Audi · Q5 · 2013
5
Recalls
91
Complaints
-
Not Rated
The 2013 Audi Q5 has 5 recalls and 91 owner-reported complaints on file with NHTSA. Most reported issue: engine (23 reports).
Source: NHTSA Public Records · Updated Apr 22, 2026
This page combines three types of NHTSA data: recall campaigns (official manufacturer or government actions), owner complaints (unverified consumer reports), and crash test ratings (where available). A vehicle with many complaints is not necessarily less reliable — complaint volume correlates with sales volume and vehicle age. Recalls indicate identified defects, not overall quality. To compare this model year with others, use the year navigation in the sidebar or return to the model overview page.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2017 Audi A5 Cabriolet, A5 Sedan and Audi Q5 vehicles, 2012-2015 Audi A6 vehicles and 2013-2016 Audi A4 Sedan and A4 allroad vehicles. These vehicles, equipped with 2.0l Turbo FSI engines, have an electric coolant pump that can either become blocked with debris from the cooling system causing it to overheat or can short-circuit from moisture within the pump.
Remedy Status
Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the pumps, free of charge. The recall began September 14, 2018. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Audi's number's for this recall is 19N3/19N4. Note: This recall is in additional to the coolant pump software update applied as a remedy under recall 17V002.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2016 Audi A5 Coupe, A5 Cabriolet, A4 Sedan, A4 Allroad and Q5 vehicles. Contact corrosion within the electrical connector for the auxiliary heater may cause the heater wires to overheat or melt.
Remedy Status
Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the auxiliary heater and, as necessary, update the software, free of charge. The Recall began November 27, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 80C5 and 80C6.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2013-2017 Audi Q5 and 2013-2017 Audi Q7 vehicles. These gasoline-powered vehicles have a fuel pump flange that may crack, allowing fuel to leak.
Remedy Status
Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump flange if cracks are present. Flanges that do not have cracks will have a protective film applied. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began July 3, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 20Z8. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 16V-660.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2017 Audi A5, A5 Cabriolet and Q5 vehicles, 2013-2016 Audi Allroad and Audi A4 vehicles and 2012-2015 Audi A6 vehicles. These vehicles, equipped with 2.0l Turbo FSI engines, have an electric coolant pump that can be blocked with debris from the cooling system, resulting in the pump overheating.
Remedy Status
Audi will notify owners, and dealers will update the software so that the power supply to the coolant pump is deactivated if the pump becomes blocked with debris, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin February 20, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 19M1.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2011-2017 Audi Q5 vehicles. The sunroof drainage system may allow water to soak into the foam surrounding the side head air bag inflator canister resulting in the corrosion of the canister. If this happens, the corrosion can weaken the canister and the inflator could fracture without air bag deployment, propelling fragments into the passenger compartment, striking and causing serious injury to vehicle occupants.
Remedy Status
Audi will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the inflator and either coat it or replace it, as necessary, after removing the surrounding foam, free of charge. The recall is expected to began March 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69P1.
Oil leak/ and tire suspension icon keeps coming on after i fixed it
Took vehicle in for state safety inspection. Found heavy rust on subframe nearly all the way through. Was told if it gets any worse it will not pass inspection next time. Apparently there are plastic rock shields on subframe that trap water causing it to rust. Took it to dealer and they want to charge close to $4000 to replace. This seems like an engineering defect. The vehicle is kept in a garage and doesn’t have any other rust on it.
When at highway speed, the vehicle veered hard to the left without any driver input, causing the car to cross several lanes of traffic and hit a concrete divider at ~65mph. The driver fractured her back, and one of three children in the car experienced injury. The vehicle was declared a total loss by insurance. The driver (my wife) indicated that a similar incident happened at low speed in a parking lot, but it resolved after shut down and restart of the engine. It is my understanding that the vehicle is currently either at or on the way to a Copart lot.
I was doing maintenance on car. Had new tires and alignment done. The alignment tech found rotted out rear sub-frame underneath plastic covers. Said that it was unsafe to drive. Had it fixed there. Mechanic had another Q5 on rack, he said it had exact same problem. Tried to find used parts, ALL had rot through the frame. Found a part in Texas that was clean and bought it to replace. Asked Audi USA to reimburse me for the cost as they have a supposed 12 yr rust through warranty. They told me no because it only applies to body parts and that I didn't get it done at an audi dealer. The plastic cover is the issue as it keeps the moisture locked into the part. Audi A6s have the same frame but no cover and they don't rot. This is a dangerous situation and Audi is looking the other way.
The rear subframe has plastic "stone guards" to protect the frame from being damaged in off-road conditions. Where these stone guards are attached, the subframe has rotted/rusted large holes. Water and salt from winter seasons can get trapped behind these guards. A subframe on a vehicle at this age should NOT have complete holes rotted through. Let alone a vehicle brand such as Audi, known for quality. The rear subframe connects the rear suspension and AWD drivetrain to the unibody of the vehicle. This is a major safety concern. It has not been inspected by the manufacturer; my Audi dealer denied this could happen. I am part of a few Audi groups/forums with others facing the same issues, and Audi replacing the subframe under the corrosion warranty. This is a widespread issue amongst the forums. There are no warnings or symptoms as of yet. I noticed the holes 3/17/24. The vehicle has been somewhat sufficient to operate. I just don't want to be traveling down the road with my family in the vehicle if the subframe collapses. I am afraid to fully remove the stone guards as others on the forums claimed that Audi would do nothing for them after removing the guards. Being that they are "protection".
The vehicle oil level low light comes on every 600 miles (excessive oil consumption). I purchased the vehicle in July 2021, and in 2 weeks I had an oil-level light. I called Audi regarding the condition, they talked with the dealership regarding the issue and came back in 2 weeks and stated that the recall was up to 2011. I would like Audi to pay to repair my vehicle, because is a known problem which should have been resolved. Oil Change on 1/12/24; had to put oil in on 2/20/24
Car started running hot, had mechanic do pressure/ leak test and he couldn’t find a leak. Took it to Audi and they said the coolant pump and thermostat housing were leaking coolant. I’ve researched and it looks like these cars have know coolant pump issues.
The contact owns a 2013 Audi Q5. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing an abnormal oil consumption. The low oil pressure warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that she had been adding a quart of oil to the vehicle every 200 miles driven. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 125,000.
Car was telling me to add 1 qt of oil about every 1500-2000 miles, even after a recent oil change. So I took it to the place I purchased the car from and they replaced the timing chain gasket thing. About a week later the same issue came back. So I took it to Audi to have the same thing replaced. And about a month later the issue came back. Took it back to Audi and they said now the Engine speed sensor seal is leaking oil. I’ve did some research and I’ve found that there is a manufacturing engine defect that causes this reoccurring issue and most Q5 owners have stopped spending money on repairs and just tops off the oil when asked.
The coolant system on this car was repaired by Santa Monica Audi in jan 2020. Less than three years later he the coolant is leaking again with dangerously low level of coolant in the engine. This is a real safety hazard and could lead to a fire or engine overheating This is compounded by Audi Santa Monica charging $310 to simply perform a visual inspection which confirmed the water pump and thermostat needs replacing. Even though it’s related to the earlier coolant pump recall, the burden is on the consumer to pay and the elevated Safety risk remains.
My audi uses 1 quart of oil every 300 miles. The dealership wants to charge to find the problem. Audi should fix the problem at no charge. I bought the vehicle in February 2023. Was told there were no issues with the car.
Driving and warning light came on “steering defective do not drive.” Power steering and use of wheel went out, and wheel would not turn or move in the middle of driving down the street.
this car should be included in the NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V229000. Having the same issues as owners of other Audi Q5 have reported. while driving the Pull over and Check coolant message appears each time in vehicle. Coolant was leaking. The coolant is leaking onto the ground while refilling the reservoir but not coming from the reservoir.
CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO BRAKE THROTTLE OVERRIDE ON VARIOUS VEHICLES. THE CONSUMER STATED THAT WHEN REMOVING THE LEFT FOOT FROM THE BRAKE, THERE WAS A DELAY WHEN THE RIGHT FOOT WAS APPLIED TO THE ACCELERATOR. THE DELAY CAUSES THE INABILITY TO MERGE QUICKLY INTO TRAFFIC.
The top of the fuel pump connected to the fuel tank shows hairline cracks and fuel is spraying out of the fuel pump into a well in the rear seat
COOLANT PUMP BECAME BLOCKED IN MY 3.0 ENGINE VEHICLE, CAUSING IT TO OVERHEAT. THIS MAY BE A SIMILAR PROBLEM TO THE 2.0 VEHICLE, FOR WHICH THERE HAVE ALREADY BEEN 2 RECALLS. MY AIR CONDITIONER STARTED BLOWING FUSES REPEATEDLY (DAILY TO WEEKLY) LAST YEAR AND THE MECHANIC THINKS IT MAY BE A RELATED ISSUE.
The sliding sunroof exploded out of nowhere with no impact while on the Interstate. The glass rained down on us as we were traveling around 65 mph.
My daughter drove her car to Hobby Lobby in Opelika, AL. After being in the store for about 7 minutes they announced over the intercom for the owner of a black audi to come to the front. They told her that her car was on fire. She went outside and black smoke and fire was coming from the hood. A lady had already called 911. While waiting, flames started coming from the bottom of the car. The police arrived and started trying to put the fire out, then firefighters arrived and put the fire out. After the fire was put out, the car kept trying to start itself so they had to locate the battery to disconnect it. Luckily the firefighters were a few stores down and was able to get to it quick. The car is available for inspection and we feel that this is some type of malfunction that we shouldn't be responsible for. A fire is very dangerous and could have hurt or killed my daughter if it had caught fire with her in it and also it catching fire around other cars that put others in danger or if it would have been at night at home under our carport and ended up catching our house on fire! The car has not been inspected by anyone. We didn't have full coverage insurance since I had just changed our policy since where I worked closed down so in the meantime of going from full coverage insurance to liability for a month and a half, this happened. So now we don't really know what to do, as we feel this isn't something we should have to pay for. We feel that Audi should be responsible for this malfunction/defect. No warnings and we have our vehicles maintenanced regularly.
The engine pistons are defective and consume an excessive amount of oil. This has been confirmed through the manufacturer's own prescribed testing of the vehicle. As a result, the vehicle is not drivable due to the safety risks include sudden engine breakdown while driving.
Panoramic sunroof glass panel shattered. Obviously, if the glass had fallen while I was driving, I (or any passengers) could have been cut and injured. I also could have been distracted and injured myself or someone else in a crash. Rockville Audi has not inspected it yet; although, they are scheduling the repair. The vehicle was inspected on July 1st at about 9:00pm by two Washington National Cathedral Police Officers (Sergeant Lozano and Officer Reyes or Navarro) shortly after it was discovered. The phone number to reach Washington National Cathedral Police is (202) 537-5667. There were no warning lamps or other symptoms that this was going to happen.
Showing 1–20 of 25 complaints
The 2013 Audi Q5 has 5 recalls recorded by NHTSA.
NHTSA has received 91 owner-reported complaints for the 2013 Audi Q5.
NHTSA has not published a safety rating for the 2013 Audi Q5.
The most commonly reported complaint categories for the 2013 Audi Q5 are engine (23 reports), steering (16 reports), structure (6 reports).
Yes. NHTSA has 5 recalls on record for the 2013 Audi Q5. Scroll up to review the published recall summaries, consequences, and remedies. To check for unrepaired recalls on your specific vehicle, use your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
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This page summarizes publicly available data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA by vehicle owners and do not by themselves prove defect severity or vehicle safety. Safety ratings may not be available for all vehicle-years. This site is not affiliated with NHTSA or any vehicle manufacturer. For official information, visit the official NHTSA page for this vehicle.