Structural Failure - Warning

[Koppo]

I'm jumping in with a word of warning to all R8 owners. Like any human being that takes his R8 out of the garage I hit a pot hole on Interstate 95 and only 10 mph over the speed limit. Read on. Not even a flat tire only later, 600 miles later, discovered a slightly deformed rim [which I replaced for safety]. That was last fall [2011]. This spring [2012] I took the car from winter hibernation [my R8 - V8] and went for the required 25,000 mile routing service. Amongst other things the service interval called for checking the brake fluid. To do this you have to remove the liner under the hood in the front 'luggage bay'. When the dealership removed the liner to get to the brake fluid reservoir they found a massive crack in the housing where the front shock connects to the space frame [see attached picture] I'm having a massive fight with Audi who claim this failure is as a result of an accident [my hitting a pothole] whereas I feel this is an inherent design defect that should be a) covered under warranty [my car is in warranty] and b) require Audi to issue a service bulletin requiring factory covered inspection at our local dealerships. To be honest the effect of the pothole allowed me to drive on with no perceptible change in drive quality so I'm not even convinced the pothole caused this defect. I'd love to hear from others who have thoughts or even first hand experiences that validate my concerns. All I can say is drive safely and check your brake fluid soon -
R8 strut.jpg

[photonscience]

Hitting a pothole would do that kind of damage? You'd think the tire would have blown or the rim would be severely deformed. Curious, what is the yellow compound on the crack - it looks like some sort of repair has been attempted - almost like someone tried to weld the crack at the upper part of the picture. In any case, Audi should cover this without question.

[Koppo]

Indeed nobody agrees with you more than me! The 'compound' is a mastic and I assume all 2008 R8 cars have it. I don't think [don't know] if this is unique to my car. The repair of the cracked structure was a massive undertaking - I insisted it be per factory requirements - I'm so disappointed with Audi that I'd like to see a grass roots 'tea party' gathering on this forum to remind Audi of their responsibilities. I'm convinced that this failure is not acceptable. In the future there will be a general recall - I'm convinced.

[DrDavid121]

Very sorry to hear of this-- what is the suggested repair and will they stand behind their repair? DrDavid

[randombloke]

If it's as you paint it, then it's completely unacceptable that audi are not accepting that it's a warranty issue to repair a crack like that. There is a real argument about the car not being "fit for purpose" if it can't absorb impacts caused by real world road defects.

[T-bone]

Just wondering, are you the original owner?

[visionboy]

You purchased the car used correct? This may have happened prior to your ownership. I highly doubt hitting a pot hole caused that. Most of the impact would be absorbed by the tires and rims. But then one has to wonder what kind of impact would caused this besides a major accident... Hope Audi takes care of it and you get this sorted out.

[Koppo]

To describe the whole repair is a treatise. suffice it say the repair appears effective but as we all know it's never going to be quite the same. The Audi collision center stand behind the repair that I paid for. One of my points is that the car was in warranty but Audi side swiped me on the basis of it being an accident. I standby in my belief that it's a structural fault in the car. Either this car [bad welding wire or batch of aluminum] or all R8's; is my problem isolated or is endemic to the R8 design. Being that exotics are generally low mile garage queens have we as Audi r8 owners put these cars thru their paces enough to make this fault become commonplace rather than isolated. As I said, my predication is that it won't be long before Audi issues a bulletin or a general recall. Has the space frame design changed since the 2008 model year [my year]. I'm hoping this thread will identify other owners with the same problem.

[Koppo]

It is as I describe - not a word in error!

If it's as you paint it, then it's completely unacceptable that audi are not accepting that it's a warranty issue to repair a crack like that. There is a real argument about the car not being "fit for purpose" if it can't absorb impacts caused by real world road defects.

[Koppo]

Indeed the thought that the car had the problem when I first purchase it has occurred to me. I purchased the car used from Audi with a full warranty. In as much as seeing the crack required removing the lining it never occurred to me that a 6,000 mile R8 bought from Audi with a warranty would need a PPI.

You purchased the car used correct? This may have happened prior to your ownership. I highly doubt hitting a pot hole caused that. Most of the impact would be absorbed by the tires and rims. But then one has to wonder what kind of impact would caused this besides a major accident... Hope Audi takes care of it and you get this sorted out.