2013 S4 Issues

[peppeS4]

Since I picked up my 2013 S4 back in June I have had the following minor issues and wanted to see if anyone else shared the same.

1) Driver side headlight washer does not retract most of the time and gets stuck. I have to get out of car and lower cover to let washer retract

2) MMI does not recognize my ancient Ipod on occasion. I have to unplug it and plug it back in which is a pita since it is in glove box for it to be recognized. No biggie since I use SD cards most of the time but still should not be happening.

3) Sirius satellite radio takes longer to recognize artist/song info than my 2010 S4 did when scrolling with MMI knob.

4) On several occasions my ebrake automatically has come on when I was backing up the car on a slight incline. Downright annoying and scary.

5) About 4 times now since I have had the car it is telling me one of my front lights is out when in fact it is not

6) Rain sensing washers cannot seem to keep up with heavy downpour. Scary on a few occasions. And yes I had it set on the fastest setting

Now all of these issues are minor on the surface but nonetheless irritating at times. Makes me wish I kept my 2010. Man I miss my Imola Yellow 6spd! What was I thinking? ha
I am taking car in for 5,000k service soon and will have all of these issues looked at. Anyone else have any problems with their 2013's?

[thedollardoctor]

I have not had any at all, though I have less than a thousand miles on mine. I appreciate the heads up on these things though and will certainly keep an eye out for them. Hope you get it all resolved. A $55,000+ vehicle should not have these kinds of issues IMO.

[jlaudio]

normally with a heavy downpour you are suposed to reduce your speed. IMO, if your wipers can't keep up with a heavy downpour its a good indication that you are driving too fast while its raining. my a4 shares the same wiper motor/wipers, and i've never had an issue with them not keeping up.

[jasonE30m3]

no issues here with my '13. been pretty happy with it so far.

Also, wanted to say hi to the 2 other CT people that posted in this thread.

[netwrkr]

.... if your wipers can't keep up with a heavy downpour its a good indication that you are driving too fast while its raining

Drivers here in NOVA tend to do the opposite. I think this statement should be on a billboard somewhere as folks don't quite seem to get it.

[bkkchris]

I have noticed that while much better than the last gen, the mmi can be a bit slower with track listings/sirius and just starting up, finding my phone, voice commands, etc.

Have not had to use the wipers or washers here in LA just yet!

Ebrake has gone on a few time when I did not expect it to be on, but never while actually moving.

So far happier with my B8.5 than my previous B8 and very glad I made the switch.

[peppeS4]

normally with a heavy downpour you are suposed to reduce your speed. IMO, if your wipers can't keep up with a heavy downpour its a good indication that you are driving too fast while its raining. my a4 shares the same wiper motor/wipers, and i've never had an issue with them not keeping up.

I was actually driving very cautious on these bouts of heavy downpour. This is with my wife and 2 year old son in the car so I'm especially careful. My wife even commented that something was not right with the wipers. I tend to be a very conservative driver especially when the weather becomes hazardous. Again you have to keep in mind that I had a B8 S4 and had never experienced these issues under the same conditions with that car.

[Vandalrg]

~5300 miles on mine and haven't had any of these issues, although my DSG has thrown a warning light once. The only issue I have now is the drivers side seatbelt squeaks for the first few inches of travel when putting on the seatbelt. Annoying as hell! Going to have it taken care of when I get my winter tires put on.

1. Only used the washers a few times, but haven't noticed any issues with the washers not retracting.

2. I've only plugged in my iPhone and it has worked fine, but I mostly just stream via bluetooth.

3. Sirius does take it's time displaying track info, but it's roughly the same as it was in my GTI so I figured it was just Sirius sucking.

4. Ebrake has only come on when I tell it to. Unexpected engagement of the Ebrake would be alarming!

5. Sounds like a loose connector somewhere. Dealer really should address this.

6. I felt the same way with the wipers, so I put some Rain-ex on the windshield. I've used it on all my cars for the past 10 years or so and love the stuff. I rarely need to use the wipers with it, and heavy downpours are nothing now.

[MrFunk]

What are auto headlight washers?

[IceAero]

~5300 miles on mine and haven't had any of these issues, although my DSG has thrown a warning light once. The only issue I have now is the drivers side seatbelt squeaks for the first few inches of travel when putting on the seatbelt. Annoying as hell! Going to have it taken care of when I get my winter tires put on.

1. Only used the washers a few times, but haven't noticed any issues with the washers not retracting.

2. I've only plugged in my iPhone and it has worked fine, but I mostly just stream via bluetooth.

3. Sirius does take it's time displaying track info, but it's roughly the same as it was in my GTI so I figured it was just Sirius sucking.

4. Ebrake has only come on when I tell it to. Unexpected engagement of the Ebrake would be alarming!

5. Sounds like a loose connector somewhere. Dealer really should address this.

6. I felt the same way with the wipers, so I put some Rain-ex on the windshield. I've used it on all my cars for the past 10 years or so and love the stuff. I rarely need to use the wipers with it, and heavy downpours are nothing now.

Hello to my better equipped twin!

Let me reiterate the importance of RainX. This stuff really works. I highly recommend using their brand of washer fluid, as the windshield in a downpour become significantly easier to see through after a few uses.

[Canvasoso]

I've had my 13 S4 for a month and 1200 miles. I've had zero issues with it, and I am very picky! :)

[Toecutter]

6) Auto headlight washers cannot seem to keep up with heavy downpour. Scary on a few occasions. And yes I had it set on the fastest setting?

Did you mean to say the rain sensing wipers? I don't understand what you mean by fastest setting of the headlight washers. I think they only spray the headlights when you pull back on the lever.

[MaX PL]

yeh i think he made a mistake because i was about to ask the same thing.

expecting the headlight wipers to have varying speeds and to keep up during downpours... well that doesnt make sense.

[BzzzBom]

I have had the e-brake issues twice

[jdwk]

I was in some serious heavy downpours in Europe when I picked up my car last month. I turned off the auto wipers and just used them like any other car. I never agreed with the speed the auto wipers picked, and I think this is one of those pieces of technology we could really do without.

Haven't tried Sirius yet, and don't use an iPod. I was very thrilled with the speed it read my 64GB uSD card though. Finally, a car with ALL my music in it. My other cars could read it but always had some stupid folder or file limitation.

Headlight washers? People actually use those? I don't plan on going muddin' much in my S4 so I don't care, and from friends with cars that have had them, they seem to break on every car. It is a very strange European requirement.

I hate the electronic E-brake. Just hate it. And if it ever came on by itself, I would probably lose my damn mind in a fit of rage.

The light being reported as out by the DIC is no good. I didn't have it happen to me in the week and 1000 miles I put on it, but the first time it happens, it is going to the dealer. I don't live with error messages no matter how benign.

[GoNavy]

sorry to hear you're having issues. I'm at 1,700+ miles and have had zero issues... hope you can resolve the issues soon...

[kwong26]

I'm at about 3,500 km (~2,175 miles) and thankfully can't say that i have experienced any one of those issues you've had, but will be keeping an eye for them now. Hope everything works out for you.

I had my car coated with Opti-coat and even had it done on the windows (previously used RainX on windows) and must say that I barely use my wipers anymore since water just glides off the windows now. :)

For the longest time I wondered if I had headlight washers and then one day decided to look behind that little square under the headlights and to my bewilderment I had headlight washers. Was always used to seeing the ones on older cars that were permanent fixtures on the bumper that I didn't think it would pop out, spray and then duck back into the bumper. Uber cool!

[stiinc]

I have a gen 2 ipod touch and have the some issues. Most notably it took forever the first few times i used it to start and find the track list. Then it would play for about 5 mins then cut out. I would unplug and replug and all was fine a few seconds later. Seems intermittant now and not enough to bother with. I had dual zone climate sync issues in my last car and dont want the issues associated with pulling the dash and all the trim again so i will live with it.

[NPuter]

As for the ebrake:
I believe the ebrake on 2013s automatically engages when you open your door while the car is in gear (D/R). Could that be what you experienced?

[Toecutter]

As for the ebrake:
I believe the ebrake on 2013s automatically engages when you open your door while the car is in gear (D/R). Could that be what you experienced?

I've had that happen in mine. I suppose it helps prevent the car from rolling away in the event one has to bail out the door trying to send the car off a cliff for insurance purposes, or when trying to throw masked bandits off one's trail.

[au5]

5) About 4 times now since I have had the car it is telling me one of my front lights is out when in fact it is not


I had this same problem. There us a fix for this now under Software campaign 97Y3. No problems at all since [up]

[handruin]

I'm almost at 5K miles and I haven't seen any of the issues mentioned yet in this thread.




Headlight washers? People actually use those? I don't plan on going muddin' much in my S4 so I don't care, and from friends with cars that have had them, they seem to break on every car. It is a very strange European requirement.


I can only speak for the 2013 model but as far as I can tell there is no button to make them spray individually/separately. They intermittently spray when washing the front window at random intervals. If the car is stationary when they spray it makes a friggin mess on the exterior. The spray covers most of the hood and I've seen it reach as far back as the back window.

[adamkb26]

Mine has been great but the MMI definitely is a little slower recognizing the Sirius stations.

[willa1975]

I'm almost at 5K miles and I haven't seen any of the issues mentioned yet in this thread.




I can only speak for the 2013 model but as far as I can tell there is no button to make them spray individually/separately. They intermittently spray when washing the front window at random intervals. If the car is stationary when they spray it makes a friggin mess on the exterior. The spray covers most of the hood and I've seen it reach as far back as the back window.

My 335i does the same thing. The headlight washers come on approximately every third time the windshield washers spray. Thankfully they haven't broken down. I just wonder how effective they really are if you've got enough on your headlights to keep them from illuminating the road in front of you...

[RickFLS4]

I got my 2013 in August and have 6K miles on my S4. The only issue you listed that I have had (at least so far) is with windshield wipers. The didn't wipe rain cleanly. I had inserts changed at 5,000 miles and it seems to have resolved the problem. They really sucked before the change.

Also, I'm sure I am imagining it, but bugs seems to love to get stuck to the windshield on this car. Maybe I'm just taking more of them out in this car than my previous cars...

I have tried RainX previously on other cars and find it works well for a little while but then requires constant re-application or the wipers won't like it - sort of like the problem I had before the inserts were changed.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[peppeS4]

ha yea sorry I meant to say rain sensing wipers! oops.

[peppeS4]

Yes exactly I did have the door open! Thank you. Glad there is no issue with the ebrake. Guess I just need to get the light issue fixed and buy some rain x! Love this forum.

[AznSensation87]

Have 2600 miles on my '13, and haven't had any issues yet *crosses fingers*

[Brick Oven]

2) same here. My 2011 s4 had no problem but my 2013 s5 won't detect it on start up maybe 1 of 3 starts. "this medium does not contain playable files." my guess is it cant spin the optical hard drive up fast enough for its tastes and bails. Because really, who uses optical hard drives any more. ;) not a huge deal to squeeze the plug out and back in real quick but I hate having to go in and reset all the repeat and shuffle options each time it happens.

[scrofas5]

same problem. Old ipod, gen2 doesnt work on my 2013 s5. pissed off now, but everything else is gravy. gotta go ask my tech why its not playing , cause it says on the screen its playing but theres no sound.

[NPuter]

As for the headlight washers, you can disable those with vag-com. That would be the first thing I would do if I had a 2013. Absolutely no need for them, and they do make a mess.

[peppeS4]

As for the headlight washers, you can disable those with vag-com. That would be the first thing I would do if I had a 2013. Absolutely no need for them, and they do make a mess.

If I only had a vag-com! Yes the headlight washers are useless. My 2010 S4 did not have them and I was fine without. I'm taking car in next Friday to get 5K service done. I will have them address this issue as well as the light error message coming on. I'll pick up some rain-x soon to fix my not seeing in the heavy downpour issue. As far as the error message, it is what it is. I was hoping they could lemon my car so I can pick up an Estoril Blue 6spd! :) My impatience got the better of me on this lease. I wish I could have waited and ordered the car I really wanted. Oh well, guess S-tronic is not that bad! At least I keep telling myself that. Steering wheel did me in! ha

[jlaudio]

If I only had a vag-com! Yes the headlight washers are useless. My 2010 S4 did not have them and I was fine without. I'm taking car in next Friday to get 5K service done. I will have them address this issue as well as the light error message coming on. I'll pick up some rain-x soon to fix my not seeing in the heavy downpour issue. As far as the error message, it is what it is. I was hoping they could lemon my car so I can pick up an Estoril Blue 6spd! :) My impatience got the better of me on this lease. I wish I could have waited and ordered the car I really wanted. Oh well, guess S-tronic is not that bad! At least I keep telling myself that. Steering wheel did me in! ha

if your ever up in the hartford/west hartford area, i can help you with any VAG mods you need

[peppeS4]

if your ever up in the hartford/west hartford area, i can help you with any VAG mods you need

Hey thanks! I'm in Hartford everyday as my business is here on Murphy Road near Chowder Pot. I appreciate the offer. Maybe we can meet up sometime and you can suggest some cool vag com mods.

[drkay]

[QUOTE=jdwk;8130384]I
Headlight washers? People actually use those? I don't plan on going muddin' much in my S4 so I don't care, and from friends with cars that have had them, they seem to break on every car. It is a very strange European requirement.

I/QUOTE]

Yes, not for mudding though, but here in Canada they are very useful in the winter when the headlights are coated with a dry salt spray! I had them and used them all the time in my old A4, never broke in 13+ years!