2012 Audi A6 problems: recalls, complaints and whether this is a year to avoid

Is 2012 a good year for the Audi A6?

The spread across this nameplate is wide: the 2012 draws 3 times the complaints of the 2010. On a run like that the model year you buy matters more than the badge, and 2012 sits near the top of it.

Older years have been on the road longer and collect more complaints for that reason alone, and a year that sold in higher volume collects more while being no worse.

This retrieval holds 4 of the nameplate’s model years. 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 are absent, which means no records came back for them — not that they were clean. The ranking above is among the years shown.

The 2012 accounts for 42% of every complaint filed against the Audi A6 in this retrieval, which works out to 4.2 complaints per year on the road across the 14 years since it was sold new — the figure to compare against other years, because it removes the advantage a newer car gets simply from having had less time to accumulate reports.

Complaints rose sharply against the preceding year: the 2012 carries 3.5 times the reports of the 2010. A jump that size between consecutive years usually means something changed in the car rather than in how many were sold, and it is worth asking a seller what was done to this one.

Which recalls cover the 2012?

Take the campaign number to any franchised Audi dealer. Recall repairs are free with no mileage or ownership limit, and they follow the car rather than the owner, so a used 2012 with an unrepaired campaign is a free repair you can claim. How recalls work.

Recall text is abridged from the NHTSA record. Search the campaign number at nhtsa.gov/recalls for the full notice and affected VIN ranges.

What do owners report on the Audi A6?

Across every Audi A6 year, not the 2012 alone — NHTSA does not split component totals by model year.

• Electrical System — 27 reports
• Air Bags — 26 reports
• Steering — 16 reports
• Engine — 12 reports

If your 2012 is doing something now, these are the guides for that system — each opens with whether it is safe to keep driving:

• Won't start — clicking
• Won't start — silence
• Battery light on

Which other Audi A6 years should you compare?

← 2010 Audi A6 · 2014 Audi A6 → · All Audi A6 years

If you are deciding between years, the table above is the short answer and the Audi A6 page carries the full run with the component breakdown. Before money changes hands, run the VIN for open recalls and read the inspection checklist — ten minutes in the seller’s driveway finds most of what matters.