This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
I was driving down the road when the steering stop working and I could not control the direction that the tires moved. The direction of steering would not respond to my movements and I was unable to control the car. I was able to break and bring the car to a stop, however, if I were moving at a much faster speed this would have been extremely dangerous. I brought the car to our mechanic and we were informed that the tie rods were broken, the threading on the attachment pieces was completely rusted out and the threads were bare. The piece simply came apart and was malfunctioning. No warning signs or service lights came on in the vehicle before this happened and we had no indication that there would be an issue with the steering when operating the vehicle. Our mechanic told us this was one of the most dangerous things he's ever seen happen in a car and that our life was at risk. We regularly have our car inspected and serviced and there was no indication that this would happen. Our car had a major engine problem in August 2023 and was at the Valenti Audi Dealership in Waterbury, CT, during that time the car was inspected and we were not told the tie-rods had any problems.
We have never had an issue with the vehicle until we recently faced very cold Temps (-10 to -20). Was driving the vehicle, with no issues, and stopped to get gas. Upon restarting the vehicle it displayed a power steering error with a do not drive. The steerling lost all power steering function and was extremely hard to turn. We let the vehicle sit and restarted it 3-4 times and on the fourth try, the error went away and there was no further issues with the power steering on this (first) occasion. This has now happened intermittently since the first occurrence (even with very cold Temps) but with no regularity. Not sure if this is a malfunction or if there is something in need of replacement. It is extremely concerning.
Car worked fine with no signs of any issues or concerns. I stopped at a light and the car turned off as the start-stop system normally does. However when the light went green, the car would refuse to start flashing "Steering Malfunction, Do not drive"... I'm at a light on a highway, what do you mean "do not drive"! The power steering was completely lost and it seems because of it, the entire system would refuse to allow the car to even start. The car had to eventually be pushed off the highway after causing an incredible amount of traffic and then towed. I contacted Audi and they appear to know about this issue, however will only warranty a very specific fault code, and will not honor any other faults in the system or any car that doesn't have a perfect history. Estimated cost to repair this absurd faulty steering rack according to online sources is almost $4000. Audi even recalled this system on they're higher package cars like the SQ5 but still wont recall this system in the Q5 line up.
The contact owns a 2015 Audi Q5. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed in cold weather, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the power steering rack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN and that the warranty had expired. The failure mileage was approximately 126,000.
Piston rings are failing at 100k miles and consuming excessive amount of engine oil. It is around a quart every 150-200 miles! Suspension components and motor mounts also have to be replaced frequently.
- Allen, TX, USA
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Was driving on state highway and all of a sudden the warning light came on that the steering wheel has malfunctioned. I could not rotate the steering wheel easily, but fortunately was able to pull over without any accident. This could have been a fatal failure had it happened on a highway or a slope.
I was driving on city streets and steering became very difficult. Turning corners at slow speed was very tough and jerky. Control of the car was very difficult the slower the speed. Highway wasn't too bad but you it still took more effort than was normally expected/experienced. Firestone service noted a opening in the upper steering shaft. They spray lubricated the shaft and it appears to be back to normal, but since there the shaft is open to weathering this is not a permanent fix.
The contact owns a 2015 Audi Q5. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, a warning message regarding the power steering was displayed that also instructed not to drive the vehicle. The steering wheel was very difficult to turn in either direction. During the failure, the outside temperature was very cold. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer Audi of boise located at 8400 w. franklin rd #1, boise, id 83709 who diagnosed that the steering rack was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 36,000.
Update on NHTSA tracking number 11184036 I received a call from the Audi service area where my car was towed yesterday for a fix to the steering problem (alarm telling me not to drive due to unsafe steering and a locked steering wheel) Audi refuses to replace any steering related parts unless the problem happens a second time. Since this seems to be a very cold weather problem, I will have to wait until next winter since the extreme cold is probably over for this year as we enter spring. Just hope it doesn't happen while driving on a highway.
I drove my car early in the morning to church and, on the way home, stopped at a supermarket. It was very cold, minus 15 degrees at the time in bozeman, Montana. When I came back to the car to start to go home, there was a very loud alarm and a warning - steering defective - unsafe to drive. I turned the car off and tried to restart it and the same loud alarm and warning occurred. I waited 5 minutes and tried again and got the same result. I got the car towed to my nearby Audi dealer to be fixed. Then I did some research and saw that this steering issue is a real problem with Audi Q5 and SQ5, but only the SQ5 has had a recall. Apparently there is a lot of controversy about this problem, sometimes requiring a steering rack replacement and other times software. In any event, Audi knows abut this dangerous problem. What if I was on the highway with my baby grandson in the car? I discovered a lot of very negative info on the Audi world forums dating back as far as early 2016 concerning the 2015 SQ5. Same seems to be the problem with the Q5. Apparently on Transport Canada's website the SQ5 steering has been recalled, but not the Q5. In light of the emissions scandal in which the car company (Volkswagen) deliberately deceived on emissions, I am thinking that they are a rather untrustworthy company from which to buy a car. I will get rid of mine for safety's sake as soon as I can! the car is still at the dealer for repair, and I have not heard from them since early this morning. I tried to reach the service area for an update, but as yet have not heard back. I have 4 months left on my warranty. And the car has less than 12,000 miles on the odometer. This is scary.
It was an unusually cold day (-14 degrees) in Michigan. I had been driving the car earlier that day without incident. I parked the car in the garage and approximately 1 hour later I went to use it and I was presented with loud warning beeps and the following message: "steering defective! do not drive vehicle!" it was obvious that the (electric) power assist was not functioning. I tried every hour and after about 4 hours the error was gone and the power steering seemed to be working correctly. It has been fine since. I called the dealer about the issue but did not bring it to them for a "diagnosis". I noticed a recall (15V-452) for the 2015 SQ5 for this exact problem and wondered why an SQ5 would be different from my 2015 Q5 (with a 3.0L V6 engine). There are quite a few people on the internet complaining about the same issue during very cold days and I'm trying to understand the root cause. The recall is nothing more than a software update. (maybe to expand the acceptable threshold values?) I am concerned that the recall was not scoped properly and is actually affecting other Audi. I am a former VW/Audi mechanic with over 30 years of mechanical experience.
Steering defective. Do not drive vehicle. This message came up as soon as I started the car from a parking lot. Towed it to Audi dealer. They found that its an Audi issue. Defective steering rack. Replaced it. $2500
I was driving down a long gravel driveway going 15-20mph and I went around a slight left curve. After the left curve the road becomes strait. My car steering wheel locked, I could not move the steering wheel to the left and I could not get out of the curve. The car continued to head right no matter how hard I pulled on the steering wheel to go left. It would not budge. The car continued going right, off the driveway and into several trees. The wheel was still locked at this point. I had to turn the car off, and on to get the wheel to release so I could back out of the tree, and onto the driveway.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Litchfield, CT, USA