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EnginePart report

2021 Audi Q5 Engine Problems

Complaints
17about this part
Share
23%of 74 total for the year
Median mileage
9,000miles
Trend
StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 17 complaints about the engine of the 2021 Audi Q5, 23% of the 74 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 9,000 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“Q5 has a very serious defect, that is, there is a gateway module located under the rear seat cushion/cup holder. All of the communications to all the controllers go through this little box. If water spills, it collects around the gateway and corrodes it, which will shut down the car. This shutdown occurred while I was driving my family. Lost all power, engine, electrical, everything. Barely coasted out of the roadway. This is a design flaw to locate this sensitive module underneath rear cup holders and will lead to dangerous situations for people in the car.”

NHTSA complaint #11386836, filed 2021-01, 600 miles

“Date of Incident: 11/09/2025 • Location: I-30 near Cumby, TX (towed to Audi Fort Worth). Daughter was stranded on busy highway in middle of nowhere. Texas State Police came to her aid and helped w tow truck which cost $650. Engine catastrophically failed at ~50k + miles due to metal shavings throughout oil — Audi Fort Worth made the statement and I have picture of metal shavings. Which is the exact defect in **NHTSA Recall 22V753 / Audi TSB 13i5** (connecting rod bearing damage from factory machining debris). …”

NHTSA complaint #11699332, filed 2025-11

“I was driving at highway speeds when a Transmission Malfunction warning appeared, and the vehicle lost the ability to accelerate. Once I was able to pull over and put the vehicle in Park, it completely lost the ability to engage Drive or Reverse, leaving me stranded. Important to note pulling over was difficult as I was on a highway driving ar 70mph speed and trying to locate safe space to stop avoid collusion. My car towed to the nearest dealership for repairs. Audi dealership confirmed the cause was broken internal transmission filter housing bolts. …”

NHTSA complaint #11747226, filed 2026-06

“When driving in extreme cold (ambient temperatures of -35 or colder) and I reach a speed of 50mph or higher, my engine fails. The dealership refuses to resolve this issue although they’ve had my vehicle twice now, both for months at a time- and the dealership is 400 miles away from me. They also refuse to authorize the Audi-certified shop in my hometown to perform any type of diagnostics or maintenance work on this vehicle, which would significantly decrease my stress and the inconvenience of shipping my vehicle back and forth. …”

NHTSA complaint #11549978, filed 2023-10

“If I have a sensor that will malfunction due to water then there should be a water indicator alert. My sunroof vent was blocked and water went into my trunk where the core module is. I had just come to a red light to turn on to a major highway and my car began to smell like fuel. I rolled down the windows and realized the smell was not as strong as inside. The light turned green and as I stepped on the gas the car went into limp mode as I was in the middle of my turn. The power steering then went out in the turn and the wheel yanked to the left and put me half way into the lane next to me. …”

NHTSA complaint #11745545, filed 2026-06

Related service bulletins

Engine: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2025613%
202415%
2023716%
2022418%
20211723%
2020416%
20191019%
20183115%
20171945%
20162633%
20153838%
20143634%
20133337%
20124728%
20114229%
201055%
200926%

Other parts of the 2021 Audi Q5

Electrical system
27 complaints
Transmission and drivetrain
13 complaints
Forward collision avoidance
11 complaints
Other or unknown
9 complaints
Fuel system
6 complaints
Brakes
4 complaints
Back-over prevention (rear camera)
3 complaints
Steering
3 complaints
Body and structure
3 complaints
Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
3 complaints
Wheels
2 complaints
Air bags
1 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2021 Audi Q5

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology