Audi dealer broke my car during airbag recall. Can't diagnose it now...

[R490]

Made the mistake of bringing my S4 to Audi for the airbag recall, and a state inspection.

Service advisor said "there's something wrong with the ABS/Brakes" when I picked it up.

-Radio doesn't work anymore

-Link error from the OBD port

-Solid brake light, and flashing ABS light.

All they said was "bring it in on Friday". Yeah okay. They had it for a total of 7 hours today, and still couldn't do something properly.

Clock spring?

[QuattroBucc]

Oh shit, I've heard they're "totaling" out some peoples cars and not giving the car back, just an insurance settlement. Seems fishy that nobody gets their car back the same way it was before they brought it in... .then it has chronic issues like you're experiencing now. Almost like they're purposely fucking it up to get b5s off the road lmao. Who knows but I sure as hell will not be bringing my car in, I got that airbag thing a few months ago but I'm gonna pretend I never saw it

[R490]

Fuck that, they were rude enough about me asking to bring it back in already.

Is this a common trend?

[QuattroBucc]

Fuck that, they were rude enough about me asking to bring it back in already.

Is this a common trend?

yea its becoming common to bring it in for that and people aren't getting their cars back the same way, some are saying the car is now unsafe to drive since there isn't a replacement and totaling it out. , happening to use A4 owners also https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...Factory-recall!!!

they took someones car lol,

[auditechnik]

I had the airbag inflator recall work done on both my 2001.5 S4 and 2001 A4 1.8T at my local dealer. No problems, and they detailed the cars for free.

[R490]

Left the battery unplugged overnight, no change.

Should have brought it to a more competent dealer. I'll bet they blame it on the car being old, instead of actually taking responsibility for messing something up.

[wbrunner23]

Conspiracy theory time.

I would've put up a fight if my car came back broken. You should've handcuffed yourself to the service desk and went on a hunger strike.

Actually, maybe just hire a lawyer and sue for damages related to your mental health. Probably can't work ever again due to mental strain and anxiety. Worth at least 30 years @ 200k/year. $6mil for a purposefully wrecked B5 and maybe, jusssst maybe, we could call it a fair outcome.

Actually, I'm gonna schedule my recall repair right now. F your turkey dinner, fix my B5.

Feeling frisky?

[Silverex]

Left the battery unplugged overnight, no change.

Should have brought it to a more competent dealer. I'll bet they blame it on the car being old, instead of actually taking responsibility for messing something up.

From the thread linked above I’d give this a shot

“I recover mine in 15m after such attack by neg-bat disconnect and jumper to ground red wire to discharge capacitors & volatile memory of confused car computer”

[R490]

I'm bring it back to them tomorrow. You'd think the tech would notice the ABS/Brake lights only appearing after doing the "recall".

[e30bum]

Being a dealership tech (not at Audi) I’m
Inclined to think this dealership is neither professional or reputable. You say they had it for 7 hours? Airbag recall takes all of 30 minutes to perform….I’d like to throw a couple pieces of advice out just from knowing what I know. For something as little as that, stay waiting at the dealership. You become a waiter. If the dealership is at all worth their salt, they will put a big “WAITER” stamp on you tag number. You now become a priority. Most likely your car will be put before others who have simply dropped there car off. Even if the repair order is for a larger amount, don’t ask me why. I only assume it’s because they want to get you in and out, and receive a good review. That’s not relevant though to your problem, just a tip for anyone who reads this in the future. Don’t let dealership service advisors boss you around, usually they are not mechanically inclined and know very little. ask to talk to the service manager directly. Don’t call. Go in. This is a safety related recall. The dealership has to properly install the new airbag or they could be in big trouble and potentially sued by you if you were to raise this issue up the flag pole. Proceed however you see fit, but If I were you I would tell the service manager if they don’t fix this issue right away, you will be taking your car to another Audi dealership to have them correct the issues they have caused you, and you will be taking the necessary actions to recoup your lost time and troubles. I believe there is a number on the recall form, which is linked to Audi directly. Don’t quote me on this, as I threw my letter in the trash. But usually the manufacturer provides a way to get in contact with them directly should something like this happen. Don’t say your going to sue to the service manager, just put it out there that you are extremely dissatisfied and your willing to go out of your way to make sure this issue is corrected in your favor. The service manager is under a lot of pressure to provide a positive trouble free experience for the customers, and if they receive enough bad reviews they will most likely be fired. As long as you are raising the issue that your airbag has been improperly installed, he will most likely send your car to a more experienced master tech who will work to resolve the issue. I’m betting your car was worked on by one of the new and/or lesser experienced guys, and he most likely botched the job trying to get the car in and out. But if you just say your car had warning lights on that weren’t on before and the radio no longer works, he will try to put you off. As long as your concerned about the "safety” of this matter, you should get this issue resolved relatively quickly. Again, this is all only assuming this dealership actually has some integrity and cares about providing good service to their customers. Unfortunately, most do not. Hope this helps some, just providing some insight.

[Mattr567]

yea its becoming common to bring it in for that and people aren't getting their cars back the same way, some are saying the car is now unsafe to drive since there isn't a replacement and totaling it out. , happening to use A4 owners also https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...Factory-recall!!!

they took someones car lol,

You mean with Australia having Audi dealers just buy the cars back? No way that's happening in the US, diff laws, diff governments. That's not relevant to us at all lol. Not even worth discussing.

Sounds like the tech fucked something up, or just really bad timing. They just disconnect the battery, remove the bag, replace the inflator on the back (4 8mm bolts into the bag itself), and stick it back in the wheel. The steering wheel never comes off, no way to fuck up the clockspring.

But I am worried about them possibly stripping out the T30s holding on the bag, I'm gonna pre-loosen them when I pull into the dealer lot lol. Stripping one of those means drilling it out, and I have the nice rare OEM nardi wood wheel on mine (same factory bag, just wood wheel, not a B6/TT bag). Don't want the tech to damage that thing!

It honestly feels like they popped a fuse. You can check that stuff yourself lol.

[R490]

Thanks for the advice guys.

The sheet they gave me said they removed the steering wheel, and they damaged the leather on the wheel. So I'm thinking they might have anyways for some reason?

[Mattr567]

Thanks for the advice guys.

The sheet they gave me said they removed the steering wheel, and they damaged the leather on the wheel. So I'm thinking they might have anyways for some reason?

That makes no sense, there's no need to remove the wheel, they're just swapping the bag. Done the procedure many times on mine. Call to clarify exactly what they did, might just be ambiguous language dumbed down for your average consumer who doesn't know the diff between the bag and the whole wheel lol.

[R490]

The paperwork also says my car has a 4.2 V8. So I can't say a whole lot surprises me.

[Mattr567]

The paperwork also says my car has a 4.2 V8. So I can't say a whole lot surprises me.

Wow, what a shit dealer lol. Update us on what happens and if they cover any potential damage.

It does appear like a fuse just blew. Not sure how simply disconnecting the battery did that, however.

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[R490]

Well, so far they've kept it all day. Didn't even get to look at it. No apology still. "Maybe we'll get to it tomorrow, no promises."

Wish I never even bothered with the recall.

[dalazybastard]

Had a similar issue with one of my S4’s after getting locked out. (Low battery voltage, went to use jump pack and the power locked all the doors)

The service guy, came to unlock. Asked if I could get help to jump the car (since my pack is a smaller one). When he hooked it up, he reversed the polarity and a pop was heard.

Symptoms: (conveniently the same as yours)

Abs light error
No obd2 connectivity
No radio.

Solutions:

Fuse for ABS.
Fuse on back of radio (since the k-line goes through the radio) (k-line powers radio/k-line and connects to the obd2 plug)

And maybe one other fuse which had no symptoms and was unrelated.

Car is fine now. I went through the car thoroughly, as I wanted know if anything else was bad. But when no other issues could be found, I dropped the case with the insurance as I didn’t want to total a B5 for no reason.

[R490]

Interesting, that's extremely helpful! Thanks!

The service advisor today mentioned that they tried to start the car today, and the battery was dead.

Since it took them 8 hours to fix my car on Wednesday, and they didn't start till hour 7, the battery may have died, and they might have reversed the polarity while trying to jump it. My battery usually doesn't die that fast, but I keep it on a tender at home and rarely drive the car, so I suppose its possible.

[R490]

Any other thoughts on this issue?

Corporate is no help, and the dealer is taking forever to look at it.

[RMode]

Oh shit, I've heard they're "totaling" out some peoples cars and not giving the car back, just an insurance settlement. Seems fishy that nobody gets their car back the same way it was before they brought it in... .then it has chronic issues like you're experiencing now. Almost like they're purposely fucking it up to get b5s off the road lmao. Who knows but I sure as hell will not be bringing my car in, I got that airbag thing a few months ago but I'm gonna pretend I never saw it

no they aren't, not in this country. They cannot

[JustManson]

Any other thoughts on this issue?

Corporate is no help, and the dealer is taking forever to look at it.

If the recall is done and job completed, cut your losses and have it towed to another shop.

If that’s not an option, show up and sit in the waiting room until you get service.

If you can’t do that. You are at their mercy.

I just don’t see this working out in your favor, just a gut feeling. I hope it does though for your sake.




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[Monty23]

What dealer is this?

[iansane]

Can't diagnose it or just hasn't yet?

[R490]

I can't diagnose it with my limited time, since the OBD port no longer functions.

[Mattr567]

I can't diagnose it with my limited time, since the OBD port no longer functions.

From all the evidence it's just some fuses they blew from jumping it wrong, just fix it man lol. Dealer is shitty but this doesn't look like a hard problem to solve.

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[dalazybastard]

From all the evidence it's just some fuses they blew from jumping it wrong, just fix it man lol. Dealer is shitty but this doesn't look like a hard problem to solve.

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Agreed on pulling from the dealer. It seems they are not going to prioritize this. I have seen this personally and with friends. A B5 will most likely not bring them a repeat customer so why invest. Their business model does not prioritize 20 year old cars. Safety and governing bodies are pushing this recall.

I feel like they will continue to push you around and eventually cause more damage working on “outdated” systems. As we currently see by the current situation.


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[VR6Bomber]

Dealership service won't give a shit about fixing your car unless it is under warranty and they are getting paid. If its not under warranty, then it has to be an easy (Read: profitable) car to fix.

Would I bring a b5 to a dealership in 2021? absolutely not.

[RMode]

Fwiw, the dealer gets paid to do a recall the same as they get paid to do any other warranty work. The age of the car doesn’t matter.

The dealer owns the problem. I’m on the dealer side
Of the car ownership equation. I’d bypass the service writer, the service manager, and talk to the GM directly or the owner. Either insist they solve this, and give them a reasonable amount of time to do so (but not excessive). Or pay you.

[dalazybastard]

Fwiw, the dealer gets paid to do a recall the same as they get paid to do any other warranty work. The age of the car doesn’t matter.

The dealer owns the problem. I’m on the dealer side
Of the car ownership equation. I’d bypass the service writer, the service manager, and talk to the GM directly or the owner. Either insist they solve this, and give them a reasonable amount of time to do so (but not excessive). Or pay you.

You are correct.

But the dealer needs to take ownership of the issue (which is no longer part of the recall as that has been “completed” in their terms) for them to take action. Or in the other they need to be paid.


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[RMode]

Btw, odb2 port has its own fuse. I’d bet $$$ that’s your issue. Fuse #12

[VR6Bomber]

Fwiw, the dealer gets paid to do a recall the same as they get paid to do any other warranty work. The age of the car doesn’t matter.

The dealer owns the problem. I’m on the dealer side
Of the car ownership equation. I’d bypass the service writer, the service manager, and talk to the GM directly or the owner. Either insist they solve this, and give them a reasonable amount of time to do so (but not excessive). Or pay you.

Yes, but the recall/warranty work has been completed. There were other issues resultant of their recall 'work'. They aren't going to be paid for resolving these new issues.
(if I understand correctly)

[RMode]

Any damage a dealer causes during the course of any work they were authorized to do, is their issue to solve. In this case. Given what’s described, it should be a very simple thing for the op to solve.

[R490]

It should be, but I moved to a different part of the state and have zero time to diagnose.

They have looked at it, and their lead technician is apparently stumped.

They're probably going to pin it on me, because I didn't buy a new Audi from them.

[reefer_bob]

My 01.5 is at Audi Concord (CA) now. They kept it overnight, but I expected that. Got an A5 Sportback loaner.

I'll report back my findings. :)

[Spooling_Snails]

My 01.5 is at Audi Concord (CA) now. They kept it overnight, but I expected that. Got an A5 Sportback loaner.

I'll report back my findings. :)

Any update? I took mine to Audi Stevens Creek in SJ (on a Friday at 8am) and they didn't tell me it was going to be longer than a day. Ended having to call them to give me an update and they weren't able to all weekend. Finally this morning they reached out that the car wont be done until later today (Monday) but I don't get off work until 6pm (they're closed by then). I'm lucky to have another vehicle, but imagine if I didn't? How would I get to places? That upset me that I could've possibly gotten a loaner vehicle. I'm going have to complain about it to them when I pick it up.

[harryn]

Any update? I took mine to Audi Stevens Creek in SJ (on a Friday at 8am) and they didn't tell me it was going to be longer than a day. Ended having to call them to give me an update and they weren't able to all weekend. Finally this morning they reached out that the car wont be done until later today (Monday) but I don't get off work until 6pm (they're closed by then). I'm lucky to have another vehicle, but imagine if I didn't? How would I get to places? That upset me that I could've possibly gotten a loaner vehicle. I'm going have to complain about it to them when I pick it up.

It was a blown fuse in his radio.

[R490]

^ What he said

A lot of Audi dealers just aren't used to these older cars anymore, and it's clearly reflected in their knowledge of them. The majority of dealer employees are not enthusiasts, and it shows in their work.

This was probably an isolated thing, or just down to a crappy dealer.

[auditechnik]

Any update? I took mine to Audi Stevens Creek in SJ (on a Friday at 8am) and they didn't tell me it was going to be longer than a day. Ended having to call them to give me an update and they weren't able to all weekend. Finally this morning they reached out that the car wont be done until later today (Monday) but I don't get off work until 6pm (they're closed by then). I'm lucky to have another vehicle, but imagine if I didn't? How would I get to places? That upset me that I could've possibly gotten a loaner vehicle. I'm going have to complain about it to them when I pick it up.

I had two B5 airbag inflator recalls (S4 and A4) done at Audi Stevens Creek SJ, they were able to complete each one within 3 hours of dropoff time, and that’s including the courtesy multi-point inspection and car wash. I guess it depends on their workload, but if you had told them you’re “waiting” then they should be working on your car asap. If you simply dropped the car off, they would let others take priority over you.

[R490]

They refused to even entertain the possibility of waiting haha, and they wouldn't give a loaner to the pope. Especially because I didn't buy a new car from them...

I'm over Audi dealers for now, I don't have any interest in new cars anyways.

[Mattr567]

I just scheduled my airbag recall for my '99 and it's documented I'm gonna be a waiter/they let me. It really shouldn't take very long.

I sure wouldn't mind getting a loaner though

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