Audi E-tron Massage Seat Failure: Repair Guide

Having dealt with a similar issue on my e-tron GT from a year later, I can share my experience as someone with moderate experience working on luxury car electrical systems. The massage setting failure in automotive seats is often linked to faulty wiring connections rather than the switch itself. In my case, a loose connection between the seat control module and the massage motors was causing the system to throw errors. The seat switch appeared completely dead, similar to your situation. After initial troubleshooting, my workshop found the cable harness connecting to the seat control unit had worn through due to constant seat movement. The repair involved replacing the damaged wiring and securing the harness properly. Total cost was 95 Euro for the repair including labor. Before suggesting specific solutions, could you provide: Current mileage, Whether this happened suddenly or gradually, If other seat functions still work normally, Whether you hear any clicking sounds when trying to activate the massage This would help determine if your issue matches what I experienced or if it might be something different.

Thanks for following up. The car has 199258 KM and just had its service last month. All other seat functions work perfectly, including heating and position adjustments. The massage function stopped working suddenly during normal operation without any warning signs. No clicking sounds when trying to activate it. The seat motor itself seems fine since the regular adjustments still work smoothly. The control switch appears responsive for all other functions, which makes me think the massage seat system might have a separate control module. Given what you mentioned about the wiring harness, I will have that checked out. The fact that it happened suddenly rather than gradually failing does point toward a possible electrical connection issue rather than general wear and tear of the massage components.

Thanks for those details. Based on what you described, your symptoms match my experience even more closely than I initially thought. Since you mentioned all other seat functions work normally and there is no clicking sound, this strongly suggests the issue lies in the dedicated massage control circuit rather than the main seat controls. In my luxury car the sudden failure was also the key indicator. When the massage setting stopped working abruptly while other functions remained operational, it turned out the connection between the massage control module and the main seat controls had broken. The wire harness specifically for the massage function runs separately from the main seat wiring. One quick test you can try: press firmly on different parts of the seat back while attempting to activate the massage function. In my case, this sometimes temporarily restored function, confirming the wiring issue. The repair cost should be similar to what I paid (95 Euro) if it is indeed the same harness problem. Having it fixed at your next service would make sense since the issue typically does not affect seat safety features. Given the mileage and symptoms, recommend having the workshop specifically check: Wiring connection at the massage control module, Harness routing through seat frame pivot points, Connection integrity at the massage motors

I appreciate the detailed suggestions. Since the symptoms match your experience so closely, especially regarding the sudden failure and separate massage control circuit, I will definitely have the workshop check those specific areas you mentioned. The clicking test and temporary restoration check make a lot of sense as diagnostic steps. The fact that my luxury car still has all other seat functions working perfectly does support the theory of an isolated massage seat electrical issue rather than a broader problem. If the repair costs are indeed around 95 Euro for the wiring harness fix, that seems quite reasonable compared to what I was worried it might be. I will schedule it for inspection, focusing on the wiring connections and harness routing you suggested. Having them check the massage control module connections while performing other maintenance would be most efficient. Will update once I know more about whether the wire harness was indeed the culprit in my case as well.