Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING - HEADLIGHTS | |||||
| 20056243 | 02/26/2007 | 10022141 | Headlight aiming, using hella universal beamsetter. *kb | 07/06/2007 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | |||
| 11/10/2010 | 48500 | 1 | |
| The xenon headlights in my s4 go out as the car is in motion. the light may flicker. the headlight may dip. the light shuts off and i have to stop the car and shut off the lights and then turn them back on for the light to reignite. the bulb and control unit was replaced under warranty. now two years later the same thing is happening. it seems to be a very common problem with audi's (based on forum discussion). *tr | |||
| 11/10/2010 | 48500 | ||
| The xenon headlights in my s4 go out as the car is in motion. the light may flicker. the headlight may dip. the light shuts off and i have to stop the car and shut off the lights and then turn them back on for the light to reignite. the bulb and control unit was replaced under warranty. now two years later the same thing is happening. it seems to be a very common problem with audi's (based on forum discussion). | |||
| 11/02/2009 | 60438 | 1 | |
| My car is a 2005.5 audi s4 with bi-xenon hid headlights. i almost always get a dipped headlight error whenever i turn on the headlights. it occurs more often on the driver's side headlight. this will randomly happen but i have noticed that it occurs more frequently right after the headlights are switched on. it will also happen when the road is either on an incline or decline, or really when the road is not flat. the dipped headlight error is characterized by a flickering, then a dimming, then ultimately, the light turns off. the only way to re-ignite the light is to completely turn off the light switch then turn it back on again. although the affected headlight will come on, it will eventually dip again. i feel this is a serious safety concern both to me as a motorist, to other motorists, and more importantly, to pedestrians. this will happen at any speed - both on the highway or on residential streets. aside from the obvious safety issue with the headlight/s completely shutting down, the preceding flickering can also pose a serious public safety hazard as it may confuse oncoming vehicle and pedestrian traffic. i have tried unsuccessfully to have this repaired under warranty from audi many times. and i was always told that they could not replicate the problem even as it occurs as soon as i drive away. i searched the internet and found many similar problems with other audi a4/s4 owners. i feel this is cause for audi to rectify this problem at their expense with the obvious safety reasons foremost in mind and with the prevalent problem which could suggest a manufacturer problem. *tr | |||
| 11/02/2009 | 60438 | ||
| My car is a 2005.5 audi s4 with bi-xenon hid headlights. i almost always get a dipped headlight error whenever i turn on the headlights. it occurs more often on the driver's side headlight. this will randomly happen but i have noticed that it occurs more frequently right after the headlights are switched on. it will also happen when the road is either on an incline or decline, or really when the road is not flat. the dipped headlight error is characterized by a flickering, then a dimming, then ultimately, the light turns off. the only way to re-ignite the light is to completely turn off the light switch then turn it back on again. although the affected headlight will come on, it will eventually dip again. i feel this is a serious safety concern both to me as a motorist, to other motorists, and more importantly, to pedestrians. this will happen at any speed - both on the highway or on residential streets. aside from the obvious safety issue with the headlight/s completely shutting down, the preceeding flickering can also pose a serious public safety hazard as it may confuse oncoming vehicle and pedestrian traffic. i have tried unsuccessfully to have this repaired under warranty from audi many times. and i was always told that they could not replicate the problem even as it occurs as soon as i drive away. i searched the internet and found many similar problems with other audi a4/s4 owners. i feel this is cause for audi to rectify this problem at their expense with the obvious safety reasons foremost in mind and with the prevalent problem which could suggest a manufacturer problem. | |||
| 01/11/2012 | |||
| Headlights dip and go completely dark. turned off and after a short time period headlight comes back on. | |||
| 03/10/2011 | 110000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2005 audi s4. while driving at approximately 10 mph the contact noticed the headlights began to flicker and suddenly shut off. the contact stopped the vehicle and shut the engine off. after restarting the vehicle the headlights functioned properly. the failure occurs intermittently and occurs while parked and at different speeds. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. the mechanic was unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 110,000. ds | |||
| 07/12/2011 | 40000 | ||
| Hello - i have an audi 2005.5 audi s4 avant that the headlights continue to dip and go out while driving. good thing both it hasn't happened to both at the same time. i'm able to turn off and turn on an generally they will come back on, other times not. | |||
| 02/26/2011 | 40000 | ||
| Headlights flicker and shut down. this occurs mostly under deceleration but can frequently occur during acceleration and turning. headlights run normally under steady state speed or at rest. dealership claims no issue. independent audi specialist has confirmed the problem and swapped bulbs (left-right) without effect. this has been occurring for over four years and getting progressively worse, to the point that each time the car is driven the lights need to be re-ignited a minimum of 5 times during a 30 minute drive. safety issue as lights turn off at nearly all braking situations and driver must divert attention to controls to re-illuminate. | |||
| 12/01/2010 | |||
| Headlamp or headlight dip problem on audi s4 with hid lights. cannot be fixed by audi. this is a safety issue. | |||
| 01/10/2010 | 55000 | ||
| Audi: headlight vibration, 2005.5 s4. under certain operating conditions, such as at idle, vibrations or resonances in the front of the vehicle can cause the headlights to vibrarte and turn off. happens most frequently when car is starting up or cold. can spontaneously flicker or turn off while driving at night. occurs about 1 out of 3 times while driving at night. asked dealer to look at it, said there was no issue. | |||
| 11/04/2010 | 63400 | ||
| 2005 audi s4 - experiencing dipped headlight error where the headlights flicker then shut off while driving. the headlight can be turned back on only if the headlight switch is turned off then turned back on. this corrects the problem temporarily, with the headlight flickering again then shutting off. the problem is persistent and is a safety issue. took my car to audi dealer but they could not replicate the problem and therefore would not fix it. i've read thousands of other complaints of his issue online. | |||
| 08/22/2010 | 50000 | ||
| I have a 2005 audi s4 and my headlights flicker and go out while driving almost every time i have them on. sometimes it is one and sometimes both and i get a message on my dash board that the affected headlight is dipped. if i turn the lights off then back on the affected headlight will usually come back on. sometimes that doesn't work and the car has to be turned off and restarted. headlights turning off while driving at night is a very dangerous situation. when i brought it to the attention of the audi dealership they say they can't duplicate the problem. | |||
| 08/14/2005 | 46000 | ||
| My car is a 2005.5 audi s4. when i drive at night, the headlights turn off at random. it will sometimes be one, but tonight both went out. it occurs every night i drive the car. the bulbs have been replaced, the ballasts and the dealer was unable to duplicate. | |||
| 04/03/2009 | 42000 | ||
| Following a cold start, the main beam headlight will flicker for approximately 5-10 seconds, then fully discharge. this will repeat for several minutes, typically resulting in the | |||
| 04/06/2010 | 50000 | ||
| Front headlights (both sides) flicker(blink) but not all the time. when they flicker i turn them off and then turn on again, then they are fine. but i am worried that it may go bad during driving causing safety issues. its not the bulb issues as on-board diagnostics wouldn't detect the problem. it has happened several times over last couple of weeks. i tried finding solution online and found this forum http://forums.audiworld.com/showthread.php?p=23809262. this tells me this problem is part of notorious design by audi of america. my car is out of warranty and audi wouldn't take care of it as they have provided no assistance to sort out other mechanical issues with my car which has only 50000 miles. those issues include failing of fuel pumps, leaking of transimission fluid and melting of gaskit cover caps (main) leading to inconvenience and financial stress for us and on a car which is not even 12 months out of warranty. i request you to do your research and hope they do a recall for these faulty headlights. | |||
| 03/23/2010 | |||
| In the rain/snow, condensation/large water droplets/water forms on inside of headlight lens assembly reducing effectiveness of headlight and reduce visibility in poor lighting condition (night/snow/rain). was told by audi usa/dealers that there is a tsb for this problem but refuse to fix defect under cpo warranty. was told by nys inspection station that it may not pass safety inspection due to defect in headlight because it is not safe to operate car with defective headlight and decrease lighting power leading to reduce visibility. owner since 1/2010 cpo. | |||
| 01/05/2010 | 38000 | 1 | |
| Several intermittent headlight malfunctions: headlight flickering as well as headlight shutting off. the right headlight has malfunctioned (turned off), with no consistent cause apparent. the specific error message that appears in the driver information screen is left headlight dipped. this condition is both unsafe, and illegal. it can occur several times per trip, then not occur at all for some time. problem is intermittent and sporadic. the headlight flickers, then goes out, but will come back on when the light switch is turned off and on again. it usually occurs during cold weather or on bumpy roads. anecdotal evidence (conversational, and via internet owners' forums) suggests that the problem is widespread among a substantial portion of audi's model range and years. *tr | |||
| 01/25/2010 | 1 | ||
| Several intermittent headlight malfunctions: headlight flickering as well as headlight shutting off. have owned the car for 2 years. the right headlight has malfunctioned (turned off), with no consistent cause apparent. the specific error message that appears in the driver information screen is right headlight dipped. this condition is both unsafe, and illegal - i have been pulled over by police as a result of this. it can occur several times per trip, then not occur at all for some time. problem is intermittent and sporadic. the headlight flickers, then goes out, but will come back on when the car is restarted. the dealership has been notified of the problem on at least 3 visits, and has claimed that everything is fine and they can not reproduce. they have suggested/guessed that it is the xenon light bulb itself, and replaced the bulb on one occasion. anecdotal evidence (conversational, and via internet owners' forums) suggests that the problem is widespread among a substantial portion of audi's model range and years. *tr | |||
| 01/18/2010 | 74000 | 1 | |
| Intermittent headlight malfunction. over the course of ownership, the right headlight has malfunctioned (turned off), with no consistent cause apparent. the specific error message that appears in the driver information screen is right headlight dipped. this condition is both unsafe, and illegal - as many states will issue a traffic violation for driving with a non-functioning headlight. it has happened about 7-8 times, the headlight flickers, then goes out, but will come back on when the car is restarted, then be fine for weeks or months at a time. the dealership has been notified of the problem on at least 3 visits, and has claimed that everything is fine and they can not reproduce. they have suggested/guessed that it is the xenon light bulb itself, however it has checked out fine each time, and as mentioned, has functioned flawlessly after each occurrence with merely a restart of the vehicle. no parts have been repaired or replaced, however they have claimed to perform a visual inspection of the electrical connections on at least one visit. anecdotal evidence (conversational, and via internet owners' forums) suggests that the problem is widespread among a substantial portion of audi's model range and years. *tr | |||
| 12/14/2009 | 30500 | 1 | |
| I just purchased a 2005 audi s4 with only 30,000 miles. the car is in exceptional condition and i am very pleased. however, both headlight units contained considerable condensation. it seriously reduces my ability to clearly see at night. last night was the first time i had to use my lights and i had to keep checking to see if they were on. after discussing the issue with my local audi service department, i was told that is normal. they said to take it home and let it run for an hour with the lights on. also if i had a hair dryer, that might speed up the process. this was originally a $45,000 - $50,000 car and i am expected to dry the headlights every time it rains? *tr | |||
| 10/30/2008 | 32000 | 1 | |
| The headlamps fill with condensation after any small form of precipitation. the condensation does not subside and therefore makes the headlights ineffective at night or in times of inclement weather. this makes driving dangerous under the previously mentioned conditions. audi refuses to remedy this issue saying it is a normal occurrence because of vents in the hid headlamp assembly. the illinois vehicle code states that a vehicle shall, ..be equipped with at least 2 lamps on the power or towing unit, displaying a white light visible from a distance of not less than 1,000 feet to the front of such vehicle... the condition of these headlamps do not allow me to comply with this law. my employer also requires that i am in compliance with all vehicle codes or i can face disciplinary action. again audi refuses to address this issue. *tr | |||
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING - HEADLIGHTS | |||
| 09/19/2009 | 1 | ||
| 2005.5 audi s4 both left and right headlight flicker and 'dip' (go out). thousands of people are having this problem as well, audi is doing nothing to recall this. *tr | |||
| 02/10/2007 | 1000 | 36 | 10/15/2004 |
| Tl*- the contact stated that while driving the 2005 volkswagen audi with 1000 failure mileage only in the rain or fog, condensation builds up in his head lights and effects the ability to see at night. the vehicle was taken to a dealer, who refused to repair it because condensation was a natural occurrence. the current mileage was 55800.*ak | |||
| 06/26/2006 | 06/25/2005 | ||
| Car has a problem with its headlights completely covered with condensation inside, therefore cutting on the amount of light from headlights. audi refused to offer any help to remedy this problem, therefore making driving in the dark very dangerous. | |||