kelisko

They are now having to sneak around an appropriate recall, launching a campaign to have the BSGs, sometimes with additional hardware, replaced on thousands of vehicles at their cost and their reputation is tarnished. I guess they missed the definition of "cost-effective". This is another fiasco.

angrypengu

Mercedes Benz has their 48V lithium ion batteries failing. I'd much rather a BSG fail, but I must admit I did SMH reading the last few comments in this thread.

As a long term Audi owner, I am *shocked* VAG is even proactively replacing BSGs. Audi usually (and other OEMs) lets existing customers ride out issues. E.g. B7 flat tappet cam followers, oil starvation issues in the D4, etc. I'm grateful to Audi for fixing BSGs proactively. The Q8 subforum always intrigues me for all the wrong reasons (sorry). Audi did not legally have to do this is my take on it (which is why it's not a recall) but they chose to anyway.

smileman83

if we were talking honda or Kia or something like that, I would maybe agree about them.not having to do something. This Brand is supposed to be high end high tech, which carries an expectation of.expensive repairs on normal items ( brakes, etc), bug when it's been a defective part as shown by early failures, admit the production error and move on. I have a '19 Q8 and you would think we would have gotten a notice already. But no.

Having said that, I don't think honda or kia would have dealt with it this way, then probably would have been more proactive.

But it's like a lot of things today. If you are a believer, you'll justify anything. As a 2nd audi owner, this will probably be the last one. It's just a very uncomfortable feeling to take a trip in.

kelisko

This extract from the German paper Manager Magazin by Michael Freitag, dated January 22, shared here by a member, makes me think otherwise. "Vitesco" is the BSG manufacturer. The original article in German is here.

EXTRACT:

Car manufacturer Audi and supplier Vitesco have been arguing for months about a part called a belt starter generator. Who is responsible for the damage, who has to pay for the replacement, when will Vitesco deliver enough? Now the situation is escalating. Billions of euros could be at stake.

Audi has been using the parts supplied by Vitesco in six- and eight-cylinder engines since 2018; The discord began with models with these drives having more and more misfires. There is talk of a good 1,000 claims per week at Audi, sometimes a few more, sometimes less. In any case, for the USA, Audi boss Gernot Döllner and his people have decided on a service campaign, it should start shortly: customers can take their cars to the workshop they trust and the belt starter generators will be replaced free of charge. This is not a recall, that's what the few people at Audi who talk about the topic emphasize.

The original problem has been found. Vitesco, however, assumes that Audi's building regulations are to blame. The way Audi ordered, the parts simply couldn't last indefinitely. Audi sees it differently. Vitesco is responsible...

angrypengu

Hard disagree. Honda, Kia, Mercedes, Audi, are *all* mass produced cars. The Q8 isn't even a flagship car, and yet here Audi is replacing it on every single 48V subsystem with this BSG PN. eg. A6, A7, A8, Q7, Q8, etc.

I might agree with you if this was Rolls Royce but as an owner of one let me tell you it doesn't happen to RR, either. And no, I don't own the flagship Phantom, either.

These are cars, not airplanes, for one. People don't die as a result of BSGs failing. Driving is a privilege, not a right, and is far, safety wise, from aviation. If there was truly a safety/legal issue here then this would have been a flat out recall. This isn't, for a reason.

To be fair, nothing lasts indefinitely

kelisko

This is very incorrect.

This is very true, however with that sentence, I think they mean that the part was not designed to last long enough.

smileman83

I was more referring to how audi handled it ,nit quality of construction.

dwboston

Ever owned a Honda or Acura? They've dragged their feet on plenty of re-callable issues, including transmissions disintegrating in the early-mid 2000's, and carbon fiber driveshafts failing on the first few model years of the SH AWD Acura RL. Automakers resist recalls, it's in their nature. Audi didn't cover itself in glory with the turbo failures on the TT V8 engines, but ultimately did the belated (and minimal) right thing.

smileman83

Perhaps youre right and all maufacturers have faults, but for the amount of over engineering we are paying for, I still beleive this was and is being handled poorly. The audi loyalist will always think it was okay, but I am trying to be objective as possible. Yes I have owned many hondas etc and have never a feeling oif discomfort when driving a car waiting for the other shoe to drop. No one is perfect just hoping they can expedite this and stop the finger pointing with their supplier. Ultimately the car maker is where the buck stops. Replace them and then have your fight with Vitesco. When you sue your surgeon and the medical part was bad, you dont sue the part supplier. The buck stops with Audi.

angrypengu

You're right. The buck stops with Audi and they're replacing the BSG free of charge. I don't get what your beef is about. I've owned plenty of German cars with potentially catastrophic failures and they usually just ignore it. I can rip a new one into Mercedes Benz and their subframes rusting out causing serious structural issues. A class action lawsuit was what it took to get them to 'fix' it.

Audi *did* do the right thing but you're still choosing to die on the hill that they're somehow bad. The entitlement is one thing, but in this case Audi did the right thing and you're still pissed?