boogs

part free of charge? I STFA and read the FAQ, and know that it's likely to fail, but just wondering how many people have actually gotten it covered, especially out of warranty.


FWIW, it is my father's instrument cluster in his 2001 TTR225. He got in the car after being away on business and the cluster failed as soon as he got in the car. Everything else worked except for the cluster, which remained non-functional (no lights, no movement, nothing) for the duration of the drive (30+ mins)

NOLA TT

Good luck... mine is about to fail -- taking in all the info.

voughtt

Audi noted in the exception that the failure was not an acknowledgment of a faulty part or design, but that the replacement was for customer satisfaction only.

As a former customer and executive relations hotshot for a large computer company, I can tell you unequivocally that language like Audi's is legal-ese for "we're holding back the flood as long as we can by not admitting that this part will fail in most pre-2003 cars". This helps the company avoid most timid customer who won't escalate or insist. I hoped to avoid pushback altogether by getting the government involved over the safety ramifications of a failed instrument cluster. That's why it's so important to CC the NHTSA when you send your letter.

FWIW, from my anecdotal data gathering, it seems most cluster failures happen on 2000-mid 2002 cars. That doesn't mean yours won't fail if you're out of that range, but the vast majority of the problems are on early TTs.<ul><li><a href="http://web.mac.com/vought/iWeb/Doug's%20Web%20Site/TT%20Cluster%20Complaints.html">Customizable TT Complaint Letters</a></li></ul>

TCU_TT

Mine has been acting a little strange. It has come up red then fade to regular a few times not often though. Also it has had a black line across it once. Are these sign of failures?

voughtt

Here are the most common signs of a failing cluster. Not all failures need be present, and some failures may be intermittent:

-Multi-function display (MFD) shows missing lines. (this is the LCD panel in the middle of the display) This failure seems to be most common and requires replacement of the entire ($700+) cluster - for a $6.00 part.
-Temp and Fuel gauge pegged. Check the FAQ for a relatively easy fix from the always-versatile and informed Jeff Bipes.
-"Jumpy" Tach and Speedometer needles.

All three failures could be considered a safety risk, hence the TT Cluster Complaint Letter's call for review by the NHTSA. Although Audi does not acknowledge it, the sheer number of failures, along with Audi UK's willingness to cover the failures after a BBC investigative report point to culpability on the part of the company.

If you get a "no", keep pushing, and contact a local media outlet for help, if possible. This is a design problem, and an expensive, possibly unsafe one.

MCPaudiTT - DEFCON 1

some success recently. You can also try BBA for repairing yours, if it is the movements that are bad (they can NOT repair faulty LED screens).

boogs

almost as if it was unplugged in the back. He took it over to the dealer and they said "the part is bad, but since you are out of warranty, it's going to cost you $1300 to fix"

My father asked the tech on the phone if the part was a common failure. Tech said "It's very rare, but it does happen" (this is before i searched AW for info)


If it happens to get to the point where AoA wont cover it under warranty, is there any place outside of the dealer we could get a replacement part? I usually do my own work on my car, and replacing an instrument cluster doesn't seem too difficult.

MCPaudiTT - DEFCON 1

one-time only chance, that only the dealer has the tool to do. If you change parts within you cluster, you can DIY, but if you change the cluster, it is a one-stop (and price) option...

"Very rare failure" my @ss, but that's the "party line". Check out the link below to see how "rare" it is... (give it time to download).<ul><li><a href="http://www.wak-tt.com/ttdashpod/ttdashpod.wmv">http://www.wak-tt.com/ttdashpod/ttdashpod.wmv</a</li></ul>

boogs

so it almost works like the immobilizer, in that not even an independent mechanic could do it?


damn. I've already shown him the pre-drafted letter that voughtt has typed for everyone, and he plans on fighting it till the end....I was just wondering if there was anything that could be done if at the end, AoA said no.


Thanks for the info guys....ill let you know what happens.

voughtt

It's right there in the letter - a thread on AW with MANY failed clusters.

Again, Audi in the UK already acknowledged that this _IS_ a common problem and is offering

Unless Audi wants to pretend that the US part and the UK part (often referred to as the 'dashpod' over there) are somehow completely different but fail in the same ways, then they're making no sense.

Call and write your state Attorney General if Audi says no at first. Reference your first case with them and cite all the documentation of failures all over the Internet - as well as the BBC report that got Audi to move on the UK cluster issues.