When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I'm onto my second A8 D4, which is also my 19th Audi quattro of some variety. This one is a 4.2 TDI, which I find to be afflicted with the same annoying traits as my last D4 3.0.
1. Creaks from the dashboard. Forum posts tell me that I am not the first person to suffer this irritation of creaks and groans coming from the dashboard in a what is otherwise a quiet car. I traced one of the noise to the plastic surround around the mirror, but the others have me defeated. I've tried the glovebox, the space between the windscreen and the dashboard, the MMI display, and just about everything else. Might have to start wearing noise-cancelling headphones.
2. The near impossibility of driving smoothly at low speeds. This car, just like my last D4, refuses to come to a nice smooth standstill, just as it is very difficult to take of smoothly. No matter how gingerly one brakes or accelerates, the car does its own thing and gives a little jolt on stopping or a jerk on accelerating. Using ACC seems to eliminate this, but has the disadvantage of being so lethargic on start up that other drivers think you have fallen asleep at the traffic lights. Is there a cure for this? I cannot tell if it is to do with the way the accelerator sends messages to the engine, if it is the gearbox software, or something to do with the way the brakes operate.
3. Finally (and this one is unique to the 4.2), I hate the way it clonks or seems to grab on full lock when maneuvering at low speeds. My experience is exactly that of Tim Pollard in his CAR magazine review (CAR Magazine): 'the brakes were a touch grabbier than anticipated. Worst of all is the steering at low speeds; when manoeuvring at full lock, the wheels judder, rumble and jolt as if a clonking hammer is tapping at the rack. Feels like a tight diff on a four-wheel drive car, but it’s very unbecoming on a £95k luxury car. It was so bad I actually stepped out to check the tyres weren’t flat. Is there a cure for this that does not involve Audi in changing all my suspensions components, wheels, tyres, steering rack, sound deadening, and floor mats in a clueless gamble that one of these items might be causing the problem?
All this makes me miss the silence and solidity of my previous Jaguar XJ ... but Audi have the best night vision system, so that makes up for a bit.
Hm...is your car brand new? I have a 2013 A8 D4 and have experienced none of this. Wonder if it's the larger engine, I have the V6, not the V8. My car is smooth on take off. And very very quiet in the cabin.
My one complaint is the road noise and it could be the crap Pirelli tires on the car. On a perfectly smooth asphalt street, it's fine but anything else is not good. And I love the steering at low speeds, very tight, like a BMW.
Mine is a 2010 and my 3.0 was a 2011, so could be that by 2013 they solved these problems. You know how car manufacturers like to do the final testing on their customers.
I am a little wary about pursuing software updates as having the systems updated only to discover that I'm then forced to replace my BOSE amplifier or something would be a little frustrating.
Ironically, I have no complaints about road noise--perhaps because the dashboard creaks are such a distraction.
hah! I used to complain about the whining sound coming from the passenger area, but it went away when my wife wasn't in the car with me. Could never figure out why...
I've done the software updates recently and haven't had any issues. So far I love my car. The fit and finish aren't quite up to BMW standards but I've gotten over that already.
I'm onto my second A8 D4, which is also my 19th Audi quattro of some variety. This one is a 4.2 TDI, which I find to be afflicted with the same annoying traits as my last D4 3.0.
1. Creaks from the dashboard. Forum posts tell me that I am not the first person to suffer this irritation of creaks and groans coming from the dashboard in a what is otherwise a quiet car. I traced one of the noise to the plastic surround around the mirror, but the others have me defeated. I've tried the glovebox, the space between the windscreen and the dashboard, the MMI display, and just about everything else. Might have to start wearing noise-cancelling headphones.
2. The near impossibility of driving smoothly at low speeds. This car, just like my last D4, refuses to come to a nice smooth standstill, just as it is very difficult to take of smoothly. No matter how gingerly one brakes or accelerates, the car does its own thing and gives a little jolt on stopping or a jerk on accelerating. Using ACC seems to eliminate this, but has the disadvantage of being so lethargic on start up that other drivers think you have fallen asleep at the traffic lights. Is there a cure for this? I cannot tell if it is to do with the way the accelerator sends messages to the engine, if it is the gearbox software, or something to do with the way the brakes operate.
3. Finally (and this one is unique to the 4.2), I hate the way it clonks or seems to grab on full lock when maneuvering at low speeds. My experience is exactly that of Tim Pollard in his CAR magazine review (CAR Magazine): 'the brakes were a touch grabbier than anticipated. Worst of all is the steering at low speeds; when manoeuvring at full lock, the wheels judder, rumble and jolt as if a clonking hammer is tapping at the rack. Feels like a tight diff on a four-wheel drive car, but it’s very unbecoming on a £95k luxury car. It was so bad I actually stepped out to check the tyres weren’t flat. Is there a cure for this that does not involve Audi in changing all my suspensions components, wheels, tyres, steering rack, sound deadening, and floor mats in a clueless gamble that one of these items might be causing the problem?
All this makes me miss the silence and solidity of my previous Jaguar XJ ... but Audi have the best night vision system, so that makes up for a bit.
I have in fact experienced the dash groans and loss of refinement at low speeds. I just ignore the dash creaks and I'm taking the car in for an mmi update tomorrow, I hear that people notice the radio works better, and to see if they have a software update for the transmission control module, in hopes of smoothing it out at low speeds. If I need a new Bose amplifier from the update, I'll see to it then.
Having to replace the Bose Amp is not a bad thing as long as it's covered under your warranty or CPO.
I have a pair of CPO 2011 A8 L. Had the MMI updated in both to the latest version as of 6/2015. One required replacement of the Bose Amp and the other did not.
While the MMI update did improve the Bose sound, replacing the four year old Bose Amp in the second car with the more modern electronics of the new version made an enormous difference. Night and day. Putting the two side by side, the older Amp sounds veiled and somewhat distant. The new Amp is very crisp, very present and the wide Bose Sound stage is much more evident. I have to be careful listening to Rush, XYZ as the drums circling around the cabin make me dizzy.
Having to replace the Bose Amp is not a bad thing as long as it's covered under your warranty or CPO.
I have a pair of CPO 2011 A8 L. Had the MMI updated in both to the latest version as of 6/2015. One required replacement of the Bose Amp and the other did not.
For the ACC you can change it between comfort auto and dynamic in the vehicle strings menu. Definitely acts a lot snappier in dynamic. Hit the Car button -> Car Systems-> Driver Assist-> select Adaptive Cruise Control then change it from standard to dynamic
I have a 2015, the cabin is silent non of the problems you are experiencing, I have these god awful speed ramps in my area but even then it's silent going over them.
12-01-2015, 04:53 AM
Annoying A8 D4 traits - can they be cured?
