I live in the Rocky Mtns and it gets very cold here in the winter time.  Unfortunately real estate is so expensive in this resort community that we don't have a garage so my 2001 Audi TT Roadster stays outside all winter.  This is my first winter with the car.  When it first got really cold, I started occasionally noticing that some mornings when I would get up and go to work, if it was around 0 degrees outside, that the speedometer, temperature gauge, center display with outside temp, etc. wouldn't turn on.  But the car would work just great and start up.  Only problem was I couldn't see the speedometer but usually within 10 minutes of running the car, everything would turn on. When this happens, the time and date resets which isn't a huge problem.  This past week it's been very cold again.  Again, yesterday morning when I started the car, it started just fine but the electrical controls didn't turn on.  But the headlights, brake lights, radio, heat controls, heated seats, etc. work just fine.  Unfortunately as I drove to work, it didn't turn on and when I went home at the end of the day, it still wasn't on.  Now the "Malfunction" button is on.  Does this seem like a real issue or should I just wait until the weather warms up a bit?  I would love any feedback if anyone has dealt with a problem like this!!

Thanks!

Cold Woman in Colorado! 

Hi Emily,

I dont have any solid answers for you, but I have noticed the 2001 model year gets a whole lot of electrical problems noted in online forums and more precisely instrumentation issue. I would guess the cold weather exaggerated the problem but is not its real cause, most likely a problem that has had a technical bulletin or recall posted. My 2cents would be take it to a dealer or a really good Audi shop in your area. Oh what fun.

Best,

H

I live in Washington and while it doesn't get down to zero (I assume you meant Fahrenheit) it does get down into the 20's. My 2002 TT sits out all the time (poor thing) and other than the doors freezing shut (which I fixed by lubing the seals with silicone grease) I've never had any problem with the electronics. I think you may have the classic 2001 cluster problem.

I bought a used 2001 TT quattro in august 2006. The guy who owned it was anal about keeping it serviced and clean. It had 40k miles after 6 years. He never drove it in the wet. It was immaculate.

Last February 2007, I took it in to Audi in SanJose CA because the instrument cluster failed. The speedo was stuck at zero or waving violently between 30-60mph. The fuel guage was always full. The tacho revved 360degrees around the dial - it was comical - untill I took it in to AUDI that is!!! After much too-ing and fro-ing, the whole cluster was replaced under the extended warranty I took out on the car. Not I hasten to add by Audi USA.

Then fast forward to this January 2008, same thing again. I took it in and even though it was under the AUDI USA 12 months/12,000 miles service warranty, they claimed it under the extended warranty again ??!!

Bizzarre. I have done some extensive research on this on the internet. AUDI UK did a FREE recall on 2001-2003 instrument clusters. AUDI USA do not recognise this as an issue. There is a California class action being taken against AUDI USA. Also, if you have no luck getting it fixed free, then I recommend this post :-

http://www.audittcca.com/discussions/auditt/00009134?b_start=5#551805414

All in all, very frustrating since apart from the electrics, my TT rocks!

I thought I would write back in case anyone is interested in the problem.  I called the dealer and he too decided it was probably a bad instrument cluster after my description.  But my husband and I had an inclination that it may have been something to do with the battery.  So we took it into a covered parking garage and he took the battery cover off and unplugged all the wires and plugged them back in - the malfunction light turned off and everything turned on and  worked perfect!  We also replaced the battery since all of those electronics are plugged directly into the battery.  Still when it gets really cold, it may take a minute or two for the instrument cluster to turn on but at least we now know it's a battery issue not a cluster issue - knock on wood!  In fact in the manual, Audi says that if the car is going to sit in cold weather for a while, they recommend taking out the battery and putting it in a warm place.  The moral of the story is I need to move somewhere warm!