There are 2 owner-reported engine complaints for the 2021 Audi e-tronin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
2022 Audi etron. 20,759 miles. Electrical malfunction light came on. Took it to the dealer. Advised Entire front motor needed to be replaced due to coolant seepage into the front motor. Seems to be a very common problem and a 2 week+ turnaround
E-Tron with 9300 miles, received Electrical Malfunction: Contact Service. Audi service said to bring vehicle in. On way to dealer, warning changed to Electrical Malfunction: Pull over safely and then, before being able to do so, the vehicle jerked and died while in traffic. Fortunately, I had decided not to take the freeway and had enough momentum to coast to the side of the road, but the experience certainly stressed my nerves, especially since I could have chosen to be on the freeway in heavy, fast, multilane traffic. Dealer said it was a coolant leak into the front motor which killed the electrical motor. Subsequently discovered from research this has been happening since the 2019 model year in E-trons, and is likely related to a faulty gasket. I have not received my car back from repair so cannot yet confirm that this was the cause in my case. But a properly designed electric vehicle should not allow coolant to get into an electrical motor. Having a vehicle stop in traffic is a definite safety risk. In addition, I don’t know if Audi has redesigned the faulty parts to prevent this from reoccurring.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026