Audi Approved Used Clutch Gone After 2 Months!

[massmaster]

Hi,

I bought a 66 plate A3 from a main dealer 10 weeks ago and i noticed a judder in first gear especially when the car is cold.

I told the main dealer I bought it from and they told me to take it into my local dealer as they are a couple hours drive away.

My local main dealer told me the clutch has a high biting point and they suspected it’s worn but can’t tell without removing it first. They have quoted me £666 just for the inspection. I have 2 years warranty and like I said I only bought it a couple of months ago, I asked the selling dealer if they would be willing to foot the bill and the sales exec said they would speak with their manager.

Any ideas on what the outcome might be? I know that clutches aren’t usually covered by warranty but it seems ridiculous for this to happen only 10 weeks after buying it. I have read that I have some additional consumer rights in the first 6 months under the Sale of Goods Act but not sure if it will help.

The car was a big spend for me and I can’t believe I might be looking at a £1000+ bill already. To make matters worse I had also bought another approved used A3 before this but had to sent it back for a botched paint job so I don’t seem to be having any luck! It was at a different dealer, I told Audi UK about it and they gave me a complimentary service which I appreciated but this is now 2 in a row that have had major issues.

Edited by massmaster on Tuesday 29th December 21:17

Edited by massmaster on Tuesday 29th December 21:18

[blueg33]

Strueth, you don’t have much luck!

Sounds like you need to avoid used Audi’s

[Drive Blind]

stop buying used Audi's ?

it's clearly not for you.

[Trevor555]

I remember your last car with the poor paint.

Sorry to hear you're having trouble again.

How long after you bought the car did you report to them that the clutch was juddering?

[Funky Squirrel]

How many miles on the car?

[massmaster]

I reported the juddering a week ago, 10 weeks after I bought it.

The car has 28k miles, I have done about 2k since I bought it.

[Trevor555]

massmaster said:

My local main dealer told me the clutch has a high biting point and they suspected it’s worn but can’t tell without removing it first.

Edited by massmaster on Tuesday 29th December 21:17

Edited by massmaster on Tuesday 29th December 21:18

I think all you can do is tell your supplying dealer it's been diagnosed as having a high biting point, and tell them it was like this when you bought it.

If that is indeed the case.

See what they say, they might agree to do it. Or they may try to blame your driving by saying their technician reported no faults when they did their inspection.

But find out if they're going to do it before the local dealer stings you £600 plus just to remove a gearbox.

Do you have any decent VAG specialists near you?

I'm sure they'd be much cheaper if the garage wont cover it.

[Trevor555]

OP, first of all I'd call the sales manager and try to appeal to his better nature.

Tell him you're not having much luck with buying cars lately, and this is the second Used Audi you've got an issue with.

Tell him you chose to buy from Audi main dealer as you thought it'd give you peace of mind.

This might work.

If you go in all guns blazing, and mentioning law, they might just pull the shutters down and go on the defensive right from the start.

Please let us know how you get on.

[massmaster]

Thanks Trevor.

I spoke to the selling dealer today and they want to inspect the car there which I guess is fair enough.

They said it could be covered under warranty depending on what is wrong with it.

They are a 2 hour drive away and could need the car for up to a week which isn’t ideal especially if I end up getting foot with the bill for inspection and clutch repair.

Hopefully they will offer to replace it FOC and avoid me going down the formal complaint etc. route.

[Trevor555]

massmaster said:

Thanks Trevor.

I spoke to the selling dealer today and they want to inspect the car there which I guess is fair enough.

They said it could be covered under warranty depending on what is wrong with it.

They are a 2 hour drive away and could need the car for up to a week which isn’t ideal especially if I end up getting foot with the bill for inspection and clutch repair.

Hopefully they will offer to replace it FOC and avoid me going down the formal complaint etc. route.

You do have to give them an opportunity to inspect the car.

This is important if you have to go legal with them.

So I guess you'll just have to let them take the gearbox out.

I personally wouldn't be comfortable with paying £660 for this.

So I guess you'll just have to let them do the job.

If they don't pay for it then write a letter to them pointing out that you've had an independent Audi garage diagnose a clutch with a high biting point, and tell them that the clutch was like this when you bought the car.

[Trevor555]

OP, with my above comments I'm assuming you haven't worn the clutch out yourself.

I'm sorry to mention it, but it is a thing a judge would have to consider.

[Cimaguy]

Things should be fit for use. This car clearly isn't if within 2k this happens.

I think you're covered by law. Be nice to the dealer and see where it goes.

Next time buy it closer to home.

[Terzo123]

Cimaguy said:

Things should be fit for use. This car clearly isn't if within 2k this happens.

I think you're covered by law. Be nice to the dealer and see where it goes.

Next time buy it closer to home.

A clutch can be burnt out in a minute, never mind within 2k miles.

[ReverendCounter]

Any way you could have a conversation with the previous owner and ask them if one of the reasons for selling was due to an impending clutch change that they didn't see the need to carry out, seeing as they were selling? Might come in useful if you can.

[loskie]

DMF as well if juddering. Is that not likely?

[Dr G]

Yup, the judder will be be caused by the surface of the flywheel being in poor condition.

[Clifford Chambers]

Ask them to collect it and drop off a courtesy car. They shouldn't be putting you to any inconvenience.

[Hugo Stiglitz]

I wouldn't pay anyone anywhere near £666 to 'inspector a clutch. Wtf.

To be honest in 2,000miles your driving style could push a average wear clutch into the noticeably worn territory.

Id rung round indies and get a price on one fitted.

£666?!!!

[Limpet]

Hugo Stiglitz said:

I wouldn't pay anyone anywhere near £666 to 'inspector a clutch. Wtf.

To be honest in 2,000miles your driving style could push a average wear clutch into the noticeably worn territory.

Id rung round indies and get a price on one fitted.

£666?!!!

For any meaningful inspection of the condition of a clutch (and DMF), you have to separate the engine and transmission, which happens to be almost all of the labour involved in changing the clutch. I can't comment on an A3 specifically, but on most modern, tightly packaged FWD cars, there are many hours of labour needed to get the gearbox out and refit it, often involving dropping subframes, exhausts and other stuff.

Warranty claims on clutches are always iffy, so if the garage takes the car apart, and the warranty says no, I guess they need to cover their costs somehow.

I do agree though that taking the gearbox off and not changing a clutch as a matter of course is lunacy, so it's probably worth just getting the clutch changed. That said, judders are often caused by the DMF instead of (or as well as) the clutch itself.

[Hugo Stiglitz]

Yes but the OP says high bite point etc and a clutch is wear and tear.