MikeyW

OK - good luck - I was advised by Listers that the Alternator failure can kill the battery - but this would be established post repair with a road test. I would expect this to also be replaced as a consequence if it was proven not to be charging. But Leicester should be ordering the parts and booking your repair in not messing about with further investigations. Mine failed on a Tuesday I think and I had the car back the following Monday all fixed, road tested and valeted......

I see Mark is offering help which is great - given Audi have thrown Hull under the bus I would contact Hull and ask them for a refund of the money they have charged you for what Audi have confirmed is a warranty item, and was prior to your vehicle suffering the failure. They cant charge you under these circumstances. That for me would be stage 1. Obviously get that back then you can have a conversation with Hull and Audi about the plight you found yourself in, and what they will do to make it right assuming you can confirm that you arent going after then legally (at this point, and in the spirit of finding a suitable and appropriate resolution)

I would just sack off Leicester and get the car to Coventry. Leicester clearly have no clue and their proposal to charge you to investigate a known fault is laughable. Cov are Listers and their guys at Stratford were superb.

I'm not surprised that their customer services team have been told to stand down if there is now a legal case moving forward. I'm not trying to defend Audi as their actions are awful prior to this, but it would be entirely expected to not be able to pursue a customer services resolution whilst legal proceedings are in hand. However, I see no reason why this would prevent the warranty works being undertaken. By their own admission there is an extended warranty in place and they are of course throwing the dealership under the bus there for not telling you. I guess really it depends what your objectives are now for a resolution as to how you go forward. They cant deny you the warranty because you have lawyers involved - the warranty is the warranty, but I suspect you will want and need more than just a warranty fix here to resolve this to your satisfaction. If your car remains unrepaired then Hull should undertake this and the Audi email doesnt say they wont. But they wont discuss with you any other remedies, goodwill etc whilst there are legal proceedings. I would talk to AA Legal and see where thats heading to see what your best course for a positive outcome is. My own experience with audi executive relations is that I have generally got to an outcome that I found acceptable, aside from all the very real issues with the continued failures and lack of recall and resolution.

@Steph1234 the email I have used to get Andrew Doyle is - andrew.doyle@audi.co.uk He never replies but you will get someone from Executive relations reply and then call you - or at leat that has been my experience. I typically then cc Andrew Doyle on each email if things arent progressing!!!!

Hope you are OK from the accident - you really are not getting a break are you ?

a brilliant result - I want to call out my own experience here in terms of the dealership when I had the problem. They were exceptional and are the reason I remain an Audi client. Despite it often feels, the brand itself. Listers Stratford Upon Avon...faultless and willing to go more than an extra mile and be on my side.... So glad we could help you get the resolution required.

Dont let them fob you off - my RS6 was a similar age to yours - or slightly older and the part was replaced under the 7 year cover. I did have an audi extended warranty on it too but this was not used for this work. I'm not aware that the dealer had any battle as such - the works were approved through the system - I think this is something thats approved via the factory and isnt anything to do with Audi UK....but I maybe mistaken.

I maybe mistaken in my recollection of the event, but when my last one failed i'm almost certain that the 'My Audi' app gave a warning about low battery status......i've since changed cars so cant see any history or logs but I have a memory of this occurring - nothing on the car display, just on the phone which passes updates to my watch.....i'm sure I recall an error which was then followed by the in car failures that we will all be familiar with. I dont think i'm miss remembering.....but odd if the app knows but nothing in the car alerts you, so maybe i'm wrong...

You would expect so - but if Audi have contacted you to say they have archived your case I would reply and say that the matter isnt closed and that they need to reopen it. I would cc Andrew Doyle too and perhaps make reference to the fact that you have felt compelled to bring the DVSA into the matter due to lack of any progress from Audi UK.

I guess if you have not responded they probably have a policy of this if there's no response - this happened to me a while back. I just wrote and said the matter wasnt closed and copied in Andrew Doyle...

Completely get your fears - my first failure left me on the slip road off the M25 on a bend, no hard shoulder....and the second as I knew the signs I was able to get off the motorway and found a layby, just. But I totally get it - and would really like Audi to get it too....

I would pose them the points you want answering in much the same way that they will be having to answer the DVSA.....reiterate the safety issue and the potential consequences. I dont know what powers DVSA have in terms of getting you any financial recovery for the costs and problems and I suspect that that will be zero, but you might still get something out of Audi UK......have Audi asked you what you want? - they have me.....

worth pushing them - it seems they dont want to help when they could chose to if they wished....i'm confused by your dates as if the 3 year initial warranty ran out early 2022 then you'd have 4 more years from that point on that part.....or at least thats my understanding on how they are applying the 7 year warranty on the 48v system. Saying that Audi UK cant or wont comment about the 7 year warranty as they sy thats between the factory and the dealership.....!!!

given there is now an extended warranty on the part might this open the door back with the Ombudsman ? How long out of the cars original warranty were you ? This issue has existed for ages, so I would be pushing the dealership to give you your cash back and claim the repair/replacement from Audi UK. For them to deny you the warranty on a known issue like this is unfair in the extreme. My first failure was 2 years ago for this part so this is not a new issue, and audi know it.

It feels like there maybe a little more momentum developing as we collect more folks who had the same experience. Stratford Upon Avon Audi have had at least 2 failures (both mine!) and they are well aware of the extended warranty on the part, but Audi UK will not disclose anything, or at least they have not up until now. I am still pushing - I have changed cars as a result, but have remained with Audi - better the devil maybe, but aside from this issue it is a great car, but I really want some honesty from them, but I feel that a combined action and I hope some input from DVSA may see some progress to addressing this. Well done for escalating it outside of Audi. I wonder why the Ombudsman feels it isnt in their remit - sure safety should be in everyones remit? Did they say why not ?

I’ve spoken to Audi customer services at length about this issue. They push everything back to the dealership. Audi UK will not or cannot confirm there is an issue with the alternator. Audi Uk will not or cannot confirm whether there is an extended warranty on the part. And they will not or cannot confirm whether the replacement parts being fitted have the issue resolved or will simply fail again. I’m not entirely sure what they are there for as they simply deny any responsibility as they didn’t sell me the car and are not responsible for it’s maintenance and safety - this they say is the dealership and the manufacturer. This despite them being a wholly owned subsidiary of Audi Germany. Audi Uk maintain that technical queries should be answered by the dealership who will contact the manufacturer. My dealer replaced the part and confirmed to me that it has an extended warranty and that the part and labour are covered by Audi. 7 years was also confirmed. My car is 3.5 years old and does have an extended Audi warranty on it but this was not used to cover the part. So the route to solve this seems to be entirely via the dealerships. Mine have been superb I have to say. hugely disappointed in Audi UK but I’m not surprised by this to be honest

I’ve had some contact from Audi uk now following my letter to Andrew Doyle. It’s not overly satisfactory as they seem just just be positioning themselves to blame the dealer and the factory. Keen to reiterate that technical info should come from the dealership as they(Audi uk) aren’t technically trained. I obviously said the dealership don’t have the details I need. They then said they would have to contact the factory but that that information might not be revealed to me…..they wouldn’t acknowledge there had been any other failures, any reference to issues in the USA or any issues to other models. They did ask me what my expectations were !!!! They said they would be back to me by 13th may. I feel a letter to Germany coming next. My car is fixed now and back on the road although I now have a brake warning light but I need new pads so it’s nothing too scary other than the price !

My Audi is out of the initial warranty but despite having extended warranty I was assured the repairs were done entirely under the extended 7 year part specific warranty for the alternator…..including the loan car

The dealer told me that the faulty part is covered by a 7 year warranty which is also what others here have been told. I’ve written to the MD of Audi Uk to get clarification on what this really means, their position on whether the issue has been fixed, how subsequent failures may be dealt with, broader car warranty extension at their cost and whether newer vehicles have the same issue. I’ve not had a reply yet. I’ve said I won’t collect my car until I do - I’m in an Audi mobex loan car via enterprise so it’s costing Audi every day I have it. my own rs6 is out of the 3 years warranty but I have an extended warranty I took out, but I’m told this repair is being done under this special extended warranty for the 48v system alternator so I’d push back hard and say other owners are not being charged as this is a known issue and regardless of the age or mileage is being honoured as an Audi issue. my dealer has been superb and the car was fixed in just over a week from failure - but I’m not having it back till I hear from Audi Uk…..assume you are Uk based ??

I love the car too - and was going to change it for a performance most likely too. I like your approach so may look for something similar. Are you looking for 10 years on the whole car or just that part ?

Do you think they will cover the costs ? Have they offered you anything and do you have yours back now ? One of the reasons I rejected the last rs6 was this fault and that my wife wouldn’t drive it - too scared of this occurring and I can’t say I can blame her. As we know, it happens quite fast and leaves the car utterly dead. I was lucky this time as I got to a lay-by but if I’d had my dogs with me it becomes very challenging or on a smart motorway……last time it was the top of an m25 exit slip on a blind bend. It really wasn’t nice at all. And what really grates is I went from a car I had from new into one that wasn’t and was older that the one I was rejecting only to find I have the same issue….

I’m told the part should be in the uk this week, or early next, which is a whole lot faster than the first time this occurred. I asked about the issue and whether the replacement part was the same had been modified, but, not unexpectedly, the dealer didn’t know but could tell me the part number had changed. But I’m sure I read earlier on the thread that there could be other reasons for this. So the positive is there’s light in terms of getting my car back on the road. They also confirmed the 7 year warranty extension (think they referred to this as a goodwill extension but I maybe mistaken there). Of course having bought a warranty extension that I don’t need that’s an interesting situation. I’m still in a mobex car that isn’t appropriate for my needs with faults on !, but I should be getting a q5 later today so progress there providing my dogs and dog cage system fits in it. Next step is to renew my acquaintance with Mr Doyle to ask questions about the fault and the fix and why I was told when I effectively rejected the last car and replaced with the same model I’m in precisely the same situation which I was so keen to avoid. Put simply, my last one wasn’t a Friday afternoon RS6 with me as the unlucky owner, they all are. It’s not acceptable on such a premium vehicle.

Hi mark thanks for the reply. Audi uk will know me I’m sure as I had another known issue on the first rs6 3 days after picking it up which was the fuel tank level float sticking and creating the idea you had half a tank of fuel, so the then alternator fault led to some tense conversations. Current rs6 has Audi warranty and breakdown so I need to ponder about my expectations from them here. I had been looking to change to a new performance version (coz you need more power when you have 600ps don’t you ?!!!) so maybe there’s something I can pursue there. But I’m keen to know are the new ones sorted for this issue and are the parts they now ship (or not) also fixed. It’s a major safety issue so if I don’t get properly looked after starting tomorrow it’s going to get escalated very quickly. I’ll keep you posted. How old is yours ?

I’m new to the forum as, guess what, was left stranded on the A5 on Thursday with the dreaded alternator fault. I’ve a C8 RS6 which I’ve had for 2 years following my rejection of my previous RS6 C8 for, wait for it…..the same fault. Dealership are super supportive and can’t believe I’ve had this occur twice, but reading this thread it’s seems significantly more common than I thought. Currently I’m trying to get a loan car that actually serves my purpose as the A1 from Enterprise (Audi Assist) can’t carry kit for my job or fit my dogs in, has a faulty sos function and faulty Bluetooth and sat nav. It’s not ideal. I am not really sure how I’ll take this forward - when the electrical warning hit the dash I knew exactly what was going to happen so was lucky to be able to get off the M6 toll and to a place of relative safety. I didn’t know the sport diff failure was the early warning so that’s super helpful. The last time this occurred we ended stranded at the top of a slip road off the m25 on a blind bend…..and kept waiting for recovery for 3 hours too. So this time it was better and I guess knowing the fault I knew I had to find a safer place for the car to die in. concerned that the replacement parts are not a different part - staggered it’s not a recall so will be raising this as a safety matter with as many differing channels as I’m able. Last time it was the Audi executive office who handled the issue as I wrote to Andrew Doyle. The car was off the road for over 2 months then due to a parts shortage.