8 complaints reported

1996 Audi A4 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.

Reports
8
Crashes
1
Fires
0
Injuries
0

Complaint Timeline

Chronological view of owner reports

Dec 2003

I HAD MY BRAKES AND TIRES REPLACED AND NOW THE ABS AND BRAKE LIGHT ARE ON IN THE CAR THE REAR BRAKES LOCK UP IF THE ABS AND BRAKE LIGHT GO ON ADN THE CAR CAN GET OUT OF CONTROL IN CASE OF BRAKING IN AN EMERGENCY . *AK

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Aug 2003
Sep 2003 Crash

BRAKE FAILURE IN WET CONDITIONS. I WAS DRIVING ON 95N IN PROVIDENCE. AS I WAS CHANGING LANES, I LOST STEERING ABILITIES. WHEN I BRAKED I DID NOT GET A RESPONSE AND CRASHED INTO THE JERSEY BARRIER THEN BOUNCED OFF IT AND WENT INTO A 180 DEGREE SPIN ACROSS 4 LANES. I WAS STOPPED BY THE GUARD RAIL. *LA

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Sep 2002
Jun 2003

THE BRAKES ARE NOT FUNCTIONAL, CAN HARDLY STOP THE CAR, WITHIN THE FIRST 150 FEET WHEN INITIALLY APPLIED IN WET CONDITIONS. THIS CONDITION REAPPEARS EACH TIME AFTER THE VEHICLE GOES FOR 1 TO 2 MILES WITHOUT REAPPLYING BRAKES TO DRY IT.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Dec 2002
Dec 2002

THIS CAR HAS A LONG DELAY DURING WET BRAKING AND I CAN NOT FIGURE OUT WHY. WHEN THEY ARE WARM IT IS FINE, BUT WHEN THEY COOL OFF SUCH AS ON THE INTERSTATE WHILE DRIVING, WHEN THEY ARE NEEDED THEY DO NOT STOP THE CAR. IN A SITUATION WHERE STOPPING IS NEEDED QUICKLY, THIS CAR WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DO THIS IN A DECENT AMOUNT OF SPACE. I DO NOT HAVE ANY AFTERMARKET PARTS ON THIS CAR, GY EAGLE RSA TIRES ALL NEW, NOT ORIGINAL BRAKE PADS, 16" FACTORY WHEELS. THIS ISNT A NORMAL PROBLEM LIKE DRIVING THROUGH A PUDDLE AND BRAKING, IT OCCURS VERY OFTEN AND AT THE WORST TIMES, IT FORCES ME TO DRIVE IN THE RAIN AND CONSTANTLY USE THE BRAKES IN ORDER TO KEEP THE WARM ENOUGH TO EVAPORATE WATER AND KEEP THEM WORKING. MR

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Jan 2001

WET BRAKING PROBLEMS. EXTREMELY LONG TIME FOR BRAKE TO ENGAGE WHEN WET. CAUSES UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITION AS BRAKE DO NOT WORK PROPERLY WHEN WET. *AK

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Jan 1999
May 2000

BRAKES ARE MUCH LESS EFFECTIVE DURING WET WEATHER. *AK

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
May 2000

WHEN THE BRAKES ARE WET, THEY DO NOT WORK UNTIL THE BRAKES ARE HELD FOR ABOUT 5 SECONDS. A LOT CAN HAPPEN IN 5 SECONDS. *AK

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Mar 2000
Apr 2000

ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS, WHEN DRIVING IN VERY WET CONDITIONS, THERE IS A VERY NOTICEABLE DELAY BEFORE THE BRAKES HAVE ANY EFFECT. THIS CAN BE UP TO 2 SECONDS OR SO, AND DEPENDING ON DRIVING CONDITIONS COULD LEAD TO AN ACCIDENT. THIS HAS NOT HAPPENED TO ME YET, BUT I AM CONCERNED ABOUT THIS DEFECT. *AK

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 1996 AUDI A4, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Jan 2000

Trend Over Time

Complaints by year

Quick Summary

The 1996 Audi A4 has 8 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.