billmendenhall

For the last year, I have had a continual problem with my Audi. I documented the issue with a long, detailed letter to Audi. I have discussed it at great length with several of Audi of America's client "advocates". It appears they are more of an advocate for Audi than their customers. I have tried to appeal to supervisors to no avail. In each discussion with Audi's "advocate", none of them can tell me what I am requesting, just that they are not responsible. It appears that whatever decision is made by a lowly "advocate" is backed up through the chain, even though supervisors are not even aware of my request.

To my further irritation, I received a form letter from an Audi Regional Coordinator named Zakiya Watt. When I tried to call Ms. Watt, she was not available. When I asked what region she covered, Audi would not tell me. I got the distinct feeling there was no Ms. Watt - one of those fictitious people to direct complaints to, but are never around to respond.

In each discussion, Audi has maintained it is not their problem and suggest I talk to the dealer. The dealer says talk to Audi.

The issue revolves around a failing electronic control module (ECM). The dealer can't tell me if it failing, but will replace it at my cost, even though they admit it may not cure the intermittent emission dashboard light. The cost would be about a $1,000. AS I have told Audi, I would pay for an ECM if that is required, but I certainly don't want to pay for a new one if that is not the source of the problem. Nor, does the dealer want to pay for one to find out it is not the problem. I can see their point.

I have asked if Audi could temporarily supply the dealer with a used/rebuilt one that could be used to determine if the ECM is at fault. To me this is a very low cost solution to the issue. I'm sure Audi must have an old ECM floating around that could be used for a quick test. I have not asked that Audi replace the ECM at their cost, only to temporarily provide the dealer with an old ECM so that it can be used as a diagnosing tool. This seems reasonable to me.

It seems to me that for less than $50 Audi could supply a used ECM to the dealer as part of good will and customer care and satisfaction. Once the dealer was done with the unit, they could return it to Audi. However, apparently this is too much for Audi. As a continual owner of Audis since 1987, I am now taking the position that if I can't get some modicum of satisfaction from Audi, I will never own another one.

In a final attempt to get around Audi's Client Relation's stonewalling, does anyone have a direct phone number to someone in Audi that has the power or ambition to overturn an "advocate's" determination that my request is unreasonable? Any thoughts, comments, or phone numbers would be appreciated.

stgardner

I don't know what's involved in swapping the ECM, but if you state the year, model, engine, transmission, and your location, perhaps, there is an AWmember that could let you "borrow" theirs.

arabamA4

I would try contacting Germany. Bad Luck

Deerslayer

It is considered bad business in the service industry to diagnose a problem and expect the customer to pay even if it's not fixed (I'm assuming this was their diagnosis, not yours). If they say the ECM is bad, they should come up with one, and remove it if it doesn't fix the problem. It's not unreasonable for them to charge labor for this however.
If they won't agree to this, or if they cannot diagnose the problem, I wouldn't let them work on the car.