1998 AUDI A4 Complaints

DURING WET WEATHER, THE BRAKES TAKES SEVERAL SECONDS TO CATCH AFTER THE PEDAL IS DEPRESSED. THIS HAS CAUSED MANY NEAR ACCIDENTS SINCE THIS BEHAVIOR IS NOT NORMAL NOR EXPECTED. DRY WEATHER BRAKING IS JUST FINE. I AM VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND HAVE CONTACTED AUDI OF AMERICA AND MY DEALER. THEY DO NOT HAVE A SOLUTION FOR THE PROBLEM YET. I NEED HELP!!

I CONTINUE TO HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE BRAKE SYSTEM ON THIS AUTO, EVEN ON DRY SURFACES. IT APPEARS THAT THE PROBLEM IS A MISALIGNED INTERFACE BETWEEN THE ALL-WHEEL DRIVE (QUATTRO) SYSTEM AND THE ABS. THE PROBLEM IS ONE OF SOFTWARE, NOT HARDWARE, AND AUDI NEEDS TO REPLACE THE APPROPRIATE CHIP.*AK

VEHICLE DOES NOT BRAKE PROPERLY WHEN BRAKES ARE WET. WHEN APPLYING BRAKES VEHICLE CONTINUES TO TRAVEL. THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN REPORTED TO DEALERSHIP AND MANUFACTURER MANY TIMES. PROBLEM HAS NOT BEEN CORRECTED. *AK THE PROBLEM WAS CORRECTED ON 2000 MODELS BY REDESIGNING BRAKES BUT NO ON EARLIER MODELS. *YH

MY CAR SUFFERS FROM THE SAME PROBLEM AS NHTSA CAMPAIGN 99V248000, BUT IS NOT COVERED AS IT WAS MFD 11/98. THE DEALER HAS AGREED TO REPAIR BUT I WANTED TO NOTIFY NHTSA THAT THE RECALL DOES NOT COVER ALL DEFECTIVE VEHICLES FOR THIS PROBLEM.*AK

BOLT FOR CRUISE CONTROL SERVO FELL OUT RESULTING IN SERVO BECOMING WEDGED IN ENGINE AREA AND CAUSING SUDDEN ACCELERATION OF THE VEHICLE ON HIGHWAY. YH

AFTER DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY IN THE RAIN, WHEN BRAKES FIRST APPLIED, THE CAR ACCELERATES, THEN BRAKES AFTER 1-2 SECONDS. THIS IS VERY UNNERVING AND THE DEALER SAYS AUDI KNOWS ABOUT THIS BUT THERE IS "NO ADVISORY OR TECHNICAL BULLETIN TO FIX IT" PLEASE HELP. OTHERWISE, THIS CAR IS ONE OF THE BEST.*AK

WET BRAKING PROBLEM - DURING RAIN BRAKE EFFICIENCY FALLS TO AN UNACCEPTABLE LEVEL. BRAKE SHOES SLIP ON THE DISC AND DO NOT PROVIDE SUFFICIENT BRAKING. ABS DOES NOT ACTIVATE WHICH MEANS THAT TIRES DO NOT EVEN TRY TO LOCK. THIS MAKES ME TO BELIEVE THAT THE PROBLEM IS REALLY IN THE SHOE/DISC ENGAGEMENT.

MY A4 EXHIBITS A SEVERE DELAY (3-4 SECS) IN BRAKING FORCE WHEN THE BRAKES GET WET (I.E. ANY TIME IT RAINS). THIS IS NOT NORMAL AND SEEMS QUITE HAZARDOUS. IT ONLY HAPPENS WHEN THE BRAKES GET WET, WHICH ALWAYS HAPPENS DRIVING IN RAIN (AND I DON'T MEAN DRIVING THROUGH PUDDLES). DEALER'S LATEST STORY IS THAT AUDI IS AWARE OF PROBLEM BUT HAS NO FIX. SOME (NOT ALL) OWNERS OF THIS CAR MODEL HAVE THE SAME COMPLAINT. *AK

INTERMITTENTLY THE BRAKES DON'T GRAB AT ALL, ESPECIALLY IN THE WET. THIS HAPPENS EVEN AFTER THE CAR HAS BEEN DRIVE FAR ENOUGH TO WARM UP THE BRAKES. *AK

IN HEAVY RAIN CONDITIONS, BRAKES BECOME UNRESPONSIVE FOR APPX 1-2 SECONDS, REGARDLESS OF PEDAL PRESSURE. I HAVE BEEN DRIVING FOR 18 YEARS AND CAN ATTEST THAT THIS IS NOT A CASE OF NORMAL 'REDUCED EFFECTIVENESS' ASSOCIATED WITH WET CONDITIONS. IN CERTAIN CONDITIONS, THE CAR WILL TRAVEL FOR 20-50 FEET WITHOUT ANY NOTICEABLE BRAKE EFFECTIVENESS. YES, I DO PUMP MY BRAKES FREQUENTLY UNDER THESE CONDITIONS TO CLEAR EXCESS WATER FROM THE PADS/ROTORS.