IllustrationPOSSIBLE DSG TRANSMISSION FAILURE GEARBOX MALFUNCTION ERROR MESSAGE ON DASH.
2010 Audi S4
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Limited comparison data
There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all S4 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
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When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
100–25K
1025–50K
2150–75K
875–100K
5100–150K
0150K+
54 reports with mileage · 6 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Power Train. Review the 42 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 6 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
2 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports
Power Train complaints
42 reports"WARNING: GEARBOX MALFUNCTION- YOU CAN CONTINUE DRIVING" APPEARS AFTER ABOUT 15 MINUTES OF DRIVING. THE CAR DOES NOT MALFUNCTION, CHANGES GEARS WITHOUT PROBLEMS, AND WARNING REMAINS ON SCREEN. CAR HAS 58K MILES AND HAS BEEN WELL MAINTAINED. TOOK TO AUDI DEALERSHIP AND ADVISED MODULE G676 IS BAD. COST TO REPAIR: $5334.39. …
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"WARNING: GEARBOX MALFUNCTION- YOU CAN CONTINUE DRIVING" APPEARS AFTER ABOUT 15 MINUTES OF DRIVING. THE CAR DOES NOT MALFUNCTION, CHANGES GEARS WITHOUT PROBLEMS, AND WARNING REMAINS ON SCREEN. CAR HAS 58K MILES AND HAS BEEN WELL MAINTAINED. TOOK TO AUDI DEALERSHIP AND ADVISED MODULE G676 IS BAD. COST TO REPAIR: $5334.39. THERE IS A TSB FOR THIS WARNING ON THIS ISSUE FOR SEVERAL YEARS OF AUDIS. AUDI WILL NOT COVER ANY OF THE COSTS TO REPAIR ALTHOUGH THEY REALIZE THIS IS A COMMON FAILURE AMONG THIS VEHICLE. THIS IS A MANUFACTURER ISSUE!! WHY ARE THEY NOT BEING HELD ACCOUNTABLE?
MECHATRONIC FAILURE. CAR WAS FULLY SERVICED AND MAINTAINED BY AUDI HOWEVER AUDI WILL NOT PAY FOR COST OF REPLACEMENT. COST OF REPLACEMENT IS $3,000 USD. CAR DISPLAYED GEARBOX MALFUNCTION LIMITED DRIVING ABILITY, PARKING BRAKE FAILURE THEN LOST ALL DRIVE AND CAR WAS STUCK IN N. I WAS UNABLE TO SHIFT OUT OF GEAR AND PUT THE CAR IN…
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MECHATRONIC FAILURE. CAR WAS FULLY SERVICED AND MAINTAINED BY AUDI HOWEVER AUDI WILL NOT PAY FOR COST OF REPLACEMENT. COST OF REPLACEMENT IS $3,000 USD. CAR DISPLAYED GEARBOX MALFUNCTION LIMITED DRIVING ABILITY, PARKING BRAKE FAILURE THEN LOST ALL DRIVE AND CAR WAS STUCK IN N. I WAS UNABLE TO SHIFT OUT OF GEAR AND PUT THE CAR IN PARK THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE.
HARD CLUNK WHEN SELECTING GEARS FROM P TO R TO D. WHEN COMING TO A STOP IN TRAFFIC THE CAR LURCHES FORWARD LIKE BEING REAR ENDED. SOMETIMES AFTER A COMPLETE STOP HAS BEEN MADE THE CAR WILL SURGE FORWARD A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT WHICH MAY POSSIBLY CAUSE ME TO HIT THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME.
AT 57K MILES GOT TRANS OVERHEATING WARNING WHILE DRIVING ON BACK ROADS AND CAR STARTED TO LOOSE POWER. AFTER A FEW SECS WENT AWAY. ON WAY HOME SAME THING HAPPENED AND WAS ABLE TO LIMP TO DEALER. DEALER DIAGNOSED W/ BAD MECHATRONICS UNIT WHICH APPEARS TO BE COMMON PROBLEM W/ EARLY B8 DSG TRANSMISSIONS.
HARD CLUNK WHEN SELECTING GEARS FROM P TO R TO D. WHEN COMING TO A STOP THE CAR LURCHES FORWARD ALMOST LIKE BEING REAR ENDED. SOMETIMES AFTER A COMPLETE STOP HAS BEEN MADE THE CAR WILL BUCK FORWARD SLIGHTLY
MECHATRONICS ISSUE. CAR WILL SURGE IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC WHEN OPERATING AT COLDER ENGINE TEMPERATURES. COMMON ISSUE AMONGST THE 2010-2012 MODELS.
JERKY DSG TRANSMISSION SHIFTS, WHETHER DOWNSHIFTING OR UP SHIFT. GOING SLOW OR FAST, THIS ONLY HAPPENS ONCE TRANS IS UP TO TEMP, I'M PRETTY SURE MY MECHATRONICS UNIT IS FAILING.
THE S-TRONIC/DSG TRANSMISSION IS HAVING ISSUES DOWNSHIFTING. IT WILL REV UP HIGH WHEN COMING TO A STOP AS WELL. THERE IS ALSO A HARSH CLUNK WHEN SHIFTING FROM NEUTRAL-DRIVE-PARK. AUDI RECOMMENDED REPLACING THE MECHATRONICS UNIT IN THE TRANSMISSION. THE MECHATRONICS CIRCUIT BOARD HAS ALREADY BEEN REPLACED AT OWNERS COST AND NOW T…
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THE S-TRONIC/DSG TRANSMISSION IS HAVING ISSUES DOWNSHIFTING. IT WILL REV UP HIGH WHEN COMING TO A STOP AS WELL. THERE IS ALSO A HARSH CLUNK WHEN SHIFTING FROM NEUTRAL-DRIVE-PARK. AUDI RECOMMENDED REPLACING THE MECHATRONICS UNIT IN THE TRANSMISSION. THE MECHATRONICS CIRCUIT BOARD HAS ALREADY BEEN REPLACED AT OWNERS COST AND NOW THEY WANT ME TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE MECHATRONIC UNIT AT MY COST ($3800+). THIS IS A COMMON ISSUE WITH THESE CARS AND THERE NEEDS TO BE A RECALL FOR THESE TRANSMISSIONS. IT IS KNOWN THAT THESE TRANSMISSIONS ARE FAULTY AND AUDI DOES NOT WANT TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THESE ISSUES.
AT APPROX 55K MILES, MECHATRONICS UNIT FAILED. EXTREMELY ROUGH SHIFTS FROM 1-2 AND 2-1, LURCHING FORWARD AFTER COMING TO COMPLETE STOP. DEALERSHIP REPLACED MECHARONICS UNIT. AT 74K MILES ENTIRE DSG GEARBOX FAILED, WHILE ON HIGHWAY WITH VIRTUALLY NO POWER OR ABILITY TO ACCELERATE. LUCKILY TRAFFIC WAS AT NEAR STOP DUE TO RUSH HOU…
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AT APPROX 55K MILES, MECHATRONICS UNIT FAILED. EXTREMELY ROUGH SHIFTS FROM 1-2 AND 2-1, LURCHING FORWARD AFTER COMING TO COMPLETE STOP. DEALERSHIP REPLACED MECHARONICS UNIT. AT 74K MILES ENTIRE DSG GEARBOX FAILED, WHILE ON HIGHWAY WITH VIRTUALLY NO POWER OR ABILITY TO ACCELERATE. LUCKILY TRAFFIC WAS AT NEAR STOP DUE TO RUSH HOUR, WAS ABLE TO MAKE IT TO NEXT OFFRAMP IN WHAT THEY CALL 'LIMP MODE'. DEALERSHIP IS REPLACING ENTIRE TRANSMISSION.
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.