Selling a junk Audi A4
Any A4 sells for scrap or parts, running or not. Below: what owners report most often for each model year, the recalls on file, and which of those change the offer. Enter your ZIP for a buyer near you.
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What owners report about the Audi A4
NHTSA has 3,659 owner complaints on file for the Audi A4, model years 1995 to 2022, the 123rd-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are air bags (518, 14%), electrical system (477, 13%), lights (375, 10%). 143 complaints involved a crash, 76 a fire, and 35 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 66,000 miles. The 2006 model year has the most complaints (343). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is air bags, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to selling a car after an accident: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Audi A4 by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 1 | Speed control | 0 | 0 | 2 | — |
| 1996 | 133 | Electrical system | 4 | 1 | 6 | 68,000 |
| 1997 | 119 | Electrical system | 9 | 3 | 8 | 92,457 |
| 1998 | 321 | Brakes | 9 | 2 | 6 | 82,000 |
| 1999 | 242 | Brakes | 9 | 2 | 7 | 75,000 |
| 2000 | 115 | Brakes | 7 | 4 | 5 | 62,900 |
| 2001 | 153 | Brakes | 5 | 9 | 3 | 60,014 |
| 2002 | 218 | Electrical system | 15 | 13 | 2 | 30,000 |
| 2003 | 282 | Fuel system | 11 | 14 | 4 | 64,000 |
| 2004 | 225 | Fuel system | 10 | 6 | 3 | 60,500 |
| 2005 | 267 | Lights | 13 | 5 | 4 | 59,755 |
| 2006 | 343 | Lights | 8 | 5 | 3 | 61,000 |
| 2007 | 226 | Air bags | 6 | 0 | 3 | 75,000 |
| 2008 | 204 | Air bags | 11 | 1 | 4 | 62,000 |
| 2009 | 150 | Engine | 7 | 7 | 2 | 68,000 |
| 2010 | 77 | Engine | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80,250 |
| 2011 | 17 | Engine | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2012 | 23 | Engine | 0 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2013 | 28 | Steering | 1 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2014 | 41 | Engine | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 24 | Engine | 1 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2016 | 18 | Engine | 0 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2017 | 76 | Engine | 6 | 0 | 1 | — |
| 2018 | 80 | Other | 1 | 0 | 1 | — |
| 2019 | 16 | Electrical system | 4 | 0 | 1 | — |
| 2020 | 231 | Electrical system | 1 | 0 | 3 | — |
| 2021 | 19 | Driver assistance | 5 | 0 | 4 | — |
| 2022 | 10 | Other | 0 | 0 | 3 | — |
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not confirmed defects. Median miles is the odometer reading owners gave when they reported a problem, shown only where 20 or more reports include it.
Audi A4 recalls
NHTSA lists 30 recall campaigns across these model years, most often for air bags (8), lights (3), electrical system (3). Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer. Before you sell, check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a buyer who plans to resell the car will.
- 2022 model year, equipment (campaign 22V806000, Oct 2022): Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2021-2022 AUDI A8, A6 Allroad, E-TRON Quattro, 2022 S3, RSQ8, RS7, RS6 Avant, Q8, Q7, Q3, E-TRON Sportback Quattro, S5 Cabriolet, E-TRON GT, S5 Sportback, A7,…
- 2021 model year, driver assistance (campaign 22V742000, Oct 2022): Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Audi A8, RS7, RS6 Avant, RS5 Sportback, RS5 Coupe, Q8, Q7, Q5 Sportback, S4 Sedan, Q5, A7, A6, A6 Allroad, A5 Sportback, A5 Coupe, A5 Cabrioleet, A…
- 1997 model year, air bags (campaign 22V471000, Jul 2022): Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 1998 Audi A8 and 1997-1998 Audi A4 vehicles equipped with Non-Azide Driver air bag Inflators (NADI) that do not contain phase stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSA…
- 2022 model year, engine and cooling (campaign 22V368000, May 2022): Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2022 Audi A6 Sedan, A4 Sedan, Q5, and Q5 Sportback vehicles. The semiconductor inside the engine control unit may short-circuit and cause an engine stall.
- 2020 model year, tires (campaign 22V034000, Jan 2022): Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2019-2021 Audi A5 Sportback, RS5 Coupe, RS5 Sportback, S5 Sportback, 2020-2021 A4 Allroad, A4 Sedan, A5 Cabriolet, A5 Coupe, A6 Allroad, A6 Sedan, A7, A8, Q5,…
What a Audi A4 is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk A4 on four things: its weight at today's scrap steel price (the floor), the parts still on it that can be resold, whether it starts and drives, and how far they have to tow it. None of those come from a complaint database, so use this page to describe the car accurately and our junk car value guide to work out a ceiling for the metal. Then get more than one offer.
Guides for selling this car
How to sell a car after an accident 
How much is my junk car worth? 
How junkyards price cars 
Catalytic converters and junk cars 
How to prepare your car for the junkyard 
Junk car scams and how to avoid them Other Audi models
Questions people ask
- What is a junk Audi A4 worth?
- What a yard can recover: the car's weight at the current scrap steel price, plus parts it can resell (the catalytic converter, engine, transmission and wheels if they're good), minus towing and processing. The same A4 gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Audi A4 that doesn't run?
- Yes. Junkyards and junk car buyers take cars that don't start, and most arrange the tow. Tell them honestly whether it starts, whether the engine and transmission are still in it, and whether the catalytic converter is on; those are what change the price.
- Should I fix an open recall before selling a Audi A4?
- Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer for as long as the car exists. If the car is going for scrap, the repair won't change the scrap price. If a buyer might resell it or pull parts, a completed recall can help. Check your VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup first.
- Where do these Audi A4 numbers come from?
- From the complaint and recall data NHTSA publishes for every make and model, counted by model year on 2026-10-12. A complaint is an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and the count rises with how many of the model were sold.