SQ5 Maintenance Schedule

[slowpokeB8]

Hello everyone. I'm considering buying a 2019 SQ5 Prem +. Found a nice example locally with 55K on the clock, correct color and S Sport package. I've had a B8 allroad and a B8.5 A4 in the past as well as some VW products (couple of GTI's). With the SQ5 running a similar (I think) ZF 8 speed as my previous Audi's, what is the transmission service schedule in the SQ5? I know a fluid change at 35K was part of the factory service schedule on the allroad/A4. Is it similar in the SQ5? I've done a fair amount of research and understand the stock mapping of the SQ5 trans is a little sloppy. I do plan to get a stage 1 ECU flash and a TCU flash to boost the power a bit and clean up the transmission. Sway bars and motor mounts will probably be in the works too. I'd be happy at that level of improvement all around.

I maintain my vehicles myself and am religious about proper maintenance and preventative maintenance. All of my Audi/VW products have been rock-solid reliable. Can I expect the same from this newer generation SQ5? What has your experience been in terms of maintenance and reliability? Anything to pay particular attention to or common faults? The only thing that irks me a bit is the adaptive air suspension...sounds expensive... If anyone has info on the factory recommended services (35K service, 60K service etc etc.) would you mind sharing? Appreciate the help!

[Txlifter]

Per the Audi service interval, transmission service should be done every 40k(edit:incorrect it's never) miles. You can bump that down a little bit if you run it hard. Regular maintenance isn't that difficult, I wouldn't pay the dealer for it.

Wife's SQ5 has been an absolute nightmare, and if that was my only Audi experience I would never touch these cars at all. However, mine has nearly double the miles now and has not had a single hiccup even with mods/tuning. So whatever that information is worth!

[slowpokeB8]

What year is your wife's ride? I'm definitely trying to buy a one from a pre-Covid production run.

[GoCougs1234]

Per Audi (at least for MY 2021 maintenance schedule), the SQ5 transmission (and differentials) are lifetime fill - there is no service interval. It is a colossal PITA to do it correctly (need to pump warm fluid through the system to clean it all out, esp. the tranny cooler - dealers use a machine). My Audi dealer says they only do it when replacing a transmission. The maintenance schedule (at least for MY 2021) is Germanically complicated - it addresses all Audi models and it varies widely model to model so it's not easy to summarize. Enter the VIN here to get the maintenance schedule: https://ownersmanual.audiusa.com/ (same drivetrain of course).

My 2021 SQ5, now with 90,000 miles (I bought new), has been very good (though not my best - best were the Japanese products of course!). I have over 300 launches and PLENTY of hard driving, most when tuned (stage 1 and then the last 15,000 miles on stage 3) and all works great. I had to replace the sport diff (bad the 2nd day I owned it so it was damaged prior to me buying it, so not really a reliability issue IMO), wiring in the door, some emissions valve thingy (these done under warranty), and I just replaced the PVC stuff (easy - $300 in parts and about 15 minutes).

The B9 3.0T vehicle family has two pervasive afflictions AFAIK (cooling system, PCV system). The former is expensive AF and the latter is cheap as shown. I've gotten some DTCs on the former but no failures yet, but they are coming. The whole front of the vehicle has to come apart which is an all-day job - dealer cost is like $6,000+ and my local tuner shop says they charge about $4,000.

Very generally, the power/drivetrain and major structural elements appear solid and of quality, pretty much everything else is cheap electronics and plastic, plastic, plastic. I predict these vehicles will nickel-n-dime after 7-10 years (not unique to Audi - pretty sure all vehicles at this point will similarly behave and it'll get worse what with the the proliferation of screens, capacitive touch buttons and ever more sensors). Bottom line - the SQ5 worked well for me and likely much better ownership experience than the 2021 X3, Macan or GLC.

[Txlifter]

What year is your wife's ride? I'm definitely trying to buy a one from a pre-Covid production run.

It's the 2018MY SQ5 with production date of 02/18. Nearly 30k of repair/replacement items, thankfully warranty covered except for an oil consumption test!

[boostin20v]

extended or factory warranty?

[WtA4WtQ5]

If you want to minimize costs/pain on an Audi vehicle out of warranty and planning to go above 120K miles stay away from known problems areas when buying.
Find one without a pano roof, air suspension and sport diff. All great enjoyable options but can/will be trouble.
Much better 1st owner options that sell/trade before 90 K miles.
While sport diffs have been less problematic as of late, almost never see issues with the conventional diffs. Comes only with air suspension in NA market.

[Txlifter]

extended or factory warranty?

Extended warranty. CarShield came recommended by the dealer, and they have been OK. Feels like they hunt for denial reasons and it's a struggle communicating with them. Otherwise no trouble, but the factory warranty process is definitely easier!

[TheContrarian]

Generally I think the B9 SQ5s have been reliable. When I bought a 2019 almost 2 years ago, they wanted me to buy a 3 year warranty for $5k (I declined). Only issue I have had is a broken rear coil spring; which gave me a reason to replace all the OEM springs with Eibach which I completed at home for $500.

[boostin20v]

Extended warranty. CarShield came recommended by the dealer, and they have been OK. Feels like they hunt for denial reasons and it's a struggle communicating with them. Otherwise no trouble, but the factory warranty process is definitely easier!

Seems to be the running theme with extended warranty, my buddy has horror stories dealing with them from the shop side. I'm torn, defiantly don't have the warm and fuzzies with the idea of them, but also scared with how much electrical crap goes into these cars. Car spent ~3 weeks at the dealer because the OE Nav wouldn't initialize. Not as much worried about the engine/driveline.

[Txlifter]

My running theory is that there's good ones and "bad" ones(vehicles) with no way of knowing what you'll get. My '18 SQ5 has been awesome, without a single hiccup in 85k miles. There are a few higher rated companies though, so maybe that's worth exploring?