Total Complaints
4 filings
AUDI RS5 · model year
4 NHTSA complaints for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 2013AUDIRS5 carries 4 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. For crash performance, NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gave this cohort an overall Not Rated/5 rating, with Not Rated/5 front crash, Not Rated/5 side crash, and Not Rated/5 rollover scores derived from standardized barrier and dynamic tests.
Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2013 RS5 is power train with 2 filings, followed by service brakes (1) and steering (1). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.
NHTSA currently has 9 investigation files overlapping the 2013 RS5. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.
Total Complaints
4 filings
Crashes Reported
0 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | 2 |
| SERVICE BRAKES | 1 |
| STEERING | 1 |
My 2013 Audi rs5 has a well known transmission issue. There was a class action lawsuit that justs settled for earlier years of the S4 & S5 models. My tranmission error has occurred several times when reversing, especially reversing up an incline or stop start reverses. The gear changes have become very jerky, both upshifts and downshifts, especially noticable at low speeds. The mechatronic unit on this audi model is a known issue and the audi forums are littered with examples of these mech units going bad. A replacement mech unit is costing me $4500 total and I have seen similar costs to others in the audi online forums like audizine
I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN I GOT A "TRANSMISSION MALFUNCTION YOU CAN CONTINUE DRIVING" MESSAGE ON MY DISPLAY. I SCANNED THE CAR WHEN I GOT HOME AND GOT THESE ERROR MESSAGE: (DRIVE POSITION SENSOR ELECTRICAL ERROR) ' DTC P0700 (TRANSMISSION CONTROL SYSTEM MALFUNCTION) ' DTC P1758 (TERMINAL 15 VOLTAGE SUPPLY OPEN CIRCUIT) ' DTC P060A (INTERNAL CONTROL MODULE MONITORING PROCESSOR PERFORMANCE) I DID SOME RESEARCH AND UNDERSTAND THERE IS A WELL KNOWN ISSUE WITH THE DSG TRANSMISSION, SPECIFICALLY WITH THE DRIVE POSITION SENSOR WHICH IS A VERY EXPENSIVE REPAIR TO HAVE DONE.
Mileage: 32,000
THERE IS A WIDELY-KNOWN ISSUE IN 2013+ AUDI ELECTROMECHANICAL POWER STEERING THAT CREATES A SENSATION OF A "NOTCH" AT 12:00 ON THE STEERING WHEEL. THIS NOTCH FORCES YOU TO MANUALLY KEEP THE CAR IN THE LANE BY STEERING "BACK AND FORTH IN THE NOTCH". WHEN YOU TURN "BEYOND THE NOTCH" THERE IS A STICKING POINT. THE FASTER THE CAR IS MOVING, THE MORE PRONOUNCED THESE FEELINGS BECOME. I HAD HOPED THAT MY ISSUE WAS RELATED TO THE TIRES. UNFORTUNATELY, WAITING TO PURCHASE NEW TIRES HAS TAKEN ME OUT OF WARRANTY. AFTER JUST INSTALLING NEW CONTINENTAL DWS 06, THE PROBLEM IS AS BAD, OR WORSE, THAN IT HAS EVER BEEN. THIS IS INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS! RESEARCHING ONLINE, MANY, MANY PEOPLE HAVE THIS PROBLEM. HERE IS A LINK TO AN INTERNET FORUM WHERE SOME INFORMATION HAS BEEN CONSOLIDATED: HTTPS://WWW.AUDIWORLD.COM/FORUMS/A6-C7-PLATFORM-DISCUSSION-194/AUDI-ELECTRIC-STEERING-ISSUE-REPORTS-CONSOLIDATED-2844976
Mileage: 46,000
THE RS5 HAD A VERY BED PROBLEM WITH THE BREAKS. WHEN I WAS USING THE BREAKS THE CAR WAS SHACKING, ESPECIALLY WHEN I USED THE BREAK AT THE SPEED OF 75/80 MPH. THE CAR WAS UNSAFE AND TO STOP COMPLETELY THE CAR I HAD TO GO OUT OF THE STREET. ON NOVEMBER 2013 I LEFT THE RS A5 AT THE DEALER IN GREENSBORO. ON THE AFTERNOON I WAS CONTACTED BY AN ADVISOR OF THE AUDI SERVICE IN GREENSBORO. THIS ADVISOR TOLD ME THAT MY CAR NEEDED NEW PADS AND NEW ROTOR AND THAT THESE PARTS SUPPOSES TO COME FROM GERMANY AND THE WAIT TO HAVE THIS PARTS WAS 2 WEEKS. THE SERVICE ADVISOR TOLD ME THAT DURING THESE 2 WEEKS I COULD DRIVE MY CAR. WHEN I TOLD HIM THAT THE PROBLEM WITH THE BREAKS WAS VERY BED ESPECIALLY AT 80 MPH HE ANSWERS ME BACK THAT THE SPEED LIMIT IS 65 MPH. WHEN I WENT TO PICK MY CAR UP FROM THE DEALER IN GREENSBORO AND WHEN I TOLD THE SERVICE ADVISOR THAT DRIVING OVER THE SPEED LIMIT WAS MY PROBLEM AND THAT THE CAR IS SUPPOSED TO HANDLED HIGHER SPEED THAN 80 MPH HE WAS VERY UNPOLITE AND HE TROU
Mileage: 10,000
Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.