2011 Audi A3 FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
MY SON WAS DRIVING MY 2011 AUDI A3 TDI TO THE GYM AT NIGHT WHEN HE CALLED ME THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE AND HAD A WARNING LIGHT COME ON. I TOLD HIM TO GOOGLE IT AND HE FOUND OUT IT WAS A GLOW PLUG INDICATOR. I TOLD HIM TO CONTINUE DRIVING IT IN THE LIMP MODE. THE CAR DIED WHILE MOVING AND MY SON WAS ABLE TO COAST INTO A PARKING LOT. THIS COULD OF BEEN A DIFFERENT STORY ON A BUSY INTERSTATE. I HAD TO PICK HIM UP AND HAD THE CAR TOWED IN THE MORNING. TO FIND OUT THIS CAR IS NOTORIOUS FOR CATASTROPHIC HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP FAILURE AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED. WHEN I SAY CATASTROPHIC, METAL IS SHREDDED AND GOES INTO THE INJECTORS AND CONTAMINATES EVERYTHING THAT CARRIES FUEL. IT IS ABOUT A 7K TO 8K REPAIR. I HAVE USED NOTHING BUT LOW SULFUR DIESEL. IT'S RIDICULOUS A RECALL HASN'T BEEN ISSUED TO PREVENT THIS ISSUE. SINCE THIS HAPPENED I HAVE FOUND COMPLAINTS SCATTERED THROUGHOUT THE INTERNET.
CAR STALLED DUE TO DEBRIS CLOGGING THE FUEL LINE AND FUEL COULD NOT GET TO THE ENGINE. I AM TOLD CAVITATION OCCURRED, RESULTING IN METAL SHARDS DAMAGING THE FUEL DELIVERY SYSTEM. ENTIRE FUEL SYSTEM NEEDED REPLACEMENT AFTER THE TANK. DEALER CHALLENGED WARRANTY COVERAGE FOR THE $10K REPAIR, SAYING THE STANDARD SERVICE ON THE FUEL FILTER DID NOT APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN PERFORMED. THE WARRANTY GOES TO 50K MILES, CAR WAS AT 48.5K MILES. THE OWNER'S WARRANTY BOOKLET DID NOT HAVE THE SAME SERVICE AS THE DEALER SAID SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE--IT WAS A LESS FREQUENT INTERVAL. *JS
Trend Over Time
Complaints by year
Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 2011 Audi A3 has 2 FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.