I recently leased a 2021 Audi ETron (delivered April 2021) and have had a mostly pleasant experience until the AC stopped working yesterday with a AC malfunction warning on center screen. I dropped the car off at the dealer today and did some digging online and found that it may be a potential AC sensor failure (apparently becoming a common issue for the MY21 Etron). Dealer has to do diagnostics but told me that the likely issue won’t be able to be resolved in a ‘timely manner’ due to minimal part availability and no available loaners. I live in Texas and it’s about 90°+ everyday so AC is a MUST, especially for a new vehicle. If they’re unable to get a part in a reasonable amount of time, they said it may be eligible for manufacturer buyback - I wasn’t sure how the process looks for a manufacturer buyback and how I would even source a replacement vehicle, given the current state of inventory across brands.
For context I’m in Austin, TX. Current lease is a 36mo/10k deal, ~$500/mo with ~$4k DAS. My partner and I share the vehicle so without a loaner, I’m pretty much stuck up a creek without a paddle. I’d appreciate any tips/thoughts/advice on the process for manuf. buyback, and how I should be positioning myself if I end up having to sell.
Talk to a lemon law attorney in your state. They will give you a free consult and let you know if and when a buyback would be possible. Audi will be responsible for legal fees if it comes to that, so it will be of no cost to you.
Don’t rely on internet strangers, Go to an expert in the lemon law realm.
Are they buying it back and giving you a brand new ETron?
Are they just allowing you to end your lease without penalties so you can pick another brand or model?
Those are the only 2 options I can think of but one thing I would do while waiting for the part is push AFS to eat the monthly payment and also get you a loaner from no matter which Audi dealership they can make that happen.
I’ll contact a lemon law lawyer and will reach out to AFS to see who can get me a loaner and/or break on monthly payment for the issue. Will circle back with any updates - appreciate y’all’s input!
I went through the buyback process with AFS
/VW financial on my 2018 S4 a few years ago, it was fairly straightforward. No lawyers required for me in NJ, hit the days in service threshold for me. My car was at the dealership for about 45 days due to engine valve issue but I did have a loner.
The downside to the buyback was they take your car back and close out the lease, so you’ll have to get a new car. The upside is they give you all of your money (down payment + lease payments) minus some $ for mileage deduction. Hope this helps!
It sounds like using a lawyer with VW was well-worth the free consultation in my case. That’s why I used the same law firm when I had issues with my Ford.
Try selling it outright to an Audi dealership. I leased an ETron at the end of March and sold it last month for $13k more than I paid (net $10k after taxes/fees). If you do a buyback, you may get out of the lease but no benefit from the equity.
Well this is one option. I just went through a lemon law case myself, while I can’t get into details, it made more sense for a cash settlement vs buyback process.
Speak to a lawyer for more info, many people on the forum will pm with recommendations, more common them you think.
Personally, I’d contact Audi first. Once you get a lawyer involved, all convo with the manufacturer will come to a halt and it may wind up taking longer to resolve than if just going to Audi directly.
Or, as someone else suggested, ask the dealer if they want to buy it.
Once the lawyer contacts the manufacturer, sure, but talking to one upfront to understand all the proper documentation you want and to understand your options doesn’t trigger that.
Appreciate everyone input and feedback - it’s helping to keep the ball rolling!
As an update for the group:
called Audi of America - they can’t get me a loaner because the loaners aren’t a ‘guarantee or part of the warranty agreement’
service department at dealership finally had someone look at my vehicle but won’t have a proper diagnosis until Monday. Will be contacting the service manager to see what they can do for me
In talks with a lemon law lawyer to discuss the situation - TBD on outcome potentials
Trying to weigh my short term options (finding a vehicle to get around while they diagnose the issue), and long term (potential timeline for the fix is 30-60 days so manufacturer buyback and/or find a replacement vehicle, sell the vehicle or just live without AC until issue is fixable.
That’s crazy you’re not getting a loaner from the Audi dealer. I thought that’s one of the main reasons to go with a luxury brand. I assume Audi South and North are owned by the same group and you’re screwed either way.
i had the exact same problem on the exact same car on what seems like the exact same dealer (Audi South Austin).
1 month old eTron the A/C went bad back in June. they took it and diagnosed as low freon which they filled up and it worked. i questioned why it was low and they didn’t have an explanation. 2 months later, in August, A/C died again. they took it right away and, surprise surprise, diagnosed it as a tiny leak from an a/c line.
i was pissed both times but after the first one i was willing to give them a pass. the second time i, well lets just say i was very direct in my verbiage. as a result they found me a loaner right away (after initially telling me no loaners were available for 3-4 weeks). they had my car for close to 3 weeks since they had to wait for a part to come from Germany. i just got it back and still love the car so not interested in selling it.
i looked it up - lemon law in Texas is 4 of the same issue before the manufacturer has to buyback. if you want to part with it then you’re better off selling it back to the dealer or elsewhere.
