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This might seem daft but can someone clarify for me whether as the owner of my 52 plate RS6 whether I could (hassle free) take advantage of the paint warranty? I've got very slight rust starting to appear on one of my arches, and a local garage quoted me £300 to do the rear panel to match it up - are audi going to quibble/make me wait so long I give up/try to avoid it etc etc...? answers on a postcard?

Depends if the arch has previously been resprayed? Respraying invalidates the warranty for the area painted, it is only valid on areas that still have the original paint.

also, if its due to stonechips (the forward edge of the rear arch sees lots of stonechips), then its not covered.

I don't think its been resprayed in that region, I've had new front/rear bumpers put on and asked the garage if it looked like it'd been resprayed and they said "no" but there is nothing in the paperwork to suggest that it had been done. There also seems to be slightly 'thin' on the upper section of the drivers door so I was actually wondering about this too. Re the arch - it doesn't appear to be related to a stone chip and there is no actual chip in that area.

If for example they turn around and say "sorry it aint covered" which is out of my hands because if it has been painted then I can't do anything about that how much would you expect to pay for a rear arch/panel respray/and drivers door?

I wouldn't worry about it. Take it to Audi to have a look at, their bodyshop guy should be able to tell you if it is or isn't covered and if not how much it will cost with them. You can always take it elsewhere then.

Ive got the most out of my paint warranty over the past year (near enough full respray). If its stonechips causing the corrosion then its not covered. If the panel has been resprayed on or around that area then its not covered. If it looks like it hasnt been well looked after than they wont cover it. In a nutshell, the rust has to have come from under the paint and not broken the surface. If it breaks the surface then they will say that it was cracked and let the moisture in.

Take it to Audi and let them test the paint. I found Audi to be very fair, and very quick. If its original paint then they will get it sorted for you foc, if not then your on your own. If its original paint and they still query the problem then ask to have the paint specialist come out to have a look. I did this when i first used the warranty and the guy agreed my case. Since then they havnt questioned me. Result!

Good luck.

Oh, and your sig picture is huge. Could you please make it smaller so our computers dont crash! Cheers.

Just noticed the paint in the rain channels on my roof is bubbling, but hasn't broken through the paint. Took the car to Lincoln Audi this morning, and am waiting for them to get back to me.
As it's bubbling along both channels, front and rear, I may be able to get the roof painted for free!
Here's hoping anyway!

That was my last visit. Had the whole roof done as the channels were bubbling a little. Love the warranty.

I have got two very small bubbles on the rear arches and will be going into Audi next week. Already had paint depth measured and it's the original Audi spec so hope fully no issues.

I thought I'd post 2 pics of the corrosion / issue I have with my roof gutters. Audi have offered to pay 70% of cost of this as a goodwill gesture - they say it's not covered under the warranty. I think I'll follow Eddie's advice and request a specialist to come out and look at it properly.


By balchy, shot with Canon PowerShot SX200 IS at 2010-03-29



By balchy, shot with Canon PowerShot SX200 IS at 2010-03-29

Defo get the specialist to come out. Audi have to cover it if the paint hasnt been tampered with or the cause is not external influence. In a nutshell, you should be A-OK.

The first picture is almost identical to my roof! How bizarre.
I missed a call from Lincoln Audi today, and when I called back, the warranty manager (who looked over my car on Saturday) had left for the day.
I hope it's good news! He didn't take any photos or measurements though, so I fear I'll have to call on a paint specialist!
I'll let you know how I get on

My car's booked in for Saturday morning for the warranty fella to take a look at the roof, this time taking photos and measurements etc!
He advised that this seems to be a common problem on A3s, but "he'd never seen it on RS6s before"! Pull the other one....
Didn't seem to flinch tough when I mentioned others who have been in a similar position. I guess I'll find out on Saturday where I go from here.

hahaha! Mine is going back in for some more warranty work. Found a blemish under the fuel cap and phoned Audi up immediately after.

'Hi, is that Mr X again?'
'Yeah, ive found a blemmish under the fuel cap, on the rear wing'.
'No probs Mr X, i'll book you in'.
'Don't you want me to bring it round so that you can have a look?'
'No, thats ok Mr X, just pop it round on the *xth April and we'll have it back to you within a couple of days'.
'Ok see you then!'

Easy peasy. Once you have beaten the paint specilaist then they wont argue. Audi warranty is actually well geared toward the customer so you should have no probs until the 10 year point so long as the paint remains standard.