(beware) burning of the heated rear seats

[chunky79]

That cushion deserves to be burnt. That is mega hot, think it is faulty.

[cfcdoc]

If it was my child sat on that seat and it was only the fact that she was awake that prevented a hospital admission and/or skin grafts( doomsday scenario I know) I`d take it as far as I could.

Why would you do that? Money? Publicity? Ban on the rear seat heating systems?

Are you honestly asking me why I would escalate a problem until it reaches a level where the conclusion might be satisfactory to me. It wouldnt be for any pecuniary interest or publicity but to ensure no-ones child gets 3rd degree burns from falling asleep on a heated car seat if there is an inherent safety issue that hasnt been identified.

[neckarsulm]

This reminds me of heater matrix leaks on Mk2 Golf which used to burn people - big recall

On the Mk5 GTI I replaced the cover and foam and it wasn't that dear, I bet the RS6 will be more!
(I still have them and will take some pics)

I think Audi will want to check that an owner hasn't in the past done something unusual to cause this problem

If you Google, it's not that unusual it seems;

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=heated ... 0AW92IDgCg

[imacool]

I am glad that johnny's daughter is unhurt. That's the main thing. I hope audi will investigate this matter thoroughly and the result will be satisfactory for doc.

No offense, but these things happen and will happen in the future. We have planes and some of them crash due to mechanical failure and kill people. We have cars that can fail and kill people. We have electrical devices that can fail and kill people. And we have heated seats that can fail and burn people. And children. This is the price for the luxury we live in. The price for carrying our butts in heated seats in those cold mornings. And there is no car manufacturer in the whole world capable of making a bullet proof heated seat, not to mention guaranteeing its function for 10 years.
From the pictures it looks like failure, maybe some sort of short circuit. Heating elements are very delicate and sometimes a push with your knee, when you are reaching for something, can cause a failure.

So before we start throwing flames, lets see what audi will come up with.

I feel sorry for johnny and his daughter and as I said, I am glad she is OK.

PS: The only thing I don't understand is why the fuse didn't blow? The current draw in the heating element must have been enormous to produce such a heat.

[cfcdoc]

The only thing I don't understand is why the fuse didn't blow? The current draw in the heating element must have been enormous to produce such a heat.

this is my biggest issue, there are items that perish and fail with age that are not routinely checked at service or mot. This is entirely acceptable as it comes with owning cars of this age. Had the story been of his daughter crying that the seat remained cold because it was broken then I wouldnt have raised an eyebrow but for it to have reached a temperature hot enough to do that to a cushion, then thats a different ball park because as you say something should have blown and shut down before it reached anywhere near those kinds of temperatures. The cars are 10 years old but inherent safety systems should last as long as the car does if they are an item that the manufacturer does not routinely check at service and especially if they are capable of causing the sort of damage witnessed above. Failures will always happen but that doesnt mean failure and manufacturer culpability are mutually exclusive. Oh and apologies if my post came across as terse..

[imacool]

[neckarsulm]

imacool wrote: The only thing I don't understand is why the fuse didn't blow? The current draw in the heating element must have been enormous to produce such a heat.

If it takes 16 amps to heat the upper and lower backrest cushions correctly, it still takes just 12 amps to heat the lower cushion twice as hot as it should be say for example the upper element is inop - it is unusual to have a seat that can fold down and be heated so damage to the loom/element after 10 years wouldn't surprise me.

Also it MAY have the wrong fuse in it from a previous owner who get fed up with it blowing (just being hypothetical, this is one of the many unknown things that Audi will need to ascertain).

[Mr Footlong]

That cushion deserves to be burnt

Lol you damn right.

[mavada]

unfortunately thats one of the few parts thats doing its job too good...

[johnny11]

Yes it would be nice if audi repaired this as a goodwill gesture but we will see, but the main reason I will see this through is this could of turned into a fire or someone getting burnt. If audi find a fault in the seat or another component that has failed causing this to happen, then audi can then maybe check other cars when in for a service and if it stops just one person getting hurt then my job is done.

Oh and for the record I never did like that cushion hence why I used it.

[cfcdoc]

Yes it would be nice if audi repaired this as a goodwill gesture but we will see, but the main reason I will see this through is this could of turned into a fire or someone getting burnt. If audi find a fault in the seat or another component that has failed causing this to happen, then audi can then maybe check other cars when in for a service and if it stops just one person getting hurt then my job is done.

Oh and for the record I never did like that cushion hence why I used it.

does the wife know youve burnt it...

[MikeFish]

Yes it would be nice if audi repaired this as a goodwill gesture but we will see, but the main reason I will see this through is this could of turned into a fire or someone getting burnt. If audi find a fault in the seat or another component that has failed causing this to happen, then audi can then maybe check other cars when in for a service and if it stops just one person getting hurt then my job is done.

Oh and for the record I never did like that cushion hence why I used it.

does the wife know youve burnt it...

Yes, she was sitting on it at the time. I can just hear the conversation now "come and see how comfy your favourite cushion is in the back of my car, love!"

[johnny11]

Phoned the dealer to confirm all ok for today, and low and behold because all there courtesy cars are out they forgot to order one from audi, so car didn't go in and I got a phone call from customer service of audi to apologise and tell me they are going to try and sort out something nice for me for when the car goes in. It's laughable with some audi dealers at times.

[Ian_C]

Audi dealers can be hit and miss. Yesterday I called around 10am to book a service, was told no advisors available, they offered to take my number but I declined because they would be 95% certain to hit my voicemail at work. Tried again at 3pm, told the same, left my mobile, no return call as I left work at 5pm, just as I was about to call them back at 5:40pm my mobile rang. Refreshing!

[johnny11]

Finally got a call from Audi uk today to confirm that my local Audi dealer will have my car from this Wednesday, and with cock ups what has gone on they are giving me a RS5 in the mean time, will be interesting what this outcome is going to be.