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ProblemsByVin Index / 2018-AUDI-Q5 / COMPLAINTS
Full complaint record · NHTSA

2018 Audi Q5 owner complaints

194 complaints filed with NHTSA on this vehicle , including 2 reporting a crash, fire, injury, or fatality. Showing the 300 most recent — grouped by category for scanning.

electrical 5 complaints shown

60 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $850 · see electrical cluster analysis →
12/23/2025 ODI #11706899.0

Unpublished costly catastropic electrical failure Audi of America reviewed the case and declined assistance solely because the vehicle was already totaled and unavailable for dealer inspection. Audi did not dispute the presence of water intrusion, the technical findings, or the cause of failure. This failure occurred without warning under ordinary environmental conditions and resulted in sudden loss of vehicle function. I am submitting this complaint to document a potential defect related to the protection and placement of electronic systems vulnerable to water exposure. I am submitting this complaint to report a potential safety-related defect involving water intrusion and catastrophic electrical failure in a 2018 Audi S5. After a heavy rain event with no roadway flooding or submersio

12/21/2023 ODI #11561288.0

For months the car has smelled musty. Last week the electrical lights went on and warnings to not drive the car. Water was discovered in the wheel wells and the computer system appears to have been damaged by a leaky sunroof. On the car fax report it was noted that at 14, 608 miles the vehicle had it's sunroof "replaced/ repaired" with a seal removed and repaired according to an invoice record furnished to us by the dealer . The vehicle ran out of it's warranty in July of this year. We've heard that others have been having a similar, if not the same issue and the dealership has quoted up to $20K to repair. Clearly there has been a defect from day one at 14,000 miles. The car is never parked under trees.

12/01/2024 ODI #11628196.0

2018 Audi Q5 (2.0, 40K miles, excellent condition) experienced severe electronic failure, due to sunroof drainage lines depositing water into the rear side wells where sensitive electronics are housed, impacting all tail-lights, wipers, sensors, internal dashboard sensors, etc., rendering the car highly unsafe and undrivable. The issue is a design and manufacturer defect that has allowed rainwater to leak into the rear side compartments destroying sensitive electronics & wiring, from faulty/kinked drain lines in the sunroof (according to the Audi Technician from my local Audi store), rendering the vehicle undrivable. It was obvious, repeatable, and avoidable. Worse this issue was misdiagnosed by the same Audi store, causing extra parts & labor expenses that didn't solve anything. It to

11/27/2024 ODI #11627813.0

The Audi Q5 sunroof drain that is intended to keep water out of the vehicle, leaked where water collected and pooled in the car beneath the car liner. The water collected on the "comfort module" and electrical fuse box resulting in immediate electrical failure of several vehicle features/systems including brake lights, turn signals, reverse lights, windshield wipers, etc. to name a few. In addition to repairs in excess of $10k, the vehicle will be totaled by the insurance company. After an exhaustive search, several Audi users of the same make, model and year have faced a similar issue. This issue must be addressed by Audi and should be reviewed immediately.

11/02/2023 ODI #11553181.0

The car was sitting in the driveway in the rain. I went out to get something out of it and the car was dead, but the back wiper was going, the rear lights were on and the driver side windows went down. I had it towed to the dealer and they told me water had gotten into the area in the back left wheel well where the comfort module is located. The dealer tried to say there was something wrong with the rear hatch but there isn’t. I’ve read account after account online of this exact issue happening to other owners and it caused by a defective sunroof drain. It drains right into the rear hatch with the module. They quoted $9000 for the repairs.

suspension 4 complaints shown

24 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $900 · see suspension cluster analysis →
12/28/2025 ODI #11707367.0

The front subframe on the vehicle is severely rusted and corroded through rust. Part of it has fallen off, and the rest of it is badly damaged. A structural integrity, a major safety risk. The Audi Dealer inspected it and confirmed. The car is unsafe to drive.

12/21/2022 ODI #11498469.0

During a normal service visit it was brought to my attention that the rear suspension coil was broken. They attributed this to normal wear and tear after only 52,000 miles. Upon research it seems this is far more common in 2018 Q5s than it should be this is early.

12/05/2022 ODI #11496011.0

Rear coil spring on passenger side broke and became detached, wedging against lower control arm. Coil spring had no signs of other damage; seems to be defective metallurgy (see attached photographs). Vehicle had 55,645 miles on it. Dealer charged $720 to repair. From online search, there seems to be a high number of Audi Q5's from 2018 model year with this problem, but Audi dealers claim it is a 'normal wear' item and is not covered.

11/30/2022 ODI #11495457.0

Two issues: 1. We have needed to repeatedly replace brake booster. 2. Passenger side rear spring has broken and dealer is indicating the driver side should also be replaced.

other 3 complaints shown

12/21/2018 12,000 mi ODI #11162922.0

Tl* the contact owns a 2018 Audi q5. While driving 65 MPH, the collision alert system independently engaged the brake system, causing the vehicle to slow down. The contact was able to keep the vehicle under control and regain highway speed. The contact believed that the collision system may have sensed an object in the road and caused the collision system to engage. The contact also stated that the collision alert system engaged when the contact attempted to parallel park. The contact spoke with Audi birmingham (1314 grants mill way, irondale, al 35210, (855) 627-3378) to inquire if the collision alert system could be disabled. The dealer stated that nothing could be done. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 12,000.

11/02/2024 ODI #11623233.0

Kinked rear sunroof drains causing water to enter vehicle at trunk seres where water was found having entered into the comfort module. The car key fob was not responding me the fault codes for the module were cycling rendering the car in drivable. I have reported this before but wanted to include the proper updated invoice from Audi atl. The previous invoice didn’t state the problem.

10/31/2024 ODI #11622990.0

Panaramic sunroof drains failed allowing water to egress into wheel well trunk side containers and spare tire areas. Water encompassed the comfort control module and left the electronics cycling through electronic error codes leaving the car unable to drive. The car was unable to recognize the key fob and the warning codes were flashing and cycling. Failure of the panaramic sunroof drains.

steering 2 complaints shown

9 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $700 · see steering cluster analysis →
12/26/2024 ODI #11632466.0

While driving, the steering wheel suddenly locked up and could not be turned. Several warning lights simultaneously appeared on the dashboard including: "Steering malfunction! Please stop vehicle", "Audi adaptive light malfunction! See owners manual", "Start/stop system malfunction! Function unavailable", and "Audi pre sense currently limited" - No warning lights were present prior to this event. The sudden loss of steering could have caused serious injury to myself and to other drivers or pedestrians nearby. I was thankfully able to stop the vehicle, but I could not pull over because the steering wheel could not be turned. The car was towed to the Audi dealership and I was told the "Electronic power steering rack" would need to be replaced costing nearly $5,000.00.

12/21/2023 ODI #11561231.0

Steering rack completely failed while driving. Causing steering to become unusable nearly causing a wreck putting everyone on the road at risk. Vehicle has less 80k miles and is driven occasionally. This was an issue on early models and seems to not have been fully fixed on this model either. Warning lamps require vehicle to pullover and stop.

body 2 complaints shown

6 total in this category · severe · avg repair $1,500 · see body cluster analysis →
11/27/2023 32,827 mi ODI #11556925.0

The contact owns a 2018 Audi Q5. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V737000 (Structure) however, the front driver's side wheel arch trim panel was detaching from the frame. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V737000 (Structure). The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and informed the contact that the repair was not covered. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure mileage was 32,827.

11/11/2021 ODI #11440144.0

Panoramic sunroof leaked water into the car's electrical system during a rainstorm (despite being closed tight), resulting in a total failure of the car's electrical system, potentially a catastrophic occurrence. Fortunately the electrical failure happened when the car was stationary.

brakes 1 complaint shown

8 total in this category · severe · avg repair $450 · see brakes cluster analysis →
12/19/2022 Crash ODI #11498164.0

I was trying to park my car in my office parking space, after right turn to parking space, I applied brake to stop, but the car suddenly accelerated and within few seconds it crashed into the office building. I was still applying brake when it accelerated and I could not do anything else. The fact that vehicle climbed two levels of curbs to hit the building shows that the acceleration was out of my control. And even vehicle's collision system did not kick in when car was climbed over the curb. Polic report #: 22-350-0239C Agency: SCCSO

engine 1 complaint shown

13 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $3,100 · see engine cluster analysis →
12/18/2025 ODI #11705757.0

Vehicle: 2018 Audi Q5 Prestige Mileage: Approximately 34,000 miles On December 14, 2024, while driving at normal road speeds, my vehicle suddenly lost power and displayed multiple warning messages, including drivetrain and system malfunction alerts. The vehicle became unstable and unsafe to operate while I was in traffic, forcing me to carefully maneuver off the roadway. This occurred without any prior warning or abnormal engine behavior, it was just so sudden. I brought the vehicle to an authorized Audi dealership the following day. After inspection, the dealership diagnosed a catastrophic internal engine failure, identifying a cracked/chipped valve in cylinder 3. The dealership technicians and service staff stated that this type of failure is extremely rare on a vehicle with such low m

powertrain 1 complaint shown

9 total in this category · severe · avg repair $2,500 · see powertrain cluster analysis →
11/17/2018 ODI #11152166.0

Purchased a 2018 Audi q5 in july 2017. The engine lost power or acceleration when making a turn. Took it to the dealer 2 times for the same problem and cannot reproduce the problem.

cruise control 1 complaint shown

6 total in this category · severe · avg repair $600 · see cruise control cluster analysis →
11/05/2019 9,000 mi Crash ODI #11278273.0

Tl* the contact owns a 2018 Audi q5. While the vehicle was in a parking lot with the brake pedal depressed, the vehicle accelerated without warning and crashed into a stairway rail of an apartment building. There were no injuries and a police report was filed. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to a body shop. The contact called Audi livermore (3400 las positas rd, livermore, ca 94551) and informed them of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 9,000.

Showing 300 of 194 total complaints. The full federal record is available at nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2018/Audi/Q5#complaints.
Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) owner complaint database. Last synced 2026-06-14. Complaints are owner-submitted and unverified — the existence of a complaint is not proof of a defect, but a pattern of complaints around the same component is a signal worth weighing. Verify any specific filing at nhtsa.gov.
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