Engine failure after 6 years - who should pay for the repairs?
Three years ago I bought a 2007 Audi A4 Cabrio 2.0TDi from a main dealer. The car had a full service history and was in good condition. A few weeks ago I suffered complete power failure on the M4 and the oil pressure warning light came on. I’ve since been told that the fault is a well-known oil pump/balancer shaft failure and am facing a £5500 repair bill for a new engine.
Audi are refusing any liability and state the car is out of warranty. It’s taken three weeks with Audi UK customer service to get to this point and am stunned at Audi's attitude on this. It’s clearly a very frequent failing, and while they may have not accepted liability or done a recall, they could have informed customers so they could have done the £300 fix to avoid catastrophic failure. Do I have any recourse at all?
Audi are refusing any liability and state the car is out of warranty. It’s taken three weeks with Audi UK customer service to get to this point and am stunned at Audi's attitude on this. It’s clearly a very frequent failing, and while they may have not accepted liability or done a recall, they could have informed customers so they could have done the £300 fix to avoid catastrophic failure. Do I have any recourse at all?
Asked on 22 July 2014 by Fit Jon
Answered by
Honest John
Few manufacturers or suppliers offer liability beyond 6 years. This is a common problem. Researching the car before you bought it would have warned you. It's well detailed in all the relevant entries in www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar Obviously doesn't reflect well on Audi or on VAG.
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