2018 Audi Q7

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Below Average

Quick Summary

The 2018 Audi Q7 has 175 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 2.2x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is engine problems (21% of all complaints), specifically: when attempting to crossover a busy intersection, and trying to determine the distance between the oncoming traffic and myself, the 2018 audi q7, has a hesitation before the vehicle starts it acceleration. i have had two occasions where the vehicle just would start a slow acceleration but would hes.

3 crash reports 3 injuries

175

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

2.2x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ENGINE

36 complaints

21%

• WHEN ATTEMPTING TO CROSSOVER A BUSY INTERSECTION, AND TRYING TO DETERMINE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC AND MYSELF, THE 2018 AUDI Q7, HAS A HESITATION BEFORE THE VEHICLE STARTS IT ACCELERATION. I HAVE HAD TWO OCCASIONS WHERE THE VEHICLE JUST WOULD START A SLOW ACCELERATION BUT WOULD HES
• OUR Q7 3.0T PRESTIGE ENGINE BLEW WHILE DRIVING AND LEFT US STRANDED ON A COUNTRY ROAD AT 12:45 IN THE MORNING. THEN TO ADD INSULT TO INJURY, AFTER FIGHTING WITH AUDI CARE FOR THE LAST MONTH THEY ONLY AGREED TO REIMBURSE US $200 OUT OF A $525 TOW BILL BECAUSE WE DIDN'T CALL THEM TO SCHEDULE THE TOW.
• KEPT LIGHT APPEARS ON DASH THAT ADD 1 QT OF OIL FOR 6 TIMES. BEFORE THIS LIGHT APPEARS, CAR ALWAYS SUDDENLY STOPPED WHILE IM DRIVING OR PARKED. LAST SATURADAY 1/11, MY CAR WAS SUDDENLY STOPPED ON HIGHWAY AND ENGINE WAS RUNNING AND SO LOUD AFTER CAR STOPPED BUT CANNOT CHANGE ANY GEARS FOR FEW SECONDS

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“WHEN ATTEMPTING TO CROSSOVER A BUSY INTERSECTION, AND TRYING TO DETERMINE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC AND MYSELF, THE 2018 AUDI Q7, HAS A HESITATION BEFORE THE VEHICLE STARTS IT ACCELERATION. I HAVE HAD TWO OCCASIONS WHERE THE VEHICLE JUST WOULD START A SLOW ACCELERATION BUT WOULD HES”

— NHTSA complaint filing

LIGHTING

23 complaints

13%

• Just had the vehicle in for the it’s 60k mile service and no issues reported. Today, at 63k miles I had the same dealer look at a headlight malfunction and the service technician reported the rear coil springs are failing and need replaced.
• Warning light comes on stating front left side marker light is not working. However, light is on. Warning continues to come and ding non-stop despite the light working correctly. Searching the internet shows that this has happened to thousands of people. Audi is trying to charge over $5K for a known
• Front right side marker light defective warning message populates when the vehicle is started, and also when temperatures are low, or conditions are wet. It also causes the ADAS components to be deactivated some of the times it occurs.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“Just had the vehicle in for the it’s 60k mile service and no issues reported. Today, at 63k miles I had the same dealer look at a headlight malfunction and the service technician reported the rear coil springs are failing and need replaced.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

21 complaints

12%

• THE 2018 AUDI Q7 HAS BEEN IN FOR SERVICE THREE TIMES SINCE I LEASED THE CAR ON 9/11/2017. MY INITIAL INQUIRY RELATED TO TECHNOLOGY ISSUES WAS BACK ON DECEMBER 22, 2017 THAT WAS SHORTLY FOLLOWED UP BY A SERVICE APPOINTMENT. AFTER YOUR TEAM ASSESSED THE ISSUE AND ALLEGEDLY RESET THE SYSTEM, I CHECKE
• REVERSE BIRDS EYE CAMERA OFTEN FLIPS TO A DIFFERENT MODE AND YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT CAMERA VIEW YOU WILL GET. HAPPENS ONCE OUT OF EVERY 2-5 REVERSES. THIS IS A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DUE TO THE UNPREDICTABILITY OF THE STATE OF YOUR BACKUP CAMERA. I MUST THEN GO THROUGH A MULTI STEP PROCESS TO REVER
• THE OVERHEAD CAMERA VIEW WILL NOT STAY SET. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AS ONE CANNOT SEE THE AREA AROUND THE CAR WHEN PARKING. THIS IS APPARENTLY A SOFTWARE PROBLEM AND HAS BEEN KNOWN TO AUDI SINCE AUGUST 2017. THEY HAVE YET TO ADDRESS IT.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“THE 2018 AUDI Q7 HAS BEEN IN FOR SERVICE THREE TIMES SINCE I LEASED THE CAR ON 9/11/2017. MY INITIAL INQUIRY RELATED TO TECHNOLOGY ISSUES WAS BACK ON DECEMBER 22, 2017 THAT WAS SHORTLY FOLLOWED UP BY A SERVICE APPOINTMENT. AFTER YOUR TEAM ASSESSED THE ISSUE AND ALLEGEDLY RESET THE SYSTEM, I CHECKE”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

16 complaints

• THE 2018 AUDI Q7 HAS BEEN IN FOR SERVICE THREE TIMES SINCE I LEASED THE CAR ON 9/11/2017. MY INITIAL INQUIRY RELATED TO TECHNOLOGY ISSUES WAS BACK ON DECEMBER 22, 2017 THAT WAS SHORTLY FOLLOWED UP BY A SERVICE APPOINTMENT. AFTER YOUR TEAM ASSESSED THE ISSUE AND ALLEGEDLY RESET THE SYSTEM, I CHECKE
• WHEN CAR IS PLACED IN REVERSE A "P" OR PARK IS STILL DISPLAYED IN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THIS HAS HAPPED SEVERAL TIMES. AUDI SERVICE WAS PROVIDED PICTURES AND VIDEO OF OCCURRENCES AND THEY SAID THEY WOULD GET BACK TO ME. THEY NEVER DID. ALSO NOW HAVE SOS MALFUNCTION WARNING DISPLAYED. CAR ONLY H
• WHILE IN REVERSE BACKING UP, THE BACKUP CAMERA UNPREDICTABLY REVERTS TO USELESS "GRAPHIC" MODE DESPITE REPEATEDLY BEING SET TO "CAMERA" MODE. CHANGING THIS SETTING WHILE BACKING UP IS DANGEROUS, DISTRACTING AND UNPREDICTABLE. SOMETIMES IT WORKS CORRECTLY AND STAYS IN CAMERA MODE, OTHER RANDOM TIME

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

— NHTSA complaint filing

SUSPENSION

16 complaints

• This vehicle was maintained by Audi/VW for 60000 miles under a service contract. While changing my snow tires I noticed the spring was broken. My wife did claim she heard a rattling in the back of the car, this must have been it. I’ve found multiple complaints from different owners on car online for
• Passenger side rear spring broke near the base on a 2018 Q7 with 66k miles. From looking online, this is a common problem with this model/year. VWofA issued a recall for rear springs for the same year of the VW Atlas, a car that shares the same platform with the Q7, so they know there's a problem
• Just had the vehicle in for the it’s 60k mile service and no issues reported. Today, at 63k miles I had the same dealer look at a headlight malfunction and the service technician reported the rear coil springs are failing and need replaced.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“This vehicle was maintained by Audi/VW for 60000 miles under a service contract. While changing my snow tires I noticed the spring was broken. My wife did claim she heard a rattling in the back of the car, this must have been it. I’ve found multiple complaints from different owners on car online for”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

LIGHTING(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

SUSPENSION(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 175 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ENGINE: WHEN ATTEMPTING TO CROSSOVER A BUSY INTERSECTION, AND TRYING TO DETERMINE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC AND MYSELF, THE 2018 AUDI Q7, HAS A HESITATION BEFORE THE VEHICLE STARTS IT ACCELERATION. I HAVE HAD TWO OCCASIONS WHERE THE VEHICLE JUST WOULD START A SLOW ACCELERATION BUT WOULD HES
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
LIGHTING: Just had the vehicle in for the it’s 60k mile service and no issues reported. Today, at 63k miles I had the same dealer look at a headlight malfunction and the service technician reported the rear coil springs are failing and need replaced.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: THE 2018 AUDI Q7 HAS BEEN IN FOR SERVICE THREE TIMES SINCE I LEASED THE CAR ON 9/11/2017. MY INITIAL INQUIRY RELATED TO TECHNOLOGY ISSUES WAS BACK ON DECEMBER 22, 2017 THAT WAS SHORTLY FOLLOWED UP BY A SERVICE APPOINTMENT. AFTER YOUR TEAM ASSESSED THE ISSUE AND ALLEGEDLY RESET THE SYSTEM, I CHECKE
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: THE 2018 AUDI Q7 HAS BEEN IN FOR SERVICE THREE TIMES SINCE I LEASED THE CAR ON 9/11/2017. MY INITIAL INQUIRY RELATED TO TECHNOLOGY ISSUES WAS BACK ON DECEMBER 22, 2017 THAT WAS SHORTLY FOLLOWED UP BY A SERVICE APPOINTMENT. AFTER YOUR TEAM ASSESSED THE ISSUE AND ALLEGEDLY RESET THE SYSTEM, I CHECKE
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)