chickdr

And this is your issue. There is no way for forum members to know exactly what happened. A strong gust of wind could most certainly damage a door (especially one as large and wing like as the Q7's is). This is not a "quality control issue" such as a paint defect. You said it yourself - there was no dent on the door when you picked the car up and after the gust of wind there is a dent. I don't really see the difference in this vs tripping and bumping into the car with your knee and denting it. It is still "customer caused". Audi can't manufacture the car for every foreseeable event. I would bet it was a pretty strong gust to cause damage as I have had mine since 3/2007 and the door has opened heavily(like on a downward facing hill for example) many times. I have never had an issue. I think you are very lucky to have $2,500 covered. The repair price seems high to me in any event(we had the rear passenger door skin and rear qtr panel replaced due to an accident and the cost was around $6K(with a lot more damage underneath than you will have). Did you check with a PDR place to see if they could fix it?

warzilla

Hey, I totally get people here who say its my fault and the wind was so strong, and you must have been in a hurricane or something but it was simply wind catching a door as it was opening up. As you said above, it happens all the time with your car. And it has happened to me many times with my other cars. But the truth was I wasn't on parked on a hill facing downward. I wasn't in a storm. Not in a hurricane. Or in a earthquake. I wasn't at the ocean. It was simply a normal temperature day, not that windy actually and for some reason when the passenger door opened, a wind caught it and opened it all the way. No way in hell, should a normal car door get damaged in that kind of situation. If it was abnormal conditions, I would not be so focused on Audi for this.



Thats one way to look at it. Unfortunately when I waited 3 months for the car, paid $70,000.00 for it, and now have to shell another $700.00 to fix this plus wait 2 weeks for it in the shop, I'm not feeling so lucky. I actually feel screwed, like in the arsh.

coupegt87

U paid $70k .... u got hosed !!!

TimU

Well that was unhelpful...

Without trying to derail the thread any further, US buyers should consider yourselves very lucky with how cheap your cars are.
Vehicle prices everywhere else in the world are significantly more expensive than you guys pay.
Example: my AUS-delivered base model Q7 (optioned with 7 seats, Air Suspension, AFS Xenons, 20" rims, Reverse Cam & Electric Tailgate) was AU$95K when new.

PARealtor

if you believe its a manufacturing issue then get a lawyer and take them to court. Otherwise its bad luck on your part that the wind blew when it did. Just take your money, get the car fixed and stop looking for freebies.

BTW.. why would expect a free loaner? its not warranty work. Its a repair that you have chosen to perform.

pchansen

Wow! At the current exchange rate, that's about $27,000 USD more. What is the rationale? Taxes? Is you cost of living that much more? Is it a case of supply vs demand? Or a little of all of the above?

warzilla

Here is the secret about regions and markets. Most of the German manufacturers subsidized the costs of the models sold in North America (NA) compared to their local and other markets. So the same cars Americans buy in the US is comparability much cheaper then the ones sold in Germany or China or Australia. Thats why the same Q7 costs more in Australia or Germany then in the US. And vice versa, that's why the Q7 is a hard car to get in the US cause Audi realizes they rather make more money by shipping the Q7 to other markets like China (In China, cars are 3x the cost of what we pay in the US). Americans should consider themselves lucky when they compare the cost of an Audi, or BMW or MB to buyers in other markets.

coupegt87

In respect to Audi's being sold in China, one of the higher cost is due to the VAT & Duties imposed on imported vehicles, thus the higher cost, its the same in South Korea, Audi's, BMW cost 25% more....

warzilla

Yes, I agree. Foreign cars in China are generally 3x the cost in relative in the US. Part of it is due to taxes/duties. But if you really compare apples to apples, the US consumer pays much less for the equivalent car model. And in the case of the Q7, its harder for US dealers to get lots of them to the US due to the fact Audi rather allocate the cars to more profitable regions like China or at home in Europe.

warzilla

So, it was 2 weeks and I get a email that the car is ready to pick up. I go to the dealer and paid the cost out-of-pocket to fix the door. Good news, the door was fixed (or it seems). The bad news was:

- there was a small dent in the back panel of the car
- the black trim by the wheel-wells on the right-side of the car were both scratched up
- the front black trim was not even fully installed properly, you can see space between the trim and body panel


To say I was livid was an understatement. Left the car at the dealer so they can fix the things I caught. I'm now totally besides myself....