Steering Issues - 2013

[audibmi]

Just want to clarify: are you saying that you were experiencing slipping even with the DSR fix and now it's firmed up? How would you describe the difference between DSR off pre-update and post-update?

to clarify:
1. old rack, steering was fine, no slipping, no notchines.
2. got error message in driver info display that steering was defective.
3. due to error message, audi replaced a new rack, in my experience, steering felt lighter than before, and slipping gradually got more noticeable and worsened.
4. to correct for slipping, I unchecked DSR using vagcom (VCDS), slipping not as noticeable, but steering still felt lighter than the first day I got the car. Got the ABS fault code with DSR checked off which I wasn't happy about.
5. got the official audi steering software update (RVU 48K8) on august 24. noticeable increase in the weight of the steering both in comfort and dynamic mode. DSR is left checked on with this update, which eliminates the ABS fault code.

the new software update from audi appears to have eliminated the slipping while adding a bit of weight in both comfort and dynamic mode. I have tested on both city and highways the last few days for extended drives and confirm it's not just the placebo effect from the first day I got the software update.

[Toecutter]

I dropped mine off this evening for a new rack and update. The Service Dept. guy said he didn't have any details on what the update was exactly though. They gave me a sweet 2013 A8L loaner with the A/C massage seats. I may have to go sleep in it tonight, ha!

[gboogie88]

For them to do the software update, do they reset any other vagcom settings that people may have changed?

[rs4dreams]

to clarify:
1. old rack, steering was fine, no slipping, no notchines.
2. got error message in driver info display that steering was defective.
3. due to error message, audi replaced a new rack, in my experience, steering felt lighter than before, and slipping gradually got more noticeable and worsened.
4. to correct for slipping, I unchecked DSR using vagcom (VCDS), slipping not as noticeable, but steering still felt lighter than the first day I got the car. Got the ABS fault code with DSR checked off which I wasn't happy about.
5. got the official audi steering software update (RVU 48K8) on august 24. noticeable increase in the weight of the steering both in comfort and dynamic mode. DSR is left checked on with this update, which eliminates the ABS fault code.

the new software update from audi appears to have eliminated the slipping while adding a bit of weight in both comfort and dynamic mode. I have tested on both city and highways the last few days for extended drives and confirm it's not just the placebo effect from the first day I got the software update.

Great, thanks for the detailed response. I don't have a new rack yet so my experience may be slightly different.

[audibmi]

For them to do the software update, do they reset any other vagcom settings that people may have changed?

all my vagcom settings remained intact including remote key windows, gear display in dis, tpms, video in motion, adjustable footwell lighting, etc.

[korben]

I had the update applied yesterday, and it does seem to have corrected the slip (I never had the notchiness issue). It seems a little bit more firm on center, but otherwise the same in dynamic.

[Mbrad]

Just got mine back. I called yesterday and explained it as feeling like drunk driving and that the car wandered on the highway .... no problems at all from the SA. Initial impression is that the car tracks better especially on a long curve and does not seem to bounce around as much on straightaways (e.g., tramlining). No appreciable change in steering weight in dynamic. The change is about as much as when I installed the alu kruez and I am very happy.

[Pac]

Hello,
I have a 2013 A4 (built in Nov. 2012 - bought in Jan. 2013).
I went yesterday for my 15k service and they performed the steering software update. My invoice shows the update with the code 48K4. I knew that there was a previous 48K4 update not related to the "slip" issue and that the code of the new update was 48K8, so I contacted my service advisor once I noticed this discrepancy. He told me that even though my invoice did not show the 48K8 code, it did show on his computer, and that both codes appeared in relation to the new update performed to my car, which had been released just a few days earlier.
Are all of you getting the code 48K8 in your invoice, or the 48K4?
Thanks in advance!

[jg 4/c]

Just had mine done today. Some background: 2013 S4, build date August 2012.... picked up October 2012.
I had the slip issue, but mildly from day one. Alu Kreuz helped a lot from the beginning.
Many debunk the theory that AK can help the sloppy steering, but it does make a difference.

Never had the notchy issue until about 2 weeks ago at 4,400 miles. Only when starting the car in the morning and goes away within a few minutes.
Never disabled DSR and never had the rack replaced.
I expected more from the update. I'm sensing only a slight overall improvement. Better on center feel and slightly less correction needed
to keep the car straight. Slightly heavier feel at the wheel but was hoping for MUCH firmer resistance. No such luck.....

I'd guess that if you had the slip/notchy issue much more severely and your steering can get to the way mine feels, you'll be very pleased
with the update.

Why am I not convinced that this is the ultimate fix? I wonder now if disabling DSR would make more of a difference.
SA said this update should fix the slip and notchy issue..... not convinced they know the truth about that either.
Will see over the next few days if the notchy feeling at start up is gone.....

[Mbrad]

^this
Edit: was meant to apply to Korbens post

[dbX79]

I just had the update done. I'm in a 2013 S4 and I can feel a difference because I don't have to fight with the steering wheel to get the car stay straight on the road. One negative I did notice is my steering is not as tight in Dynamic. I'm going to check my individual settings to see if its the same there too.

[jackal15]

I had the update done yesterday (the rack was replaced a few months ago). While I've only driven ~10 miles since I can't say I feel a huge difference. Maybe a bit less vagueness on highway... anyway, I still need to put it through its paces before fully assessing. I have to say, though, the new rack definitely had a greater impact on steering feel and livability. no more "elasticky" and randomly assisted pull on the wheel

[dbX79]

When you say rack you mean they physically changed out something? I just had a software update. I feel a difference because the steering is not leaving or counter-steering on its own. But the only thing is it doesn't tighten as much in Dynamic mode; which I'm not so happy about.

[rs4dreams]

I had the update done yesterday (the rack was replaced a few months ago). While I've only driven ~10 miles since I can't say I feel a huge difference. Maybe a bit less vagueness on highway... anyway, I still need to put it through its paces before fully assessing. I have to say, though, the new rack definitely had a greater impact on steering feel and livability. no more "elasticky" and randomly assisted pull on the wheel

Did you have DSR disabled at any point? I'm leaning more and more towards trying to get a rack replacement while avoiding TD1.

[jackal15]

Did you have DSR disabled at any point? I'm leaning more and more towards trying to get a rack replacement while avoiding TD1.

Not that I know of... the only reason I say that is it's only ever been touched by the dealer (never VAG-COM'd it myself) and it's possible they disabled it when they replaced the rack. It's been in twice for the steering issues: Rack replacement this past spring and the latest steering module programming update yesterday.

[bpc135798642]

I picked up my car today with the 48K8 update done. My complaint before the update was regarding a "dead spot" on center, most noticeable at highway speed, which resulted in a lot of steering adjustments needed to keep the car tracking straight, and also made changing lanes difficult or other steering adjustments requiring a high degree of precision. I've driven about 30 highway miles today since picking the car up, and think the update does appear to have improved things somewhat - I am making fewer adjustments to keep the car straight. Additionally, Dynamic definitely feels a bit lighter. However, the "dead spot" is still there. I had a good conversation with the SA, who has a 2013 S4, who agrees with the problem. Our conclusion was this was the way the rack was designed by Audi - to turn the wheels less while the car was close to center, but then to turn the wheels more after turning the steering wheel past a certain point. I have yet to try disabling the DSR.

[thedollardoctor]

Disable DSR. That issue will be 100% gone as many on here can personally attest to. I am not at all confident that Audi's software update will fix this issue and it seems you are confirming my suspicions

[gboogie88]

Picked up my car last night. These are my observations:

- Prior to the update I felt the "notchiness" when turning the wheel at a stand still. That is now gone with the update
- The steering does feel smoother now
- When I switch driving modes, I can't tell the difference if I am in Auto, Comfort or Dynamic. It all feels the same now

Only time will tell if the notchiness ever comes back. I guess I will wait till it gets colder out.

[IceAero]

Picked up my car last night. These are my observations:

- Prior to the update I felt the "notchiness" when turning the wheel at a stand still. That is now gone with the update
- The steering does feel smoother now
- When I switch driving modes, I can't tell the difference if I am in Auto, Comfort or Dynamic. It all feels the same now

Only time will tell if the notchiness ever comes back. I guess I will wait till it gets colder out.

Just got mine done this morning.

A definite improvement, though maybe a pinch more subtle than I was expecting. As documented, the center point and it's non-linear wheel response is present, but the entire resistance of the wheel is now consistent around this point and the change is Very welcome for straight line driving. I don't drive in comfort, but I switch out of dynamic when I get into traffic and there is still a difference between the weight of the steering--I believe 'Auto' was firmed up a little bit, or, at least, feels that way due to the new function setting the weight around center.

I never did get around to disabling DSR, but I don't believe that I have any reason to now. We'll see how it feels when it gets into the single digits this winter, that was always when the limitations(defects?) of the system were more noticeable.

[Toecutter]

When I switch driving modes, I can't tell the difference if I am in Auto, Comfort or Dynamic. It all feels the same now

Yikes, that's bad. I like having the different modes.

I got a new rack and update on Tuesday but I've only driven the two miles home from the dealership since so I haven't really tested my steering out yet. I'm not sure if I'll notice a difference since my notchiness stopped when the outdoor temps got warmer last spring.

[wlm50]

IceAero, I tried sending you a PM to ask a question about your S4 regarding your experience with 19" rims in this area. I'm located near you in the Boston area. But the PM doesn't seem to be going through. Can you PM me?

[bpc135798642]

Disable DSR. That issue will be 100% gone as many on here can personally attest to. I am not at all confident that Audi's software update will fix this issue and it seems you are confirming my suspicions

That's my next step. I have been pursuing fixes in order of lowest out-of-pocket cost to me. I think I am out of free options now...!

[Mbrad]

Further to my earlier post. I have now logged about 300 highway miles since the official audi software "fix". While originally thinking the issue was fixed, it is starting to slip back towards the way it used to be (feel like a drunk driver). I have another post asking for vag com help to see if that is the holy grail as described because while the official "fix" is an improvement, it does not get all the way there and seems to be reverting back.

[audibmi]

Further to my earlier post. I have now logged about 300 highway miles since the official audi software "fix". While originally thinking the issue was fixed, it is starting to slip back towards the way it used to be (feel like a drunk driver). I have another post asking for vag com help to see if that is the holy grail as described because while the official "fix" is an improvement, it does not get all the way there and seems to be reverting back.

Did you ever have the steering rack replaced, or do you already have the newer version of the steering rack?

[Fringe]

my final conclusion after having the rack replaced and having the 48K8 done and driving a decent amount on city and highways is that steering feel is much improved, but the car definitely still drifts and has the tramlining feeling still occur. It seems that most of the left drift is gone and it now prefers to drift right. This software update definitely does not eliminate the problem altogether.

[gendry]

Could that be either the angle of the road or a bad (really bad) alignment? If the drift is the steering, it should be a drift in either direction (more of a lack of ability to sit on center).

my final conclusion after having the rack replaced and having the 48K8 done and driving a decent amount on city and highways is that steering feel is much improved, but the car definitely still drifts and has the tramlining feeling still occur. It seems that most of the left drift is gone and it now prefers to drift right. This software update definitely does not eliminate the problem altogether.

[Mbrad]

New rack version,

Did you ever have the steering rack replaced, or do you already have the newer version of the steering rack?

[Fringe]

Could that be either the angle of the road or a bad (really bad) alignment? If the drift is the steering, it should be a drift in either direction (more of a lack of ability to sit on center).

I doubt it could be the alignment because they just did an alignment when they replaced the rack.

[Celiot29]

Further to my earlier post. I have now logged about 300 highway miles since the official audi software "fix". While originally thinking the issue was fixed, it is starting to slip back towards the way it used to be (feel like a drunk driver). I have another post asking for vag com help to see if that is the holy grail as described because while the official "fix" is an improvement, it does not get all the way there and seems to be reverting back.

Doesn't make sense that something like a software update would deteriorate over time. I drive a lot so I'm at about 1000 miles since update and haven't felt any of the notchiness and the steering still has the same much stiffer fluid feel throughout the radius. I wonder if for you it's more of a steering column thing and maybe right after you got the fix it was a placebo effect, just a thought cause I don't doubt you are feeling it again because it's unmistakable always the notchiness

[BzzzBom]

If I had to chose between a new rack + DSR uncheck versus an official fix from Audi of America I would take the former without question.

[visualguy]

Doesn't make sense that something like a software update would deteriorate over time.

That's what one would expect, but there's supposedly some learning done by the steering software, so it is possible for the steering to get worse with time as a result of bad learning algorithms.

My dilemma is that my steering is fine (absolutely none of the issues that people have reported), and I'm about to bring the car to the dealer for a 5K service. I'm thinking about asking them not to update my steering software to avoid the risk of harming my steering.

Alternatively, I may just change the oil myself, and avoid going to the dealer. Does anyone know how to reset the service reminder displayed by the car?

[bpc135798642]

So, tried to uncheck the DSR yesterday via VCDS (massive kudos to imnuts for meeting me and trying to get this mod to work), however we were ultimately unsuccessful. Any suggestions on how to proceed?

We tried other VCDS mods for the B8 / B8.5 which worked fine
When trying to uncheck DSR in Module 44, we got VCDS Errors 31 and 22. Searching audizine and other places seemed to indicated these were indicative of security problems in communicating with the control module
We tried creating a new codes to go into the Security Access window using the online tool from AudiEnthusiasts here (uses the module serial number) but neither code worked

I am keen to get any improvement in the steering, so any help with unchecking DSR would be appreciated.

My driving impression now having logged 100+ freeway miles after the 48K8 update is that there is no difference. The Audi SA had also concluded the same thing, as he drove my car before and after the update was applied. The 48K8 update notes indicate it addresses a cold weather steering problem only, and not this loose on-center / tramlining feeling.

[drob23]

So, tried to uncheck the DSR yesterday via VCDS (massive kudos to imnuts for meeting me and trying to get this mod to work), however we were ultimately unsuccessful. Any suggestions on how to proceed?

We tried other VCDS mods for the B8 / B8.5 which worked fine
When trying to uncheck DSR in Module 44, we got VCDS Errors 31 and 22. Searching audizine and other places seemed to indicated these were indicative of security problems in communicating with the control module
We tried creating a new codes to go into the Security Access window using the online tool from AudiEnthusiasts here (uses the module serial number) but neither code worked

I am keen to get any improvement in the steering, so any help with unchecking DSR would be appreciated.

My driving impression now having logged 100+ freeway miles after the 48K8 update is that there is no difference. The Audi SA had also concluded the same thing, as he drove my car before and after the update was applied. The 48K8 update notes indicate it addresses a cold weather steering problem only, and not this loose on-center / tramlining feeling.

There is something with VCDS where you need to enter a "shop code" in the setup menu. If you search the web/this site, you should find info about how this works. Opening up my version, if you go to options - user interface and identification, I have: Code (WSC) 12345; VZ/Importer 123; Equipment number 12345.

I do remember having some issues getting DSR un-checked, but after restarting VCDS (not sure if I used 11.11.6 or the beta 12.10) a couple times and maybe re-keying the car, it eventually worked.

[Celiot29]

That's what one would expect, but there's supposedly some learning done by the steering software, so it is possible for the steering to get worse with time as a result of bad learning algorithms

ya totally forgot about the learning part of the software good point

[bpc135798642]

There is something with VCDS where you need to enter a "shop code" in the setup menu. If you search the web/this site, you should find info about how this works. Opening up my version, if you go to options - user interface and identification, I have: Code (WSC) 12345; VZ/Importer 123; Equipment number 12345.

I do remember having some issues getting DSR un-checked, but after restarting VCDS (not sure if I used 11.11.6 or the beta 12.10) a couple times and maybe re-keying the car, it eventually worked.

Thanks. We tried that shop code (it's the default one in VCDS) but did not work. Will search and see if I can find an alternative.

[audibmi]

Thanks. We tried that shop code (it's the default one in VCDS) but did not work. Will search and see if I can find an alternative.

When you make the changes, is the engine running? I always make changes with accessory power mode only with engine off, and all coding is accepted. Try starting a new session of vcds if you encounter an error.

[bpc135798642]

When you make the changes, is the engine running? I always make changes with accessory power mode only with engine off, and all coding is accepted. Try starting a new session of vcds if you encounter an error.

Thanks for the suggestion. We tried engine on and off. Engine off gave error 31 and engine on error 22.

We also tried restarting VCDS, unplugging USB, and car off / on

[drob23]

Thanks for the suggestion. We tried engine on and off. Engine off gave error 31 and engine on error 22.

We also tried restarting VCDS, unplugging USB, and car off / on

Sorry it's not working smoothly, like I hinted to, it was likewise a head scratcher for me. I think I tried doing using the beta 12.10 and clearing/resetting some of the preferences. It eventually worked after some nerd elbow grease, but I forget what was the critical step.

What binary code word are you trying to submit (eight digit number I think)? I think either in this or the other thread, there were some cars coming from the factory with slightly different coding than most of us. I'll look back for a previous post I made regarding this, although this problem is unlikely what's going on...

[Pilfer]

Just had the 48K8 update done at the dealer. I do notice that the steering doesn't feel as loose at freeway speeds. Somewhere in this thread a long time ago, someone mentioned that the steering felt tighter when cruise control was activated. After reading that I tested it and did notice that the steering tightened up. In my opinion, that's how the steering feels now after the upgrade.

[Moose201]

Just had the 48K8 update done at the dealer. I do notice that the steering doesn't feel as loose at freeway speeds. Somewhere in this thread a long time ago, someone mentioned that the steering felt tighter when cruise control was activated. After reading that I tested it and did notice that the steering tightened up. In my opinion, that's how the steering feels now after the upgrade.

Also had 48K8 done today and tried to induce the slip by driving over crowned roads and uneven surfaces. So far, no signs of the slip. Can't say I notice any higher effort or additional tightness. Haven't driven at highway speed yet.