Smith837

Hi all, I just purchased a new 2021 S4 Prestige. The dealer was out of state, but dropped off the vehicle to my home at night. During the next day, I discovered the following object (pic below) jammed between the plastic door sill and the carpeting. I pulled the object out (which took a little force), and after, noticed that the door sill itself is now a bit misshapen from having the object caught in there (other pics below showing the "bulge" in the panel). The object is about 1/16" of an inch thick and hard plastic.

Does anyone recognize this object or know how it might have gotten jammed in there? Could this have happened at the factory? Hard to believe this would not have been caught prior to delivery of the vehicle. Not sure what can be done, if anything, to correct the bend in the panel. Or whether any attempt at correction (or panel replacement) would be worth it, as it might create more problems than it solves.

Appreciate any input! Looking forward to being back at AudiWorld now that I'm back in an Audi!

UPDATE (MYSTERY HALF SOLVED): My dealer told me that the plastic piece was left over from unwrapping. Apparently, the pieces are used in such a way to secure the cover/wrapping to the car for transport. What I still don't understand is how/why this particular sill panel got bent/warped. The other sills in the car look great (i.e., perfectly straight, creating a tight seam with the carper underneath). In contrast, the driver sill looks like someone or something pulled on it with force. I didn't get an answer from the dealer on that, or why the piece was left in there, since it's very presence appeared to be responsible for creating the bulge in the plastic. How was I supposed to not notice this with the plastic piece stuck in there? So if anyone's seen this in their car, or has an idea of what happened, I'd love to know. Not sure it's worth making a stink about it with Audi. Relatively small cosmetic issue in the scheme of things, but on a new car it bugs me. It's a bit more noticeable in person than in the pics.

PS, dealer suggested I see if my local service department could do something about the sill, like maybe a "fastener came loose and needs to be reattached". I could be wrong, but that didn't sound right. It looks more like plain 'ol bent plastic to me.

Plastic object found jammed under door sill panel – with string threaded through it:


Prior to removal, the object was caught between the plastic panel and carpeting, protruding down ~ 5/8" (note the shadow, showing where the panel is bent):


Panel from above showing the "bulge" created by the plastic object (bulge begins 2 inches above the corner of the floor mat):