9 complaints reported

2018 Audi Q5 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER

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

Reports
9
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0

Complaint Timeline

Chronological view of owner reports

Apr 2025

WATER SEEPED INTO COMFORT CONTROL MODULE VIA BLOCKED SUNROOF DRAIN HOSES AND DAMAGED ELECTRICAL. THERE WAS A RECALL FOR THE SAME ISSUE REGADING THE GATEWAY CONTROL MODULE WHICH ALLOWS SHOPS TO ADD A PROTECTIVE COVER. THIS SAME RECALL NEEDS TO BE ON THE COMFORT CONTROL MODULE SINCE THE WAY THEY DESIGNED THE SUNROOF DRAINS ALLOWS FOR WATER TO SEEP INTO THE CC MODULE. THIS IS A RIDICULOUS DESIGN THAT REQUIRES A 11K DOLLAR REPAIR FOR CUSTOMERS.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Apr 2025
Mar 2024

-Car shut down (engine off, battery still functioning) while driving. Car went into neutral. -Lost power steering and other functions after about 20 seconds of the engine shutting down. -Immediate life-threatening danger while driving to us and surrounding drivers and pedestrians -no inspection or police report yet. -the car has not been driven since the incident and so the problem has not been reproduced yet. Upon inspection of the trunk area (2018 Audi Q5), we found about 4 inches of water. This has been attributed to clogged sunroof drains causing water to flow into the trunk and short out electrical components.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Mar 2024
Jan 2024

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 took my AUDI store OVER a MONTH to diagnose the issue correctly. There were also significant investigative/diagnostic charges from my Audi Dealership. There were also significant repair expenses to replace all water-logged equipment, including the Electronics Control Unit (ECU). This should be a clear recall item.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Oct 2024
Dec 2023

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.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Aug 2023
Oct 2023

Rear Sunroof drain leak into major electronic components. 2018 Q5 with 61k miles after heavy rain started receiving all kind all errors including lights and ignition. Upon inspection Audi service has stated that HVAC control module has shorten (the area with the module in the left rear portion of the trunk filled with water), quoting repair of the module and insisting to replace sunroof drain hoses for total of $5k. Insurance has agreed to cover module replacement due to the flood of approx. $2,5k, however drain hoses and deducible with another $2,5k would not be covered and is on me. Mechanic in the Audi service several times noted that that this is common issue with Q5 and Q7s., I am so frustrated and do not understand how come the Audi car the owner shall be responsible for any cost of such if it is unclear: 1. How and why the water gets there through the closed sunroof in such amount to flood electrical equipment. Are all Audi sunroof seals so bad that they fail in 6 years? 2. I had serviced the car in the Audi for up to 60k, and no one ever cleaned the drains there or advised me of such (all is needed a small note for me)? Why did I pay extra to service car in the official dealerships? 3. How Audi could sell a vehicle with such design flaw, placing weak drainage hose through the electrical equipment compartment, considering they just had a class action lawsuit over sunroof leaking but on different models and model years.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Aug 2023
Feb 2023

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.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Oct 2023
Jun 2021

There is a module under the back seat called the J533 that I am told got wet. This completely shut down the entire car as my wife and child were driving down the highway. We were very disheartened to find out that this is an out of pocket expense for a common thing to happen in the back of an SUV. After searching online, I came across this link, which is an identical account: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/q5-sq5-mkii-discussion-218/control-module-ruined-moisture-corrosion-3001605/ I'll highlight one area in this link thread, as it most strongly relates to your questions above: "Audi (VOA) faces considerable legal exposure for any injury caused by a liquid finding its way into a component that poses such a high risk of harm if the module fails. . which evidently it does via corrosion following moisture intrusion of some sort. This is particularly the case given the absence of any mention or warning in the manual about avoiding spillage, and more pertinent to liability, Audi’s failure to anticipate the considerable risk of harm stemming from a readily foreseeable occurrence, ie, spillage. To frame it in more stark terms, no one reasonably expects to face a death ride when they spill their soda."

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Jun 2021
Mar 2020

I'VE HAD SEVERAL ISSUES WITH MY VEHICLE WHEN BACKING UP AND THE PRESENCE GOING OFF WITHOUT A REASON. WHEN BACKING UP ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, THE SENSORS WILL BEEP AND BRING THE VEHICLE TO GRINDING STOP. WHEN I CHECK THE AREA, THERE ARE NO VEHICLES, PERSON, OR OBJECTS IN THE PATH OF THE VEHICLE. RECENTLY, WHEN DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY, THE PRE SENSE WENT OFF WHEN NO VEHICLES WERE AROUND AND SLOWED THE VEHICLE DOWN AT A RAPID RATE. TWICE WHEN DRIVING, THE PRE SENSE WILL ACTIVATE AND BRING THE VEHICLE TO A COMPLETE STOP WHEN THERE ARE NO VEHICLES IN FRONT, BEHIND, OR BESIDE ME.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Apr 2020
Apr 2019

5)ESTABLISHING A BLUETOOTH CONNECTION IS INTERMITTENT WITH A SAMSUNG GALAXY S9. OFTEN THE MMI WILL INDICATE THAT IT CAN'T CONNECT. IF THE CAR IS IN REVERSE WITH THE PARKING ASSIST DISPLAYING THE REAR VIEW CAMERA, THE BLUETOOTH CONNECTION SCREEN CAN SUDDENLY APPEAR REPLACING THE REAR VIEW IMAGE WHILE THE CAR IS ACTIVELY BACKING UP. THE REAR VIEW CAMERA IMAGE IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE WHILE THE VEHICLE IS IN REARWARD MOTION. THIS HAS HAPPENED ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2018 AUDI Q5, Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Incident: Mar 2019

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Quick Summary

The 2018 Audi Q5 has 9 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.