This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
On 12/12/2022 I was driving and the Q8 lost power and I coasted to a stop. All lights on driver panel were flashing or sequencing through. After sitting on the side of the road for 5 or so minutes I tried starting the car again. This time it started and I drove another 8 miles almost to my home when the car again just died in the road. This time I couldn't get it to restart. I had to have it towed to my local garage as my dealership was an hour and fifteen minutes away. The car has been diagnosed with needing an alternator, which no one including the dealerships have because this is a problem with many vehicles. It has now been over two months without my car.
In September 2022, I contacted the dealership to schedule my 50k service after observing a yellow battery light indicator flash on and then resolve itself by turning off. The mileage on my Q8 was approximately 44K at this time. I was also experiencing a passenger seatbelt warning issue despite no one in the passenger seat. The soonest the Audi service department could get me scheduled was on February 14, 2023. This has been an issue with Audi service departments at least the past 2 years. Since scheduling, I've experienced the warning issues several times On Thursday, February 2, 2023, I got a flashing yellow battery light in addition to other warnings that flashed on and then off. Because of this, I decided to take my car to the dealership for an emergency service on Friday, February 3, 2023, before traveling out of town the next week. While enroute to the dealership, the instrument panel alerted to an electrical system malfunction by displaying a yellow and then red battery icon. Multiple other warning lights for other systems malfunctioning displayed and the car stopped in traffic. My car was towed to the dealership. Once at the dealer, I was told that this was due to the generator failing and the part is on backorder due to being manufactured in Ukraine. The dealership stated this failure is apparently widespread, citing 56+ cars at this dealership and 100+ at the other with the same issue. Based upon this, the dealership informed me I qualified for the Audi USA buyback program and to contact them for a case number. When I called, I was told I had to wait 10 days to file or have had 3 reported incidents on record. On Februrary 14, 2023, I was told I did not qualify because my car was over 50k at the time it broke down. My mileage is 54,128. The issue began before 50k. I learned from the dealership, I qualify for the buyback because Audi extended the factory warranty on 1/31/2023 to include unlimited miles. I have an audio recording.
While driving in heavy traffic on 12/23/22 the entire electrical system shut down and all power was lost. Fortunately I was not hit by another vehicle and coasted into a parking lot with no power. This is very dangerous. Per conversations with the dealership and with Audi (1/10/23), alternators on thousands of vehicles are failing (possibly due to a software issue). The vehicles are sitting on dealer lots and in driveways useless. Audi online forums confirm this as well. There are no alternators available. No recall has been issued and no warning of this unsafe situation has been made by Audi. Per the dealership, they are largely in the dark as well as there has been no meaningful communication by Audi. Someone will get hurt when their car dies on a highway. People are paying thousands for their cars to be undrivable. Audi dealers will not trade the vehicles because they are effectively worthless until repaired.
Vehicle lost all power and control while driving 45mph. First electrical system failure warning came on. Within 2 minutes the transmission slipped into neutral and 15 seconds later the vehicle lost power and I coasted to a stop. I was told by Audi dealership service that the starter generator failed. They mentioned they currently have over 20 vehicles in their shop and over 25 at their other location with the same problem. They also said over 1,000 cars nationwide had same problem and the part to repair is back ordered and no reasonable estimate of repair time.
- Cary, NC, USA
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Driving down the road when sensors stopped working. Car read electrical system malfunction and engine shut down. Had to coast to the shoulder. This is a known safety issue, and should be completely recalled.
I was driving yesterday on a highway and the car completely shut down. Got stranded in the left lane with 4 kids in the car - could have been killed. I had previously brought the car into the dealer for a fuel pump related issue. Apparently there is a recall but they don't even have the part to fix it.
I purchased a used 2019 Audi Q8 Prestige Plus, with Sportline Pkg on 9/7/21. Car had approx. 18,500 miles. The car attempts to shut off when deaccelerating at any speed below 3000 rpm. There is also a significant throttle delay between the time you push the gas pedal and when the engine responds. To be clear the car is in Dynamic mode and the Start/Stop mode is deactivated. It appears that under certain conditions the car is trying to determine if it should shut down or continue running. The Audi 37M6 update has been performed on my car which was supposed to correct the problem. The Audi Knoxville Shop Foreman drove the car and experienced the problem, contacted Audi Technical Assistance center (case# HS-822562) and was told that the car had the latest software correction. The Shop Foreman wanted to erase the transmission clutch adaptations to see if the car could relearn the shift process but was advised by Audi Technical Assistance not to erase the transmission clutch adaptations and would not allow the Shop Foreman access to the car software in an effort to diagnose the problem. Note: there was a class action lawsuit in May 2020 for this problem that was dismissed because the car manual states the car can experience a delay when restarting from the Start/Stop mode. However, my issue occurs when the Start/Stop system is turned off. There is no continuous throttle response below 3000 rpm with the Start/Stop system turned off. I was given a 2021 Q7 with a 2.0 as a loaner car while my Q8 was in service and I did not experience any of the issues I have with my Q8. I was advised by my dealership to also write a letter to Audi USA as the dealership acknowledges there is a major problem and they want to try fix the issue but will not be given access to the car software to troubleshoot the issue. This is a dangerous problem.
The auto start/stop feature of this vehicle is horrible, on several occasions I've almost gotten into an accident turning at an intersection. The engine loses power for 2-3 seconds despite pushing the gas pedal all the way down. I've also scared pedestrians at cross walks on several occasions when the vehicle is at a full stop but then suddenly lunges forward at them. The sensors on this vehicle are also very faulty. The ones that are supposed to open the rear hatch do not work despite me waving my feet and hands under them for several seconds at a time. The key fob also doesn't open the rear hatch like it's supposed to. And the sensors to detect objects around the perimeter go off all the time without any apparent reason. I've had the vehicle in for multiple service visits and none of these issues have been resolved.
I'm very upset with NHTSA and Audi. I submitted a complaint with NHTSA on 10/22/20 and the complaint number is 11365744. Again as stated in my complaint this is an actual safety issue. I then took the vehicle into the dealership for them to look at the problem. Well it turns out that the dealership's service department has had a number of complaints just like mine. It also turns out that Audi has a fix for the problem. The fix is a software update 37M6. I'm glad the issue has been fixed on my vehicle but the real issue is that NHTSA and Audi are aware of this fix but both of these entities are not requiring the fix to be made via a gov't issued recall. Audi calls this fix a "campaign". Audi is avoiding the standard practices of NHTSA by referring to this problem and fix as a campaign which is outside of the normal technical service bulletin and safety recall process. Has no one at NHTSA or Audi learned the lessons of the GM debacle with the ignition switch. This cover up by NHTSA/dot and Audi is a complete an utter disgrace. To allow Audi to operate outside of the NHTSA system is a complete failure. NHTSA needs to mandate Audi issue a safety recall asap!
Our A8 has issues with lag time when accelerating from a stop or a slow speed of less then 10 mph. The vehicle seems to stop running prior to a full stop and if the accelerator is depressed nothing happens for about 5 seconds. This is extremely dangerous and leaves us at risk of being injured or killed. This issue started just a few months after purchase and has gotten continually worse. We have also encountered this issue even after a full stop and then trying to accelerate from a full stop. It has even happened when driving on an interstate highway when trying to pass another vehicle. The delay in acceleration is very disconcerting and dangerous to say the least.
I leased this 2019 Audi Q8 in December 2018 from my local Audi dealer and it has had so many technical issues from the start. I've had it in for service issues 5 or 6 times. It kept showing the oil symbol and said there was too much oil and was checked and they said it was just a computer issue. Then they replaced a part and it happened again not long after. They then claim the replacement part was faulty. Since the beginning, it has had issues accelerating when it is in the energy saving mode, which is default and you have to disable it every single time you use the car. The check engine line has been illuminated multiple times and when serviced, they claim it is safe to drive and that Audi is working on a computer fix to this problem. Now the "drive system: Malfunction! please contact service" light is constantly illuminating as is the check engine light (picture attached). This is by far the most expensive car I have ever had and it has had more issues than any other car I have had. I'm now very concerned that I am putting myself at risk for driving this car.
The car will unpredictably lose all power for 2-3 seconds. This has more than once nearly caused a fatal accident!!!!!!! the manufacturer is aware of the problem but unable or refusing to fix it. Please save lives today and recall the car.
When driving in any standard driving mode, when you start to come to a stop with auto S/S enabled (e.g. slow down) to less than 6mph, then accelerate again, there is a considerable lag for the vehicle to start accelerating again (about 1-2 seconds). This is especially dangerous when making left turns when there is cross traffic as the vehicle often drifts into the intersection and you can't quickly accelerate away. Have had many close calls and the issue is easily replicable on any 2019 Q8.
The vehicle has major throttle lag from a stop state of the car, if you are not aware, the vehicle will lag on acceleration and sudden jerk forward at full speed which is a major safety hazard if you are not paying attention. The turbos take too long to send power to the wheels and result is sudden acceleration.
Throttle lag from a near (but not full) stop. If coming to rolling stop, from 1-8 mph, and then hit accelerator, the car engine revs but no acceleration to vehicle. After a 2-3 second delay, car will lunge and accelerate normally. Scary when need to accelerate from a near rolling stop. Left hand turns especially dangerous. Explained issue to dealer, and Q8 car forums have same issue. Dealer says functioning "normal", which I disagree it is not. I have tried all settings for start/stop, transmission settings, etc., and nothing fully alleviates the problem. This is not episodic and a consistent, reproducible dangerous issue.
There is a noticeable throttle lag (hesitation) when the auto start/stop feature is enabled, and the car comes out of a rolling stop (ex. When making a left turn). Disabling the auto start/stop feature or selecting sport mode negates the issue.
Excessive and dangerous delay in throttle response due to auto start/stop system causing vehicle to coast when slowing down at a yield sign or intersection etc before transmission re-engages. The vehicle is powerless for several seconds despite application of gas pedal, causing oncoming traffic to potential collide with "stalled" Q8. This is a major design defect in the auto start/stop system and occurs every time the system is active.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Mirror Lake, NH, USA