Audi Dealer mechnic mistake and now I need a motor

[Shoreaudi]

I recently took my 09 A4 Quattro 2.0TFSI in to the dealer ( Audi of Turnersville) to have the timing chains, guides and tensioner done at 103k. Drove it in with no issues, just intended to have a maintenance done at the same time it was to be due for an oil change. I read the horror stories about the tensioner issues and the high mileage of our car, better to be safe than sorry. I am BIG on maintenance and service intervals. I have a 2011 F-350 6.7 diesel with over 100k and no issues because of that belief ( Ford has never balked at taking responsibility if needed). Service writer calls and says I need a new engine because the bottom bolt on the chain guide on the intake side had been loose. It chewed up the cover, guide and bolt, but worse was that it chewed up the mounting hole it was supposed to be screwed in to properly torqued and that is why I need a new engine.

The cars service history: Prior to our ownership the head was replaced by Audi under warranty. Unknown on where but it is in the service records kept by Audi.
Purchased the car used with roughly 40k on it in 2014. Immediately had an oil consumption problem. After working with Audi of America it was decided to put pistons and rings and related parts to solve the problem. Work was performed at Audi of Atlantic, work was done by an Audi mechanic Ryan (last name left out on purpose) in July 2014. Audi has since pulled out of that dealership. The car has been running fine since, even up to taking it in for the timing chain maintenance service. ALL oil changes have been done by an Audi dealer, first by Audi of Cherry Hill and then Audi of Turnersville.


The only time the engine has been open is for Audi warranty work by Audi mechanics at Audi dealerships. The bolt that was loose and caused the damage was NOT torqued properly if tightened at all, during that work and caused this problem. The quote to fix it is 10k and AOA has offered 2k towards the repair. This should not be coming out of my pocket after having a documented service history of never missed oil changes and warranty work. We have done what is required to care for this car and a mistake by an Audi mechanic at an Audi dealership should not be mine to pay for.

Dealership Experience: My wife and I did a night drop-off because we couldn't get there before service closed. While walking around looking at new Audis a salesman spoke with us about leasing a new Audi. That clearly is on hold until AOA shows they stand behind product and service.

The point of contact has been the service writer. She has been OK. Contact with her takes multiple calls for one return call (Been waiting three days now for return call). She is incapable of speaking in technical terms but tries to make like she is and can. I had to ask to speak to the actual mechanic to confirm what would be done for the timing chain replacement. Not once has the Service manager spoken directly to me or my wife after leaving him messages, which is surprising considering the severity of the problem, NOT ONCE.

To summarize, I shouldn't have to pay for this repair. I know it sucks but Audi should own a mistake made by their mechanic at one of their dealerships or come up with a better resolution than 2k toward the repair. As for the service employees, that's between Penske Automotive group and Audi to work on. Thanks for your attention in advance.

[Audi USA]

Hello,

I appreciate you taking the time to make your experience known in this setting to allow AoA the opportunity to look into this matter. I would like to open up a review on your behalf and gather some more information to attempt to assist you with the cost of the repairs. Are you able to provide me with your VIN, email, and phone number so I can get that process started? Also how long has your vehicle been down at the dealership? Thank you very much.

[Shoreaudi]

Thank you for your response. I will send that info when I get home and am able to PM you.

[Shoreaudi]

"Thank you for all of that additional information. I see that you & your wife currently have an open case for review for financial assistance with the cost of the repairs. We are still in the process of communicating wth the dealership and our internal network to determine if we are able to provide voluntary assistance. As soon as we have more information, we will reach back out. In the meantime, please let me know if you have any questions or if there is anything else that we can do for you."

Thank you for the quick response. I'm not sure what you mean by "Financial and or Voluntary assistance". The cost of the repair is squarely on Audi, it's a shame but thats just how it is. The damage to the engine was from a bolt not being tightened by the Audi mechanic during the oil consumption repair. We have taken very good care of this car and have the maintenance records with Audi to show it. We were lucky it was discovered as a result of proper maintenance before it left us stranded. We are hoping for better future responses from AOA in taking reponsibility for this mistake. The leasing of a new Q3 will be on hold until this is resolved. Thanks

[Shoreaudi]

We just heard back from AOA. They are staying with their offer of "financial voluntary assistance of 2 thousand towards a new motor. A motor that an Audi dealer mechanic didn't repair properly during the oil consumption repair and caused this damage. The reasons given to my wife was the following. We haven't purchased enough Audis from Audi dealerships. We haven't used their dealership service departments enough, (Oddly this car has never been to any other service departments). To sum it up not enough brand loyalty, according to Audi. Unfortunately this is going to have to be resolved through legal channels. Iam shocked the girl from AOA actually made those statements. Buyer Beware!!!!!!

[Blackstallion]

Such a shame - what a nightmare! Hope your able to get past this bumpy road...

[Basileus]

We just heard back from AOA. They are staying with their offer of "financial voluntary assistance of 2 thousand towards a new motor. A motor that an Audi dealer mechanic didn't repair properly during the oil consumption repair and caused this damage. The reasons given to my wife was the following. We haven't purchased enough Audis from Audi dealerships. We haven't used their dealership service departments enough, (Oddly this car has never been to any other service departments). To sum it up not enough brand loyalty, according to Audi. Unfortunately this is going to have to be resolved through legal channels. Iam shocked the girl from AOA actually made those statements. Buyer Beware!!!!!!

WOW!! "We haven't purchased enough Audis from Audi dealerships"..."We haven't used their dealership departments enough"...Did this really come as an official response from AoA??? AoA, is this a response that you'll stand behind? We, Audi owners...customers...enthusiasts, are standing by for explanation/clarification.

Vincenzo?? Please respond to this.

[3g_bishi]

.


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[u2nelson]

I agree with you on all points about Audi should be covering this work, they or their contractors (dealers) caused the problem. That said, I would take their 2 thousand, have the car towed to an Indy shop and have a knowledgeable mech look into this. The odds are very good the chewed up hole can be repaired with a Heli coil, which is a totally legit way to repair a damaged bolt hole and once repaired you would never know the difference. There is also a possibility you could find a low millage used engine from a salvage yard, think of the number of Audis that use that engine that are totaled, but the engine is fine. Good luck and sorry for your troubles.

[HWCN]

We just heard back from AOA. They are staying with their offer of "financial voluntary assistance of 2 thousand towards a new motor. A motor that an Audi dealer mechanic didn't repair properly during the oil consumption repair and caused this damage. The reasons given to my wife was the following. We haven't purchased enough Audis from Audi dealerships. We haven't used their dealership service departments enough, (Oddly this car has never been to any other service departments). To sum it up not enough brand loyalty, according to Audi. Unfortunately this is going to have to be resolved through legal channels. Iam shocked the girl from AOA actually made those statements. Buyer Beware!!!!!!

I have bought three new Audi/VW vehicles, two at full MSRP, and that clearly does not matter. Vincenzo has been unresponsive after my car, which was at the shop for two months, was repaired, excepting for a PM requesting a statement of my monthly bill, after my repeated calls. However, no e-mail or fax number has been provided, so I have no way of providing any info. I did copy and paste the info into a PM.

AOA has for the most part become the weak link and the major cause of my poor Audi Experience. Audi buyers beware, they have no loyalty to their customers

[EuroKid34]

That’s a shame. Mercedes would take care of this no problem....


M

[A U D I]

Can’t they just modify the hole so it can be properly torqued again ???
Can’t agree with needing a new motor over this.

[douglasjboehme]

That’s a shame. Mercedes would take care of this no problem....


M

Yeah? There's a reason I bought Audi after I had several bad experiences at Merc. Don't generalize.

[brandonelson32]

I'm really sorry to hear about this happening to you. Keep us updated! Hopefully you get the situation resolved.

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[b6onboost]

I'm surprised the AoA rep actually gave you a seemingly truthful answer, as hard as it is to hear, that they simply don't consider you a big enough customer to cover a 10k repair on your out of warranty 9 year old Audi. If the warranty work that supposedly caused the issue occurred in 2014, that's 4 years you've driven it and its been fine. Plus the car was already 5 years old at the time. How long is Audi responsible? Another 4yrs/50k since it was a major motor repair? Indefinitely? I don't know, but there has to be some reasonable statute of limitation.

[CONative]

^ This.

Not what we want to hear but needed to be said. The CAEB is arguably the least reliable engine Audi has given us (two class-action lawsuits and an extended warranty). But at the same time, where does Audi draw the line? Sucks but it is what it is. These blocks were not made for longevity.

I side with u2nelson - take the $2K and find a reputable Indy. Situations like these are why I only trust my cars with a local Indy.


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[Theiceman]

I doubt they are giving him 2k. Just 2 k off audi repairing it.


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[Basileus]

^ This.

I side with u2nelson - take the $2K and find a reputable Indy. Situations like these are why I only trust my cars with a local Indy.


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This is a statement I will second. Unless your car is under a warranty, get a good indy mechanic. Mine saved me at least $5,000 on an Audi mech diagnosis that proved to be false, and quite possibly showed me that mechanics at my local dealership were incompetent, or worse trying to scam me. I posted here: https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...iness-practice .

Best of luck getting your car back on the road Shoreaudi...I think you deserve better than this.

[stefdds]

There is a very good reason why the Audi Forums are so beneficial and widely used. Dealerships = Sales (primary) and Service-their way, is a close second....(period). Don't drink the "cool-aide" Shoreaudi.

Shoreaudi (with all due respect.....) Wake up!! Forget the loyalty crap. The dealership is not interested in your problem- this isn't going to happen and they have in so many words ($$$$$) told you so. And legal action may make you feel better, but you will out spend the cost of this entire repair X 3. (note - I said repair , not replacement). Besides, unfortunately, you can't prove it.

Get your car back and take it to a indy who does European vehicles as they have tons more pride and know how in order to actually REPAIR something ; the mechanics at the dealerships are bound by corporate rules and methods , not common sense . Replacing a motor because of a stripped aluminum thread boss is preposterous and if its worn away, it can be welded ; put your efforts toward finding a competent Indy as life is to short for this nonsense . Then you can find another Audi Dealer to shop at (be sure its not the same owner/group).
By the way, you aren't getting 2K , the estimate they gave you is inflated by that amount. Another "kick" in the stones.

[VinnysS4]

I completely understand your side of the deal. You buy a used car and it immediately needs major engine work.
It runs and drives perfectly for 4 years
I'm surprised that you didn't hear the guide and/or whatever was chewing up the cover. And the bolt didn't come out completely? It didn't have a broken guide due to this? Pictures?
My guess is that ( while it's possible the bolt wasn't torqued properly 4 years ago) its hard to put them on the line for something, that in my option, is more of a newer issue. That bolt could have come loose at any time In those 60,000+ miles since that service. More than likely it was recently. It sucks, but I have been in your shoes. Except I was the one who did the work on my own car. It was an expensive lesson.

My suggestion is to have someone tig weld the hole shut and tap it with new threads. Any welder worth their salt can have that done in less than an hour. I know. I work in a metal fab shop.

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[JimmyBones]

I completely understand your side of the deal. You buy a used car and it immediately needs major engine work.
It runs and drives perfectly for 4 years
I'm surprised that you didn't hear the guide and/or whatever was chewing up the cover. And the bolt didn't come out completely? It didn't have a broken guide due to this? Pictures?
My guess is that ( while it's possible the bolt wasn't torqued properly 4 years ago) its hard to put them on the line for something, that in my option, is more of a newer issue. That bolt could have come loose at any time In those 60,000+ miles since that service. More than likely it was recently. It sucks, but I have been in your shoes. Except I was the one who did the work on my own car. It was an expensive lesson.

My suggestion is to have someone tig weld the hole shut and tap it with new threads. Any welder worth their salt can have that done in less than an hour. I know. I work in a metal fab shop.

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I agree with this. It is sad but a bunch of cars have bolts and nuts come loose over time while the engine is in operation. It could have been torqued properly at first and then it comes loose over time. For example VinnysS4 and I both of the V8 S4s that can have the intake manifold bolts come loose over time causing a check engine light and running bad at times. Mind you that will not cause a total engine failure but it is one example. Other examples include the oil pump bolts coming loose on different engines while running causing a lack of oil flow and pressure, which will cause a total engine failure. Then a really good example in this case is the front camshaft bridge on the 2.0 TFSI that can have the ball and screen fall out of it. That will not allow oil to flow to the cylinder head at all and I have seen where the customer kept driving it that way long enough (probably didn't take very long in the grand scheme of things) that the whole engine needed replacement from a lack of oil flow and metal particles going into the bearings and turbo.

[Alansd]

they certainly don't want to build customer confidence with their answer,and if everyone who reads this tells one or two others it can be a minor groundswell of
non buying prospective future owners.....I worked for import dealerships, and the "word " spreads exponentially..

[casablancab5]

To summarize, I shouldn't have to pay for this repair. I know it sucks but Audi should own a mistake made by their mechanic at one of their dealerships or come up with a better resolution than 2k toward the repair. As for the service employees, that's between Penske Automotive group and Audi to work on. Thanks for your attention in advance.

Why should AOA own this? Correct me if I'm wrong but Audi dealerships are in no way employed by AOA and it is a franchise where they pay for the rights to sell these cars. If anything, go after the dealer that did the service four years ago, but I find it extremely hard to believe that the bolt worked it's way out over 4 years without ever popping out all the way. Simply does not make sense and there seems to be something missing. I also agree with a lot of the people here with reference to this car being almost 10 years old. Why should they pay to replace an engine? Should Audi pay to replace engines from snapped timing belts because people missed the intervals? I understand that is an extreme, but it is also negligence on the owners part and I don't believe the engine could have gotten that bad with zero warnings.

Also, the whole Audi doesn't stand by its customers is BS. Again, this is a dealer specific problem and I don't know why Audi would step in to replace an entire engine. My dad works for an Audi dealer. Recently an A8 he sold brand new was brought in for a warped block... Why? Because the customer drove it for a week with low coolant. Audi rightfully denied the warranty for negligence. I've also heard a lot of times where Audi will help people out if things do come up. However, you also need to remember this is a forum where people come to vent and not say how great an experience is or was. I just think this whole generalizing and blasting Vincenzo is getting ridiculous.

[rgobantes23]

Also, the whole Audi doesn't stand by its customers is BS.

I do agree in a couple of your points about people coming here to just vent and some even blame Vincenzo for no reason. But does Audi really always stand by its customers? Audi dealers did not mention (and AoA did not fully reveal) to many MY2018 buyers that the current MMI/virtual cockpit on all models is being phased out and MY2019 vehicles will have the new equipment. Old equipment will no longer be able to display Google Earth overlay (which is a big selling point for all Audi vehicles) by the end of 2020. All AoA and dealers can say is they are sorry. That is it. To me this is dishonest and not standing by its customers.

[A4Ferrari]

I do agree in a couple of your points about people coming here to just vent and some even blame Vincenzo for no reason. But does Audi really always stand by its customers? Audi dealers did not mention (and AoA did not fully reveal) to many MY2018 buyers that the current MMI/virtual cockpit on all models is being phased out and MY2019 vehicles will have the new equipment. Old equipment will no longer be able to display Google Earth overlay (which is a big selling point for all Audi vehicles) by the end of 2020. All AoA and dealers can say is they are sorry. That is it. To me this is dishonest and not standing by its customers.

Thats called product upgrades and new models - As time goes by products change and improve.

[rgobantes23]

Thats called product upgrades and new models - As time goes by products change and improve.

You buy a brand new car, an all-new generation model, and then in a month or two they announce an equipment will be phased out? That is not a product upgrade. That is just not caring about customers. I can understand if the model has been out for at least a couple of years.

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[a1dan_87]

This is a statement I will second. Unless your car is under a warranty, get a good indy mechanic. Mine saved me at least $5,000 on an Audi mech diagnosis that proved to be false, and quite possibly showed me that mechanics at my local dealership were incompetent, or worse trying to scam me. I posted here: https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...iness-practice .

Best of luck getting your car back on the road Shoreaudi...I think you deserve better than this.

Agreed. We have always taken our car to a local Indy, they have been amazing. I don't like the hustling I've seen at dealers before. We've had the Indy shop mess up like this before (timing belt change on another car, offered us a rental and covered the cost to fix it)

I don't have many experiences with dealers. Audi of SLC has seemed decent in the times we have been there, but I can't say the same for their service department.

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