10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
11,248 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

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problem #20

Jul 052021

Q5

  • miles
continually having to add a quart of oil to the vehicle and rear tail pipes have turned soot black from oil burning out the tailpipe. I purchased the vehicle and i was having to have the oil changed a lot. then i noticed that the oil light was on every 500-1000 miles and i was constantly having the oil changed. i researched and the oil should not be changed that often. i took to dealership twice to no avail. i took it back with the same issue. they kept the vehicle almost three months and told me that motor would have to be torn down and if warranty didnt pay i would have to pay over $15,000 for a new engine. i dont have that kind of money for an engine and engines should last over 100,000 miles. the warranty company advised that if engine was torn down and itis an Audi problem they would not pay (they advised that Audi have this burning oil problem and they won't cover damages) and Audi will not take responsibility for the problem that is inherent in the engine and will not repair the vehicle.

- Montgomery, AL, USA

problem #19

Jan 302023

Q5

  • miles
SUV has major blind spot on side view mirrors. Also, consume excessive amounts of engine oil. Audi needs to include the Q5 2016 year in a class action lawsuit. OUTRAGEOUS!!!!!

- Charlotte , NC, USA

problem #18

Aug 122023

Q5

  • miles
Engine shuts off while driving at highway speeds. No engine warning light comes on, just complete lack of power. Need to pull off, put car in park and restart. Happens more often in colder weather, but is very sporadic. Audi said it was fuel issue. It is not. Jundreds of gas fill-ups with all different brands. This has been happening for years, and began within months of purchasing the car. It is getting more and more frequent. There is no fault code associated with it when I've brought it in for diagnostics. Very disconcerting when driving 75mph in left lane, and you experience a complete loss of power. Last incident was August 12, 2023

- Charlottesville, VA, USA

problem #17

May 162023

Q5

  • 40,900 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Audi Q5. The contact stated that on several occasions while the vehicle was started, there was a loud whistling sound coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the breather valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,900.

- Plymouth, MN, USA

problem #16

Dec 022022

Q5

  • miles
This vehicle guzzles oil. On average, I have to add a quart of oil every 200 - 300 miles. No leaks are evident but always see white smoke from tail pipes.

- Free Union , VA, USA

problem #15

Jan 092023

Q5

  • miles
Excessive oil consumption

- Jacksonville, FL, USA

problem #14

Apr 042022

Q5 4-cyl

  • miles
Component: 2016 Audi Q5 Available for inspection : UNKNOWN Safety risk: YES The car was just driven and parked in the garage, approximately 30 minutes prior to our discovery of the fire. My wife and I had to escape the fire. UNKNOWN YES The Town of Sterling, MA fire department investigated the fire and determined that the vehicle caused the fire (See attached report). Then, AMICA Insurance Company had [XXX] from NEFCO do an investigation. He verbally told us that he thought it was the car that started the fire, but he was told by the insurance company attorney to not make a written report (See attached email). AMICA had the vehicle brought to SD Lyons Facility in Seekonk, MA to investigate the vehicle's charred remains. Audi's representatives were also present. No physical evidence was found to prove that the car caused the fire. [XXX], Fire Investigator, in his attached email to us indicated that this does not mean the fire did not originate at the vehicle but that they could not find any physical evidence from the burnt remains of the car. In addition, there are eye witnesses, since the garage door was open. Our neighbors across the street saw what seemed to be small flames flickering near the right rear side of the car, which would flare up and decrease. Soon there after the car was consumed in fire. The description given sounds like a possible rule leak. This vehicle was purchased at Audi Nashua in NH and was regularly serviced by this dealership. NO INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Sterling, MA, USA

problem #13

Jul 152022

Q5

  • miles
Purchased a 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus in June of 2022, I only had it for about a month and the light came on asking me to put a quart of oil in it. After adding oil the light went off, Well it has done it two more times since the first time. While having the car serviced in August I asked the service associate why does it do that, I was told that that's just what they do. That made no sense me, So I did a little investigation and found out there was a class action lawsuit filed because of this issue. I didn't own the car at that time, Audi should continue to service these vehicles that might have slipped through the cracks and wasn't repaired during this lawsuit. There are many people just like me who are purchasing these cars, without knowing about this issue and has the vehicle been repaired or not. It is unsafe to drive these cars like this because it can lose power on the highway and thus cause the driver to be injured or even killed. Audi keep telling people that they just do this, when they know that there was a law suit about this issue, but have so many vehicles out there that hasn't been repaired.

- Columbus, GA, USA

problem #12

May 182022

Q5

  • miles
Audi Q5 is consuming oil and requiring it to be filled every 300 to 500 miles. It is unsafe for people to continually be pulling over over the side of the road. Audi will not fix, even if car fails oil consumption test. Price to fix is around 9K. The problem is also causing loss of power, which is not safe, especially while driving on the highway. Audi acknowledges the problem and states "they do that".

- Candler, NC, USA

problem #11

Mar 202022

Q5

  • miles
I bought this vehicle with 57,000 miles on it the water pump was replaced under recall at 60,000 miles now the water pump is bad at 97,000 miles so that-€™s three water pumps 97,000 miles

- Vadnais Heights , MN, USA

problem #10

Nov 102021

Q5

  • miles
The car started needing 1 quart of oil every 1,000. now it needs a quart of oil in less than 200 miles. I have found a lot of reports about Audi's burning oil. There was a recall for 2009-2013. There are a fair amount of people complaining about this issue with Audi's. I reported it to audi but haven't heard back.

- Fort Myers, FL, USA

problem #9

May 112018

Q5

  • 14,000 miles
While on an extended trip at freeway speed in the vehicle, the "add oil" indicator light flashed on the dash.on May 11 2018, I took the vehicle in to rusnak Audi in pasadena, ca. They told me that a new "sensor" was required, as the oil was at normal level, and replaced it with a new one. In Jan of 2021 I took a short trip at freeway speed with the vehicle the "add oil" lamp flashed on again. I again brought the vehicle into rusnak Audi in pasadena, ca. On April 22, 2021. The service department told me, after a day and a half, that they were unable to determine the cause of the malfunction since the actual oil level in the engine was at a normal level. I tried to make a point to the service technician that if I ignore the warning light, how can I be sure I won't burn out the engine due to an actual low oil level. The vehicle has no manual ( physical) dipstick. As it stands now, I am driving the vehicle with a " add oil warning lamp lit on the dash and no way to physically check the oil. This seems inappropriate to me as if I burn out the engine, I have to pay for it. Rusnak Audi seems unconcerned! please advise.

- Arcadia, CA, USA

problem #8

Oct 282020

Q5

  • 44,000 miles
Bought it 7 weeks ago, 44,000 miles. Severe oil consumption problem I'm finding out everyone knows about already with Audi turbos and was previously a class action. I'm putting oil in every other day and feel the pistons missing when I drive in the morning.

- Harmony, NC, USA

problem #7

May 012020

Q5 4-cyl

  • 38,000 miles
Coolant pump loosing coolant. No overheat light on when it's almost out.

- Gastonia, NC, USA

problem #6

Sep 202019

Q5

  • 36,488 miles
I pulled into a parking space and put the car in park. As I did so, the engine revved and the car lurched forward striking a tree. The air bags deployed and the car was written off by the insurance company. I had noticed a couple of times before that the engine would rev as I was slowing to a stop, but had never had any issues with the transmission.

- Escondido, CA, USA

problem #5

Dec 132018

Q5

  • 42,581 miles
This car has shut down while driving (in motion) three times, once while traveling at 45 mph, once at 75 mph on the highway and luckily the last time in a parking lot.. the first time was November 23, 2018. The engine stopped and we were able to drift over to the left shoulder. Thought is was a fluke because the car started up again. The next time driving on the highway it shut down again December 2, very scary. We brought it to Audi and the replaced a fuel composition sensor and said it was fixed. After they 'fixed it' and returned the car, it did the exact same thing and the engine shut off while driving in a parking lot. We brought the car back in. Audi says they can't find the problem, but we are concerned the problem still exists and other cars may have this very serious issue. The car has been in the shop a total thus far of 31 days and they called today to tell us to take the car back, but they have not found the problem. I guess they expect us to drive it again until it shuts down again and we get rear-ended and killed.

- Charlottesville, VA, USA

problem #4

May 172018

Q5

  • 9,000 miles
I purchased a new epa compliant Audi Q5 diesel on March 28th 2018. The vehicle had the epa emissions repair completed. Shortly after purchasing the vehicle I experienced an intermittent throttle control issue. It primarily occurs at slow speeds. When driving slowly, if I suddenly accelerate, such as passing around a vehicle in front of me, the throttle will not work, despite my pressing on the gas pedal. I have to remove my foot from the gas pedal and reapply it to get throttle response. I believe this is an unsafe situation and should be addressed by Audi. I've had the vehicle to the dealership that sold me the vehicle twice and they could not identify the problem. The issue has occurred at least 12 times. I was recently able to replicate it twice in a controlled setting, however, I was unable to replicate it at the dealership. The dealership found no associated codes with a scan.

- Washougal, WA, USA

problem #3

Jun 112018

Q5

  • miles
The contact owns a 2016 Audi Q5. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA campaign number: 18V229000 (engine and engine cooling) and stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time to repair the vehicle. The dealer (Audi southampton, 51 montauk highway, water mill, NY 11976) confirmed that the part was not available to perform the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

- Bronx, NY, USA

problem #2

Jun 192018

Q5

  • miles
I received a letter from Audi usa today stating that there is a safety issue with the "after run coolant pump" failing and potentially causing the vehicle to catch fire. Audi says that there are no parts available to fix this problem yet, and will not be available until at least November. Until that time Audi says to park the vehicle outside at night so that if it does catch fire, it is less likely to burn down your house. I do not think this is a safe way to handle this issue. First Audi sold us the cars with takata airbags, then Audi sold cars with fraudulent diesel engines, now Audi knowingly advised their customers to drive cars that may catch fire and has no timely solution to make them safe. I think you should instruct Audi to correct this situation immediately and not to be able to sell any more new vehicles in the usa until this safety issue is resolved.

- Langley, WA, USA

problem #1

Jun 182018

Q5

  • miles
The contact owns a 2016 Audi Q5. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA campaign number: 18V229000 (engine and engine cooling); however, the parts to do the repair were unavailable. The dealer (Audi of san diego, 1-855-971-8198) was called and confirmed that the parts were unavailable for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

- San Diego, CA, USA