OUCH: Audi 3.0T V6 Engine Failure Leads to $37,000 Dealer Quote
AudiWorld member experiencing shaking issues gets a $37,000 repair bill after the dealership finds a serious engine issue with a Q7 3.0T V6.
It’s no secret that the parts and repairs for Audis can get pricey as they age. However, one (now ex) Audi owner experienced one of the most lofty repair quotes we’ve seen outside of replacing the engine in a V10 R8. AudiWorld member UpsetAudiOwner apparently joined this forum (longtime lurker, first-time poster?) to tell the story of his wife’s 2017 Audi Q7 3.0T.
My wife’s 2017 Q7 got a drive error and started to shake. Granted she’s been driving the heck out of the car and put 115k miles on it. So of course it’s out of warranty. We took it to our trusted mechanic who said that cylinder 1 is shot and the engine will need to be rebuilt. My wife called Audi USA and they encouraged us to take it to the dealer. They said that sometimes Audi USA would be willing to help fix it.
The Audi dealership’s diagnostic process cost the Q7 owners $189 and the poster explains the dealer wanted another $400 to continue the diagnostic investigation. They declined, however, and “without any calls or explanations,” the dealership sent a repair estimate that makes $589 look wildly affordable.
A Failed Exhaust Valve Cost Enough to Buy Another Q7
Ultimately, much like the “trusted mechanic”, the Audi dealership also found a cylinder 1 misfire and low compression. Upon further investigation, the mechanics noted that a chunk of a cylinder 1 exhaust valve was missing. As one might expect, the piece of the valve made its way into the cylinder and caused some damage, scoring the cylinder walls.
Instead of a rebuild, the dealership recommended replacing the engine entirely at a cost of $33,294.31 for the new engine assembly, including spark plugs, belts, gaskets, etc. In total with the recommended tire and splash guard replacement, the repair estimate came in at an eye-watering $37,249.93, which you can see above via the .pdf UpsetAudiOwner posted for public viewing.
Setting aside the fact that that’s enough money to buy not one, but two more 2017 Q7 models, there may be a more prevalent problem at hand. Perusing through the AudiWorld forums finds a handful of threads complaining about excessive oil consumption with this era of the supercharged 3.0T V6 engine. In the thread of topic, AudiWorld user gbgastowers shared that their engine, which we’ve pictured throughout this article, pulled the same stunt at just 120,000 miles. That user took matters into their own hands, though, and replaced the valve themself.
All’s Well That Ends Well?
As for UpsetAudiOwner, this massive estimate, along with a follow-up call with the “smug” dealership, led him and his wife to disavow the Audi brand entirely along with a local dealership group. They then allegedly sold the Q7 to CarMax, who “bought the car with no questions asked and wrote us a check on the spot, so we still have faith that not all car companies are horrible.” AudiWorld members asked if UpsetAudiOwner disclosed the Q7’s engine problems during said CarMax sale. But at this time, there has been no response.
(NOTE: if you ever see a 2017 Audi Q7, VIN WA1LAAF70HD013365, for sale, you might want to check cylinder 1 before buying it).
3.0T V6 Owners Tread Lightly?
If you have an Audi model equipped with the supercharged 3.0L V6 engine, you may want to keep a close eye on it if you’re approaching the 100,000+ miles mark. Having a trustworthy mechanic perform a compression test and leak-down test is not a bad idea. If your engine does have a chipped exhaust valve, there’s a chance it can be repaired without replacing the engine so long as it hasn’t had a chance to do any damage to the cylinder walls. Really, though, that’s a best-case scenario.
Are these just isolated incidents or the first signs of a larger issue for 3.0T V6 Audis? We’re not sure, but we’ll keep our eyes peeled for more news on the subject.
Photos: gbgastowers & UpsetAudiOwner
