SUDDEN CLUTCH FAILURE 2006 AUDI A4
 

Hello everyone... This past weekend my 2006 A4 quattro's clutch locked up two blocks from my house. The auto has only 33k on it and has been driven by my fiance whom is not a street racer... The car has never had any probs and still under warranty, obviously not the clutch. The clutch never had any symptoms prior to incident, all of a sudden while driving at 30-40mph my I shifted and the clutch remained locked in a pushed positioned. Upon pullingover I noticed a stong "Burned rubber" like odor. I didn't have the ebrake on... I have done some research and have found quite a few identical stories... I received a call initially from audi service saying probably just a slave or hydraulic malfunction, but then after inspecting states the entire clutch is done, "Looks like cheese," was the exact words of service rep... I don't understand how a clutch is finished after just 33k, that is rediculous... Not sure what to do, get a second opinion? I have a local friend that could do it for probably better price, my fiance likes to do service with audi... They want over 1600 dollars for fix... Anybody have any similar scenarios or advise? Would be much appreciated. Thanks

Same thing happened to me right after I got my 2006 a4 with 40,000 miles. I had the car for only a week. I talked to audi they quoted about the same amount as they did for you. So I asked if they could instead put in an aftermarket clutch so it would hopefully last longer, but they didn't like that idea. But after a little talking with them I got them to take out the labor so it was a lot more reasonable. Since then I haven't had any problems. Good luck though

The same thing happened to my 2006 A4 at about 31K. I was coming off the highway and downshifted into 2nd, when I let off the clutch it didnt come up, it kind of stayed depressed.. as I pumped it with my foot to try to get my car in gear and off the road it came up to its normal position and was then impossible to depress, it was like the brake pedal as far as how it reacted to my pressure....anyway the best part was that my local dealer wanted $3400 to fix it. I told them to go piss up a rope, $3400 for a new clutch is ridiculus...I got a good local mechanic to do the job with authentic Audi parts for about $1600... The reason for the high cost with replacing the clutch (I was told) is that it takes 8-10 hours of labor just to get to the clutch and do the work.... i guess it is kind of luck, and I bought the car at 21K so I have no clue how the previous driver operated the vehichle. I also got my car stuck in the snow and forgot to take off the ESP and like an idiot I could not figure out why my AWD vehichle was stuck.... well i worked it hard for 15-20 min in the snow and smelled this horrible burnt something smell in my car for months... im pretty sure this attributed to my clutch failure....

SUDDEN CLUTCH FAILURE 2006 AUDI A4
 

Same thing is happening to me right now. 2006 A4. 36K miles. Original owner. Friends are telling me that they've never heard of a clutch giving out at such low mileage. Dealership tells me 80K-120K miles is average. Does this mean that I have driven the car poorly, causing this problem? I don't believe I've driven the car irresponsibly. I've driven standard transmissions for 15 years. I see at least two possibilities:

1. This is my own damn fault. I need to enroll in a driving school and pay the dealer ($1650).:
2. This is NOT my fault. Audi A4 clutches should not wear out at 36K miles. Something is technically wrong with the car.:

Is there anything I haven't considered that I should? THANKS in advance to any who can comment. -Jacob

this just happened to my 2006 A4, I bought it last august and now with 49,xxx miles on it the clutch blew out. Ive been driving manaul transmission since I was fifteen (9 years) and have had no problems at all with this car until one night last week the clutch just gave out and the car wasn't driveable. I had it towed to local audi certified dealer and they say the clutch is completely blown, they have to replace it as well as the pressure plate and clean debris from the flywheel, they want $1,998 to do this. Since the clutch is a "wear and tear" item they wont cover it under the warranty, but there was no wear to begin with, something must have malfunctioned to cause something like this, but the dealer is claiming that I must have downshifted with too high of revs which is entirely not true. I don't drive the car hard or race it around or anything. I called audi customer care division and they said they would see if they can do something to help and I'm currently waiting on a phonecall from them to see what they found out. If they can't do anything then I'm going to order the parts and fix it myself with a couple of friends, the only bad thing about that is that I'm probably going to have to eat the $470 they charged to pull the tranny to see what was broken. I'll try to keep the story posted here in case it helps anyone.

It seems like 5 owners has the same B7 clutch failure within 50K miles. I'm really concerns since even with CPO, the dealer doesn't even want to cover it, instead they are asking ~ $1500 to fix their own issue. Mine is getting close to 46K now.

Please post report if you have experienced the same clutch failure issue, we should make it a recall or TSB.

No clutch shouldn't go out within 50K miles under normal daily driving... Thanks.

Does anyone know there is a recall on the 2.0T clutch?

I think AUDI has a problem with QUALITY CONTROL. I hear of so many intake cam shafts failing at low miles, and then i hear of people who have the original shaft with lots of miles(as mush as 100k); like myself. I have
45K on my 06 B7 and had the shaft checked the other day and it was perfect....so i was told. But i haven't had any problems with it. Could this be the same with the clutches?? My clutch is also original and seems to be fine; it engages perfectly. They should do a better job making sure that every part is within plus or minus 5% of perfect(100%).

Shaggy Dog?
 

It sure seems funny to me that all these noobies who just joined the forum are all posting about mechanical problems with their cars.

They have had these cars for 2-3 years, never posted, then suddenly all have the same problem.

It boggles the mind.

Of course, everything you read on the internet MUST be true...

Actually, I got my car used and picked up only a couple months ago. So maybe you shouldn't jump to conclusions....Oh, and by the way, I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering and a certificate in Hydraulics. So if I want to discuss mechanical problems I will. Given my background, I think I know a little bit about things work.

*You shouldn't judge people if you don't know anything about them or their situations. But what do I know you're a senior member so you MUST be right.

I'm a "noob" who just recently joined because... I just recently bought the car used and came hear to ask questions about problems that I have. Seems pretty ignorant to assume that everyone that just joined and are posting on the B7 platform discussion bought the car new. It boggles the mind.

wow great job man, you sure called it. Seems like we all have just gotten these cars used fairly recently and have just encountered these problems. Even if we have had these cars for 2-3 years and were jut mow posting, what's so wrong with that? Seems like the point of this thread is to see if others have experienced similar problems and to share them, am I wrong? Why don't you keep your opinions to yourself untill you actually know the facts?

In my case, I bought this car barely 5 months ago certified, pre-owned. In researching this issue (with the clutch) I came across this forum and thread. Just seems super odd that it would pass a 300 point inspection and a few months later the clutch suddenly blows out under normal driving conditions. Excuse me for reaching out to fellow audi owners for some a little more info and possibly some similar scenarios. I didn't see where this was the 'BuddyDog' forums, must have overlooked that.

Hey noobies...Many of us that have owned Audis for years all moved from AudiWorld to quattroworld months ago. You may have better luck posting there.

Clutch Woes
 

I'm at 52k miles on my 07 A4 avant 2.0T and my clutch is slipping under load while in 5th and 6th gears. If there is one thing I learned about Audi clutches, they are sensitive. My previous 02 B6 1.8T manual trans had a clutch that lasted until 40-50k as well. It's not the most expensive part to replace in these cars. You can find decent stage 2 and 3 clutch kits online anywhere from $450-$1200. Just depends on your driving style. I replaced the oem clutch in my B6 with spec stage 2 and it did great.

As for noobie's, I could care less if the same question has been asked over a hundred times. Some of us have jobs that make it difficult to be on sites like this. People here are looking for information and advice on these forums. No need for rudeness by the experienced posters. Be nice or leave I say.

That's if you can afford to wait a couple of weeks for a reply!! Traffic is awful slow on that forum........

My buddies at Consumer Reports, JD Power & Associates and True Delta have confirmed the following many times (making it 100% true): the only models model years where Audi has a problem with quality control are from 1985 to 1990 and from 1998 to 2004. Other than that, Audi's quality control is just fine. There are too many people on AudiWorld (especially from North America) who deny this or are simply clueless, judgmental, stubborn, any two out of three of these things or all three of these things. It drives me (and many other AudiWorld members in the know) stinking bonkers!

Vehicle forums are less than 1% of all vehicle owners worldwide.

More than 99% of vehicle owners worldwide do not come anywhere near these forums.

Plus, a vast majority of people worldwide who own Audi models and model years from 1984 and prior, 1991 to 1997 and especially 2005+ do NOT have these problems.

These newbies on the Audi forums (85-95% of whom are currently residents of North America) who have these problems with their 1984 and prior, 1991 to 1997 and especially 2005+ Audis are an incredibly small minority (half of them are clueless, judgmental, stubborn, any two out of three of these things or all three of these things-it is incredibly pathetic).

Just check my reply message to this topic posted today (Monday, 03-01-2010) at 10:03PM (Standard Time) regarding the truth about Audi’s quality control (then check the automotive gods at Consumer Reports, JD Power and Associates and True Delta for the truth about Audi’s dependability, durability, quality, reliability, satisfaction and service).

Do NOT go by what the newbies and other disgruntled owners of 1984 and prior, 1991 to 1997 and especially 2005+ Audis (especially if they currently live in North America) who have problems. These people either have incompetent dealers, got lemons or both of the above.

Only go by what my buddies at CR, JD P&A and TD have to say about all Audi models and model years.

unite and report this clutch malfunction before someone is hurt
 

i too have purchased a, 07 a4 m6, and in my fourth month experienced sudden clutch failure. simply in the exactly the same conditions as you and many others within our mileage. Audi corp. and audi service need to take responsibility for the cars they are selling.

What was the outcome of your situation?

Be vocal and please reply with similar situations i will be presenting my case to audi. I believe there is a safety issue at hand and Audi most be held accountable.

any update from the dealer on your clutch
 

Im in the same exact situation with my clutch. I was driving in normal conditions, i engaged the clutch pedal and it stay depressed. i was in neutral rev matching to fourth gear and then the failure. the clutch stayed depressed and i could not shift in to any gear. i am an experienced manual driver only having this car for 4 months 9,xxx miles all highway. i have never heard of a clutch going that quickly! the dealer wants me to eat the bill, i refuse!

what was the outcome of your situation?
do you have any advice with the dealer?
what was there final diagnosis?
we arent the only ones with this problem, we should report a TSB for a recall investigation....

i have a '06 a4 sline and when i accelerate in 6th,from let say 2000rpm it can go up to 400 to 500rpm higher for about 2 seconds then come back down to where it's suppose to be,but my question is why only in 6th gear?
how come it doesn't do it in the other gears? and it doesn't slip all the time,that's odd.

hey the higher the gear the less mechanical advantage the engine has to turn the wheels. If you're not familiar with it, it's similar to a lever example where the further out you hold a lever (wrench or anything) the easier it will be to turn. If your clutch is indeed slipping in 6th gear, it will get worse and then begin to slip in 5th then 4th and so on until it looses all friction and will slip all the time. Your example is more of a standard wearing out than the failures some of these other guys experienced.

In short it's a warning sign and you should get it looked at and replaced before you get stuck on the side of the road.

thanks
that what i thought,what bothers me is i just bought the car...gonna have to talk to audi about this.

Yep, jdelbigs hit it on the nose...your friction plate is wearing out and your at the beginning of the end for your clutches holding power. At 2000 rpm, your close to the maximum torque from your engine and asking the clutch to handle it all at the tallest gear (6 th) is showing the weakness. If you bought the car CPO, then Audi will probably take care of this (I had a similar issue with a CPO car I bought back in 2000 and they replaced the clutch under warranty)..if not, then I'd get an independent shop to do it and buy a decent aftermarket clutch..you'll save yourself some money that way.

Hope you get it sorted out.

Nick

[QUOTE=Dunstin;23856106]Hello everyone... This past weekend my 2006 A4 quattro's clutch locked up two blocks from my house. The auto has only 33k on it and has been driven by my fiance whom is not a street racer... The car has never had any probs and still under warranty, obviously not the clutch. The clutch never had any symptoms prior to incident, all of a sudden while driving at 30-40mph my I shifted and the clutch remained locked in a pushed positioned. Upon pullingover I noticed a stong "Burned rubber" like odor. I didn't have the ebrake on... I have done some research and have found quite a few identical stories... I received a call initially from audi service saying probably just a slave or hydraulic malfunction, but then after inspecting states the entire clutch is done, "Looks like cheese," was the exact words of service rep... I don't understand how a clutch is finished after just 33k, that is rediculous... Not sure what to do, get a second opinion? I have a local friend that could do it for probably better price, my fiance likes to do service with audi... They want over 1600 dollars for fix... Anybody have any similar scenarios or advise? Would be much appreciated. Thanks[/QUOTE

i had the same malfunction minus the rubber smell. Audi said the same thing... i want to report the defect TSB(technical service. bulletin). i believe there is a manufacture responsibility to correct this issue before someone gets hurt. and the "it looks like swiss cheese" is exactly what they said to me. there are many other cases like ours, we should do somthing about it

A friend of mine has a bought from new 2005 A4Q 2.0l 6 speed that only has 21,000 actual miles when the clutch failed completely just as in this posting.
Audi said no warranty and wanted about $3000.00 to replace the clutch and dual mass flywheel. We have replaced the clutch and flywheel with Luk
aftermarket parts that are almost the same as the failed OEM parts. The failed clutch part was only the pressure plate side of the clutch plate that broke into four large pieces with no slipping or burning --just failed at the rivet holes. My question is this: Has anyone had a second clutch failure using OEM or using a Luk aftermarket clutch and dual mass flywheel assembly?
If I had a choice to do this repair again I think I would use something other than the OEM or LUK original design components.

I have an 2007 a4 2,0T. I did some mods to it and now have about 300HP and torque. I had to change my OEM clutch because it couldn't hold the power and would slip because of the high torque. I installed a stage 2 AWE clutch and light flywheel. This clutch has the same or even lighter clutch pedal feel. So don't think its a stage 2 and u will get a had clutch pedal feel. I beat my car more than I'm supposed to now loll. Ever since than my clutch and flywheel never had a problem. I had an axel brake and a transmission output shaft brake. That means the clutch is doing its job and giving me all the power out the engine :). If I was u, ill buy the clutch and light flywheel from awe. its better to chance both at once. If u want u could only change the clutch. The awe clutch fits ur OEM flywheel. Just to let u know, if u also install the light flywheel, u will hear this vibration coming from the engine if ur car is under-reved. That's because ur OEM flywheel absorbed the vibrations because it was a lot heavier. High performance flywheels don't dampen vibrations so u get all the power out ur engine. Here is the site.

http://www.awe-tuning.com/pages/shared/part_detail.cfm?PMaI=1&PMoI=35&PEI=25&PP=b7_a4_20t _drivetrain.cfm&PPT=Drivetrain&IL=B7ClutchKit

I believe the failure of the clutch disc friction surface was caused by
seizure of the original clutch slave cylinder. The clutch slave cylinder broke and leaked last night while we were static testing the clutch and dual mass flywheel before finishing the up the rest of the parts installation. Also a Mini Cooper S in my friend's BMW shop had a similar but not identical failure with a plastic clutch slave cylinder seizure.

Were you testing the slave before you had the clutch installed?

If you allow the slave to over extend it will pop the seal on the end of the slave body.

If he slave cylinder pops the result is not being able to change gears since the clutch will not disengage.

A great clutch for the A4 2.0t is the Clutch Master kit, it uses the exact same clutch kit used for the CM S4 2.7t clutch kit and the 240mm clutch kit for the A4 1.8t.

The 2005 A4Q 2.0l turbo 6MTX is back on the road with 23,000 actual miles. I am sure the clutch disc failure was cause by a defective slave cylinder seizing and then releasing causing an effect similar to an extreme drop clutch start. When I checked ETKA and the local Audi dealership there were at least four clutch slave cylinder design changes and part number changes from the original defective slave to the new one installed last week.
Also, the static pre-completion test was done properly with the the slave and MTX installed in the A4Q.

Sudden Clutch Failure
 

Did anyone keep the clutch they replaced?
I had identical experiences as many of you. and i my research i found that, the malfunction we call SUDDEN CLUTCH FAILURE occurs within range of 33k-40k miles. On other forums as well as this one people are sharing the same situations. MOTIVATE AUDI TO DO THE RIGHT THING START A TSB AND WE CAN GET REFUNDS FOR DEFECTIVE PARTS

I saved the clutch disc, pressure plate, dual mass flywheel and failed slave cylinder. The dual mass flywheel did not need to be actually be changed but to maintain the warranty on the new LUK clutch set the flywheel was replaced with a list price of $770.00 and a net price to my friend's shop of $440.00. We also got good on pulling the new Audi 02X 6 speed MTX as we did it three times!

Also, this Audi A4Q clutch failure extends your mileage range to only 23,000 actual miles on the original owner car.