A3 Multi-function steering wheel - Hah!

I've finally had an email back from Audi UK. They have passed the info to a random local dealer (and not even the one that supplied the car) and said I should contact them. I stressed that this is not a problem with my specific vehicle but with Audi's programming, but they clearly didn't read what I said, or did and just passed the buck anyway.

Great customer care Audi :rolleyes:

I've emailed back and at least I now have a named contact to chip away at. All I really want to find is someone there that at least understands and can discuss the problem.
 
Have also written to audicc, if it states it has a mode button and mute in the brochure and manual, then surely they are breaking the trades descriptions act?
 
giblets46 said:
Have also written to audicc, if it states it has a mode button and mute in the brochure and manual, then surely they are breaking the trades descriptions act?
Click to expand...

As far as I have seen there is no mention of a mute button in the manual. My gripe is that every other MFSW I have ever seen (including my company van ***!) has one so it is not unreasonable to expect an "up-market" brand like Audi to have one, especially when there are un-used button presses available.

The mode button does work, but not as it says in the manual. The manual says you can switch between tuner,cd& telephone (if fitted) using the mode button. The truth is the mode button only does anything if you have phone prep and then only switches between phone and whatever mode the stereo is currently in. You cannot switch between tuner and cd using mode, no matter what options you have.

With regard to trades description, I'm sure there will be a caveat somewhere that the manual is only a guide and not a guarantee of features. I don't think there would be much point going down that route, but lots of us emailing Audi UK and complaining might have an effect.
 
I've just discovered this morning while reading the RNS-E manual that pressing the volume dial on the wheel repeats the last navigation guidance announcement. Presumably this is why they can't set it to be a mute button.
 
Well that might be a reason, but it's not insummountable. It could still easily be used on non-satnav cars or a short press of the button could be for last navigation (if fitted) and a long press could be for mute. Another option for mute would be a quick roll down on the volume roller. The system can detect the speed of roll because, when browsing the phonebook, a slow roll moves through entry by entry but a quick roll goes to the start of the next initial letter group. So set the volume roller to work in the same way - slow roll for volume change fast flick down for mute, fast flick up for de-mute (if such a word exists)

I can't remember who first suggested it, but I think the idea of making the buttons user-programmable would be the perfect solution. It surely can't be that difficult to set up and that way you can chose the commands to suit the way you use the stereo/satnav/phone etc.
 
Thanks for all the posts, will fire off a email complaint as well. Agree if enough do complain, they may do something about wasting a couple of hundred pounds for the "Mostly For Show Wheel"*

Cheers,

Tim

*Credit to GeoffT for the brill MFSW definition :)
 
I have had zero help so far from Audi UK, who have simply passed the info to a local dealer (not even the one that supplied the car). I have just rung Audi again and got the email address for the head of customer services Jeremy Hicks.

jeremy.hicks@audi.co.uk

I have sent him a copy of my original email which gives the failings of the MFSW as :

1) There seems to be no way of muting the stereo via the MFSW. I had presumed that pressing the volume up/down button would do it, but this appears to have no function at all. This is a serious omission as it is often required when you want to quickly mute the stereo to have a conversation etc. I have never seen a car with steering wheel controls that doesn't permit you to mute the stereo from them. Even my company van does it!!!

2) The track change button (the left one) appears to work the wrong way round. IE down is next track (on the CD/MP3) and up is previous. This is the opposite to what you would expect and to all other vehicles I have driven.

3) When in Tuner mode the left hand button seems to scroll through a whole range of stations that are not in my presets. I would have expected this to scroll through the stations I have stored and then press the button to select it.

4) The manual states that the MODE button will change between Phone,CD,& Tuner. It doesn't. It just switches between Phone and whatever mode the stereo is in.
 
I found out today - purely by accident, that if the stereo is muted, the right hand "No Funct" button un-mutes it... (You have to hold it for a while)

Very odd to have an un mute function but no mute.
 
OutLore said:
I found out today - purely by accident, that if the stereo is muted, the right hand "No Funct" button un-mutes it... (You have to hold it for a while)

Very odd to have an un mute function but no mute.
Click to expand...

Tried that this morning on my wheel - no joy. Although I have SDS enabled on my RNS-E, so that "No Function" button does have a function for me. Pressing the button enables the voice menu, pressing and holding it cancels it.
 
OutLore said:
I found out today - purely by accident, that if the stereo is muted, the right hand "No Funct" button un-mutes it... (You have to hold it for a while)

Very odd to have an un mute function but no mute.
Click to expand...

I've just tried this and it doesn't work for me either. The only thing I have discovered is that if you turn the volume right down on the right hand roller it does then at least go into mute mode (ie it pauses the CD). It then starts playing again when you increase the volume with the roller. Obviously that is not as quick as a single button press and you can't automatically get back to the same volume.

I have had some results from my email to Jeremy Hicks. He has passed my complaint to their "Technical Liaison Manager" Paul Adcock who is discussing it with the appropriate people here and in Germany. He also passed it to the boss of my supplying dealer.

I have since had a call from the dealer and even though I don't really see it as a dealer problem, they have kindly credited my "account" with the cost of the MFSW against future servicing work. I'm more than happy with that, but would still like Audi to find a solution.
 
GeoffT said:
I have since had a call from the dealer and even though I don't really see it as a dealer problem, they have kindly credited my "account" with the cost of the MFSW against future servicing work. I'm more than happy with that, but would still like Audi to find a solution.
Click to expand...
Is this something we can all get?
 
By the way I've just posted this in another thread on the MFSW:

Chaps,
hate to put a dampner on the issue but having installed my RNS-E last week I have begun to understand the logic behind the track up\down scroller on the wheel.

If you select CD\TV on the RNS-E you are shown a list of the tracks. To select the next track (i.e. the next one DOWN on the list), you scroll the wheel down. To select the previous track (i.e. the next one UP on the list), you scroll the wheel up.

The scroll wheel appears to have been designed to complement the RNS-E.

To add fuel to the fire on this thread I've been having a problem with the dial knob thingy on the RNS-E. When I am in a menu on the display - for example the settings screen for the radio and want to move the selection down to the next option, I keep trying to turn the knob to the right to scroll down, whereas I am supposed to turn the knob to the left to scroll down.

There does seem to be some inconsistency with the up\down, left\right configurations.
Click to expand...
 
MarcQuinlivan said:
Is this something we can all get?
Click to expand...

Would be nice, you'd better start complaining to your dealer to build a good case!!
 
Whilst it's very generous of the dealer to credit the value I for one purchased the MFSW for good reasons, safety is one of them, to find you're denied the very functions you opted for in the first place seems very wrong to me.
 
that's exactly what I said in my mail.

here's an extract of the main points - there was some other stuff, but nothing worth adding here:

1) There is no way of muting the stereo via the MFSW. I assumed pressing the volume scroller would do this as this is the functionality that is on the new Generation II+ and RNS-E head units. Most other vehicles that have volume controls on the steering wheel also have a mute button.

2) The left hand scroll wheel appears to work in reverse - scrolling down gets you the previous track and scrolling up gets the next one. This is slightly counter-intuitive and is the opposite to the way it is in most other vehicles. One of the reasons for adding the MFSW as an option was so as not to have to remove my hand from the wheel to change tracks. To be honest, I find it more of a distraction having to stop and think which way to scroll the wheel before changing a track while driving.

3) When in Tuner mode the left hand button changes from the currently selected station to the next available station up or down the frequency range rather than scrolling through the presets. Again, this causes more of a distraction as if I want to change from Radio 4 to Radio 2, for example, I cannot simply scroll the wheel to preset 2, I need to scroll the wheel, wait for it to find the next station, check if it is radio 2, then repeat until it finds radio 2. The quicker way to get to Radio 2 is to reach across to the head unit and select it from there - again causing me to remove one hand from the wheel and negate the safety advantages of having the controls on the wheel.

4) The manual states that the MODE button will change between Phone,CD,& Tuner. It doesn't. It just switches between Phone and whatever mode the stereo is in. Again, I need to remove my hand from the wheel and reach over to the head unit if I want to change from Radio to CD or vice-versa. I took my car back to the dealer a week after purchasing it in January of this year to get this "fixed" as it wasn't functioning as per the manual. After a few phone calls from the dealer to Audi UK I was informed that this functionality only applies to cars with telephone preparation and only changed from the currently selected mode to the phone and back again. When I said that's not what is in the manual I was advised that an insert was being produced for the manual to advise of the correct functionality.

This is my second Audi A3, and when I ordered my first one in 2004 I neglected to order the MFSW. The radio\cd mode selection and volume controls with mute function were one feature I missed from my previous non-Audi vehicle - for both convenience and safety reasons - so I made sure when ordering my current A3 to add the S-Line MFSW as an extra.

I'm sure you can appreciate my disappointment to discover that not only does the wheel not function as expected, but that by adding the MFSW as an option I am actually more distracted at the wheel when trying to change the radio station or track on a CD and also have to remove my hand from the wheel to perform even the basic tasks the wheel was supposed to be able to do.
Click to expand...
 
lol you really are all a bit uptight 'safety reasons' - Ok, because it takes more than 2 seconds to press a button on the radio that you know exactly where it is and dont even have to look down once you've used it more than about twice.

Fair enough the mfsw doesn't do exactly what you expected it to, but should you not be used to that from audi by now :)
 
There speaks someone who obviously doesn't have this option and therefore doesn't understand fully why it's a problem to us. We made a choice not to have to look away at the radio, have you never done this only to find when you look back up you're alot closer to the car in front ? apart from anything else why should we accept something that is clearly badly sold. Would any of us have ordered £150+ of steering wheel if the only function of a 'multi function wheel' was volume ? the safety issue is only a part of it.
 
Not being funny but in the A3 i dont need to look away from the road when i change the radio station or volume, ive done it that many times that i know exactly where it is.

I know what you mean about paying for the option only to find out it only controls the volume - this would particularly annoy me as almost every other car in the class has standard multi funtion wheel or column mounted controls.

But it is in no way unsafe to change a radio station, and the reason i 'obviously dont have this option' is that i would never ever pay 20k of my own money out on a car that a ford focus(for near half the price) does almost everything better than. I've better things to do with it.

I prefer driving my cars to fiddling about with stereo controls on my steering wheel.
 
Just received a nice mail from a lady called Liz at Audi to say that Jeremy is out of the country until Monday and she'll pass the mail to him then. She has also passed it to his assistant, Stephen, for him to contact me.
 
rodenal said:
But it is in no way unsafe to change a radio station, I prefer driving my cars to fiddling about with stereo controls on my steering wheel.
Click to expand...

So do the authorities think it's safe to operate your mobile phone, take a drink, a bite to eat etc. etc. ? it's only a question of time before you won't have a choice.

I think we would all agree, anything that keeps your eyes on the road and hands on the wheel must make driving safer however sometimes you need to mute the radio, change channel or track and this is when the MFSW is a fantastic option, it's only when you have this option taken away that you realise how distracting the radio really is.

Anyway if you prefer to drive your car than fiddling around with the radio how come you know where the buttons are without looking ? :p
 
Ah, im like the guys who fly the apaches, trained to have one eye on the way ahead and one eye on the instruments - its just that i've done that so many times that now i can look at something other than the radio with my 'spare' eye lol.

I know what you mean with regards to eating etc - seems like traffic cops these days have to leave their common sense at home.

My co. golf does have a multi-function wheel btw, im just saying a normal radio doesnt really provide any real distraction. Anyway, who cares.
 
rodenal said:
Not being funny but in the A3 i dont need to look away from the road when i change the radio station or volume, ive done it that many times that i know exactly where it is.

I know what you mean about paying for the option only to find out it only controls the volume - this would particularly annoy me as almost every other car in the class has standard multi funtion wheel or column mounted controls.

But it is in no way unsafe to change a radio station, and the reason i 'obviously dont have this option' is that i would never ever pay 20k of my own money out on a car that a ford focus(for near half the price) does almost everything better than. I've better things to do with it.

I prefer driving my cars to fiddling about with stereo controls on my steering wheel.
Click to expand...

So you don't rate Audi at all, you don't have the MFSW and don't see the point of one, yet you feel the need to contribute to a thread about the way the MFSW works? Bored are you?
 
GeoffT said:
So you don't rate Audi at all, you don't have the MFSW and don't see the point of one, yet you feel the need to contribute to a thread about the way the MFSW works? Bored are you?
Click to expand...

In a word, yes. Also who said i didn't rate audi at all - in a mood because your buttons dont work as you would like them to are you?
 
MarcQuinlivan said:
A good eye surgeon should be able to sort that for you!
Click to expand...

So they say but i can never figure out which one is actually talking to me....
 
rodenal said:
So they say but i can never figure out which one is actually talking to me....
Click to expand...

Both of him are....is
 
rodenal said:
Also who said i didn't rate audi at all ...........

" i would never ever pay 20k of my own money out on a car that a ford focus(for near half the price) does almost everything better than".
Click to expand...

I kinda took that to mean that you didn't rate Audi. Hard to see how else that could be interpreted really.
 
I'd never buy a new one, that doesnt mean i dont like them or rate them.
 
rodenal said:
i would never ever pay 20k of my own money out on a car that a ford focus
Click to expand...

So instead of buying your 97 A3 second hand why didn't you buy a second hand Ford Focus and save even more money ? get out of that without moving :asskicking:
 
Because i hate the interior of the old shape focus lol(New one's are fine tho), and by the time i bought my a3 it was worth practically nothing anyway :p

I think there's a big difference between paying £4k for a second hand a3 and £3k for a second hand focus of around the same age, and the price difference between both of these cars new now.
 
Had a call from a chap at Audi today. My initial email had a response asking me to send some more information to Jeremy's assistant, Stephen. Stephen has asked another chap to look into it, and I received a call from this chap. I have his name written down somewhere, but can't find it at the minute.

Anyway, he told me that he had looked into it a bit further and that Audi UK were taking the MFSW issue very seriously. He said he had been told the engineers in Germany were looking at the whole wheel issue to see if they were able to do any re-coding on it.

HE
 
Had a call from a chap at Audi today. My initial email had a response asking me to send some more information to Jeremy's assistant, Stephen. Stephen has asked another chap to look into it, and I received a call from this chap. I have his name written down somewhere, but can't find it at the minute.

Anyway, he told me that he had looked into it a bit further and that Audi UK were taking the MFSW issue very seriously. He said he had been told the engineers in Germany were looking at the whole wheel issue to see if they were able to do any re-coding on it.

He said that if they got an update they would be contacting customers to take their cars in to have the update applied. He also said that if they decided to amend the manual, he'd let me know.

As a good will gesture, he told me Audi UK would pay for me to take my family out for a meal (up to the value of £150). Happy days indeed!
 
At least it does seem that Audi UK might be taking this seriously now. I had my letter today, from my dealer, confirming the credit of £160 against the cost of future servicing.

Marc- was the guy Paul Adcock? I was told he was the technical liaison man.
 
Jeremy from Audi, put me in touch with a Audi UK product manager. We had a good natured discussion around the lack of functionality...

· He explained that Audi Germany didn’t programme the MFSW to select on radio presets, in case the preset wasn’t available (out of area). I explained we had RDS in UK, and he conceded this wasn’t best use of the MFSW.
· I mentioned that BMW allow presets to be selected on their steering wheels, he stated that AUDI do not do everything BMW do...
· We then discussed lack of source selection on the ‘Mode’ button. He asked if I had the phone kit installed as it would then work. Of course he then accepted it still wouldn’t change source.
· He wasn’t sure about the lack of ‘mute’ option
· I then pushed him of the safety issue, as safety was one of the key reasons I bought the option for my wife’s car. He stated that the Audi head unit was very well laid out and that you can navigate around the head unit without looking. I disagreed totally with this, and said that’s what the MFSW should be for!

I then asked him to justify why I had paid for the MFSW option, and I should get a refund. He took this away, but that was two weeks ago so I have chased today.

Will update when I have more...

Cheers,

Tim
 
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