Audi Q7 problems, complaints & recalls by model year
Across 8 model years (2018–2025), NHTSA has logged 349 owner complaints and 20 safety recalls for the Audi Q7. That averages 7.3 complaints per year on the road — far fewer complaints than typical (index 0.17 against all tracked vehicles). Within the Luxury SUVs segment it ranks #1 of 9 for fewest complaints per year; the segment average is 15.1.
Counts are normalized by time on the road, not by sales volume: a popular model generates more reports than a rare one, and complaints are not verified individually. How we count
Analysis
Across eight model years from 2018 to 2025, NHTSA logged 349 owner complaints and 20 safety recalls for the Audi Q7, averaging 7.3 complaints per year which is far fewer than typical at an index of 0.17 against all tracked vehicles. The 2018 model year has the highest rate at 16.3 complaints per year while the 2024 model year shows the lowest at 0.4, with model years 2018 and 2021 running at least 50% above the model's own average that you should research most carefully. The most common problem area is Engine accounting for 22.9% of complaints followed by Electrical at 21.5% and Wheels, tires & suspension at 10.6%, with recurring terms including "side marker", "marker light", "malfunction", "water pump" and "light defective". Owners report 13 injuries and 0 deaths across all model years, and in the last 12 months owners filed 69 complaints versus 83 in the previous 12 months showing a steady pace.
Summary drafted by an AI model running on our own server from the figures on this page, and checked number by number against the data before publishing. The statistics and the analysis above come from our fixed methodology, not from the model.The trend is improving. Measured on complaints filed in the first two years on the road and compared with other vehicles of the same model year, the 2022 and 2023 models run 49% below the 2018 and 2019 models (8 early complaints per model year versus 18).
The 2018 model year has the highest rate (16.3 complaints per year) and the 2024 model year the lowest (0.4). Model years 2018 and 2021 run at least 50% above the model's own average — the ones to research most carefully. Model years 2020, 2022 and 2024 sit well below the model's average.
Across all tracked model years the most common problem area is Engine (22.9% of complaints), followed by Electrical (21.5%) and Wheels, tires & suspension (10.6%). Recurring terms in owner reports: “side marker”, “marker light”, “malfunction”, “water pump” and “light defective”. 15 complaints (4.3%) describe a crash or fire; across all model years owners report 13 injuries and 0 deaths.
In the last 12 months owners filed 69 complaints versus 83 in the previous 12 months — a steady pace. The 2018 model year generated the most recent reports (21). Across model years, half of all reported incidents occur within 51 months of the model year's start.
Recalls: 20 recall campaigns across the tracked model years, most of them received in 2020 (4). No NHTSA defect investigation covers the tracked model years.
It has fewer complaints per year than every other tracked model among Luxury SUVs, including Lexus NX, Lexus RX, Mercedes-Benz GLE and Mercedes-Benz GLC.
Model years at a glance
| Year | Complaints | Complaints per year on the road | Complaint index | Complaints in first 2 years on the road | vs. same-year average | Last 12 months | Recalls | Most common issue | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Years to research carefully | 141 | 16.3 | 0.39 | 24 | 0.27 | 21 | 3 | Engine | View › |
| 2019 | 61 | 7.9 | 0.19 | 13 | 0.16 | 6 | 4 | Wheels, tires & suspension | View › |
| 2020 | 26 | 3.9 | 0.09 | 3 | 0.05 | 6 | 5 | Electrical | View › |
| 2021 Years to research carefully | 71 | 12.5 | 0.3 | 13 | 0.21 | 20 | 9 | Electrical | View › |
| 2022 | 18 | 3.9 | 0.09 | 8 | 0.11 | 5 | 3 | Engine | View › |
| 2023 | 16 | 4.4 | 0.1 | 9 | 0.11 | 2 | 3 | Electrical | View › |
| 2024 Fewest complaints | 1 | 0.4 | 0.01 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 3 | Interior & equipment | View › |
| 2025 | 15 | 9.0 | 0.21 | — | — | 8 | 2 | Electrical | View › |
1.00 means the same rate as the comparison group. 2.00 means twice as many complaints per year on the road. Complaints in first 2 years on the road: vs. same-year average. How we count
Trend · vs. same-year average
Complaints in first 2 years on the road ÷ All-vehicle average (1.00)
When complaints were filed
Last 12 months: 69 · Previous 12 months: 83 Steady
Problem areas
Electrical ›
75 · 21.5% · 1.36 vs. all vehicles · Steady
- electrical21
- generator7
- malfunction16
- system31
Wheels, tires & suspension
37 · 10.6% · 4.25 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- spring17
- coil13
- rear25
- tire14
Interior & equipment
35 · 10.0% · 1.12 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- exploded8
- moonroof4
- camera view3
- glass7
Lighting
20 · 5.7% · 3.67 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- side marker14
- marker light11
- light defective10
- front15
Driver-assist systems
19 · 5.4% · 0.95 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- lane10
- adaptive cruise5
- cruise control6
- brakes7
Brakes
17 · 4.9% · 0.8 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- brakes10
- squeal3
- front7
- tsb3
Transmission / powertrain
16 · 4.6% · 0.39 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- differential4
- locking3
- transmission5
- action3
Steering
15 · 4.3% · 0.66 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- steering malfunction6
- wheel9
- warning message4
- rack3
Fuel system
15 · 4.3% · 1.0 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- fuel12
- pump6
- tank4
- malfunction3
Airbags & seat belts
10 · 2.9% · 0.75 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- seat9
- belt7
- row5
- passenger6
Body & structure
8 · 2.3% · 0.25 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
- front windshield3
- crack3
Other
2 · 0.6% · 0.32 vs. all vehicles · Too few recent reports to judge
Only problem areas with at least 40 complaints get their own page.
Common terms in reports
- side marker19
- marker light17
- malfunction52
- water pump22
- light defective13
- spring19
- generator11
- coil14
Vehicle age at incident
Median age at incident: 51 months
What owners report
4/30/26 I came home, parked in my driveway, got out of the car and opened the left back door to get my handicapped son out of the car. He wanted his talker from his backpack(he is nonverbal), so I sat next to him on the back seat and gave him the talker.
While parked in my residential garage with the engine shut off and car door closed, the vehicle suffered an un-commanded rollaway incident due to a suspected defect in the electronic parking brake or automatic-park transmission software.
Sunday morning, XXX, at 07:25 CST, while driving west on [XXX] outside of [XXX], the moonroof of the 2025 Audi Q7 spontaneously exploded with what sounded like a gunshot in the car.
The contact owns a 2021 Audi Q7. The contact stated that the instrument cluster display had become blank and failed to operate as intended.
waterpump is leaking- known issue that is currently being investigated for class action lawsuit. My car is now out of warranty.
Excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length. The ODI number is NHTSA's record identifier.
Segment peers · Luxury SUVs
| # | Models | Complaints | Complaints per year on the road | Complaint index | Trend | Recent activity | Recalls | Most common issue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Audi Q7 | 349 | 7.3 | 0.17 | Improving | Steady | 20 | Engine |
| 2 | Lexus NX | 123 | 8.0 | 0.19 | Worsening | Steady | 7 | Electrical |
| 3 | Lexus RX | 303 | 11.3 | 0.27 | Worsening | Steady | 8 | Airbags & seat belts |
| 4 | Mercedes-Benz GLE | 476 | 12.8 | 0.3 | Worsening | Steady | 2 | Engine |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz GLC | 510 | 13.9 | 0.33 | Worsening | Steady | 3 | Engine |
| 6 | Audi Q5 | 553 | 14.1 | 0.33 | Stable | Rising | 19 | Electrical |
| 7 | BMW X3 | 606 | 14.6 | 0.35 | Improving | Rising | 41 | Electrical |
| 8 | BMW X5 | 768 | 22.4 | 0.53 | Worsening | Steady | 42 | Electrical |
| 9 | Acura MDX | 923 | 27.9 | 0.66 | Stable | Rising | 16 | Engine |
Recalls by year received
- Campaigns: 20
- Do-not-drive / park-outside: 0
- Over-the-air fix: 0
Safety recalls: 2018 (3) · 2019 (4) · 2020 (5) · 2021 (9) · 2022 (3) · 2023 (3) · 2024 (3) · 2025 (2)
Investigations
No NHTSA investigation covers the tracked model years.
Frequently asked questions
Which Audi Q7 model year has the most complaints?
The 2018 model year has the highest rate (16.3 complaints per year) and the 2024 model year the lowest (0.4).
Is the Audi Q7 getting better or worse?
The trend is improving. Measured on complaints filed in the first two years on the road and compared with other vehicles of the same model year, the 2022 and 2023 models run 49% below the 2018 and 2019 models (8 early complaints per model year versus 18). In the last 12 months owners filed 69 complaints versus 83 in the previous 12 months — a steady pace.
What are the most common Audi Q7 problems?
Across all tracked model years the most common problem area is Engine (22.9% of complaints), followed by Electrical (21.5%) and Wheels, tires & suspension (10.6%). Recurring terms in owner reports: “side marker”, “marker light”, “malfunction”, “water pump” and “light defective”.
How does the Audi Q7 compare with other Luxury SUVs?
Within the Luxury SUVs segment it ranks #1 of 9 for fewest complaints per year; the segment average is 15.1. It has fewer complaints per year than every other tracked model among Luxury SUVs, including Lexus NX, Lexus RX, Mercedes-Benz GLE and Mercedes-Benz GLC.
Does the Audi Q7 have recalls or open investigations?
Recalls: 20 recall campaigns across the tracked model years, most of them received in 2020 (4). No NHTSA defect investigation covers the tracked model years.