Have just been told the dreaded news that my 2009 2.0TDI needs a new Mechatronic unit and dual mass clutch pack? I've had the car from new and has always returned to the supplying dealer for service and it hasn't been chipped in any way. I know that this unit fails regularly as it's clearly a design issue and that some members have had success in getting Audi to contribute to the colossal cost even when outside warranty. I have been quoted in excess of £4000 so I was wondering why some people had success and some did not when getting Audi to pay out? Simply put...I haven't got £4000. Would really appreciate hearing from anybody who has actually been through the process.
How to get Audi contribution for Mechatronic unit failure-Help!
Mustardears
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I contacted audi customer services about the gearbox malfunction warning popping up every ten minutes or so. My q5 loses revs and limps along for a minute and then suddenly picks up again. It has been doing it for a long time now and I have been following the forum on this subject. I haven't had it looked at yet as it has so far been bearable but just lately it is more consistently failing as described. I mentioned to audi that the USA had recalled the DSL type 2009 models and this was their response. What shall I do next?
From… Audi UK Customer Services
Subject: AU-2014/11-016997
Dear Mr Duckworth
Thank you for contacting Audi UK regarding the issue you are having with your gearbox.
As we discussed earlier on the telephone there is no workshop action required on your vehicle at this moment in time. Workshop
actions are chassis specific and the specification of vehicles for the American market does differ from that of those built for
use in the UK.
I was naturally concerned to learn of the issues outlined in your email and I can understand your disappointment with this
experience.
In order for us to be able to investigate this further, we would require that an Approved Audi Centre carries out an inspection
of the vehicle. This is to ensure that the issue is diagnosed correctly and that the appropriate advice is offered. This will
also allow us to liaise directly with the centre and if necessary, offer any additional support.
Contact details for all Audi Centres can be found via the link below:
www.audi.co.uk/locateacentre
Thank you for contacting Audi UK and I hope the above information is proved useful.
Kind regards
Abby Orme
Customer Relations Advisor
Audi UK
T 0800 699 888
E Customer.Services@audi.co.uk
From… Audi UK Customer Services
Subject: AU-2014/11-016997
Dear Mr Duckworth
Thank you for contacting Audi UK regarding the issue you are having with your gearbox.
As we discussed earlier on the telephone there is no workshop action required on your vehicle at this moment in time. Workshop
actions are chassis specific and the specification of vehicles for the American market does differ from that of those built for
use in the UK.
I was naturally concerned to learn of the issues outlined in your email and I can understand your disappointment with this
experience.
In order for us to be able to investigate this further, we would require that an Approved Audi Centre carries out an inspection
of the vehicle. This is to ensure that the issue is diagnosed correctly and that the appropriate advice is offered. This will
also allow us to liaise directly with the centre and if necessary, offer any additional support.
Contact details for all Audi Centres can be found via the link below:
www.audi.co.uk/locateacentre
Thank you for contacting Audi UK and I hope the above information is proved useful.
Kind regards
Abby Orme
Customer Relations Advisor
Audi UK
T 0800 699 888
E Customer.Services@audi.co.uk
Joined
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96 Posts
But the letter said "In order for us to be able to investigate this further, we would require that an Approved Audi Centre carries out an inspection
of the vehicle. This is to ensure that the issue is diagnosed correctly and that the appropriate advice is offered. This will
also allow us to liaise directly with the centre and if necessary, offer any additional support."
This isn't saying "bring it to a dealer and we'll charge you to fix it", they're saying bring it in for an inspection and then they can ensure it's the right fix and if necessary "offer any additional support" (e.g. pay all/part of it).
I agree with Missile, take it in for an inspection, tell them not to fix it at this point but just give you the report so you can contact Audi customer services to follow up with them.
Joined
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1,326 Posts
And it's very important to be nice to the dealer, they are humans too, it's stressful taking your car in and being fearful that a big bill might result. Most dealer staff are not fabulously well paid and understand what it's like to try and run a car on a budget. Be open and honest and the dealer will work with Audi CS for the best possible result for you both.
Just had a similar failure - my 2009 2.0TDI needs a mechatronics unit (this will be the second) and clutch replacement. Audi West London have quoted me a whopping £5200!
They're saying they've asked Audi but there is no good will gesture towards the cost
![Image]()
The car was bought from Audi West London and been fully serviced there, and only has a mileage of 40k.
I've asked them to speak with Audi again, lets see what happens.
They're saying they've asked Audi but there is no good will gesture towards the cost
The car was bought from Audi West London and been fully serviced there, and only has a mileage of 40k.
I've asked them to speak with Audi again, lets see what happens.
This sounds like a systemic fault to me, one fault leads to the next, when did the first mechatronics unit get replaced? might be able to prove that replacement was the wrong diagnostic and there's something else at fault as this now proves? There not always right when diagnosing!!Just had a similar failure - my 2009 2.0TDI needs a mechatronics unit (this will be the second) and clutch replacement. Audi West London have quoted me a whopping £5200!
They're saying they've asked Audi but there is no good will gesture towards the cost![Image]()
The car was bought from Audi West London and been fully serviced there, and only has a mileage of 40k.
I've asked them to speak with Audi again, lets see what happens.
The first one was in 2013 - the car was a few months out of warranty but Audi agreed to pay the cost of parts. Q5s certainly seem plagued with mechatronics failures.
Joined
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2,437 Posts
That's still a chunky bill for a car with such low miles ????????
Just wanted to add my experience with you guys.
Took my 2010 Q5 3.0TDI (Stronic with 67k) to the dealer today for an investigation.
I'd bought it around 3 months ago from a private seller and it started giving me the symptoms of a mechatronic failure about 6 weeks after buying.
Booked it online last week with Victoria Audi (London) simply because it was the nearest to me with the soonest available date. States £60 fee when booking but they emailed a day later saying the investigation fee was £120, did have a word with them about this but the lady insisted it was a thorough examination and they had to check this and that and blah blah blah.
Arrived in the morning and got their tech to drive it round the block with me to show him. The journey there had warmed the car up nicely and it was juddering and jerking like a champ. He made some more notes, checked the service book oil change for the STronic and said it had been done too late at 48000 miles and Audi would be no help to contribute. I left them to it and came back 5-6 hours later when investigation was complete, their report states
"Checked and confirmed fault of gearbox judder, dropped oil from gearbox, found metallic filings, new gearbox required. A first port of call is to do the mechatronic unit as it is a cheaper option"
Quoted £9200 for gearbox and they said they have a preordered mechatronics unit in stock and would do that one with some discount on part and labour which comes to £2700.
;(((
They said Audi do know about this issue and do contribute BUT would be no help to me because I bought privately and the STronic oil was not done at the right time. They reckon at 48000 miles it was done 10000 miles to late.
What the f man, I am not happy since I took a big loan to buy the car in the first place and am meant to be driving to Europe for my family holiday next weekend (main reason why I bought the Q5).
Even if I got the mechatronic unit done there is no guarantee that the issue will be solved.
Sorry for the long tale, just wanted to vent and let people know about my experience.
Took my 2010 Q5 3.0TDI (Stronic with 67k) to the dealer today for an investigation.
I'd bought it around 3 months ago from a private seller and it started giving me the symptoms of a mechatronic failure about 6 weeks after buying.
Booked it online last week with Victoria Audi (London) simply because it was the nearest to me with the soonest available date. States £60 fee when booking but they emailed a day later saying the investigation fee was £120, did have a word with them about this but the lady insisted it was a thorough examination and they had to check this and that and blah blah blah.
Arrived in the morning and got their tech to drive it round the block with me to show him. The journey there had warmed the car up nicely and it was juddering and jerking like a champ. He made some more notes, checked the service book oil change for the STronic and said it had been done too late at 48000 miles and Audi would be no help to contribute. I left them to it and came back 5-6 hours later when investigation was complete, their report states
"Checked and confirmed fault of gearbox judder, dropped oil from gearbox, found metallic filings, new gearbox required. A first port of call is to do the mechatronic unit as it is a cheaper option"
Quoted £9200 for gearbox and they said they have a preordered mechatronics unit in stock and would do that one with some discount on part and labour which comes to £2700.
;(((
They said Audi do know about this issue and do contribute BUT would be no help to me because I bought privately and the STronic oil was not done at the right time. They reckon at 48000 miles it was done 10000 miles to late.
What the f man, I am not happy since I took a big loan to buy the car in the first place and am meant to be driving to Europe for my family holiday next weekend (main reason why I bought the Q5).
Even if I got the mechatronic unit done there is no guarantee that the issue will be solved.
Sorry for the long tale, just wanted to vent and let people know about my experience.
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814 Posts
Hi Haribo and welcome to the forum.
Sorry to hear about your problems. Caveat emptor implies here unfortunately as you bought privately not through trade. Audi are correct - the first S-Tronic service (oil and filter change) are due at 38,000 miles. Did you not check the service book prior to purchase to check all appropriate interventions had been carried out? Whether or not the lack of an oil change has contributed to the gear box failure is impossible to tell but not having the service has given Audi wiggle room.
The only remedial action I think you could take is that if the car has been serviced at Audi main dealers - WHY wasn't the gearbox service carried out and you may have some comeback there as the dealership should have carried out all recommended service actions at that time. A phone call to Audi UK is probably in order but your sticking point is going to be that the service schedule hasn't been carried out to Audi's recommendations.
Good luck.
Sorry to hear about your problems. Caveat emptor implies here unfortunately as you bought privately not through trade. Audi are correct - the first S-Tronic service (oil and filter change) are due at 38,000 miles. Did you not check the service book prior to purchase to check all appropriate interventions had been carried out? Whether or not the lack of an oil change has contributed to the gear box failure is impossible to tell but not having the service has given Audi wiggle room.
The only remedial action I think you could take is that if the car has been serviced at Audi main dealers - WHY wasn't the gearbox service carried out and you may have some comeback there as the dealership should have carried out all recommended service actions at that time. A phone call to Audi UK is probably in order but your sticking point is going to be that the service schedule hasn't been carried out to Audi's recommendations.
Good luck.
Hi all - joined to post my tale of woe...
My wife has an Audi Q5 3.0l S line 2010 with 50k miles with FASH purchased from local Audi main dealer. The car started having a fault where it would try to lurch forward against the brakes when stopping at traffic lights. My local Audi dealer applied a software update. When we collected the car as well as lurching it now also stalled which is unusual for an automatic. The garage changed the gearbox oil and said the lurching was corrected. We collected vehicle and yes the lurching had stopped but the car was still stalling. They had it back for a couple of weeks to run diagnostics and then informed us that all the car needed was the gearbox to be run in against the new software update to "learn" it. So they said it was all sorted and to collect. We collected and it stalled again. A few days later they contacted us saying that the car needed a new gearbox at £11.5k! They have offered as a good will gesture to pay half as the car has only done 50k miles and been serviced regularly by Audi. I am not happy with this as it was not stalling when I dropped it off, I have paid for the gearbox oil change which fixed the problem I put it in for. My argument is that they have caused the stalling issue and they should fix it. It seems from looking online, inlcuding your forum, that the fault is "mechatronics" unit failure but Audi UK say they cannot just replace that unit on my particular car and it needs a full gearbox. It also seems that the mechantronic unit has been recalled by Audi in other countries and replaced by dealers outside of warranty for free/ min charge. Your advice would be useful.
My wife has an Audi Q5 3.0l S line 2010 with 50k miles with FASH purchased from local Audi main dealer. The car started having a fault where it would try to lurch forward against the brakes when stopping at traffic lights. My local Audi dealer applied a software update. When we collected the car as well as lurching it now also stalled which is unusual for an automatic. The garage changed the gearbox oil and said the lurching was corrected. We collected vehicle and yes the lurching had stopped but the car was still stalling. They had it back for a couple of weeks to run diagnostics and then informed us that all the car needed was the gearbox to be run in against the new software update to "learn" it. So they said it was all sorted and to collect. We collected and it stalled again. A few days later they contacted us saying that the car needed a new gearbox at £11.5k! They have offered as a good will gesture to pay half as the car has only done 50k miles and been serviced regularly by Audi. I am not happy with this as it was not stalling when I dropped it off, I have paid for the gearbox oil change which fixed the problem I put it in for. My argument is that they have caused the stalling issue and they should fix it. It seems from looking online, inlcuding your forum, that the fault is "mechatronics" unit failure but Audi UK say they cannot just replace that unit on my particular car and it needs a full gearbox. It also seems that the mechantronic unit has been recalled by Audi in other countries and replaced by dealers outside of warranty for free/ min charge. Your advice would be useful.
A reply from "honestjohn" website
This is not the same transverse twin dry clutch 7-speed DSG/s-tronic that has been trouble all over the World. It is a much beefier in-line twin wet-clutch 7-speed transmission developed originally for the Q5 and then later fitted to other Audis with bigger in-line engines. They all need a routine change of transmission fluid and filters filters every 4 years because the fluid can become conductive, affecting and sometimes fusing the Mechatronics. But the lurching and stalling are characteristics of a clutch or dual mass flywheel problem rather than the Mechatronics, and clutch packs in this model are known to have a life as short as 60,000 miles, which you are not far off. Best thing you can do now is take it to another Audi dealer, an Audi independent, or even a member of http://www.fedauto.co.uk I could be wrong, but I don't think you need to spend £11,500 or even £5,750 on a new transmission. I think you need a new clutch pack and maybe a new DMF.
This is not the same transverse twin dry clutch 7-speed DSG/s-tronic that has been trouble all over the World. It is a much beefier in-line twin wet-clutch 7-speed transmission developed originally for the Q5 and then later fitted to other Audis with bigger in-line engines. They all need a routine change of transmission fluid and filters filters every 4 years because the fluid can become conductive, affecting and sometimes fusing the Mechatronics. But the lurching and stalling are characteristics of a clutch or dual mass flywheel problem rather than the Mechatronics, and clutch packs in this model are known to have a life as short as 60,000 miles, which you are not far off. Best thing you can do now is take it to another Audi dealer, an Audi independent, or even a member of http://www.fedauto.co.uk I could be wrong, but I don't think you need to spend £11,500 or even £5,750 on a new transmission. I think you need a new clutch pack and maybe a new DMF.
Update for those that are interested. Local Audi dealer stated that the firmware update caused the problem, Audi UK first tried to argue it was my fault as a gearbox oilchange was missed at 38k miles. When I pointed out to the dealer that they should have done the oil change at the service they said it was irrelevant as it had nothing to do with the stalling problem which was related to the update. They told Audi UK to either roll back the update or supply the gearbox free of charge. Audi UK "customer service" a misnomer, reduced the bill to £2k as a "final offer" saying the gearbox oil was the issue. I rejected that and said to the local dealer that between them who didn t do the oil change at the correct time and Audi who's firmware update caused the problem they should cover the cost. Result is they have agreed to replace the gearbox as it was caused by Audi update. Frankly terrible customer service when the dealer was saying it was Audi's fault and Audi were not able to stand behind their product and kept trying to get me to pay for their error. I wont be buying Audi again. Going to buy a Porsche Macan (part of Audi sadly) and sell before the warranty runs out!
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2,437 Posts
Im glad u got it sorted with much patience,I'm the same I wouldn't run a 30k + car without a warranty ????
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