Buyer Research

2022 Audi A6 — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $31,000–$44,000. This is one of the more reliable vehicles in its class — here's what to watch for anyway.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 14 Audi A6 years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Two complaints and no recall campaigns on file is almost nothing to read, and we want to be blunt about what that means: nobody has filed much yet, not that this A6 has proved itself. Cars this recent are still mostly inside warranty and inside dealer service, which is exactly when owners call Audi instead of NHTSA. The two things people did write about — a dashboard warping near the windshield and cameras that come up black — are both real, both cheap to check standing next to the car, and both worth pricing into the offer. Audi ran a long list of campaigns on the model years either side of this one, so run this exact VIN through NHTSA's lookup yourself rather than trusting an empty page, and treat everything below as a starting checklist rather than the full picture.

What we checked

Checked against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 2 owner complaints for the 2022 Audi A6, and 5 recall campaigns.

That is too small a record to read a pattern from, so we are not going to pretend otherwise — with numbers this low one owner moves the percentage by a lot. What has been filed is grouped under glass, wipers and mirrors (1), back over prevention (1). Treat those as things to look at, not as the vehicle's known weaknesses. A thin file usually means few of these were sold or few owners filed. It is not evidence the vehicle is trouble-free, and the issues below are our own research rather than a reading of this record.

5 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2022 Audi A6

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Dashboard top bubbling and warping near the windshieldMedium

One owner reports the dash surface lifting and deforming along the edge nearest the windshield, which on a wide, glossy dash top also throws glare up into the driver's line of sight. It is a trim and adhesive failure that heat and sun accelerate, so a southern-climate car deserves a closer look than a northern one. Stand outside the car and sight along the top of the dash from the A-pillar — ripples, a raised lip or a soft spot under a thumb press are what you are feeling for, and a dash replacement on this car is a full-day interior strip.

Repair cost (estimate): $1,500–$3,000

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under glass, wipers and mirrors (1).

Surround-view cameras that work intermittently or come up blackMedium

The single filing here describes some cameras working and others not, changing from drive to drive, with the dealer agreeing there is a fault and having no fix to offer at the time. On this generation the four cameras feed one module and a marginal connection or a software fault takes out views one at a time rather than all at once. Cycle through every view at the car — reverse, front, kerb and the 360 bird's-eye — and do it again after the car has sat, because the fault often shows on a cold start and clears once everything warms up.

Repair cost (estimate): $0–$1,600 depending on whether it is a software update or a camera module

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under back over prevention (1).

48-volt mild-hybrid starter-generator and its separate batteryMedium

This is not in the 2022 record — we are flagging it because it runs through complaints on the neighbouring model years of the same car, and the hardware is unchanged. The belt-driven starter-generator and the small lithium battery that feeds it are what make the stop-start and coasting work, and when either weakens the car reports a vague electrical or engine-restart message rather than naming the part. Ask for a charging system test in writing, and treat stop-start that has quietly stopped working as a symptom rather than a preference the last owner set.

Repair cost (estimate): $1,200–$2,600

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Coolant weeping from the thermostat housing and oil cooler areaMedium

Also not in this year's two filings, and flagged for the same reason: owners of the years on either side report coolant seeping from plastic housings and gasket faces well inside 60,000 miles, and the engine is the same. Caught early it is a gasket and a housing; missed, it is an overheated engine. Look for dried orange-pink crust down the back of the block and around the coolant hoses, check the expansion tank sits at the cold mark rather than brimmed, and ask whether coolant has ever been topped up between services.

Repair cost (estimate): $700–$2,000

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Ripples, a raised lip or a soft patch along the top edge of the dashboard
✗Any camera view that comes up black, frozen or with a cancel symbol
✗Stop-start that never engages on a warm engine
✗Orange-pink dried crust around coolant hoses or the back of the engine
✗A seller who says the car has no recalls without having run the VIN

Good Signs

✓A VIN lookup you ran yourself showing every open campaign closed
✓All four camera views clear and correct on a cold start
✓A flat, even dash top with no lift at the windshield edge
✓Charging system and 48-volt battery tested, with the printout
✓Audi or independent-specialist service records with no coolant top-ups between visits