About to get into a CPO 2014 RS5 - Common problems to look out for

[chiahal]

As in the title, I'm 90% of the way into closing a deal on a CPO 2014 RS5 with my local Audi dealer. Going in for a test drive tomorrow, and bringing a mechanic friend with me. He is a great mechanic, although not an Audi expert. Again, the car is CPO so I'm not really too concerned, but wanted some tips from fellow long time owners about common/easy to spot problems that I can be on the lookout for.

Issues I already have heard/read about:

-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear
-Fuel door not opening properly
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly
-Squeaky sunroof
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires
-Squeaky exhaust valves

Thanks for any advice. I'm super excited since this has been my dream car every since it came out, but don't want the excitement to cloud my judgement.

[SeattleiteA6]

oh you found one - nice! Audi Seattle or Audi Lynnwood? I think the two key ones are the rotor wear (esp fronts) and the carbon buildup due to the direct injectors. The first one is easy for your mechanic to spot, the second not so much :)

[NYCB8S4]

I have a 2013

-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear- I replaced mine at 28,000 and so far so good at 40k
-Fuel door not opening properly- I had an issue with pumping gas and audi had to replace something to fix it.
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly- Nevr had this issue
-Squeaky sunroof- The replaecd the rails in my sun roof due to the sound.
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires- This is normal with any V8 . You will need a cabron cleaning every 45/45k
-Squeaky exhaust valves- I had my exhaust replaced duee to this.

[mcbuck]

Congrats, you will love the RS!


-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear - I bought the car used. Pads were replaced but not the rotors. Have put 30K on pads, still good. Best guess from service records of PO, I have 60K on the rotors. Slightly below spec, but no issues.
-Fuel door not opening properly - nope
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly - nope
-Squeaky sunroof - nope
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires - nope, though I should probably take a look at some point. My philosophy - a redline a day keeps the carbon away.
-Squeaky exhaust valves - nope

I would add to be prepared for costly regular maintenance. The brake rotors are not cheap and the DSG and rear sport diff fluid changes are costly, but you pay to play.

Post pics!

[namvar]

As in the title, I'm 90% of the way into closing a deal on a CPO 2014 RS5 with my local Audi dealer. Going in for a test drive tomorrow, and bringing a mechanic friend with me. He is a great mechanic, although not an Audi expert. Again, the car is CPO so I'm not really too concerned, but wanted some tips from fellow long time owners about common/easy to spot problems that I can be on the lookout for.

Issues I already have heard/read about:

-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear
-Fuel door not opening properly
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly
-Squeaky sunroof
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires
-Squeaky exhaust valves

Thanks for any advice. I'm super excited since this has been my dream car every since it came out, but don't want the excitement to cloud my judgement.

good luck..


I have a 2015 with 37K miles on it


-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear- Replace front pads and rotors at 25K. Rears still going string
-Fuel door not opening properly - The little metal flap broke off. At the shop getting replaced now
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly- First time I am hearing anyone has had an issue with this
-Squeaky sunroof- No
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires- no
-Squeaky exhaust valves- no

It's a CPO with a 100K mile warranty. you should not be worried.

[RSenvy808]

Good luck with the process! I have a 2013 RS5

-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear- I'm @27k and original brakes. Dealer wanted my first born to do all 4. I'll purchase and do them myself.
-Fuel door not opening properly- My issue was the fuel door was not locking along with my doors. New fuel door actuator fixed that along with a new fuel pocket.
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly- No
-Squeaky sunroof- No
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires- Letting it take deep breaths daily
-Squeaky exhaust valves- N/A, AWE track installed

[Beast]

n/a to any of these

[shonseb]

No to all
I did have my thermostat go out, got stuck closed, replaced under warranty
I have the rear bumper squeak that I haven't got around to tightening yet because I have a sub in the cubby
You should also look for interior driver/passenger leather wear/damage around the bolsters, common in all 5 models with sport seats

[Beast]

No to all
I did have my thermostat go out, got stuck closed, replaced under warranty
I have the rear bumper squeak that I haven't got around to tightening yet because I have a sub in the cubby
You should also look for interior driver/passenger leather wear/damage around the bolsters, common in all 5 models with sport seats

all about entering/exit technique. When I exit I use the steering wheel to lift myself out of the seat. I have 0 wear on bolster etc. I do clean the leather regularly though which might help

[namvar]

No to all
I did have my thermostat go out, got stuck closed, replaced under warranty
I have the rear bumper squeak that I haven't got around to tightening yet because I have a sub in the cubby
You should also look for interior driver/passenger leather wear/damage around the bolsters, common in all 5 models with sport seats

I forgot... I had the bumper squeak also. There's a TSB for that.

[chiahal]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. Unfortunately the deal fell through. Went in for the test drive and something was definitely off about the brakes on the car. Not sure if it was the common warped rotors issue, but whenever the car braked from anything above 45-50 mph there was a noticeable shudder through the steering wheel. The salesman said the brakes were checked and they were fine, chalking it up to the car having a "lot of torque", which was pretty lame to me so I just walked out. Oh well, the search continues...

[wkhanna]

The salesman said the brakes were checked and they were fine, chalking it up to the car having a "lot of torque".........

bogus bs

.......so I just walked out.......

smart move....

[namvar]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. Unfortunately the deal fell through. Went in for the test drive and something was definitely off about the brakes on the car. Not sure if it was the common warped rotors issue, but whenever the car braked from anything above 45-50 mph there was a noticeable shudder through the steering wheel. The salesman said the brakes were checked and they were fine, chalking it up to the car having a "lot of torque", which was pretty lame to me so I just walked out. Oh well, the search continues...

Lots of Torque??? The only thing I would change about my RS5 is the LOW torque. Every mod I am doing is to ad a little more. So the salesman is obviously full of crap and does not know the RS5. Is it audi seattle?

[Alexandros]

If the car's mileage is low enough, make sure they include Audicare in the deal. I bought a CPO 2014 with 3K miles two years ago and did not think of it. I ended up buying it for $1K to avoid the high cost of service thru 45K miles of use.

[Racedoc11]

I have a 2013

-Issues with premature brake and rotor wear- I replaced mine at 28,000 and so far so good at 40k
-Fuel door not opening properly- I had an issue with pumping gas and audi had to replace something to fix it.
-Rear spoiler does not deploy smoothly- Nevr had this issue
-Squeaky sunroof- The replaecd the rails in my sun roof due to the sound.
-Carbon buildup causing cylinder misfires- This is normal with any V8 . You will need a cabron cleaning every 45/45k
-Squeaky exhaust valves- I had my exhaust replaced duee to this.

2013 with 28k miles
-Brake is defiantly a problem although many guys resolved it by just going with Hawk pads.
-Squeaky roof only when opened in my case.
-Rear spoiler doesn't go all the way down on its own (sometimes).
-Fuel gas tank door stuck.
-Check engine light at 700 miles and again at 25000 related to fuel pump/system issues.
-Thermostat issue made the car act as if it was overheating while it was not. Replaced at 16k miles
-Squeaky exhaust valves only when it opens - It does not bother me.
-The car consumes oil - dealer checked and I was told it is within Audi standards.

[chrissurfr]

the brake issues will never go away with any of the cars. I replaced mine with ECS rotors - problem solved. Best $1200 I've ever spent. I went through 4 sets of Audi rotors before that in less than 25k miles. Fucking insane.

[namvar]

the brake issues will never go away with any of the cars. I replaced mine with ECS rotors - problem solved. Best $1200 I've ever spent. I went through 4 sets of Audi rotors before that in less than 25k miles. Fucking insane.

and they look so much better!!!

[Ape Factory]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. Unfortunately the deal fell through. Went in for the test drive and something was definitely off about the brakes on the car. Not sure if it was the common warped rotors issue, but whenever the car braked from anything above 45-50 mph there was a noticeable shudder through the steering wheel. The salesman said the brakes were checked and they were fine, chalking it up to the car having a "lot of torque", which was pretty lame to me so I just walked out. Oh well, the search continues...

I'm in the hunt as well and I've now test-driven five different RS5's and hoping to test three more tomorrow. MOST of them haven't had the issues you've mentioned (can't really tell on the carbon issue) but most HAVE had brake issues. And most of the dealers play the ignorant game. I drove well over an hour on Saturday to a certain Austin dealership and their sales team had all the panache of a Buick dealership.

Car was nowhere near what it appears to be in the photos (and overpriced to boot) and the trim/tires/side view mirrors had all been plasti-dipped black. Brakes were SHOT but they whipped out their supposed quality checklist and it had the rotor measurements (I think they were 31mm off the top of my head) but they were severely grooved and there was a massive lip on the outer/inner portion of the brake rotors. If they were in spec, it was by the thinnest of hairs.

The brakes had zero feel and didn't possess the serious stopping-power I know they should have.

Moral of the story, you can't trust an Audi dealership more than any other dealership and you'll need to seriously consider that you'll have to replace the rotors with aftermarket units from ECS or elsewhere. Just make sure to get a pricing discount for a car with less-than-ideal brakes. I've also decided to be more patient and just wait for the right car. There are enough out there and prices are dropping rapidly.

[chiahal]

I'm in the hunt as well and I've now test-driven five different RS5's and hoping to test three more tomorrow. MOST of them haven't had the issues you've mentioned (can't really tell on the carbon issue) but most HAVE had brake issues. And most of the dealers play the ignorant game. I drove well over an hour on Saturday to a certain Austin dealership and their sales team had all the panache of a Buick dealership.

Car was nowhere near what it appears to be in the photos (and overpriced to boot) and the trim/tires/side view mirrors had all been plasti-dipped black. Brakes were SHOT but they whipped out their supposed quality checklist and it had the rotor measurements (I think they were 31mm off the top of my head) but they were severely grooved and there was a massive lip on the outer/inner portion of the brake rotors. If they were in spec, it was by the thinnest of hairs.

The brakes had zero feel and didn't possess the serious stopping-power I know they should have.

Moral of the story, you can't trust an Audi dealership more than any other dealership and you'll need to seriously consider that you'll have to replace the rotors with aftermarket units from ECS or elsewhere. Just make sure to get a pricing discount for a car with less-than-ideal brakes. I've also decided to be more patient and just wait for the right car. There are enough out there and prices are dropping rapidly.

I'm with you there. My dealer didn't even want to work with me on the price. Funny enough the car sold immediately the same night that I test drove, so I guess part of the problem is that they are in such high demand that the dealers don't have to really sell them. I feel sorry for the guy(or gal) who bought it.

Were all the cars you drove CPO? I'm thinking about even going out of state just to find one. The closest CPO to me now is in the bay area.

[Racedoc11]

Good to know. I'm on my 3rd set oem and the problem is still there.

[chrissurfr]

guys - just factor in the price of needing new brakes into the "after the sale needed things" list.

I wouldn't let the shuttering brakes take you away from a sale. You will need to change them to ECS regardless at one point or another.

My brakes are amazing with ECS rotors and hawk pads :)

[Ape Factory]

I'm with you there. My dealer didn't even want to work with me on the price. Funny enough the car sold immediately the same night that I test drove, so I guess part of the problem is that they are in such high demand that the dealers don't have to really sell them. I feel sorry for the guy(or gal) who bought it.

Were all the cars you drove CPO? I'm thinking about even going out of state just to find one. The closest CPO to me now is in the bay area.

Only one was a CPO. There's enough of them out there, not sure if they're in high demand. It's a big leap of faith to buy a car like the RS5 with no warranty. I had FIVE in my town for sale (two still left) and a CPO 2014 went for UNDER $48K.

[Dirty_Bourbon]

Can we bump this? Any update on high mileage V8s would be great! Thanks

[Yoda1]

Overall the car is relatively very reliable, best in Audi’s imo. Every car will have something break over time. I doubt you will find any newer “bullet proof” reliable cars as we did in the 80/90s with Toyota and Honda.

I’ve had the car from 35k to 45k now with no major issues. The above mentioned common issues are still at that afaik. The squeaky sunroof is an open and close case .

From what I’ve read the only long term concern I have with this car are rotors (mine is still fine without shudder) and carbon buildup which is just a constant with every direction injection pre 2018.

[audiericus]

the wave rotors are horrible, suggest upgrading. they have known issues with wobble during braking. I went with the JHM 380 big brake rotors, awesome investment if your going to keep it for awhile.
carbon clean if over 35-50k.
check scan codes for anything that wasnt cleared.
oil change history. i change mine every 5k

[RS5ATL]

I have a 2014 Cabriolet with 34k miles on it now. Bought it a year ago with 29k miles and plopped down for an Audi VSP Platinum warranty (4yrs/48k miles) - it has almost paid for itself. In the last year I’ve replaced the coolant thermostat, some breather valve that sounded like a train whistle when it broke, a fuel pump and a coil pack.
Recently, I have noticed an occasional, but not consistent, squeak from the exhaust valve.
And the fabric on the cabriolet roof is not wearing as well as I’d expect.
I burn a quart of oil every 5k miles.
However, I found that AudiCare is an incredible savings, the major service a la carte is $400 more expensive than a major+minor AudiCare package.
With the last two repairs being recent, I’ve balked at modifying the car.
But I hit 160mph on the freeway the other day and that’s worth something!