srs

AoA Customer Relations is very responsive to complaints about the waterpump failure. They want to give you something to make you forget the inconvenience - like a car payment or AudiCare.

(800)822-2834

DrVolkl

Mine was dead around 8k miles.

moops

Mine was replaced electively.

pharmersteve

No need to start a new thread, may as well post my experience in here...
MY2010, build date Aug 2009, water pump failure at 12,500 miles

I guess mine lasted a bit longer than most others but I knew it was inevitable.

Tow truck was there in less than a half hour on a saturday evening, car was taken to my local dealer where I purchased the car on saturday night after the service dept was closed, car was taken into the garage before I got to the dealer Monday morning at 830am and was fixed before 4pm

So for what could have been a horrible experience was taken care of rather quickly so I won't complain about that.

My dealers service manager told me there was a service bulletin stating that every water pump replacement gets a free detail inside and out including under the hood and a tank of gas so I gladly took all that

rktskicar

Mine went out at 9.9K, 1.5 months from today. Call AOA if they haven't called you as you can get some extra stuff for your suffering. Standard offer is to give you Audicare. I got the equivalent of Audicare in cash, as I already had Audicare.

Bruce

HikerGuy

Mine leaked out a few days ago on Fri nite (1/28/2011). Had Audi Assist tow it to local dealership Sat morning, even though Service Dept. was closed. Went to Dealer Mon morning. After I asked, they freely admitted it was a known issue. After some discussion, I was offered $50 worth of fuel and free Detail. Was also told that AOA would extend the powertrain warranty to 5 years/100,000 miles. Also AOA would offer me free AudiCare, but since I already have it, they'd give it to me at no charge if I bought another Audi, (but I'm going to ask for a refund instead). Was anyone offered anything else?

(Image below is from leaning over engine drive belts and looking straight down towards ground - the coolant pooled-up on a bottom ledge, in front of the radiator)

Additionally - A few days before coolant leaked out, I significantly lost Power Steering when driving slow, (e.g. turning into parking space or out of driveway). Also noticed momentary loss of power (several times) when driving-off from a stop with just a little extra throttle, (e.g. when turning left to clear on-coming traffic). Anyone else experience this?

Am 1st time Audi owner and truly enjoy the S4 driving experience - is this the worst I can expect or are there other known issues?

2010 S4, Prestige package, Drive Select, Silk Nappa Leather, Driver assist, Carbon inlays, Brilliant black exterior, Black interior

Best Regards,
HikerGuy

Garooo

Mine was done at just over 3,000 miles. Happened a few weeks ago. Luckily the car was home. Had to wait 3 hours for Audi Roadside Assistance to come with a tow though...I guess that's what I get for living in NY. The dealership replaced the wp by the next day.

thejackal

Steve,

Thanks for posting that, it is very helpful! How would you recommend I ask AoA for AudiCare, I have not bought it but it would be helpful?

Mine went at 21,000 miles after taking my car up into the hills for a ski trip recently. The pump went after sitting in the cold all day long, at 7:30 on a Sunday night, holiday weekend, when it was just me and my young child in the car. Tow truck took 2 hours to arrive, and we were stuck in a hotel near the dealer until the next afternoon.

QUESTION: The dealer told me that what happened to me fit the pattern they have seen, which is that the water pump blows after getting into the cold. My car has probably never spent a long time below 32 degrees, which was why I thought it made perfect sense to go when it did. It also upset me, as he said it was a known problem, but it seems that Audi is not making enough alumunium housed water pumps to more proactively get them changed out. Just wondering if others had them blow related to cold weather or not.

Thanks again for your tip and any advice on talking with AoA!

srs

I explained that I was unhappy because of the way they "stonewalled" the problem, and while I like driving Audi products (the S4 is my second Audi), if they were going to treat customers like this, I would reconsider buying another. Max (one of 4 customer relations staff) understood, apoligized and asked if they could "make it right" - and that's when specific actions were discussed. In my case, I couldn't use a payment (it's paid for) and I had just ordered AudiCare with my credit card. So I asked them to get the dealer to credit my card for the charge, as it was still an outstanding charge (not paid for yet). They couldn't do that, but customer relsations will issue me a check for the AudiCare cost.

In my case, they also flatbedded the car both ways when I complained that the nearest dealer was 220 miles away. That cost them an extra $500 to return it to me. That also suggests they are very sensitive about this issue and are willing to do a lot for their customers who are inconvenienced by this issue.

HTH

MalSer

Low coolant warning today by no other problems (no overheating, etc...). Stopped immediately & checked it, yep, very low & could smell coolant. Took it to Momentum Audi & they confirmed my suspicions that it was the water pump (plus mentioned thermostat) and insisted that they keep & fix it. They couldn't have been nicer, in & out with loaner at 3:30 PM on a Saturday & their service department closes at 4:00. 11,068 miles on 2010 S4 in Houston, TX and we just got hit by 28-30 deg F cold front. A girl & her dad were standing in the service area, her Q5 had the same warning light come on & it sounded like it was the same issue. Drove home in B7 A4 and instantly missed my S4. Wow, what a difference! Oh well, hopefully I'll get it back early next week & that will make me appreciate it that much more!

Edit: Picked it up Monday afternoon. Curious to see what AoA has to say about the issue.