2003 Audi A4: complete transmission failure

Filed Jun 25, 2014 · Engine, Transmission · CA

I had a new transmission put in the audi and after a year the transmission reverse mode failed. I took it to the shop which repaired the car and found that there had been a recall on the part which was needed for the car. When I took it to the audi dealership they refused to honor the recall and I had to pay for the new part an additional $2700. I was told that I was not the owner of the car and they had no information on file about me however I had repeatedly been in personally to ask about the car and any recalls after replacing the transmission. Also they had my email address. I was then told I was six months too late and I had to pay for the repair. I tried to call audi customer service and the headquarters and only got the run around. If there was a recall for this part the audi dealership and audi headquarters should have honored this and replaced the part.

Filed Aug 3, 2010 · Body, Transmission · 109,000 miles · RI

It would seem that I have two of the issues I've seen here with my 2003 audi a4 convertible. I have owned it since 2008 and have already replaced the transmission module twice. As described by others, it wouldn't engage reverse, or go into standard mode... Blinking dash lights, etc... The other common issue is my rear window. It is holding on by less that two inches of glue. The rest just hangs on by the headliner. This has resulted in gallons of water entering my car during rain storms. Not to mention the vibrations while driving with the top up.

Filed Dec 4, 2009 · Transmission · 80,000 miles · WA

I have a 2003 a4 convertible audi. I have been researching problems I have been experiencing, and have found that many people are having the same transmission issues. The problem is in the transmission control unit. The range switch telling the transmission which gear to go into goes out. The dangerous symptoms include an inability to go into reverse, the car not accelerating when the gas is pressed and then lunging forward. When the car slows to a stop, it often doesn't shift down and the car lunges forward before killing the engine. There have been numerous reports of this problem, and audi has been unwilling to admit fault in the manufacturing, and/or provide a solution. The fix has come at a costly $8k new transmission.

Filed Mar 25, 2008 · Transmission · 28,700 miles · KS

In mid-february, I purchased a 2003 audi a4 from overland park jeep in overland park, kansas. The car was a one owner, very low mileage (28,000)vehicle at an attractive price. As a one income family with a newborn, this car had the safety and looks we desired. On the day of pickup, the car's top malfunctioned, and it was sent to molle audi in kc, mo for repair. While there, I asked molle to run an inspection on the car to determine if I should keep it. They touted that they sold the car, and had serviced it. Mentioning they were the only audi dealer repair experts in the area, they gave it a clean bill of health. I picked it up after five days, and op jeep paid for the roof repair. I paid for the inspection. On the 34th day of ownership, the transmission slipped. I thought maybe the car was cold. A couple days later, it did it again. I contacted molle, and took the car in for service again. Now, they claim the car needs a new transmission and that it will cost over $7300.00. Op jeep states that since it is past thirty days, they "don't know what I expect them to do about it". Molle says it is just tough luck. It was perfect a couple hundred miles ago? The original warranty on the car was 4 years/50,000 miles. Since the car is 10 months past the time frame (although 22,000 under the mileage), they won't do anything for me, I just need to pay the $7,300.00....which I cannot do? Audi USA has yet to respond, but claimed they follow the advice of the service manager, which didn't indicate they would do anything but fix it for $7,300.00. I need this car for work, it needs to be safe for my family, and our newborn son. It seems incredibly unfair that I have owned a one owner, very low mileage carefully maintained car for just over one month, and just over 200 miles, and be faced with a $7,300. Bill on a vehicle that cost $17,000. Op jeep made claims to the quality and inspection of the car that were not true.

Filed Jan 8, 2008 · Fuel system · IL

Audi has intentionally put my family and me at risk of serious injury or worse by refusing to replace a possibly defective fuel pump in my 2003 a4 1.8l turbo. Even though my car was manufactured within the timeframe specified in the fuel pump recall campaigns, audi USA told me my car shouldn't be affected by this problem since the recalls don?t include my car's VIN. (campaigns #06v017000 and #07v375000) these recalls cover a4 1.8l turbo engines manufactured from september 1, 2002 to march 31, 2003. Mine was manufactured on november 8, 2002. It is clear to me that audi is putting us at risk for a crash and injury, since 1) they used the same excuse to deny responsibility for all 4 defective ignition coils that turned out needing replacement (see odi #10214099); 2) my car has already had serious mechanical problems (completely new transmission and radiator by 69,000 miles); 3) audi seems unaware of how many cars are really affected by this, given they didn't include enough vehicles in the first fuel pump recall of 74,000 cars and had to add a second one for an additional 34,000; and 4) these fuel pumps are known to fail as early as 50,000 miles, and my car has 70,000. It is for these four reasons my fuel pump needs to be replaced at audi?s expense. Audi needs to stop making its car owners pay for their engineering mistakes. This is a dangerous practice that needs to stop before someone gets killed.

Filed Jan 4, 2008 · Transmission · 64,000 miles · IL

In february 2007, my 2003 a4's multitronic CVT (transmission) started to fail. It was slow to engage to reverse and to first gear from a complete stop, and the prnd indicator on the dashboard began to blink continuously. Although these were obvious problems, the mechanic at our audi dealership informed me the car was 'operating according to manufacturer's specifications.' the car only had 61,000 miles. Soon thereafter, the transmission got worse. On one occasion, my infant daughter and I were put in danger when the transmission didn't engage as I attempted a left turn. We were stuck in oncoming traffic in a car that would not move. It was only after I pressed the gas pedal multiple times, revving the engine significantly, that the car bucked into first gear and lurched forward. On another occasion, the car would not go into reverse when I tried to back out of a space in a busy parking lot. This space was on a slight incline, causing the car to roll forward when I stepped on the gas in the attempt to engage the reverse. Instead of reversing, again the engine revved significantly and rolled forward, nearly missing the parked car in front of me. After several attempts the reverse suddenly engaged and lurched backwards. Thank goodness nobody was injured in either situation. At 64,000 miles the transmission failed completely. I had to replace it at a cost of $6,500. Audi even required that my broken transmission be sent back to them so they could study the failure. The technical staff at my audi dealership, as well as the owner of the repair shop where I eventually had the transmission replaced, remarked that the multitronic CVT's design is problematic, and that they're seeing major issues with them.