2024 Audi Q8 e-tron: 39 stored fault codes, and none came back

This 2024 Audi Q8 e-tron 55 quattro Black Edition was a UK import with 60,456 km, high for its age, and the first diagnostic scan showed 39 stored fault codes. After clearing them and a road test, none came back, and the battery was certified at 93.92% State of Health.

The car

A dual-motor electric SUV with 300 kW (408 PS), quattro all-wheel drive and air suspension, and a 114 kWh battery with 106 kWh usable when new. It was first registered in the UK in July 2024 and in Ireland in May 2025, with two private owners in total. Both history checks were clear on the Irish and UK records: no write-off, no damage recorded, no finance, not stolen and no mileage discrepancy. There was no service book, only one key, and the road tax had lapsed shortly before the inspection.

What we found

Tyres. The one job that genuinely mattered. Tread measured 2.23 mm front left, 2.93 mm front right, 2.35 mm rear right and 3.64 mm rear left, and both rear tyres had sidewall cracking. None was illegal, but on a car weighing well over two tonnes with 408 PS, worn and cracked tyres are the main weakness in wet weather.

Cosmetic damage. The front grille was cracked and the front lip on the driver side was damaged. This was found by our inspector and had not been disclosed by the seller beforehand. Both are bolt-on parts, so no paintwork is needed. All four alloys were kerbed, the fronts worst, and there was a small dent in the driver side rear door with the original paint intact.

Fault codes. The first scan found 39 codes across 11 of 33 modules. Only one was live: the gateway reading the car's electrical system configuration as implausible, a pattern commonly associated with a battery disconnection or a software change. Fourteen codes sat in the high-voltage charger, so we plugged into both charge ports and both charged normally, with the charging error counter at zero. After clearing and a 9 km road test, no codes returned. The car's data also showed the fault memory had been cleared by someone else 6,202 km before our inspection, which is a fair question to put to the seller.

Minor items. The driver's window switch felt stiff, in the same door as two historic lock codes. A free software update was waiting to be installed. The rear discs were 35% worn with light score marks, normal on an electric car that brakes mainly through regeneration.

What it would cost

The full estimate was €2,790 to €4,680, but only €1,330 to €1,820 of that is near term: four tyres at €1,250 to €1,700 plus an alignment. The grille, the lip, wheel refurbishment, dent removal, the window switch, a follow-up scan and a second key make up the rest, and all of it can wait or be skipped. Any outstanding recall work is done free by Audi.

Our verdict

Pass, recommended for purchase, with no conditions. The battery was the strongest result: 99.56 kWh usable, the car's own readout matching the certificate exactly, all 108 cells within 8 mV of each other, temperatures within 1°C across 72 sensors, and zero minutes ever spent too hot or too cold. It had done only 14 full charge cycles. The certificate noted that 83% of comparable cars read higher, but at roughly 29,000 km a year, 93.92% is still in the Excellent band and far above the 75% warranty floor. Every airbag crash counter read zero and the battery's own crash counter recognised none. The paint was original on every panel, the underbody was dry, and the air suspension raised, lowered and held height in every mode. The interior was close to new, and Audi warranty runs to July 2027 or 90,000 km.

Buying a used Q8 e-tron in Ireland: what to check

• Test the air suspension in every mode. It is the expensive part to put right on an e-tron.
• Owners commonly report the 12V battery going flat when the car is parked for several days. It cannot be tested in a short visit, so ask the seller about it.
• Ask Audi to check the VIN for recalls. The model review we used lists four campaigns for the 2024 Q8 e-tron, two of them braking related.
• Plug the car into every charge port it has and confirm it charges, then re-scan after a few charges if charger codes were stored.
• Check the latest software is installed, as Audi uses updates to address the touchscreen lag owners report.

Thirty-nine fault codes look alarming on paper, and only clearing them, driving the car and scanning again showed that none of them was still happening.