There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters.
We try to boil down it to the most important bits and pieces -- the recalls, service bulletins, and lawsuits that can help you solve you car problems. Interested in getting these quick story bits as an email? Signup over at CarComplaints.com.
Two words I'm tired of typing and you're tired of hearing about. Well, let's hold hands and work on our breathing exercises, because Audi has recalled yet another 33,400 vehicles with Takata airbags. This recall focuses on the front passenger-side airbag inflators.
There's a full list of which Audi vehicles are involved on CarComplaints.com.…
While traveling in Florida, VW executive Oliver Schmidt was arrested and charged for his alleged role in the diesel emissions scandal. From CarComplaints.com:
"Schmidt has already appeared before a U.S. District Court in Miami but didn't enter a plea. He was ordered held for a hearing scheduled for Thursday, January 12, in front of Judge William C. Turnoff."
Mr. Schmidt was charged with conspiracy, wire fraud, and violations of the U.S. Clean Air Act.…
These are the so-called "generation 3" diesels and are all from the 2015 model year. The list includes the 2015 Audi A3.
"Officials with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) say the approved emissions modifications will reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by 80 to 90 percent."…
When the ABS is activated it can disable the ESC. That's a fight where no-one wins.
"Volkswagen engineers found a fault inside the anti-lock brake system control module that can cause the module to fail whenever the electronic stability control or ABS system activates. A driver will notice warning lights for the brakes, the anti-lock braking system and the electronic stability control system.…
There's been so much talk about VW's massive diesel cover-up that it sure would be nice to finish out the year without hearing the words "defeat" or "device" again.
But it ain't gonna happen.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) – the same environmental agency that is putting VW through the ringer right now – has reportedly discovered "defeat devices" in hundreds of thousands of Audi vehicles. Swell.…
, which means owners of 2-liter diesel Volkswagen and Audi vehicles are one step closer to the end of this mess.
"Judge Charles Breyer already gave preliminary approval to the $15 billion settlement that will see about $10 billion go to U.S. car owners and about $5 billion to cover environmental damages. Now the judge says he is inclined to finalize the settlement terms by October 25, 2016, at least for the most part."…
In other words, the company is in financial trouble and that means some belt tightening needs to happen.…
"The problem occurred during manufacturing when seal rings inside the suction pumps were assembled with too much force, damaging the seals that could then allow fuel to leak into the evaporative emissions systems. VW says a driver may notice problems when putting gas in the vehicle, namely fuel nozzles that stop while refueling or fuel that flows back out of the car."…
Not much was done about it, maybe just a thank you for your concern and some pre-canned response about how we value you as a customer, yadda yadda. But then...
"The automaker found small cracks in the fuel pump flanges but couldn't determine the root cause, but engineers found that adding butyl rubber bands fixed the problem."…
"Audi saw an increase in warranty claims related to leaking fuel hoses and the automaker opened an investigation, finding the hoses showed an abnormal aging due to the porous structures of the hoses. Engineers at first couldn't duplicate the problem, but then they determined hose damage mostly occurs by restarting the engine."…