2001 Audi S4 Electrical Problems

Instrument cluster that shows safety information doesn't work so don't know what's issue with car

NHTSA ID

11444855

Incident

Dec 23, 2021

I JUST HAPPENED TO LOOK UP RECALLS AND SAW THE COMPLAINTS ON THE AUDI S4 2001. I NOTICED MY CAR WASN'T THE ONLY ONE WHERE THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER HAS LOST PIXELS AND ENDS UP UNREADABLE FOR ALL WARNINGS AND MANUFACTURER PROGRAMMED SAFETY WARNINGS. IT HAS BEEN LIKE THIS FOR YEARS AND DID ASK MY DEALER HOW MUCH IT WOULD COST TO FIX IT AND IT WAS INSANE. IT IS A REAL SAFETY ISSUE. AUDI SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR FIXING IT. I DIDN'T REALIZE OTHER AUDI'S WERE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. MAYBE IF MORE PEOPLE COMPLAIN, AUDI WILL BE FORCED TO FIX IT.

NHTSA ID

10722761

Incident

Dec 2, 2013

1. ALL THE TIME 2. THE FAILURE MAKES ME UNABLE TO SEE THE WARNING ICONS DUE TO THE DEAD PIXELS IN MY CLUSTER (DASH COMPUTER) 3. NO REPAIR WAS DONE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10266642

Incident

Jan 1, 2003

Mileage

60,000 mi

INFORMATION DISPLAY ON INSTRUMENT CLUSTER IS FAILING; PIXELS NO LONGER OPERATE RENDERING THE DISPLAY USELESS. DISPLAY IS USED TO INFORM THE DRIVER OF VITAL SAFETY INFORMATION BUT WITH FAILED DISPLAY THE IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION CANNOT BE READ! *TR

NHTSA ID

10261020

Incident

Oct 15, 2007

Mileage

75,000 mi

1) THERE IS NO TRIGGERING EVENT LEADING UP TO THE FAILURE. IT JUST APPEARS OVER TIME. 2) THE LCD SCREEN IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER HAS LINES OF PIXELS THAT DO NOT LIGHT UP. THIS IS CONSTANT, WITH MORE LINES OF PIXELS GOING OUT AND PERMANENTLY STAYING OUT OVER TIME. AS A CONSEQUENCE, IMPORTANT WARNING MESSAGES ARE NOT DISPLAYED OR READABLE; SUCH AS WORN OUT BRAKE PADS, FUEL LOW WARNING, WASHER FLUID LOW WARNING, ETC. IF THESE WARNINGS ARE NOT DISPLAYED, THE VEHICLE MAY RUN OUT OF GAS WITHOUT WARNING AND STALL WHILE OPERATING, OR BRAKES MAY WEAR DOWN TO THE POINT OF LOSING EFFECTIVENESS WITHOUT WARNING, OR BE LEFT WITHOUT WASHER FLUID WITHOUT WARNING. *TR

NHTSA ID

10256054

Incident

Jan 1, 2009

Mileage

70,000 mi

INFORMATION DISPLAY ON INSTRUMENT CLUSTER IS FAILING; PIXELS NO LONGER OPERATE RENDERING THE DISPLAY USELESS. DISPLAY IS USED TO INFORM THE DRIVER OF VITAL SAFETY INFORMATION BUT WITH FAILED DISPLAY THE IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION CANNOT BE READ! *TR

NHTSA ID

10255761

Incident

Dec 10, 2008

Mileage

119,760 mi

I OWN A 2001 AUDI S4. THE CENTER DISPLAY ON THE GAUGE CLUSTER IS FAILING DUE TO MISSING PIXELS. THE CENTER DISPLAY NORMALLY DISPLAYS CRITICAL SAFETY INFORMATION REGARDING FAILING ENGINE AND BODY COMPONENTS. IT IS ALWAYS MISSING PIXELS, AND IS NEVER CLEAR ENOUGH TO READ PROPERLY. RECENTLY, I DEVELOPED AN OIL LEAK AND THE CENTER DISPLAY WASN'T CLEAR ENOUGH TO SEE THE LOW OIL WARNING LIGHT. AS A RESULT I WAS STRANDED IN SUB-ZERO TEMPERATURES WITHOUT TRANSPORTATION. I AM CURRENTLY REPAIRING THE ENGINE FAR BEYOND WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN NECESSARY, HAD THE CENTER DISPLAY BEEN WORKING CORRECTLY. I HAVE NOT YET REPAIRED THE DISPLAY, BECAUSE THE DEALER IS ASKING $1000 FOR REPLACEMENT. I KNOW IT A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR, AND DUE TO THE AGE, IS REACHING A VERY HIGH PERCENTAGE OF FAILURE. I DON'T THINK THAT FAILING SAFETY EQUIPMENT SHOULD BE A ROUTINE MAINTENANCE ITEM FOR ANYONE, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT IS A HIGH DOLLAR ITEM. *TR

NHTSA ID

10255747

Incident

Jan 14, 2009

Mileage

118,000 mi

DEAD PIXELS IN INSTRUMENT WARNING DISPLAY. *TR

NHTSA ID

10255742

Incident

Mar 15, 2008

Mileage

59,000 mi

1. PURCHASED A 2001 S4 2. THE AUTO CHECK SYSTEM IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DOES NOT WORK ESPECIALLY WHEN WARM. CRITICAL SAFETY INFORMATION IS NO LONGER DISPLAYED. 3. WAS QUOTED OBSCENE AMOUNTS BY AUDI DEALERS TO REPLACE ENTIRE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER. *TR

NHTSA ID

10244360

Incident

Jul 5, 2008

Mileage

95,000 mi

INSTRUMENT CLUSTER HAS LOST PIXELS AND ENDS UP UNREADABLE FOR ALL WARNINGS AND MANUFACTURER PROGRAMMED SAFETY WARNINGS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10244271

Incident

Aug 1, 2007

Mileage

60,000 mi

I BOTH OWN A 2001 AUDI A4 AND 2001 AUDI S4.. ON BOTH THE RED LCD INSTRUMENT CLUSTER SCREEN HAS FAILED TO THE POINT WHERE NOTHING ON THAT SCREEN IS LEGIBLE. THE SCREEN IS DESIGNED TO SHOW MILEAGE, SPEED WARNING, RUN TIME AND OTHER FUNCTIONS. THE PIXELS HAVE CEASED TO FUNCTION TO THE POINT BEYOND RECOGNITION. I SHARE THIS PROBLEM WITH A VERY LARGE GROUP OF AUDI OWNERS OF THE SAME AND/OR SIMILAR MODEL. THIS GROUP OF PEOPLE EXPANDS INTERNATIONALLY AND AUDI CLEARLY KNOWS THAT THIS IS A PRONE TO FAILURE PART. *TR

NHTSA ID

10244266

Incident

Jun 1, 2008

Mileage

73,000 mi

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 AUDI S4. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED, THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO SEE THE ENTIRE INSTRUMENT PANEL DISPLAY. WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE INSTRUMENT PANEL EVENTUALLY APPEARED IN FULL VIEW. THE FAILURE LATER RECURRED. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 83,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,000.

NHTSA ID

10209135

Incident

Nov 9, 2007

Mileage

78,000 mi

CLUSTER LED LIGHTING FAILURE.. PIXELS ARE EITHER DIMMED OR NOT WORKING CORRECTLY LEAVING DIFFICULTY TO SEE THE SPEED OF VEHICLE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10208996

Incident

Jun 28, 2007

Mileage

50,000 mi

THE B5 (2000-2002) AUDI S4, LCDS ON GAUGE CLUSTER WHICH DISPLAY VALUABLE SAFETY INFORMATION, IS FAULTY ON EVERY S4 I'VE EVER SEEN. EVERYONE ON EVERY FORUM I FREQUENT, THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. THIS IS A PROBLEM AND NEEDS TO BE RECALLED. *TR

NHTSA ID

10208683

Incident

Nov 12, 2007

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 AUDI S4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE LCD SCREEN ON THE INSTRUMENTAL PANEL (DRIVER INFORMATION DISPLAY) CONTINUES TO VANISH, PREVENTING HIM FROM READING THE INFORMATION ON THE DISPLAY. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 110,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 90,000. UPDATED 03/13/08. *LJ

NHTSA ID

10208553

Incident

Apr 28, 2005

Mileage

90,000 mi

MY "DRIVER INFORMATION DISPLAY" HASN'T WORKED SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR IN 2005. IT'S A 2001 AUDI S4. THE DISPLAY IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DISPLAYS IMPORTANT VEHICLE INFORMATION VITAL TO THE DRIVERS SAFETY AND VEHICLE MAINTENANCE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10208552

Incident

Jan 1, 2005

Mileage

90,000 mi

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 AUDI S4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE PIXELS ON THE INSTRUMENTAL PANEL FAILED, WHICH PREVENTS HIM FROM READING THE AUTO CHECK SYSTEM. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 7,200.

NHTSA ID

10207565

Incident

Oct 24, 2007

Mileage

7,200 mi

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 AUDI S4. THE LIGHTS FOR THE CENTER LED SCREEN FAILED. THE SCREEN WAS USED TO DISPLAY WARNING INDICATORS, INDEPENDENTLY OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE CENTER CLUSTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 35,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 49,000. *UPDATED 12/27/07 *LJ UPDATED 12/12/07 *TR

NHTSA ID

10204667

Incident

Sep 1, 2006

Mileage

35,000 mi

MY 2001 AUDI S4 DEVELOPED PROBLEMS WITH ITS GAUGE CLUSTER, AND THE PROBLEMS HAVE GROWN PROGRESSIVELY WORSE, CAUSING A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH OPERATION OF THE VEHICLE. THE INFORMATION DISPLAY IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF THE CAR WHICH DIRECTLY AFFECTS THE OPERATION OF THE VEHICLE AND THE SAFETY OF DAILY DRIVING. VEHICLE WARNINGS ARE DISPLAYED ON THE CLUSTER WHICH IS NOW UNREADABLE. IT WAS THE INTENT OF AUDI FOR THIS PART TO SERVE THE PURPOSE OF PROVIDING THE DRIVER WITH NEEDED SAFETY INFORMATION. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204660

Incident

Jul 1, 2006

Mileage

105,000 mi

CENTER OF THE DASH GAUGE CLUSTER FAILURE. LINES OF INFORMATION (PIXELS) DISAPPEAR LITTLE BY LITTLE UNTIL THE GAUGE READOUT IS UNREADABLE. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204658

Incident

Apr 10, 2004

Mileage

75,000 mi

MISSING PIXELS IN THE CENTER DASH CLUSTER DISPLAY. THE DISPLAY SEEMS TO BE DEGRADING OVER TIME. OVER TIME I WILL NO LONGER BE ABLE TO SEE USEFUL INFORMATION ON THE DISPLAY. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204633

Incident

Aug 24, 2007

Mileage

110,000 mi

THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER ON MY 2001 AUDI S4 NO LONGER FUNCTIONS PROPERLY, WHICH MEANS I CANNOT READ VITAL SAFETY INFORMATION. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204631

Incident

Sep 19, 2007

Mileage

118,000 mi

INFORMATION CLUSTER DISPLAY ON DASHBOARD HAS A ROW OF DEFECTIVE PIXELS THAT DO NOT ILLUMINATE. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204618

Incident

May 1, 2007

Mileage

79,800 mi

MY CENTER DISPLAY IS UN-READABLE. THE LCD PIXELS ARE ALMOST NON-EXISTENT. CANNOT READ ANY OF THE CHECKS THE ENGINE GOES THROUGH, ALMOST CANNOT SEE THE NEED-GAS LIGHT. IT GOTTEN PROGRESSIVELY WORSE OVER THE LAST 2 YEARS. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204599

Incident

Jun 15, 2006

CENTER DISPLAY DOES NOT WORK - DEAD PIXELS. *JB

NHTSA ID

10204594

Incident

May 23, 2007

Mileage

47,000 mi