2013 Audi A5 reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 38 complaints with NHTSA about the 2013 Audi A5 over 14 years — 2 per year. That is the most complaints per year among the 13 A5 years on this site. NHTSA has 3 recalls on file, including Cooling system and Wiring.

2012 Audi A5 — Photo by Lothar Spurzem, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 2.0 de

Complaints

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Engine (14 of 38), then Electrical system (9) and Steering (8). Those filings include 3 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 3 that report an injury.

Next to 2012 and 2014

The 2012 A5 has 22 complaints, 0 per year, and the 2014 has 29 complaints, 0 per year. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2012. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2014.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2013 Audi A5. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (3)

Recall engine and cooling, cooling system 2018-04-11 · NHTSA campaign 18V229000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2017 Audi A5 Cabriolet, A5 Sedan and Audi Q5 vehicles, 2012-2015 Audi A6 vehicles and 2013-2016 Audi A4 Sedan and A4 allroad vehicles. These vehicles, equipped with 2.0l Turbo FSI engines, have an electric coolant pump that can either become blocked with debris from the cooling system causing it to overheat or can short-circuit from moisture within the pump.

Remedy Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the pumps, free of charge. The recall began September 14, 2018. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Audi's number's for this recall is 19N3/19N4. Note: This recall is in additional to the coolant pump software update applied as a remedy under recall 17V002.

Recall electrical system, wiring 2017-10-05 · NHTSA campaign 17V622000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2016 Audi A5 Coupe, A5 Cabriolet, A4 Sedan, A4 Allroad and Q5 vehicles. Contact corrosion within the electrical connector for the auxiliary heater may cause the heater wires to overheat or melt.

Remedy Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the auxiliary heater and, as necessary, update the software, free of charge. The Recall began November 27, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 80C5 and 80C6.

Recall engine and cooling, cooling system 2017-01-03 · NHTSA campaign 17V002000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2013-2017 Audi A5, A5 Cabriolet and Q5 vehicles, 2013-2016 Audi Allroad and Audi A4 vehicles and 2012-2015 Audi A6 vehicles. These vehicles, equipped with 2.0l Turbo FSI engines, have an electric coolant pump that can be blocked with debris from the cooling system, resulting in the pump overheating.

Remedy Audi will notify owners, and dealers will update the software so that the power supply to the coolant pump is deactivated if the pump becomes blocked with debris, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin February 20, 2017. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 19M1.

Complaints by component (38 total)

Engine

Electrical system

Steering

Engine and engine cooling

Fuel and propulsion system

Air bags

Powertrain

Service brakes

Visibility and wipers

Wheels

Show 2 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"Turned AC on blew out cool air all of sudden the air went out hot air blowing, smelt burning and saw smoke on passenger side (not a lot,but enough to raise concerns) turned AC shut climate off, turned car off tried it…"
Electrical system · filed 2026-07-28
"The contact owns a 2013 Audi A5. The contact stated that after activating the AC system, there was hot air and a burning odor coming from the passenger’s side vents. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA…"
Engine and engine cooling, Electrical system, Engine · filed 2026-07-28
"I was having an issue with my 2013 Audi A5 starting. A call to roadside assistance was able to jump my battery and the car would start and run. However, the same issue kept happening. The EPC warning light would come on…"
Powertrain, Electrical system, Unknown or other · filed 2024-07-06
"Couple years ago my engine failed, it was recalled and company refused to pay for it. I payed for it and afterwards my radio modul failed, camera failed, the check engine light is on since I bought the car and recently…"
Engine, Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2023-08-04
"I have experienced several failures and 3 recalls with my vehicle since I purchased it brand new. I have paid out thousands of dollars over the years for repairs that I feel were faulty being that I am on the only owner…"
Electrical system, Engine, Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2023-04-19

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2013 Audi A5 2 DR AWD	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated
2013 Audi A5 C AWD	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated
2013 Audi A5 C FWD	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
A5 Cabriolet	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (AV-S8)	Front-wheel drive	24	31	26 MPG	$3050
A5 Cabriolet quattro	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	All-wheel drive	20	30	24 MPG	$3300
A5 Cabriolet quattro	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	All-wheel drive	20	29	23 MPG	$3450
A5 quattro	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	All-wheel drive	20	30	24 MPG	$3300
A5 quattro	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	All-wheel drive	20	29	23 MPG	$3450
A5 quattro	2L, 4-cyl	Manual 6-speed	All-wheel drive	22	32	26 MPG	$3050

Specs and fitment

8T A5, 2012–2017

Body styles Coupe, Cabriolet

Oil 5W-40/5W-30/0W-40/0W-30 (Audi/VW-approved; 2.0T) , 4.9 qt capacity

Tire size 245/40R18, 255/35R19

Known issues for this generation

Recall 18V-229 covers certain 2013-2017 A5 Cabriolet and A5 Sedan vehicles (with Q5, A4, and A6 also listed) with 2.0L Turbo FSI engines: an electric coolant pump may become blocked or short-circuited, increasing fire risk; dealers replace the pumps. Related recall 17V-002 updates software to cut pump power if the pump becomes blocked. Recall 17V-622 covers certain 2013-2016 A5 Coupe and A5 Cabriolet vehicles (with A4 and Q5) where contact corrosion in the auxiliary-heater connector may overheat or melt heater wires; dealers replace the auxiliary heater and update software as needed.

Compare

Previous year 2012 Audi A5 Next year 2014 Audi A5 See every Audi A5 model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2013 Audi A5 reliable?

What are common problems with a 2013 Audi A5?

Is the 2013 Audi A5 more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2012 A5 has 22 complaints, 0 per year, and the 2014 has 29 complaints, 0 per year. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2012. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2014.

Has the 2013 Audi A5 been recalled?

The 2013 Audi A5 has 3 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2013 Audi A5?

Owners have filed 38 complaints about the 2013 Audi A5 with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2013 Audi A5 get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2013 Audi A5 is 24.3 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What body styles does the F5 Audi A5 offer?

Coupe, Cabriolet, and Sportback depending on market and year.

What oil does an Audi A5 take?

8T 2.0T uses Audi/VW-approved 5W-40/5W-30/0W-40/0W-30 (~4.9 qt); F5 2.0T commonly lists 5W-40 (~5.5 qt).

What does recall 18V-229 cover on the A5?

Certain 2013-2017 A5 Cabriolet and A5 Sedan vehicles (with Q5, A4, and A6 also listed) with 2.0L TFSI engines—see the NHTSA campaign for the defect and remedy.