NateS5

I was told my 2012 Prestige S5 w/ titanium package would come with piano black inlays. I have this in email. I did European Delivery and when I picked up the car, it had aluminum inlays. My car has pearl silver leather and this is not acceptable.

Audi contacted my dealership (Barrier Audi in Bellevue/Seattle, WA) about the issue. The dealer said they would look into it. 90 days went by and I contacted them a few times, but they had no new info. My car is now at the dealership and they say they can only get the center console in black.

I know the door and rear armrests can be piano black. Does anyone have the part numbers? Are the pieces from the RS5?

How can I escalate this to Audi to put more pressure on the dealer to do the right thing? I don't think I will pick up the car until they make it right.

cha777

I'm not sure that I have the whole story here. Were you told that Piano black is what is standard with the titanium package (I don't know....that's why I'm asking) or did you pay extra for it? Also, with all the problems with the titanium package availability, has it ever been in print what the package includes? Finally, I'm confused about the 90 days. When did you pick-up the car and when did you take re-delivery in the US? Or are you currently refusing delivery? At what point did you contact Audi?

The biggest problem here is that you accepted the car with the aluminum inlays in Germany. Since you presumably signed the papers and the car ended-up over here, I think that the issue is pretty much dead. I would never have done that. I know what an ED entails; I picked my BMW from BMW Welt. I would have refused delivery, immediately contacted Audi European Delivery Department as well as the ED Manager at Barrier. I would have insisted that delivery of the vehicle not take place until everything was made right (either new inlays, new car, or compensation). This would have screwed-up your vacation, but it is one of the risks of European Delivery.

Having closely followed the ED forum on bimmerfest for over 5 years now, I know that people in this situation get VERY good treatment from BMW and in cases where BMW really screwed-up, a new car built to the correct specs arrives at the dealership in the same time that it would have taken to take re-delivery of your own vehicle. With no really good Audi ED forum out there, I'm not sure how they handle their screw-ups, but I'm sure that you're not the first person in this situation.

Who sent you the email? Your best bet at this point is to show Audi USA the email and ask for a refund for the cost of the titanium package as well as complimentary Audi Care for your trouble.

Best of luck, would love to hear the outcome.

uroplatus

The interior trim (inlays) are replaceable.
So if you want piano black trim (inlays), you can buy/order them, or have the dealer order them, and have them installed in your car.

Alternatively, oCarbon.com can produce carbon fiber trim pieces for you.

Also, some of the S4 folks have painted their interior aluminum trim black. Thats something that could be done for you as well. It would require removal of the trim, and reinstallation, but it could be done in a couple days.

We all sympathize with your situation, but of all the things to not go right in connection with a special order car, at least this one is easily fixable.

NateS5

Here are exact quotes from the sales guy at my dealer:

I paid extra for the titanium package but not specifically for the piano black, as I was told it would come as part of the titanium package. Instead I got all aluminum, even the center console. I don't know what the titanium package is actually supposed to include.

Sorry, the 90 days are what it took to get from Europe to the dealer in the US. I have not picked up the car in the US yet, though it is now ready. I want to sort out the trim first.

At the Audi Forum in Europe I expressed my unhappiness with the trim problem and they contacted my dealer right there. They said they couldn't fix it because the piano black was not on the list of stuff that will be installed at the factory. They said the dealer would have to take care of it.

True that I accepted the car as is, but I didn't want to disrupt my very carefully planned trip. Trim is something I can purchase myself if I have to. However, while I accepted the car, I was also told in writing my ~$70k car would come with specific trim. IMO this is enough that the dealer should compensate for their mistake by at least installing the piano black console trim, and possibly the side trims or at least installing them for me if I purchase them myself (for ~$950!).

I have only dealt with the dealer so far. I have asked them this:

I await their response, which has been delayed, probably due to Christmas. If I need to escalate this to Audi USA or anyone else, what is the best way to do this?

That is true, it is not the worst that could have happened with ED. Still, the trim pieces cost ~$375 for the console and ~$950 for the doors and rear. Installation is probably 4-5 hours. That is quite a lot to spend on something I was told would come on the car.

I am additionally unhappy that the dealer had 3 months while the car was shipped from Europe to be prepared to handle this problem, but did nothing until the car arrived in the US. I emailed them multiple times during the 3 months and they said they are working on it. I expect they wanted me to rush in and pick up the car without them having to deal with it having the wrong trim. Well, this isn't going to happen, it just makes me further annoyed.

NateS5

The dealer has agreed to reimburse for up to $1500 so I can have the trim I want. I think this is pretty reasonable. This is about what the piano black trim costs from Europrice (all pieces except the RS5 dash trim). The dealer wanted another $800 + tax for installation, so I'll be installing the pieces myself. Kudos to Barrier Audi in Seattle for making this right! I do wish they had not made me wait 3 months to find out, but I'm just glad in the end I'll have what I want.

Thanks to you guys for listening!

cha777

Hey Nate....good to hear. Glad the dealership made it all right!