Audi A6

Where it stands out against its peers

• Electrical system: more complaints than 98% of 2019 cars — 74% of its 114 complaints, where an ordinary 2019 car has 20%.

Same model year only, at least 30 peer cars, zeros included. Every car has a worst part; this shows which, and how far from ordinary it is. A high share means more to check, not a verdict.

Before you buy one

Built from what this car fails on, not from general knowledge of the model.

• ELECTRICAL SYSTEM — 42 owners reported this
• ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE — 7 owners reported this, 1 involving a crash
• ENGINE — 6 owners reported this
• POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE — 5 owners reported this
• STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE — 4 owners reported this
• ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — 3 owners reported this
• POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM — 3 owners reported this, 1 involving a fire

Crash test

Crash-tested by NHTSA, the American road safety agency.

Specification

Recalls

Filed by the manufacturer with a regulator. A recall is repaired free of charge, whoever owns the car now.

27% of 2022 cars have more recall campaigns than this one, and an ordinary one has 3. More of them means more to check the service record for, not a worse car.

• 11V580000

  IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, THE HEAD CURTAIN AIR BAG MAY NOT DEPLOY AND WILL NOT BE ABLE TO PROPERLY PROTECT AN OCCUPANT, INCREASING THE RISK OF AN INJURY.

  VOLKSWAGEN WILL NOTIFY ALL OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE LEFT AND/OR RIGHT CURTAIN AIR BAG FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING JANUARY 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLKSWAGEN AT 1-800-822-8987.

• 15V019000

  A fuel leak in the injection system in the presence of an ignition source, increases the risk of a fire.

  Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel rails and corresponding seals, free of charge. The recall began on March 17, 2015. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-822-2834 or Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 24AP for Audi customers and 24BK for Volkswagen customers.

• 15V823000

  An air bag that does not deploy as intended increases the risk of occupant injury in a crash.

  Volkswagen will notify owners, and Audi dealers will install a PODS system repair kit, free of charge. The recall began on February 5, 2016. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 74D1.

• 16V646000

  A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source increases the risk of a fire.

  Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the under hood fuel pump and fuel hose, free of charge. The recall began November 2016. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 24BZ.

• 16V955000

  In the event of a crash, if the air bags and/or the seat belt pretensioners do not inflate or function properly, the vehicle occupants have an increased risk of injury.

  Volkswagen and Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected air bags and seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. The recall began April 2017. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834.

• 17V002000

  If the coolant pump overheats, it can increase the risk of a fire.

  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.

• 17V781000

  A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source, increases the risk of a fire.

  Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel line, free of charge. The recall began February 5, 2018. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-888-237-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 20AR.

• 18V229000

  A blocked pump or a short-circuited pump can increase the risk of a fire.

  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.

19 more campaigns have been filed against this model. A dealer can check by VIN which apply to one car.

Regulator investigations

Opened by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation is a question the regulator asked about a possible defect, not a fault it found — most end without a recall.

• Fuel tank leak

  Preliminary evaluation, opened January 2008, closed May 2008.

• Driver's side dash fire

  Recall query, opened February 2006, closed July 2006.

• Stuck-open throttle

  Engineering analysis, opened June 2004, closed February 2005.

• Stuck-open throttle

  Preliminary evaluation, opened March 2004, closed June 2004.

• Drivers side dash fire

  Engineering analysis, opened November 2003, closed May 2004.

• Drivers side dashboard fire

  Preliminary evaluation, opened July 2003, closed November 2003.

• Steering wheel heater overheats

  Preliminary evaluation, opened May 2003, closed September 2003.

• Brake and clutch pedal bracket

  Preliminary evaluation, opened January 2002, closed July 2002.

• Fuel expulsion

  Preliminary evaluation, opened January 1999, closed March 1999.

What the maker told its dealers

Service bulletins are the manufacturer's own repair guidance to dealers, filed with NHTSA. A bulletin is not a defect finding; the count rises with how many things a maker writes down, not only with how many go wrong.

Audi filed one bulletin about the 2027 A6.

• Electrical system: 1

• This bulletin provides information when there is a high-pitched noise in the interior and from the headlights. · August 2026

Grouped by NHTSA's top-level system; a bulletin filed under a sub-heading counts toward its system.