Need your help guys.. URGENT

[jdmnomore]

Ill try to keep this short and simple. Ive had my b6 S4 for 2 months now it runs great. The only problem is I cant get it through inspection. It continues to fail for emissions however ive got no check engine light or driveability issues what so ever. They say the cars computer may have died and i did leave a dome light on overnight once but the battery did not die. Well after failing twice i took it to the dealer they said they reset the code but today it failed again. Im scared i might lose my car b/c of this and although im not liable it will be a huge inconvenience so id like to resolve this w/o having to take legal action or something. Im only 21 this is way over my head, i think i need some advice from you older guys who are much firmer then i am capable of being.

BTW the dealer called me while i was writing this, mind you i bought from a used car lot not Audi. I have to drop the car off again. They are going to drive it 40 miles to the Audi they use, not the closest Audi. He complained that last time i brought it i intentionally left it with a quarter tank. They also gave it back to me with a quarter tank of 87 in it . They will not accomodate me for those 2 days transportation wise and for all of my troubles i get a free detail . PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!!

[2PUTT]

maybe revealing exactly what the failure is might help.

[RenoAudiNV]

A quick obvious question, but do you / have you run a VAG scan yourself? Might be able to post the codes on this forum and save yourself some stealer stories.

[VR2V8]

After your dealer reset the code, was readiness set? How many miles did you drive it after it was reset and before you tried to get it inspected again? It won't pass inspection if it's too soon after codes are reset......to give the codes time to fail again if the "problem" wasn't actually fixed.

[jdmnomore]

Sorry Im not sure of the exact code its throwing, when i ran the VAG scan myself I found nothing. When the inspection office does the check it comes up as a readiness code and i will post the reasons when i get a chance, however after i got it back i was told to drive at least 100 miles, i purposely drove up to new york for the weekend putting well over 200 miles on the car and took it back to get inspected today. So basically its been 200 miles and 3 days. Sorry so sloppy on the phone with an airline and typing at the same time here.

[VR2V8]

Sorry Im not sure of the exact code its throwing, when i ran the VAG scan myself I found nothing. When the inspection office does the check it comes up as a readiness code and i will post the reasons when i get a chance, however after i got it back i was told to drive at least 100 miles, i purposely drove up to new york for the weekend putting well over 200 miles on the car and took it back to get inspected today. So basically its been 200 miles and 3 days. Sorry so sloppy on the phone with an airline and typing at the same time here.

In that case, you don't seem to be throwing any codes whatsoever. You need to figure out why the car won't set readiness. The inspection place can't inspect the car in this condition. To them, you had a problem, didn't fix it, and just cleared the codes so you could pass inspection.

This isn't going to be much help, but to me it sounds like the previous owner replaced a part and it fixed the problem well enough to eliminate the MIL, but not fix the problem entirely. I would say wait until it finally throws a code and trips a MIL so you can scan the code and find out exactly what the problem is.

Without codes, we can only speculate on what is going on. Sorry. Good luck.

[EuroB6]

i had this issue with my B6 S4...no errors, but when DMV would scan it..3 items were coming up as NOT READY, so they failed it. I dont know what the dealer did, but they couldnt get into the ECU to do some things and finally they did. I know this doesnt help you much, but the Audi dealership will figure it out. Also, give them the paperwork from DMV, it'll explain the problems.

[jdmnomore]

i had this issue with my B6 S4...no errors, but when DMV would scan it..3 items were coming up as NOT READY, so they failed it. I dont know what the dealer did, but they couldnt get into the ECU to do some things and finally they did. I know this doesnt help you much, but the Audi dealership will figure it out. Also, give them the paperwork from DMV, it'll explain the problems.

This does help its reasurring more then anything. Thanks for that. I think what im going to do is take the car to a dealer of my choice and bill the used car lot i bought it from. If they have any issues they can speak to my attorney.

[VR2V8]

This does help its reasurring more then anything. Thanks for that. I think what im going to do is take the car to a dealer of my choice and bill the used car lot i bought it from. If they have any issues they can speak to my attorney.

Did the car have a valid inspection when you bought it? If not, for future reference, when buying a car I'd make sure it did or make them inspect it before you buy it. Then you'll never have this headache again.

[jdmnomore]

I hear ya man. This was my first time ever having a car inspected having moved from Florida just a year ago. I never expected it to be such a pain, in fact the inspection process isnt that bad at all, its just i cant believe the car cant pass.

[khyber]

When I bought my B6 S4, I had to wait three extra days to pick it up because it wouldn't pass inspection. Apparently it had something to do with the motor mounts being broken, therefore not allowing it to pass smog. Sounded very odd to me, but someone did explain it to me at one point and it made sense... too bad I can't remember the explanation . But it is just one extra thing to look into.

[jdmnomore]

I didnt want to leave you guys that helped hanging so here is an update. The car has been at the dealer now for the past 3 days. After giving them an ultimatum that consisted of either accomadating me transportation wise or me contacting an attorney to discuss my options such as lemon law etc, they did in fact give me a rental car. The rental car was supposed to be for 2 days and i agreed that i would pay the taxes. Well here I am 3 days later stuck with this rental, the car was supposed to be back yesterday and now the dealer is offering to run it through inspection for me. That tells me the car is in fact not fixed and they are wanting to pay for an inspection. Obviously when i want to sell the car or get it reinspected 2 years down the line that will become an issue so i refuse to let them have it inspected. Furthermore i spoke to my sales rep today morning to question the status of the vehicle, he says no word yet from Princeton Audi and that he will let me know. That being said i took the initiative and contacted Audi myself and as it turns out service isnt even open on weekends. Would you guys put up with this? If not what actions would you take? I will never purchase from a used car lot again in my life.

[wwb4]

Did the car have a valid inspection when you bought it? If not, for future reference, when buying a car I'd make sure it did or make them inspect it before you buy it. Then you'll never have this headache again.

This would only be applicable if you planned to register the car in the same state that you purchased it.

[jdmnomore]

*****UPDATE*****

This situation is still on going unfortunately. I have been researching lemon law throughout and have come to the conclusion that i would need to give the dealership at least 3 oppurtunities to fix this readiness code error before i could legally take action against them. Well today marks the day where i am supposted to drop it off for the third time. Again I am only 21 and this is the first car i ever purchased on my own, not to mention the first time Ive ever had to get a car inspected having moved from Florida so to say ive been naive is a total understatement. Basically i have no records of any of the work that has been done so far on the car, I have taken it to this private dealer twice so far. Each time the dealer claims to have taken the car to Princeton Audi a dealership that is about 45 minutes away from them. I never asked questions I just assumed they were doing there best to resolve the issue. Today i asked if when the car is returned they could show documentation of the two times it has been to Princeton Audi. My salesmans response was that Audi could no produce a receipt due to the fact that the work being done is under the table as a favor for him. At this point I am pissed and end the conversation w/o making any demands, I simply call Princeton Audi provide my vin only to find out that they have no record of my car being serviced there. I then rush over to the dealership and confront the salesman stating what ive just told you guys but in a not so polite way and he explains basically what he told me that the work is not being recorded because its being done under the table and blah blah blah. So I got nowhere, i mean what can i do hit the guy? I just want this resolved and no lawyer will speak to me because i have no documents to show anything. So what now i give my car to them a third time get it back w/ no gas 500+ miles and pray its fixed? What am i getting for all this trouble? A free oil change. Ive been pulled over 3 times and luckily gotten no ticket, ive given them the car twice with no accomodations either time and im still at square one. I really dont know what to do here. Sorry for any errors in grammar im slamming the keyboard here.

[swoyekr.]

I think the lemon law is excluded by used car sales. Not sure though.

Take it somewhere else I say, who cares if you intentionally leave it at 1/4 tank? They need to put it on the emissions rollers for like 5 mins. What's he out doing laps or something?

[Killerteve]

Sorry for not wanting to reread all of you posts but from what I gather you personally haven't taken it anywhere other than the use car deal you bought it from multiple times? If that is the case I suggest taking it to a legit Audi dealer or a credible tuning shop. Then you will have some paperwork of your own to work with and hopefully they will be able to diagnose it. If it's a big enough dealership I'm sure they would have seen something like this before.

[jdmnomore]

no NJ has a lemon law that is applicable to used cars as well as new cars. Ive taken it to this dealer because they are obligated to fix it and personally i cant afford to take it to a different dealer and have them charge me an arm and a leg for labor. As far as the diagnosis weve gotten that far, at this point its a matter of if the dealer i bought it from is even working on the issue or are they out joy riding in my S4.

[RAudi Driver]

you better chalk this one up to life's lessons. You're 21 and it shows. The used car dealer knows this and is taking you for a ride. I'll bet that not passing smog is not the biggest problem with the car. It looks like trouble.

here's what u should do. talk to the salesman in a very nice manner and try to get some documentation that the car was left with them the three times.

I would say something like, the first time that I brought the car to you, what exactly did u do to solve the problem. the second time I brought the car back, what was done. Act as if u r trying to eliminate possible causes. document all info from here on out. if he says he doesn't know, have him find out by calling his audi tech friend.

[jdmnomore]

Yes I agree I was was definitely very naive throughout this enitre situation. Its like I know what to do and what not to do, but its actually doing what im supposed to do that is the issue. Im like only CPO'd, then a Milano Yellow shows up at ol' J&S Auto. TRAP.

That being said it has definitely been a learning process, I completely agree with everything you said RAUDIDRIVER. What I plan to do is get something in writing that is completely legitamite that would hold up in court if that became necessary. I may even contact an Attorney to prepare such a document. Its a shame my car really does run well and so many others have had this readiness code issue. Its really about how this dealership has handled this whole situation.

Also I did what may be yet another mistake yesterday and dropped the car off with this guy again. After he put on what seemed to be an opera about how there are no reciepts from Audi because of this under the table work and how he would personally have someone drive me to Audi and see the car being worked on and he apologizes for this whole ordeal i finally give in and politely explain that I need this to be the last time I have this problem.

So he has my car and when i get it back if it fails inspection yet again. I now have 3 seperate instances where they took possesion of my car and failed to fix the issue, which under NJ used car lemon law is grounds for a case. Your approach Rdriver is the exact one i plan to take.

Im sorry for the long write ups but this has been such a learning experience for me at my age. I definitely will be much smarter in future purchases of liability items like this car. Thanks for all of the kind advice.

[colonelburke]

That stinks. Have you gone to Princeton Audi to see if they have ever seen this car before? Your "dealer" may have just been storing it in a shed, or tracking it. Plus your local Audi dealer should be able to give you a printout of the history on the car, and whether it was parked down in New Orleans a few years ago. And RAudi is right, but I think he will know you are trying to make a case and may refer you to his lawyer. If you could take a friend with you to hear the comments by your salesman, or if you could record a phone call it might work out better for you later when you can put the squeeze on them. Good luck.

[jdmnomore]

I thought about recording a convo, but i cant do that w/o making him aware the convo is being recorded. Ive already contacted Princeton Audi and they ran my vin and stated the car hasnt been there for service. My dealer states that they have a relationship with that service dept to where my cars work is being done under the table and therefore a receipt cannot be produced. When I confronted him about it he assured me it does in fact go to Princeton Audi and if I wanted I could follow them as they drop it off. Well sure it might go there now, but what about the other 2 times, who knows what they did with it then. All i know is it came back with no gas and +400 miles. I think we all know where this is headed, Judge Judy, but as a sign off good faith and also so i can say its been 3 times, i gave it to them again. I will update once i get the car back.

[RAudi Driver]

1st, I would inquire as to the mileage.

2nd, I would go to the Manager of Princton Audi and let them know that their tech are working on cars under the table.

3rd, I would take a day of of work, drop the car off with the used car dealer, and sit my ass at Princton for the entire day. Watch to se if the car rolls in and then, watch to see if any paperwork is drawn up. If so, then you'll know that the car hasn't been there before.

This really sucks and I totaly feel for you. Good Luck and keep up posted.

[colonelburke]

RAudi, as always, has good suggestions. Do you really have to tell them its being recorded? Down here, just one party has to consent, and that is you. I would also take it there and ask if anyone has actually worked on that car, not ask for some receipt BS, cold call (meaning show up on their doorstep) Princeton to see if they have worked on the car and identify the tech. Thing is, it hasn't been there, we know that, and probably goes to some local indy or shadetree. You will want written statements that the car has never been to Princeton. This bites.

[AudiOso]

You are being flim-flammed and you need to get everything in writing going forward. I know it bites, but you need to suck it up and pay a legit Audi dealer an hour's labor and have the car put on the VAG to see what is wrong with it.

Furthermore, you can't bring this car back to the selling dealership without concrete documentation that the car has been back there. If you intend to avail yourself of the state's lemon law you need things in black and white, not verbal encounters that are undocumented.

We all have to learn along the way. Being 21 with a S4 can be fun, but so far it hasn't been for you and that sucks. You sound like a real smart kid. Use your noggin and work this problem from YOUR advantage. Threatening with lawyers when you haven't adequately laid the legal groundwork for a tort action is just going to give these bozo's a laugh in your face and a hoot when you storm off upset. Sorry to be so blunt, but you aren't handling this correctly.

[RAudi Driver]

You are being flim-flammed and you need to get everything in writing going forward. I know it bites, but you need to suck it up and pay a legit Audi dealer an hour's labor and have the car put on the VAG to see what is wrong with it.

Furthermore, you can't bring this car back to the selling dealership without concrete documentation that the car has been back there. If you intend to avail yourself of the state's lemon law you need things in black and white, not verbal encounters that are undocumented.

We all have to learn along the way. Being 21 with a S4 can be fun, but so far it hasn't been for you and that sucks. You sound like a real smart kid. Use your noggin and work this problem from YOUR advantage. Threatening with lawyers when you haven't adequately laid the legal groundwork for a tort action is just going to give these bozo's a laugh in your face and a hoot when you storm off upset. Sorry to be so blunt, but you aren't handling this correctly.

Very, very well put!

Oh, also, thanks for the compliment Colonel.

[jdmnomore]

You are being flim-flammed and you need to get everything in writing going forward. I know it bites, but you need to suck it up and pay a legit Audi dealer an hour's labor and have the car put on the VAG to see what is wrong with it.

Furthermore, you can't bring this car back to the selling dealership without concrete documentation that the car has been back there. If you intend to avail yourself of the state's lemon law you need things in black and white, not verbal encounters that are undocumented.

We all have to learn along the way. Being 21 with a S4 can be fun, but so far it hasn't been for you and that sucks. You sound like a real smart kid. Use your noggin and work this problem from YOUR advantage. Threatening with lawyers when you haven't adequately laid the legal groundwork for a tort action is just going to give these bozo's a laugh in your face and a hoot when you storm off upset. Sorry to be so blunt, but you aren't handling this correctly.

Well at this point I havent threatened them with any legal action although they must know that that is iminent. So when i start asking them about proof or documentation they will have an idea why exactly I am asking. The dealership it is at is 45 minutes away but my mother happens to work in the area so I am having her stop by to see if she can confirm whether my car is there or not. Otherwise hopefully the car is there through the weekend and I will personally go up there to see if the car is there. I dont expect for them to provide documentation for the work being done even now and im still not quite sure how to approach them about getting something in writing. Thats basically where Im at, I mean with everything ive been through im just praying the car comes back fixed, if it doesnt i guess at that point Ill just have to do whatever necessary to get documentation. But you can bet that before I make any threats to them I will have the neccessary info to back it up. Thanks again you guys.

[jdmnomore]

1st, I would inquire as to the mileage.

2nd, I would go to the Manager of Princton Audi and let them know that their tech are working on cars under the table.

3rd, I would take a day of of work, drop the car off with the used car dealer, and sit my ass at Princton for the entire day. Watch to se if the car rolls in and then, watch to see if any paperwork is drawn up. If so, then you'll know that the car hasn't been there before.

This really sucks and I totaly feel for you. Good Luck and keep up posted.

Also, To answer your question, the mileage was added supposebly because for this readiness code to be reset the car must be driven a certain amount of miles between a certain amount of steps. Its an in depth process apparantely and Ive gotten confirmation of this fact from a local Audi service rep. An interesting fact is the bad guy (used car sales rep) made a comment from the second time i dropped it off that I may have seen my car going up and down I295 (local highway) because this is the method i guess they use to put miles on the car. But someone here mentioned putting it on emissions rollers so again It is apparent that the car was not taken to Audi the first two times.

[AudiOso]

When I was 24 I bought my first Audi. A 1983 5000 Turbo. It was a gorgeous car but only after I bought it did I find out that it had been previously wrecked. I ended up with a lawyer and a fight with the VW dealership that I bought the car from. Prior to the lawyer I went back and forth with them and they played games with me. Hopefully you won't have to resort to legal action, but considering that you have a car that you probably owe money on and need to get legal with, it might not be such a bad idea to talk to a consumer attorney.

I grew up in NJ, and I know that it has some of the strongest pro-consumer laws on the books in the country. If these creeps are trying to rip you off you could very well end up with a settlement that could largely pay off your car once the damages are assessed against them if this ended up in court.

Usually a letter from an attorney costs about $125 to $150. Maybe your folks can help you if money is tight. I just have read all your posts and feel bad for you because you bought the car in good faith and don't deserve this. I hope that you can resolve the situation soon because NJ cops don't typically take kindly to cars being driven without up to date tags. I hate to read about you getting busted as a result of this mess. I hope it doesn't come to that. Whatever you do, be sure to document everything going forward. Do NOTHING verbally with these creeps at this point. They are trying to walk away from the liability here and you can be sure that they are just racking up miles on your car and not doing anything to fix the problem.

[jdmnomore]

When I was 24 I bought my first Audi. A 1983 5000 Turbo. It was a gorgeous car but only after I bought it did I find out that it had been previously wrecked. I ended up with a lawyer and a fight with the VW dealership that I bought the car from. Prior to the lawyer I went back and forth with them and they played games with me. Hopefully you won't have to resort to legal action, but considering that you have a car that you probably owe money on and need to get legal with, it might not be such a bad idea to talk to a consumer attorney.

I grew up in NJ, and I know that it has some of the strongest pro-consumer laws on the books in the country. If these creeps are trying to rip you off you could very well end up with a settlement that could largely pay off your car once the damages are assessed against them if this ended up in court.

Usually a letter from an attorney costs about $125 to $150. Maybe your folks can help you if money is tight. I just have read all your posts and feel bad for you because you bought the car in good faith and don't deserve this. I hope that you can resolve the situation soon because NJ cops don't typically take kindly to cars being driven without up to date tags. I hate to read about you getting busted as a result of this mess. I hope it doesn't come to that. Whatever you do, be sure to document everything going forward. Do NOTHING verbally with these creeps at this point. They are trying to walk away from the liability here and you can be sure that they are just racking up miles on your car and not doing anything to fix the problem.

That is what I suspect as well and the sad part is the only way i can obtain documentation is through verbal contact with them. At this point I am done talking and would love to have a lawyer contact them on my behalf but I would at least like to say I have documentation of the events that have taken place. I think what'l end up happening is a lawyer may have to press them for such documents. If they choose to just flat out lie about everything I am sure those lies will catch up and bite them in the behind. I could care less about a settlement and things of that nature i would much rather my car be fixed and i go on my merry way I think i am entitled to at least that. However if they cannot make this happen then I will be sure to incovenience them as much as they have inconvenienced me if not more.

BTW I am sorry to hear about what you had to go through however it is reasurring to hear that it turned out ok. Do you mind sharing what happened with that whole thing.