defect was not identified by the dealer. this time, as I brought the car in right away, the computer…
Follow up to complaint 10852082. once again my car lost all power including power steering, this time in the middle of multiple lanes of fast moving traffic. after the first two times, the defect was not identified by the dealer. this time, as I brought the car in right away, the computer detected that the issue was due to faulty camshaft position sensor circuits. They have been replaced and hopefully my car will now be fine. so here are the questions. IS this really what caused the vehicle to cease functioning three times? if so, how many of these faulty cps sensors are out there? it IS just a fluke or do they wear out or IS it a bad batch? should there be a sensor that will stop all power with no warning? this last incident happened on the entrance ramp to fort lauderdale airport where about 6 lanes of traffic comes around a curve and decelerates from 55mph to 25 as cars approach the terminals and parking. the speed limit IS 45 going down to 15 but people are moving pretty fast. I wrestled the car over as other cars were struggling to avoid me. Once I had the car stopped, I removed the electronic key, reinserted and the car started back up fine.
- Unknown or other
Vehicle shuts off while driving for no apparent reason, has happened (at least 6 times) at speeds of 5MPH to 65mph (most recent instance, on may 31, 2016). Very scary and dangerous. Random event. Car will restart and run fine for days to months. Fuel pump was replaced but not the problem. Dealer unable to dx due to intermittent nature.
- Electrical system · Steering · Unknown or other
Ignition coils went out. Car stopped on busy street but was able to move to side street. Come to find out after I purchased the car the coils were recalled.. Spoke with someone at audi and they verified there was a recall on the coils. No one notified me including the dealership gurley leep and he…
Ignition coils went out. Car stopped on busy street but was able to move to side street. Come to find out after I purchased the car the coils were recalled.. Spoke with someone at audi and they verified there was a recall on the coils. No one notified me including the dealership gurley leep and he did not notify me and I had to come out of $1,000 to have that process fixed then I had to turn around less than 24 hours again and something was wrong with the steering again I had to come out of another $1,000 this IS b******* someone should have contacted me about the problems with the vehicle but that did not happen so to audi and to gurley leep screw you that was $2,000 I came out of. No help from audi nor dealership what so ever.. And I do believe I still have the transcript from the audi representative that verify there was something wrong with the ignition coils.... Not sure of the exact date but I believe it was april of 2015.
- Electronic stability control (esc) · Fuel/propulsion system
2 incidents of total loss of power including steering. twice in the last year traveling normally at low speed the car ceased to function. today I was traveling about 25 mph taking a slight right hand curve when the car died. I was almost rear ended. power was lost and I had great difficulty…
2 incidents of total loss of power including steering. twice in the last year traveling normally at low speed the car ceased to function. today I was traveling about 25 mph taking a slight right hand curve when the car died. I was almost rear ended. power was lost and I had great difficulty pulling it off the road. it would barely coast. I restarted the car and it was fine. the first time it happened I thought it was a fluke but now it has happened twice.
- Engine · Power train · Unknown or other
Vehicle stalled out and started shaking only to find out injectors went out and oil consumption issues. audi USA IS prolonging an issue that they know IS wrong with the vehicle regarding oil consumption. I have completed phase I of the test and took it to dealership to have phase II completed…
Vehicle stalled out and started shaking only to find out injectors went out and oil consumption issues. audi USA IS prolonging an issue that they know IS wrong with the vehicle regarding oil consumption. I have completed phase I of the test and took it to dealership to have phase II completed however without my consent or knowledge audi has the dealership perform phase I over again. car IS eating excessive amount of oil but yet audi USA IS prolonging the situation with no resolution. purchased the car 08/24/2015 had to have an oil change done two weeks later beginning of september by october 15TH I had to add more oil as the oil indicator light came on come to find out there IS a known issue for consuming oil. I have phase I completed however I took vehicle in to have phase II done on it only to be told they had to do phase I over which isn't fair the vehicle still eats oil and value IS depreciating drastically because of audi and volkswagen epa violations.
Service bulletins
Technical service bulletins and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about this vehicle. Ask a dealer for the full document by its number.
- 11011303This bulletin provides information when the anti-theft alarm activates for no reason, or when the anti-theft alarm does not activate.
- 11011285This TSB Provides information when parking assistance provides false warnings.
- 11011282This bulletin provides information when speaker rattles, vibrations, or audio interference is noted.
- 11011240This bulletin provides information about professional noise analysis with the VAS 611 015 PICO-NVH tool
- 11009983Vehicle Concerns Before Recall Repair Available
- 11009941This bulletin provides diagnostic information regarding the locking system.
- 11009928This bulletin provides informatin when the engine does not run smoothly at idling speeds.
- 11009375This bulletin provides information pertaining to the GFF test plan required for A/C compressore replacements, regardless of the concern.
- 11009356This bulletin provides informaion regarding zirconium inserts in the bake piston for vehicle equipped with ceramic brakes.
- 11009351This bulletin provides information regarding the general approach to brakes rubbing.
- 11009348This bulleitn provides information when there is an implausible signal in the ABS/ESC speed sensor.
- 11009347This bulletin provides information when there are vibrations and rotational steering wheel vibrations.
- 11009332This bulletin provides information when there are noises and/or vibration in tight turns in vehicles with quattro drive.
- 11009327This bulletin provides information when ther is an Engine: start/stop system fault shown and start/stop system not is working; mileage below 50 km/32 miles.
- 11009313This bulletin provides guidance in order to provid informaiton regarding preparatoin when calling the Audi Technical Assistnce Center (TAC).
- 11009312This bulletin provides informationw hen there are car was brush bristles trapped in the seam between the headlight and fender.
- 11007345This bulletin proves information when the bluetooth does not work, adaption channel deactivated.
- 11007315This bulletin provides information vibrations and rotational steering wheel vibrations.
- 11007305This bulletin offers information about the basic information needed for technical requests for gaerbox complaints.
- 11007297This bulletin provides service information ror when the fuel tank cannot be fully filled.
- 11007264This bulletin proves information when the bluetooth does not work, adaption channel deactivated.
- 11007234This bulletin provides information vibrations and rotational steering wheel vibrations.
- 11007224This bulletin offers information about the basic information needed for technical requests for gaerbox complaints.
- 11007216This bulletin provides service information ror when the fuel tank cannot be fully filled.
- 11005935This bulletin provides informaiton when there are speaker rattles, vibrations or audio interference in the sound system.
- 11005911This bulletin provides informatin for the GFF test plan that is requied for AC compressor replacements.
- 11005884This bulletin provides service information pertaining to noises from wheel input shaft/drive shaft.
- 11005865This bulletin provides information when there are noises/vibration from the front of the vehicle while in dynamic mode.
- 11005861This bulletin provides information when there is a fault shown; Engine: start/stop system, and the start system is not working; mileage below 50 km/32 miles.
- 11005848This bulletin provides Audi technicians with information to prepare for contact to the Technical Assistance Center (TAC).
- 11003026This bulletin provides informationw hen there are optical concerns with the tail lights.
- 11003024This bulletin provides informaiton when there are speaker rattles, vibrations, or audio interference.A1
- 11003019This bulletin provides informaiton for when the horn sound quality is poor.
- 11002981This bulletin provides information when there are speaker rattles, vibration or audio interference.
- 11002957This bulletin provides informationw hen there are optical concerns with the tail lights.
- 11002955This bulletin provides informaiton when there are speaker rattles, vibrations, or audio interference.A1
- 11002950This bulletin provides informaiton for when the horn sound quality is poor.
- 11002912This bulletin provides information when there are speaker rattles, vibration or audio interference.
- 11002235This bulletin provides information when the door handle touch sensors for Audi advanced key are inoperative.
- 11002234This bulletin provides information when the exterior trunk handle is inoperative.
Every Audi A4 Avant model year
Bars are owner complaints, dots mark years with recalls. Select a year to open its report.