Misting Front Shocks - DRC

[Chee]

Hey All,

Having just had the 40k mile service completed at Audi Stockport, inc. all diff oil changes etc, they highlighted that the front shocks were 'excessively' leaking and the rears should also be replaced as they may have run dry. When I pushed them, and mentioned I had an extended warranty, they then backed down and said they show slight misting, and the car then passed the MOT with them.

They also recommended the rear tyres to be replaced despite them having more than 4mm tread all round. Oh, and they also said all discs and pads require replacement due to a slight score on the rear and some minor surface rust on the fronts (not on the actual contact patches).

So wait for it... the total for all of this work would be ~£7500. For some reason they included the read discs twice . Unsurprisingly I said no thanks.

So the question is, where do I stand on getting the front shocks changed out, they are saying that each shock is a separate component so I will have to pay the excess (£250) for each shock? Is this normal, not just one excess charge per claim, especially as the shocks are all linked via the DRC? And do the rears need changing also, seeing as there is just minor misting and not an actual leak like first described. I've also checked the thickness of each disc and they are all well within the wear tolerances. Has anyone tried disc skimming for these wavy discs?

Anyway, I'm not exactly impressed by the service at Stockport and it appears to me that they are simply trying to use scare tactics to make people change very expensive components on their car way before they are even close to the wear limits.

Cheers,

Chee

[noddy]

If the car won’t pass mot, or drc is not doing its job anymore I would scrap the system for an adjustable setup that you can tune to your style. The drc is great, but a well setup coilover with reduced ride height and correct sized roll bars will be more rewarding. All shocks on heavy car eventually mist, Audi are just trying it on.


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[johnnydog]

Personally, I would be very annoyed if an Audi dealership came up with the items you describe that required replacing for an MOT, only for them to subsequently pass the car without doing the work on finding you had an extended warranty.
Is it an Audi extended warranty?
Have you got their initial fault diagnosis in writing?
Audi warranty items have to be returned to Audi - if Audi UK reject the items as being not being faulty, then the dealership won't get reimbersed from Audi, and will have to pay for the items themselves. It stinks of them falsifying the faults or over exaggerating them, as they wouldn't be in a position to return the 'so called' faulty items.
I would get a another opinion on the 'leak' or the 'misting' and the brakes. Misting is acceptable by Audi's standards; leaks obviously arent and would be covered under the terms of the warranty.
If found that they are only misting, combined with your brake findings, I would complain to the Head of Business; if no joy, then to Audi UK, which Stockport Audi won't want you to do. They won't want you refering the MOT aspect to VOSA either.
You may get any genuine defects remedied quicker than you thought, or some gesture towards future services, as this type of practise of falsifying faults to generate work is totally unacceptable, and Stockport won't want you escalating it further.

[Chee]

Personally, I would be very annoyed if an Audi dealership came up with the items you describe that required replacing for an MOT, only for them to subsequently pass the car without doing the work on finding you had an extended warranty.
Is it an Audi extended warranty?
Have you got their initial fault diagnosis in writing?
Audi warranty items have to be returned to Audi - if Audi UK reject the items as being not being faulty, then the dealership won't get reimbersed from Audi, and will have to pay for the items themselves. It stinks of them falsifying the faults or over exaggerating them, as they wouldn't be in a position to return the 'so called' faulty items.
I would get a another opinion on the 'leak' or the 'misting' and the brakes. Misting is acceptable by Audi's standards; leaks obviously arent and would be covered under the terms of the warranty.
If found that they are only misting, combined with your brake findings, I would complain to the Head of Business; if no joy, then to Audi UK, which Stockport Audi won't want you to do. They won't want you refering the MOT aspect to VOSA either.
You may get any genuine defects remedied quicker than you thought, or some gesture towards future services, as this type of practise of falsifying faults to generate work is totally unacceptable, and Stockport won't want you escalating it further.

Thanks for the responses. Yes, it is an Audi Extended warranty, named component with £250 excess. And yes, I have the diagnosis in writing. I'm a little over it now, although they also did the MOT and now all of these items are listed as advisories on the MOT, which is the most annoying thing as that will be on record forever and a day. My local MOT station would NOT have listed any of them. Is most frustrating, especially as there is absolutely nothing wrong with the car.

Cheers,

Chee

[114uyc]

I may be wrong but with a £250 excess you have to pay that for each claim and they may claim each shock absorber individualy

[Chee]

I may be wrong but with a £250 excess you have to pay that for each claim and they may claim each shock absorber individualy

That is what they've told me, yes. My warranty is up for renewal at the end of this month. I assume I would not get away with changing to a no excess policy and then claiming next month? I'm not sure how it all works. I guess only if the problem was diagnosed by another dealer after the new policy has begun. The original dealer will put down the date of discovery as the original service date.

Chee

[Shockerboy]

Replace the DRC with a well balanced after market set up Sport shocks , or sport shocks with lowering springs .or the Coil over set up . depending on what shocks are in the car you might need a Electronic delete kit so the car doesnt throw up faults .
We have been doing this on RS4 B7 for a long time with fantastic results and sensible money .

[johnnydog]

I may be wrong but with a £250 excess you have to pay that for each claim and they may claim each shock absorber individualy

If its a named component warranty with a £250 excess, surely it doesn't stipulate in the small print each shocker individually, i.e. f/n/s, f/o/s, r/n/s or r/o/s......if that is the case, then surely you would have a very strong argument for the repairs / replacements on all four corners to be classed as one item?
I'm certain it's not good practice just to replace one shocker on the same axle - surely they should be in axle pairs at least.

Making me think twice now about extending my soon to expire 5 year Audi warranty if issues like this are being quibbed by Audi.....