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2010 Audi S4

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

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There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

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
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32,000 miles · Aug 11, 2015
Power Train

SYMPTOMATIC DSG ENGAGEMENT ISSUES. BRAKING DOWN TO 0 MPH FROM GEARS ABOVE 1ST WILL HOLD THE GEAR UNTIL THE LAST SECOND BEFORE TOTAL STOP WHERE IT FEELS THE CAR IS REAR ENDED AND LOUD BANG IN THE TRANSMISSION. MOVING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE AND BACK CAN SOMETIMES CAUSE LOUD BANG IN TRANSMISSION. UPSHIFTING FROM 1ST TO 2ND SOM…

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SYMPTOMATIC DSG ENGAGEMENT ISSUES. BRAKING DOWN TO 0 MPH FROM GEARS ABOVE 1ST WILL HOLD THE GEAR UNTIL THE LAST SECOND BEFORE TOTAL STOP WHERE IT FEELS THE CAR IS REAR ENDED AND LOUD BANG IN THE TRANSMISSION. MOVING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE AND BACK CAN SOMETIMES CAUSE LOUD BANG IN TRANSMISSION. UPSHIFTING FROM 1ST TO 2ND SOMETIMES HAS TROUBLE GETTING INTO GEAR

NHTSA ODI #10747931

94,200 miles · Apr 12, 2015
Power Train

I HAVE JUST RECENTLY PURCHASED THIS CAR FROM AN OLDER MAN WHO WAS VERY KIND TO THE CAR. I HAVE HAD THIS VEHICLE FOR THE WHOLE TWO MONTHS WHEN I ENTERED MY GARAGE TO LEAVE FOR THE DAY I RECEIVED A"GEAR BOX MALFUNCTION, YOU MAY CONTINUE DRIVING: LIMITED FUNCTIONALITY CODE" I HAVE DONE MY HOURS OF RESEARCH AND HAVE FOUND OUT THIS I…

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I HAVE JUST RECENTLY PURCHASED THIS CAR FROM AN OLDER MAN WHO WAS VERY KIND TO THE CAR. I HAVE HAD THIS VEHICLE FOR THE WHOLE TWO MONTHS WHEN I ENTERED MY GARAGE TO LEAVE FOR THE DAY I RECEIVED A"GEAR BOX MALFUNCTION, YOU MAY CONTINUE DRIVING: LIMITED FUNCTIONALITY CODE" I HAVE DONE MY HOURS OF RESEARCH AND HAVE FOUND OUT THIS IS A SIMPLY A PROBLEM LOT OF PEOPLE ARE HAVING. THIS IS SOMETHING AUDI IS SELLING ON THEIR CARS KNOWING THESE HAVE ISSUES!!!!! I WANT TO TAKE FURTHER ACTION, AUDI SHOULD STEP UP AND REPAIR ALL THE BROKEN UNITS THEY HAVE BEEN SELLING. THESE UNITS HAVE GIVEN 95 PERCENT OF AUDI OWNERS PROBLEMS. REALLY MAKES ME FEEL LIKE I'LL NEVER BUY ANOTHER. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10705174

54,000 miles · Apr 5, 2015
Power Train

I WAS DRIVING AND CAME UP TO STOP LIGHT. CAR FLASHED UP WARNING SAYING GEARBOX MALFUNCTION LIMITED FUNCTIONALITY. CAR WOULD NOT CHANGE UP OR DOWN SMOOTHLY OR QUICKLY. LOSS OF POWER ON EVERY SHIFT FOR OVER A SECOND. HAD AUDI OF STEVENS CREEK CHANGE DSG FLUID A COUPLE OF WEEK PRIOR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10703811

55,000 miles · Apr 4, 2015
Power Train

THE DSG TRANSMISSION IS VERY JERKY IN 1-2 GEARS IT OPERATES AS THOUGH THE CLUTCH IS NOT ENGAGING/DISENGAGING PROPERLY. WHEN TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL ENGAGED THE ENGINE RPMS WANDER AS THOUGH THE CLUTCH IS ENGAGING AND DISENGAGING. STARTING FROM A DEADSTOP OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS ARE VERY UNCOMFOR…

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THE DSG TRANSMISSION IS VERY JERKY IN 1-2 GEARS IT OPERATES AS THOUGH THE CLUTCH IS NOT ENGAGING/DISENGAGING PROPERLY. WHEN TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL ENGAGED THE ENGINE RPMS WANDER AS THOUGH THE CLUTCH IS ENGAGING AND DISENGAGING. STARTING FROM A DEADSTOP OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS ARE VERY UNCOMFORTABLE DUE TO THE JERKY-NESS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10703702

48,000 miles · Oct 29, 2014
Power Train

WHILE DRIVING IN RUSH HOUR BUMPER TO BUMPER TRAFFIC THE 2010 AUDI S4 WITH THE DSG S-TRONIC TRANSMISSION BECOMES VERY JERKY, CAUSING IT TO SURGE WHEN STARTING AND STOPPING OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS. AS A RESULT IT IS HARD TO CONTROL, ESPECIALLY IN TIGHT TRAFFIC, PARKING AREAS, OR AROUND PEDESTRIANS. ADDITIONALLY, WHEN COMING TO A …

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WHILE DRIVING IN RUSH HOUR BUMPER TO BUMPER TRAFFIC THE 2010 AUDI S4 WITH THE DSG S-TRONIC TRANSMISSION BECOMES VERY JERKY, CAUSING IT TO SURGE WHEN STARTING AND STOPPING OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS. AS A RESULT IT IS HARD TO CONTROL, ESPECIALLY IN TIGHT TRAFFIC, PARKING AREAS, OR AROUND PEDESTRIANS. ADDITIONALLY, WHEN COMING TO A COMPLETE STOP WHEN IN THIS CONDITION THE SHIFT FROM 2ND GEAR TO FIRST HAPPEN IN SUCH A WAY THE IT GIVE THE FEELING THAT THE CAR HAS BEEN REAR ENDED. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10651114

53,890 miles · Oct 5, 2014
Power Train

I WAS DRIVING ON A NORMAL STRETCH OF FLAT HIGHWAY APPROXIMATELY 65MPH AND THE DASH LIT UP LIKE A CHRISTMAS TREE OUT OF THE BLUE. CAR INDICATED REVERSE GEAR NOT AVAILABLE, TRANSMISSION WARNING LIGHTS, AND TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR SYSTEM PROBLEM ALL AT THE SAME TIME. CAR WENT IN TO A "LIMP MODE" AND IT ONLY SHIFTED IN EVEN NUMBER GEA…

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I WAS DRIVING ON A NORMAL STRETCH OF FLAT HIGHWAY APPROXIMATELY 65MPH AND THE DASH LIT UP LIKE A CHRISTMAS TREE OUT OF THE BLUE. CAR INDICATED REVERSE GEAR NOT AVAILABLE, TRANSMISSION WARNING LIGHTS, AND TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR SYSTEM PROBLEM ALL AT THE SAME TIME. CAR WENT IN TO A "LIMP MODE" AND IT ONLY SHIFTED IN EVEN NUMBER GEARS, AND FELT LIKE THE CAR WAS DANGEROUSLY UNSTABLE DUE TO ERRATIC MISSED SHIFTING. THE CAR HAD RECENTLY BEEN IN PRIOR FOR A SERVICE CHECK AND HAD NO CODES OR CHECK ENGINE LIGHT PROBLEMS AT ALL! AFTER A LITTLE RESEARCH IT IS A WELL DOCUMENTED PROBLEM THAT THE MECHATRONICS FAILS ON THIS VEHICLE RATHER OFTEN. THAT WAS THE PROBLEM. COST OF REPAIR WAS NEAR 3300$. I WAS APPROXIMATELY 4K MILES OUT OF WARRANTY WHEN THIS OCCURRED, AFTER NUMEROUS PERSISTENT EXCHANGES WITH AUDI OF AMERICA THEY FINALLY DECIDED TO COVER THE FAILURE AS I WAS CONSIDERING SEEKING LEGAL ACTION. ( I HAD THE PART IN HAND AND COULD SUBMIT IT TO FAILURE ANALYSIS ENGINEERING FOR CAUSE). ON AN POLL ON A POPULAR AUDI WEBSITE, APPROXIMATELY 15% OF THESE MECHATRONICS HAVE FAILED. THE DESIGN ISSUE IS A CIRCUIT CARD EMBEDDED IN HOT TRANSMISSION FLUID THAT AFFECTS THE HYDRAULIC CONTROL OF THE TRANSMISSION. IF THE TRANSMISSION IS DAMAGED IT CAN BE OVER A +10K$ REPAIR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10641516

99,400 miles · Sep 7, 2014
Power Train

DSG TRANSMISSION (AUTO) IS JERKY. DOES NOT ENGAGE SMOOTHLY AND IS VERY ERRATIC. CAN SLAM INTO THE NEXT GEAR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10631318

59,900 miles · Aug 3, 2014
Power Train

WHILE DRIVING IN RUSH HOUR BUMPER TO BUMPER TRAFFIC THE 2010 AUDI S4 WITH THE DSG S-TRONIC TRANSMISSION BECOMES VERY JERKY, CAUSING IT TO SURGE WHEN STARTING AND STOPPING OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS. AS A RESULT IT IS HARD TO CONTROL, ESPECIALLY IN TIGHT TRAFFIC, PARKING AREAS, OR AROUND PEDESTRIANS. ADDITIONALLY, HEN COMING TO A C…

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WHILE DRIVING IN RUSH HOUR BUMPER TO BUMPER TRAFFIC THE 2010 AUDI S4 WITH THE DSG S-TRONIC TRANSMISSION BECOMES VERY JERKY, CAUSING IT TO SURGE WHEN STARTING AND STOPPING OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS. AS A RESULT IT IS HARD TO CONTROL, ESPECIALLY IN TIGHT TRAFFIC, PARKING AREAS, OR AROUND PEDESTRIANS. ADDITIONALLY, HEN COMING TO A COMPLETE STOP WHEN IN THIS CONDITION THE SHIFT FROM 2ND GEAR TO FIRST HAPPEN IN SUCH A WAY THE IT GIVE THE FEELING THAT THE CAR HAS BEEN REAR ENDED. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10618472

63,000 miles · Aug 2, 2014
Electrical SystemPower Train

PULLED OUT OF PARKING LOT AND RECEIVED A GEARBOX MALFUNCTION WARNING ALONG WITH A TPMS MALFUNCTION. WARNING ON DASH INDICATED THAT I COULD CONTINUE DRIVING. I DROVE VEHICLE FOR APPROXIMATELY ANOTHER MILE AND WHILE GOING THRU A ROUNDABOUT, THE CAR SHUT OFF. I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND GET THE VEHICLE START…

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PULLED OUT OF PARKING LOT AND RECEIVED A GEARBOX MALFUNCTION WARNING ALONG WITH A TPMS MALFUNCTION. WARNING ON DASH INDICATED THAT I COULD CONTINUE DRIVING. I DROVE VEHICLE FOR APPROXIMATELY ANOTHER MILE AND WHILE GOING THRU A ROUNDABOUT, THE CAR SHUT OFF. I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND GET THE VEHICLE STARTED AGAIN. I CONTINUED THE REST OF THE WAY HOME FOR ABOUT 2 MORE MILES. THE MECHATRONIC UNIT WAS DETERMINED TO BE FAULTY AND WAS REPLACED. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10618337

20,304 miles · Jan 29, 2014
Power Train

MECHATRONICS UNIT FAILURE IN DSG TRANSMISSION. HARD SHIFTS FROM 1ST TO 2ND AND 2ND TO 1ST WHILE STOPPING. (VEHICLE MAKES LOUD DRIVETRAIN BANG NOISE, SHAKES AND STOPS ABRUPTLY WHEN SLOWING DOWN AND TRYING TO COME TO A STOP, ALMOST AS IF YOU SLOWED DOWN TO 5-10MPH AND THEN SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES.) *TR

NHTSA ODI #10561980

Official recalls

0

No 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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.