2015 Audi Allroad: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2015 Audi Allroad
Only 4 defect reports have been filed with NHTSA about the 2015 Audi Allroad, which is too few to compute mileage percentiles or a risk score. The reports reported steering rack, gear or tie rod failure.
When each failure gets reported
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steering rack, gear or tie rod failure | steering | 3 | 3 | — | 34k | — | 0.3 | $700–$2,600 | High |
| Airbag inflator rupture | airbag | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $0–$0 | Critical |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The odometer reading is the one the owner gave.
Steering rack, gear or tie rod failure
Around 3,000 miles I noticed a change in the character of the steering. At times the steering at highway speed would feel very light (almost like extra boost or assistance) and at other times the steering would be very firm, almost to the point of not moving / tracking naturally while driving. If turned, the wheel would stay in that position. Shortly thereafter the sensation of a "detent" at the center position of steering become progressively more noticeable, ultimately to the point that it would take noticeably extra effort to transition the car from a right turn to a left turn and vice-versa (I.e. Crossing center took extra force, after which the resistance would fall off causing oversteering). I took the car to dealer and the car was there for 5 business days. When I described what was happening they knew exactly what I was talking about -- they called it "notchy" steering. They replaced the entire steering rack and column after a regional rep came to evaluate the car. Initially the car felt relatively normal after repair, but I again am starting to intermittently feel the "detent" in steering at centerline. This sensation is…
Recalls on the 2015 model year
NHTSA has issued 1 recall campaign covering the 2015 Audi Allroad, affecting an estimated 11,326 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover air bags. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
Recalls also distort complaint counts. Publicity about a campaign reminds owners that complaining is possible, so reports for a recalled component often spike after the recall rather than before it.
AIR BAGS
101,938 vehicles 2014-10-24- Defect
- Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Audi A4 and S4 vehicles manufactured February 16, 2012, to October 21, 2014, and 2013-2015 Audi Allroad vehicles manufactured March 12, 2012, to October 21, 2014. Due to an improper algorithm in the air bag control module, if a crash necessitates deployment of the side air bags, a second impact to the front of the vehicle may not command the front air bags to also deploy.
- Consequence
- If the front air bags do not deploy in the event of a secondary impact to the front of the vehicle, there is an increased risk of occupant injury.
- Remedy
- Volkswagen will notify owners, and Audi dealers will update the air bag control unit software, free of charge. The recall began on November 14, 2014. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-822-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69K5.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
Every year of the Audi Allroad
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
What the reports on file say
The complaints recorded against the 2015 Audi Allroad are steering rack, gear or tie rod failure (3 reports, around 34k miles) and airbag inflator rupture (1 report). With a sample this size these are anecdotes rather than a pattern, and they are shown because somebody looking at this exact car would rather see them than nothing.
Why this page is short
A model year needs about 8 reports before percentiles mean anything, and this one does not have them. Complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road, so a thin page usually means a rare car, a new car, or a car whose owners do not file.
Other years of the same model do have enough: 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2013. The mechanical parts are often shared across those years, so their pages are the better guide to what this one is likely to do, with the caveat that a shared part is not a shared production line.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed