Here’s my battery story with my 2017 Audi A4 B9 Allroad 3.0 TDI. I drove from my home in Luxembourg to Sussex, UK for Christmas. The 27th December, I experienced slow cranking in the morning, but the car did start. Later in the day the stop/start cut in at a level crossing and the motor only just restarted. I turned off everything I could and dropped by Worthing Audi to have them check the car. I was told the charging system was OK, but the battery charge was only at 65% which, considering the longer trips, seemed low. They were unable to source a battery before my return home foreseen for the 5th January (9 days later). They offered to charge the battery the 4th January to at least start the return trip with a fully charged battery and reserved a replacement car for that day. On arriving the morning of the 4th, no one could find any trace of my visit, no replacement car was available and the service advisor I had dealt with was on holiday. I had the feeling they thought I was trying to scam a free car out of them for the day.
My car started the morning of the 5th, so I drove to Dover port. On being called forward to board the ferry, guess what, my car would not start (and yes all the electrics had been off). Fortunately, P&O Ferries jump-started my car and assisted me also to leave the ferry. I then drove 400km back home without stopping the motor and using the least electrical systems as possible. Today, the motor doesn’t even turn over, so I assume the battery is just about dead.
Naturally, I have reported this farce to Worthing Audi and have requested feedback. I am in contact with Audi Luxembourg for them to collect the car, diagnose the issue and if necessary replace the battery, I assume under warranty (my car is just less than 2 years old). I am considering making a formal complaint to Audi.
My thoughts so far (no answers expected here - it's just what's on my mind right now):
Is this a common fault/a one-off bad battery/could I have the same issue in 2 years time and at my expense?
How can stop/start be initiated in a low battery charge situation?
How can it be that Audi has no record of my visit/issue?
How can it be that Audi could not source a battery in 8 days? (and yes, for sure there are more battery failures in winter, but you would think Audi figured that out already)
How can it be that Audi reserve a car for you, but then have no record of it?
Could it really be that you have to actually break down (possibly in a dangerous situation) before Audi is really interested in stepping in. So much for their Guarantee of mobility that you are supposed to get if you have Audi, and only Audi, service your car.
Now maybe, Audi Luxembourg will sort this out under warranty and restore at least some faith in the brand’s services, but right now I am totally unimpressed by Audi UK.
To be continued…
(and thanks again to P&O Ferries who immediately and without any fuss stepped in to help me out – it no doubt didn’t look very good for the Audi brand)