2001 Audi A4 Electrical System Problems

THE DIGITAL INSTRUMENT CLUSTER IS NOT WORKING PROPERLY ON MY 2001 AUDI A4 1.8T. YOU CAN ONLY SEE HALF THE SCREEN ON THE CENTER DISPLAY THAT NOTIFIES YOU WHEN THE CAR NEEDS TO BE SERVICED AND IF ANY MAJOR PROBLEMS ARE OCCURRING I FEEL THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND AUDI SHOULD RECALL AND REPAIR ANY CARS WITH THIS MALFUNCTION BECAUSE I HAVE READ SEVERAL REVIEWS OF THE SAME PROBLEM SO OBVIOUSLY IT IS SOMETHING THEY SHOULD LOOK INTO. *TR

THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER 99% CANNOT BE READ DUE TO THE LCD DISPLAY FADING. HAVE DONE MULTIPLE SEARCHES AND 9 OUT OF 10 PEOPLE HAVE THIS SAME EXACT ISSUE. AUDI NEEDS TO STEP UP AND TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS ISSUE. THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING ISSUE AND NEEDS TO BE FIXED. THIS HAS BEEN A HUGE PAIN FOR ME BECAUSE SOMETIMES MY CAR WILL BEEP AND DISPLAY SOMETHING ON THE LCD SCREEN BUT BECAUSE IT'S FADING I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT IT'S TELLING ME. I DON'T WANT TO BE DRIVING AND SOMETHING LIFE THREATENING HAPPEN BECAUSE OF A MISSED MESSAGE BECAUSE THE LCD SCREEN IS BROKEN. FIX THIS BEFORE PEOPLE GET HURT AND START FILING LAWSUITS. *TR

THERE HAVE BEEN NO ACCIDENTS SO FAR HOWEVER MY WARNING DISPLAY ON MY INSTRUMENT CLUSTER ON MY 2001 AUDI A4 1.8T HAS BE CONTINUALLY FADING IN WARM WEATHER LEAVING ME UNABLE TO SEE IF THERE ARE ANY PROBLEMS WITH MY CAR. THIS CAN BECOME VERY SERIOUS IF I CAN'T SEE IF SOMETHING MAJOR COMES UP THAT NEEDS IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. *TR

MY 2001 AUDI A4 HAS CENTRAL LCD DISPLAY TO DISPLAY ALL SORT OF INFORMATION, BUT THIS DISPLAY FAILS IN MOST OF A4S JUST AFTER A FEW YEARS. THIS IS CRITICAL FOR VEHICLE SAFETY, BECAUSE THIS CAR DOES NOT HAVE ANY OTHER INDICATORS TO SIGNAL ABNORMAL CONDITIONS OF THE CAR SUCH AS LOW COOLANT, CHECK ENGINE, ETC. THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN KNOWN MORE THAN FIVE YEARS, BUT THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT BEEN RESPONSIBLE. PLEASE LOOK AT HTTP://AUDIFORUMS.COM/FORUM/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?T=46512 FOR OTHER PEOPLE'S COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. *TR

CENTER LCD DISPLAY WHICH CARRIES INFORMATION RELEVANT TO SAFETY IS FAILING. LOT OF THE INFORMATION DISPLAYED IS NOT READABLE AND HENCE PROPER ACTION CAN'T BE TAKEN TO KEEP THE CAR SAFE. AUDI REFUSES TO TAKE REMEDIAL ACTION TO REPLACE THE DEFECTIVE INSTRUMENT CLUSTERS. *TR

LCD PANEL IN INSTRUMENT PANEL IS BLANKING OUT/CAUSING INFORMATION TO BE GARBLED ON THE SCREEN. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 AUDI A4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HALF OF THE DISPLAY PIXELS ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL FAILED TO ILLUMINATE. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE DIGITAL DISPLAY IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER FAILED. AS OF NOVEMBER 13, 2007, THE DEALER HAD NOT REPAIRED THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 65,000.

1) THERE IS NO TRIGGERING EVENT LEADING UP TO THE FAILURE. IT JUST APPEARS OVER TIME. 2) THE LCD SCREEN IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER HAS LINES OF PIXELS THAT DO NOT LIGHT UP. THIS IS CONSTANT, WITH MORE LINES OF PIXELS GOING OUT AND PERMANENTLY STAYING OUT OVER TIME. AS A CONSEQUENCE, IMPORTANT WARNING MESSAGES ARE NOT DISPLAYED OR READABLE; SUCH AS WORN OUT BRAKE PADS, FUEL LOW WARNING, WASHER FLUID LOW WARNING, ETC. IF THESE WARNINGS ARE NOT DISPLAYED, THE VEHICLE MAY RUN OUT OF GAS WITHOUT WARNING AND STALL WHILE OPERATING, OR BRAKES MAY WEAR DOWN TO THE POINT OF LOSING EFFECTIVENESS WITHOUT WARNING, OR BE LEFT WITHOUT WASHER FLUID WITHOUT WARNING. 3) ENTIRE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WAS REPLACED WITH NEW BY AUDI DEALERSHIP UNDER CPO WARRANTY. FAILED PART WAS KEPT BY AUDI. *TR

THE LCD INSTRUMENT DISPLAY IS "PIXILATED" -- UNABLE TO CLEARLY DISPLAY INFORMATION REGARDING THE STATUS OF THE VEHICLE, INCLUDING SAFETY-RELATED INFORMATION SUCH AS FAILURE OF SAFETY-RELATED COMPONENTS (ANTI-LOCK BRAKES ETC.). THIS COULD LEAD TO A CRASH OR PREVENT THE TIMELY RESPONSE TO A SAFETY-RELATED PROBLEM. ON-LINE FORUMS INDICATE THAT THIS IS A FREQUENT PROBLEM WITH AUDI A4S. *TR

TL*- THE CONTACT HAS A 2001 AUDI A4 AND STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 55 MPH, HE STARTED SMELLING AN ODOR COMING FROM THE DRIVER'S SEAT OF THE VEHICLE. HE PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND NOTICE THAT THERE WAS SMOKE COMING FROM UNDERNEATH THE SEAT, SECONDS AFTER THE CONTACT GOT OUT OF THE VEHICLE THE AIR BAG DEPLOYED WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD A SHORT IN THE ELECTRICAL WIRING. CONTACT CAN PROVIDE COPY OF INVOICE REPAIR IF NEEDED. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGE WERE BOTH 200,000 MILES.

2001 AUDI A4 CUSTOMER STATES THAT AUDI IS RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS LOSS BECAUSE THE FIRE WAS DUE TO A MALFUNCTION OF THE ELECTRICAL WIRING**CC *JB UPDATED 04/05/07. *JB

(1) I HAVE HAD 3 AUDI A4'S THAT HAVE HAD THIS SAME ISSUE!!! 98', 99.5' AND 01.5' A4'S. BELOW IN THE INCIDENT DATE, I STATED THE DATE WHEN I PURCHASED MY CURRENT CAR... THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE THE TWO PREVIOUS A4'S I HAD WITH THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM YEARS AGO. (2) THE LCD SCREEN IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER HAS SEVERAL PIXELS THAT DIE OUT AND MAKE THE SCREEN BLURRY OR BLANK! THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR THE DRIVER TO KNOW WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE CAR WHEN A PROBLEM OCCURS! ALSO STATES IN THE OWNERS MANUAL IT IS FOR SAFETY ISSUES AND THE DRIVER NEEDS TO BE AWARE OF THESE SITUATIONS AT ALL TIMES. LIKE I PREVIOUSLY SAID, THIS IS MY THIRD AUDI A4 AND HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM WITH ALL THREE. IT IS VERY FRUSTRATING, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOUR CAR BECAUSE OF THIS ONGOING DEFECT WITH AUDI. (3) HAVE VISITED AUDI DEALERSHIPS NUMEROUS TIMES TO GET THIS RESOLVED. EVERYTIME I GET A PRICE QUOTE OF OVER $900 WHICH IS COMPLETELY INSANE! EVERYTIME I GO TO THE DEALERSHIP CONCERNING THIS ISSUE, IT IS WITH A DIFFERENT CAR AND HAVE EXPECTED THIS TO BE A RECALL BY NOW! THIS IS A HUGE INCONVENIENCE AND HOPE FOR ALL AUDI OWNERS THAT THIS GETS RESOLVED VERY QUICKLY! *TR

FADING LCD ON INSTRUMENT PANEL. *TR

I OWN A 2001 AUDI A4 AVANT 1.8T THAT I TOOK DELIVERY IN AUGUST 2000. LATE LAST YEAR, AUGUST-OCTOBER 2003, I NOTICED THAT THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER'S CENTER LCD DISPLAY STARTED TO FADE ON THE TOP PART. LATER ON I FIGURED OUT THAT IT WOULD HAPPEN AFTER THE CAR HAS BEEN UNDER THE HEAT OF THE SUN FOR A WHILE. I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING BECAUSE I FIGURED IT'S JUST MY CAR AND I'VE ALREADY GONE THROUGH MY WARRANTY PERIOD (4 YEARS/50,000MILES) AS MY CAR ALREADY HAVE 70K MILES ON IT. THEN I STARTED HEARING FROM FELLOW AUDI OWNERS THAT I MET THAT IT'S HAPPENING TO THEIR CARS TOO. ONE HAS A 2001 AUDI A4 SEDAN WITH 30K MILES AND THE OTHER WITH A 2001 S4 SEDAN, BOTH REPLACED UNDER THE WARRANTY. ANOTHER IS A 2002 AUDI TT, BUT HE'S LUCKED OUT BECAUSE HE HAS MORE THAN 50K MILES TOO (OUT OF THE WARRANTY). WHAT I'M CURIOUS IS WHETHER THERE'S BEEN ANY REPORTED SIMILAR CASE? I FEEL THAT THE DAMAGE IS NOT CAUSED BY THE WEAR AND TEAR OF THE LONG-DISTANCE DRIVEN CAR. MAYBE THIS IS A TYPE OF DEFECT?

AN IGNITION COIL ON MY 2001 AUDI A4 FAILED, CAUSING AN EXTREME LOSS OF POWER, POOR STEERING AND BRAKING. THE POTENTIAL FOR AN ACCIDENT EXISTS, ESPECIALLY IF DRIVING AT A HIGHER SPEED, OR IN POOR WEATHER CONDITIONS (AS I WAS). THE DEALER WAS AUTHORIZED TO ONLY REPAIR THE 1 FAILED COIL, AND I AM AT RISK FOR FURTHER FAILURES, A SAFETY CONCERN FOR ME.

THERE IS A QUITE APPARENT ISSUE WITH THE COILPACK FAILURES ON THESE CARS, PARTICULARY WITH THOSE THAT OPERATE IN COLD WEATHER (<30F). AUDI HAS NOT OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED THE PROBLEM THROUGH A RECALL.

2001 AUDI A4. IN FOR 3RD COIL PACK REPLACEMENT IN LESS THAN A YEAR. THIS APPEARS TO BE A WIDESPREAD PROBLEM INVOLVING A KNOWN DEFECTIVE PART. AUDI REFUSES TO REPLACE ALL OF THE COIL PACKS AT ONCE, INSTEAD PREFERING TO HAVE THE CUSTOMER COME IN FOR EACH INEVITABLE FAILURE. THE CAR IS ESSENTIALY INOPERABLE IN THIS CONDITION AND REQUIRES TOWING FOR EACH INSTANCE OF FAILURE WHICH DOES NOT OCCURE LOCALLY. AUDI NEEDS TO RECALL THIS CAR! I WOULD LIKE YOU TO CONSIDER THE PLIGHT OF HANDICAPPED INDIVIDUALS FOR WHOM THIS IS MORE THAN A MAJOR INCONVENIENCE, BUT A DANGEROUS SITUATION. AUDI KNOWS ABOUT THE PROBLEM AND COULD ADDRESS IT DIRECTLY INSTEAD OF PUTTING PEOPLE THROUGH THIS. THANK YOU

2001 AUDI A4 AVANT QUATRO, ABOUT 17K MILES. FAILURE OF IGNITION COIL AT COLD STRATUP. FOUND NUMEROUS REPORTED CASES OF SAME PROBLEM, RELATED TO 1.8T ENGINE AUDI OR VW - SO COMMON THAT PART IS ON BACKLOG FOR 2 WEEKS OR MORE! DEALER REFUSES TO CHANGE ALL IGNITION COILS, SO IT IS VERY LIKELY THAT ANOTHER ONE MAY FAIL SOON. SUDDEN FAILURE OF IGNITION COIL MAY CREATE A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION - LOST OF POWER IN TRAFFICK AT HIGH SPEED. AUDI/VW SHOULD BE FORCED TO DO A RECALL OF ALL IGNITION COILS FOR THE 2001 AND 2002 MODELS EQUIPPED WITH 1.8T ENGINES.

IN COLD CONDITIONS (10F) AND WITH LITTLE VEHICLE WARM-UP TIME, THE VEHICLE BEGAN CUTTING OUT AND LOST ENGINE POWER WHILE DRIVING. THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT RECOVER SO I SHUT OFF THE ENGINE AND RESTARTED. ENGINE OPERATION RETURNED TO NORMAL BUT HAD REGISTERED FAULT CODES WHICH WERE TRACED TO THE COILS NOT FIRING PROPERLY.

AUDI A4 IGNITION COIL PROBLEM. 2 HAVE GONE - NOW I HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE OTHER 2 TO GO IN ORDER TO AGAIN OWN A DEPENDABLE CAR. THIS IS MOST INCONVENIENT DURING A COLD WINTER! I AM PAYING MY LEASE, AND AM NOT ABLE TO DRIVE THE CAR FURTHER THAN A FEW MILES. I LIVE IN A REMOTE AREA OF MAINE, WHERE THE TEMPERATURE IS WELL BELOW ZERO MUCH OF THE TIME. I COULD FREEZE TO DEATH WAITING FOR A TOW TRUCK!! WHY IS THERE NOT A RECALL. WHY CAN'T THE COMPANY PUT A HOLD ON COMPLETING NEW CARS AND THEREFORE INSTALL 4 COILS AT A TIME INSTEAD OF ONE AS THEY GO?? WHY SHOULD I CONTINUE TO PAY FOR THIS CAR UNLESS IT IS FIXED?