2013 Audi S6

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Average

Quick Summary

The 2013 Audi S6 has 56 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 0.7x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is engine problems (61% of all complaints), specifically: i put my car in reverse gear and then pressed slightly on the gas pedal. the car didn't move. i checked my hand brake and regular brake. both were disengaged. so i pressed a little more and more. the engine began to growl like crazy and the car refused to even move. then all of a sudden the car just.

1 crash report

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

0.7x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ENGINE

34 complaints

61%

• I PUT MY CAR IN REVERSE GEAR AND THEN PRESSED SLIGHTLY ON THE GAS PEDAL. THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. I CHECKED MY HAND BRAKE AND REGULAR BRAKE. BOTH WERE DISENGAGED. SO I PRESSED A LITTLE MORE AND MORE. THE ENGINE BEGAN TO GROWL LIKE CRAZY AND THE CAR REFUSED TO EVEN MOVE. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE CAR JUST
• CAR SUDDENLY HAD A "ROUGH IDLE", I.E. SHAKING 1-2INCHES BACK-AND-FORTH WHILE IN IDLE, AFTER DRIVING FOR 20 MINUTES AT NORMAL CONDITIONS. SHUTDOWN CAR. ATTEMPTED TO RESTART CAR, BUT THE ENGINE WOULD NOT TURNOVER THE FIRST ATTEMPT. TRIED AGAIN - ENGINE STARTED THE SECOND TIME. NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT
• FAILED TURBOS CAUSING ENGINE TO RUN RICH AND STALL OUT AT ANY STOPS MAKING THE CAR INOPERABLE AT LOW SPEEDS. MANY REPORTS OF MY2013-2016 AUDI S SERIES TURBOS FAILING/BLOWING OUT. TSB ISSUED FOR SUCH ISSUE BUT NO RECALL. AUDI OF AMERICA REPLACING WITH MY2017 TURBOS THAT HAVE ALL NEW PARTS NUMBERS SIN

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

“I PUT MY CAR IN REVERSE GEAR AND THEN PRESSED SLIGHTLY ON THE GAS PEDAL. THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. I CHECKED MY HAND BRAKE AND REGULAR BRAKE. BOTH WERE DISENGAGED. SO I PRESSED A LITTLE MORE AND MORE. THE ENGINE BEGAN TO GROWL LIKE CRAZY AND THE CAR REFUSED TO EVEN MOVE. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE CAR JUST”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

8 complaints

14%

• I PUT MY CAR IN REVERSE GEAR AND THEN PRESSED SLIGHTLY ON THE GAS PEDAL. THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. I CHECKED MY HAND BRAKE AND REGULAR BRAKE. BOTH WERE DISENGAGED. SO I PRESSED A LITTLE MORE AND MORE. THE ENGINE BEGAN TO GROWL LIKE CRAZY AND THE CAR REFUSED TO EVEN MOVE. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE CAR JUST
• TRANSMISSION COOLANT VALVE FAILURE. AUDI HAS ISSUED TSB FOR SEVERAL MODELS RELATED TO SAME FAILURE MODE. COOLANT SPRAYS FROM COOLANT VALVE ONTO ELECTRICAL CONNECTORS INTERNAL TO TRANSMISSION CAUSING CORROSION WITHIN THE CONNECTORS. TWO FAULT MODES. 1. VEHICLE FAILS TO START AS VEHICLE DOESN'T
• CAR STOPPED WHILE DRIVING ON PUBLIC ROAD AND SHUT OFF WHILE ON ROAD. CEL WENT ON AND ALL SYSTEMS LIT UP ON DASH AS FAILED. T

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

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

3 complaints

• I AM HAVING A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE WITH MY CAR AND IT SEEMS LIKE AUDI OF AMERICA (AOA) DOES NOT SEEM TO REALLY CARE. IT ALL STARTED IN AUG 2015 AND A BUNCH OF FAULT CODES CAME ONE. THE SECOND TIME, I BELIEVE, WAS JAN 2016 AND I WAS DRIVING ON I-95 AND SUDDENLY ABOUT 5 FAULT CODES SHOWED UP WHILE I WAS
• TRANSMISSION COOLANT VALVE FAILURE. AUDI HAS ISSUED TSB FOR SEVERAL MODELS RELATED TO SAME FAILURE MODE. COOLANT SPRAYS FROM COOLANT VALVE ONTO ELECTRICAL CONNECTORS INTERNAL TO TRANSMISSION CAUSING CORROSION WITHIN THE CONNECTORS. TWO FAULT MODES. 1. VEHICLE FAILS TO START AS VEHICLE DOESN'T
• WITH ONLY 53,000 MILES ON MY 2013 AUDI S6 BOTH TURBO CHARGES FAILED AND AUDI IS NOW CHARGING ME $9,000 TO REPLACE BOTH TURBO CHARGES WHICH ARE SUPPOSED TO LAST 100,000 TO 125,000 MILES. THIS ISSUE OCCURED WHILE ON THE ROAD IDLING AT A LIGHT AND CAUSED THE CAR NOT TO BE ABLE TO START AND TO SHAKE THE

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

“I AM HAVING A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE WITH MY CAR AND IT SEEMS LIKE AUDI OF AMERICA (AOA) DOES NOT SEEM TO REALLY CARE. IT ALL STARTED IN AUG 2015 AND A BUNCH OF FAULT CODES CAME ONE. THE SECOND TIME, I BELIEVE, WAS JAN 2016 AND I WAS DRIVING ON I-95 AND SUDDENLY ABOUT 5 FAULT CODES SHOWED UP WHILE I WAS”

— NHTSA complaint filing

FUEL SYSTEM

3 complaints

• OEM TURBOS FAIL DUE TO OIL STARVATION , CAUSED BY OEM OIL STRAINER AND PVC VALVE ( SEVERAL REVISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE SINCE CARS WAS PRODUCED ) ALSO NUMEROUS OTHERS HAVE HAD THE SAME ISSUES
• WITH ONLY 53,000 MILES ON MY 2013 AUDI S6 BOTH TURBO CHARGES FAILED AND AUDI IS NOW CHARGING ME $9,000 TO REPLACE BOTH TURBO CHARGES WHICH ARE SUPPOSED TO LAST 100,000 TO 125,000 MILES. THIS ISSUE OCCURED WHILE ON THE ROAD IDLING AT A LIGHT AND CAUSED THE CAR NOT TO BE ABLE TO START AND TO SHAKE THE
• Recently learned that my car broke down on my spouse in an extremely unsafe location due to turbo failure(s) probably caused by the turbo oil inlet screen. She was on a busy street when the car shut off on her putting her in an extremely unsafe situation to move the car and wait for tow truck servi

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

“OEM TURBOS FAIL DUE TO OIL STARVATION , CAUSED BY OEM OIL STRAINER AND PVC VALVE ( SEVERAL REVISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE SINCE CARS WAS PRODUCED ) ALSO NUMEROUS OTHERS HAVE HAD THE SAME ISSUES”

— NHTSA complaint filing

AIR BAGS

2 complaints

• THE PASSENGER AIRBAG SENSOR IS FAULTY, IT EXHIBITS THE EXACT ISSUE THAT THE RECALLS SON OTHER A6 BUT FOR SOME REASON IT IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. HAPPENS RANDOMLY
• AIRBAG LIGHT ON PASSENGER SEAT SENSOR NOT WORKING PROPERLY

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

“THE PASSENGER AIRBAG SENSOR IS FAULTY, IT EXHIBITS THE EXACT ISSUE THAT THE RECALLS SON OTHER A6 BUT FOR SOME REASON IT IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. HAPPENS RANDOMLY”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

FUEL SYSTEM(~50K mi)

$500

AIR BAGS(~50K mi)

$500

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

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 56 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ENGINE: I PUT MY CAR IN REVERSE GEAR AND THEN PRESSED SLIGHTLY ON THE GAS PEDAL. THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. I CHECKED MY HAND BRAKE AND REGULAR BRAKE. BOTH WERE DISENGAGED. SO I PRESSED A LITTLE MORE AND MORE. THE ENGINE BEGAN TO GROWL LIKE CRAZY AND THE CAR REFUSED TO EVEN MOVE. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE CAR JUST
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
TRANSMISSION: I PUT MY CAR IN REVERSE GEAR AND THEN PRESSED SLIGHTLY ON THE GAS PEDAL. THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. I CHECKED MY HAND BRAKE AND REGULAR BRAKE. BOTH WERE DISENGAGED. SO I PRESSED A LITTLE MORE AND MORE. THE ENGINE BEGAN TO GROWL LIKE CRAZY AND THE CAR REFUSED TO EVEN MOVE. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE CAR JUST
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: I AM HAVING A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE WITH MY CAR AND IT SEEMS LIKE AUDI OF AMERICA (AOA) DOES NOT SEEM TO REALLY CARE. IT ALL STARTED IN AUG 2015 AND A BUNCH OF FAULT CODES CAME ONE. THE SECOND TIME, I BELIEVE, WAS JAN 2016 AND I WAS DRIVING ON I-95 AND SUDDENLY ABOUT 5 FAULT CODES SHOWED UP WHILE I WAS
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
FUEL SYSTEM: OEM TURBOS FAIL DUE TO OIL STARVATION , CAUSED BY OEM OIL STRAINER AND PVC VALVE ( SEVERAL REVISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE SINCE CARS WAS PRODUCED ) ALSO NUMEROUS OTHERS HAVE HAD THE SAME ISSUES
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)