Audi Q7 PCP new engine just outside warrenty 21k miles

tomcoleman

My S line Q7 died on me it has 21k miles on the clock we've had it around 3.5 years on a 4 year PCP agreement but only had a 3 year warrenty.

Audi have taken a look at the car and are saying it could be around £15k for a new engine, they say it has a majour engine fault.

I have £29k outstanding on the PCP finance - technically im stuck with a £29k PCP agreement and a car that doesnt work.

Surprised a £65k motor has died in 3 years with very little milage.

What options do i have ??

daveyjp

I assume its a diesel?  if so the low mileage may well have killed it, modern diesels really don't like short trip journeys.

Have the dealer said what is wrong?

If you have a full dealer service history you should be onto Audi asking for a significant contribution towards repair costs.

tomcoleman

daveyjp said:

I assume its a diesel?  if so the low mileage may well have killed it, modern diesels really don't like short trip journeys.

Have the dealer said what is wrong?

If you have a full dealer service history you should be onto Audi asking for a significant contribution towards repair costs.

yes this is diesel. - im not a car person, and no one told me low trips would kill the car when i purchased it. I presume a car A>B doesnt matter on trip time.

It has a full Audi service history and was serviced about 7 months ago.

when you say onto Audi do you mean one of the named dealers or audi direct ?

AdrianC

The key really is what's caused the engine to die.

If it's been overheated or run out of oil, then you don't have a hope.
If it's an internal issue that's related to a manufacturing issue, then I'd be pushing for a very hefty (if not full) contribution.

More detail!

tomcoleman

its always been fully serviced at it died with no previous warning lights. the car is only used as a school runner really with the odd yearly trip to center parcs. very light useage.

they was speaking car talk to me which blew my mind. They said for another £950 they can do a deeper investigation but they are 99% sure its a major engine failure they was mentioning something about a bearing failure, timing issues and oil leaks

AdrianC

...and oil leaks...
When did you last check the oil level?

When you say "£29k outstanding on the finance", I presume that includes the balloon? Of course, in its current state, you would be paying that, since you can't hand the car back. But for "a £65k car", that means £36k depreciation, which means it's cost over £1.70 per mile for that school run... Just for the depreciation. Before fuel, insurance, VED, maintenance, repairs, tyres... I hope the little dear's friends have been suitably awed.

It's not news that modern diesels should not be used for short-run use. The issues are surrounding diesel particulate filters in the exhaust - and they've been known and widely talked-about in the mainstream for the thick end of a decade, if not more - DPFs became common fitments in the late 00s.
2012 - https://www.thecarexpert.co.uk/diesel-cars-city-driving/
2013 - https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-2332107/Petrol-vs-diesel-cars-Drivers-warned-diesel-filter-trap.html
2014 - https://blog.greenflag.com/2014/diesel-drivers-need-know-dpf/

Short journey use can lead to the car taking repeated attempts to regenerate the filter, and burn off the particulates. That can lead to problems with dilution of the engine oil. If this does turn out to be the cause of your issue, then this is not Audi's problem.
Here's an article talking about it from a Land Rover perspective, but the same will apply to your Audi.
https://stormcatcher.co.uk/resources/land-rover-dpf-issues-oil-dilution/

fred990

Does it have full main dealer Audi service history? If so they would/might meet you halfway if not the full amount if you really kick off. Go to the head office UK. 
The V6 3.0 tdi has been known to have timing chain tensioner issues when on long life servicing, using one on the school run (might look good to other parents) is a seriously bad choice. The engine needs to come out for tensioner/timing issues. If its dpf/egr problems they're relatively easily fixable. If the chains/tensioner have let go its probably bad news. 
Ask Audi for a print out/copy of the module scan. At three years old it's canbus and will take seconds to do. It won't answer everything but would be a start.
Post the scan results and we'll have a look, there's lots of helpful people here.......

Penelopa.Pitstop

In Q7 oil level is probably shown in car menu, so checking it is very easy to every user. And if oil level is low, car will tell you this, showing error on the dashboard. So it's a bit difficult to miss, as it will come up at every engine start.

Goudy

There are four timing chains on the V6 3.0 tdi and it sounds one of the bearings has failed on one of the shafts and wiped the engine out. It's not unheard of either but VAG won't accept any responsibility for it.

I've seen it before on a relatives car and we had the engine out and timing chain cover off the front of the engine, it was too much of a mess to rebuild as it took quite a lot of the block casing out with it.

When we asked around looking for a replacement used engine, it became pretty clear the specialist breakers were well aware of the issue with this engine.

That's not much help sorry, you can try you look with Audi UK (not the dealer) for a contribution but I wouldn't hold your breath.

fred990

Goudy said:

There are four timing chains on the V6 3.0 tdi and it sounds one of the bearings has failed on one of the shafts and wiped the engine out. It's not unheard of either but VAG won't accept any responsibility for it.

I've seen it before on a relatives car and we had the engine out and timing chain cover off the front of the engine, it was too much of a mess to rebuild as it took quite a lot of the block casing out with it.

When we asked around looking for a replacement used engine, it became pretty clear the specialist breakers were well aware of the issue with this engine.

That's not much help sorry, you can try you look with Audi UK (not the dealer) for a contribution but I wouldn't hold your breath.

Yep that's my initial gut feeling, the chains/tensioners.....could be something else though? 
We need a scan/printout of the engine module(s).
Fortunately the resident know-it-alls will be able to decipher the codes instantly and know the answer......lol.
The rest of us will have to consult Ross-tech and the forums to maybe work it out. 

neilmcl

@tomcoleman first thing first, you need to get in touch with Audi UK customer services, or get the dealer to do it to find out what, if any, will they contribute to getting this fixed. It may be just out of warranty but you don't expect a full engine failure after only 21K miles, even if it's a diesel or not.

The next thing, if they're nor prepared to help is to fall back on statutory consumer rights, however the onus will be on you to prove that this is a failure of manufacture and not something you've caused, you will definitely require a full diagnostic of what the fault is. Armed with this you may be able to hold both the dealership and the finance company equally liable for breach of contract and get them to repair, replace or give you a partial refund under the terms of the Consumer Rights Act.