2013 Audi A5 Steering

About 3 weeks ago I noticed the beginning of a steering problem. I first noticed that the wheel seemed to require more than normal force to turn, especially in about the 10 and 2 o’clock position. It would behave pretty normally most of the time, but then, unpredictably, this would happen. Now it seems to be pretty constant. The steering wheel now requires much more force than usual, but only when in certain positions. Otherwise, everything appears normal. A couple of days ago I needed to try an evasive maneuver, which required sudden, hard steering. However, the response of the car was not what I expected under similar conditions with other Audi’s I own. This is an obvious safety concern. There appears to be a repair bulletin by Audi, but only Audis that are still under warranty will be fixed for free by Audi. I strongly believe this is a serious safety issue that deserves a safety recall of all affected Audi’s, and repair at Audi expense.

THERE'S 1000S OF COMPLAINTS ONLINE AND AUDI GROUP THREADS REPORTING AND EXPERIENCING POWER STEERING LOSS OF POWER OR STIFFNESS WHILE DRIVING, MAKING IT VERY DIFFICULT TO STEER CAR MODELS INCLUDE 2013 A4,A5, S5,A6, Q5, SQ5. AUDI KNOWS THE PROBLEM BUT HAVE NOT CORRECTED OR RECALL ONLY THE 2018 SQ5 NO OTHER VEHICLES WITH ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING. DEALERS EVEN ARE AWARE OF ISSUE. AUDI SAYS IT COULD A STEERING SENSOR, BUT HAVE NOT OFFERED REMEDY. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND SHOULD BE CORRECTED IMMEDIATELY BEFORE LOSS OF LIFE DUE TO ACCIDENT.

WHILE TURNING THE STEERING WHEEL, THERE ARE SPOTS THAT SEEM TO STICK AROUND THE 11 AND 1 O CLOCK MARKS. THIS PROBLEM COMES AND GOES, INDEPENDENT OF SPEED. NOW THE CAR SEEMS TO HAVE TROUBLE CORRECTING OUT OF A TURN AND MUST BE MANUALLY TURNED BACK TO CENTER. THE PROBLEMS SEEM TO BE GETTING WORSE.

VEHICLE IS DIFFICULT TO STEER AT ALL SPEEDS--PROBLEM CAN BE INTERMITTENT OR PERSISTENT--MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO ANTICIPATE ABILITY TO NAVIGATE A TURN. THE STEERING WHEEL RESISTS EFFORT TO TURN AND DOES NOT CORRECT OUT OF A TURN UNLESS MANUALLY PULLED BACK. *TR

THIS IS MY SECOND CONTACT WITH YOU. FIRST GAVE ME REFERENCE #10503984. THERE ARE "DEAD" SPOTS IN THE MAGNETIC POWER STEERING. THIS "FEELING" HAS OCCURRED FROM 25MPH ON UP PAST INTERSTATE SPEEDS (70). THE PROBLEM INITIALLY OCCURRED FROM THE 11 TO 1 O'CLOCK POSITIONS WHERE THE STEERING WHEEL CAN BE MOVED RIGHT TO LEFT WITH NO RESPONSE TO THE CAR. PROBLEM HAS PERSISTED AND NOW OCCURS AT OTHER POINTS IN THE STEERING MOTION. CONTACT WITH AUDI USA CUSTOMER SERVICE HAS ONLY PRODUCED RESPONSE FROM AUDI OF "WORK WITH YOUR DEALER". AUDI DOES NOT RECOGNIZE THIS AS A SAFETY ISSUE, BUT I AM FAILING TO UNDERSTAND HOW A "STEERING" ISSUED CAN NOT BE SAFETY RELATED. NOW THAT THE PROBLEM IS WORSENING, ONE HAS AN UNEASY FEELING DRIVING THE CAR. *TR

WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THERE BECOMES A "DEAD" SPOT IN THE STEERING INPUT. STEERING WHEEL CAN BE MOVED 2-3 INCHES RIGHT TO LEFT WITH NO EFFECT ON THE STEERING OF THE CAR ITSELF. THESE INCIDENTS ARE UNPREDICTABLE IN WHEN THEY OCCUR AND HAVE BEEN EXPERIENCED FROM SPEEDS AROUND 30 MPH TO OVER 70 MILES PER HOUR. IN CONTACTING MY DEALER THEY SAID AUDI USA IS AWARED OF PROBLEM. IT HAS OCCURED ON A5,A4, AND ALLROAD MODELS FOR SURE. PRESENTLY DEALERS ARE ONLY MAKING A LIST OF COMPLAINTS AND SAYING AUDI IS "WORKING" ON THE PROBLEM. AUDI USA REPRESENTATIVE TOLD ME ON THE PHONE TODAY THAT AUDI DOE NOT CONSIDER THIS A SAFETY ISSUE. HOW CAN MOVING A STEERING WHEEL WITH NO EFFECT ON THE DYNAMICS NOT BE A SAFETY ISSUE? *TR

AT 1500 MILES I DEVELOPED A NOTCHY FEELING IN MY STEERING WHEEL AT THE 12 O'CLOCK POSITION. THIS NOTCHY FEEL CREATES A NEED FOR CONSTANT CORRECTION JUST TO KEEP THE VEHICLE TRAVELING IN A STRAIGHT PATH. I BELIEVE THIS IS THE RESULT OF THE NEW ELECTROMECHANICAL STEERING THAT AUDI IMPLEMENTED IN 2013 MODELS. THIS PROBLEM IS IMPACTING MANY DRIVERS ACROSS ALL MODEL LINES AND I FEEL THAT THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. I WILL ALSO NOTE THAT THIS IS AN INTERMITTENT ISSUE THAT IS NOT PREVALENT EACH DAY, HOWEVER MY ABILITY TO KEEP MY CAR TRAVELING IN A STRAIGHT PATH IS NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE WHEN THE ISSUE ARISES. AT INTERSTATE SPEEDS IT CREATES A SENSATION THAT YOU DO NOT HAVE CONTROL OF YOUR VEHICLE. I HAVE REPORTED THIS ISSUE TO AUDI OF AMERICA AND HAVE RECEIVED NO RESPONSE OR FOLLOW UP. I HAVE ALSO HAD MY VEHICLE LOOKED AT BY THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY ARE REPORTING THAT THE VEHICLE IS FUNCTIONING NORMALLY. THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE AN ACCIDENT OR FATALITY OCCURS AS A RESULT OF FAULTY STEERING COMPONENTS. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO READ THE CONCERNS OF OTHER OWNERS. HTTP://WWW.AUDIZINE.COM/FORUM/SHOWTHREAD.PHP/513862-STEERING-ISSUES-2013. *TR