2004 Audi A4 Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other A4 years
- Far more complaints than other years 7th of 31 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 2 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 189 complaints with NHTSA about the 2004 Audi A4. That ranks 7th out of 31 A4 model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is fuel system, gasoline (46 complaints, 24%), typically at around 61,000 miles. Complaints mention 8 crashes, 3 fires, 6 injuries. There are 2 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 1 defect investigation involving it.
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- 189owner complaints
- 2safety recalls
- 1NHTSA investigations
- 8complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2004 Audi A4 problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 46 | 24% | 61,000 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 26 | 14% | 78,224 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 18 | 10% | 55,900 | — | — |
| Tires | 16 | 8% | 6,500 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 16 | 8% | 48,500 | — | — |
| Visibility | 16 | 8% | 53,000 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 15 | 8% | 62,242 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 14 | 7% | 80,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 12 | 6% | 41,000 | — | — |
| Engine | 7 | 4% | 109,750 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 6 | 3% | 79,901 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 5 | 3% | 90,700 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Other | 5 | 3% | 82,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 4 | 2% | 48,250 | — | — |
| Structure | 4 | 2% | 10,746 | — | — |
| Equipment | 3 | 2% | 5,930 | — | — |
| Steering | 3 | 2% | 47,000 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 1 | 1% | 32,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 1 | 1% | 46,946 | — | — |
| Suspension | 1 | 1% | 2,389 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2004 Audi A4 recalls (2)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module
Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2004-2008 Audi A4, and 2005-2011 Audi A6 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Volkswagen is recalling certain model year 2004-2008 Audi A4, and 2005-2008 Audi A6 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Lastly, unless included in "Zone A" or "Zone B" above, Volkswagen is recalling model year 2004 Audi A4 vehicles originally sold, or registered, in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 28, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-822-2834.
Exterior lighting:headlights
Problem: On certain passenger vehicles, there is a possibility of xenon headlamp coating degradation over time. The luminous transmittance of the headlamp may decrease over a period of time.
Risk: This condition could affect a driver's field of view, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the left and right xenon headlamp reflectors free of charge. The recall began on april 11, 2005. Owners may contact audi at 1-800-822-2834.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Engine stalling - fuel pump failure (PE08027) — opened Apr 14, 2008, closed Aug 6, 2008.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
******* delete voq ******* this complaint is being marked for deletion because it is requested by the consumer that they wish to have it removed*djr ******* delete voq *******
This took place about a week ago. The car was parked in our driveway when the fire started. My husband had returned home just 15 minutes prior to the fire starting. I noticed there was smoke coming in our living room window. Then I looked at our security camas. And saw smoke pouring out from…
The contact owns a 2004 Audi A4. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the rear windshield became detached from the soft top. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer to be inspected. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and was awaiting a response. The failure mileage was…
PRNDS appeared in red on my dash and then started blinking. Went on line regarding this and read about a TCM switch or a lever switch malfunction.Have an appt with mechanic on 8/26/21. From what I have read we are looking at a cost prohibitive repair of several thousands of dollars. Does Audi have…
I was driving to jacksonville florida and car had shut off on me on the highway in yulee florida i was stuck on the highway for 7 hrs my car is stuck in florida
Other Audi A4 years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 A4 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 A4 | 2 | 0 |
| 2023 A4 | 10 | 0 |
| 2022 A4 | 6 | 3 |
| 2021 A4 | 11 | 4 |
| 2020 A4 | 128 | 3 |
| 2019 A4 | 10 | 1 |
| 2018 A4 | 44 | 1 |
| 2017 A4 | 55 | 1 |
| 2016 A4 | 11 | 0 |
| 2015 A4 | 19 | 0 |
| 2014 A4 | 32 | 0 |
| 2013 A4 | 24 | 0 |
| 2012 A4 | 19 | 0 |
| 2011 A4 | 11 | 0 |
| 2010 A4 | 64 | 0 |
| 2009 A4 | 120 | 2 |
| 2008 A4 | 175 | 4 |
| 2007 A4 | 196 | 3 |
| 2006 A4 | 295 | 3 |
| 2005 A4 | 219 | 3 |
| 2004 | 189 | 2 |
| 2003 A4 | 210 | 3 |
| 2002 A4 | 181 | 1 |
| 2001 A4 | 131 | 1 |
| 2000 A4 | 96 | 2 |
| 1999 A4 | 190 | 4 |
| 1998 A4 | 258 | 4 |
| 1997 A4 | 98 | 6 |
| 1996 A4 | 89 | 4 |
| 1995 A4 | 1 | 1 |
See all Audi A4 problems by year, every Audi model, or the Audi VIN decoder.
Similar Audi models
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2004 Audi A4?
Owners most often report fuel system, gasoline, air bags, engine and engine cooling problems. The top one, fuel system, gasoline, accounts for 46 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2004 Audi A4?
Yes, 2 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2004 Audi A4 a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other A4 model years, the 2004 has far more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.