MichaelAnthony1979

Hey everyone, firstly thanks in advance for any help , this may have been posted prior, apologies if so. Have a 2011 Q7 that has some dash lights on, fob wont work and manual key will not unlock the car. Hoping possibly the battery is all that needs replacing as I/m reading it may be an Audi issue, any help on getting at least the doors unlocked ? Am I just waiting for the battery to be completely dead as I'm assuming dash lights eventually have to go out with loss of power that will release the lock ?

Blackfunk

Sounds like the battery dying to me. I've had something similar happen when my battery was dying a few years ago.

-Wes-

I think the only way to charge the battery is through the terminals under the hood, but, of course, you can't open the hood without first opening the door! I imagine there must be an emergency procedure to bypass the locking mechanisms, but I doubt something like that is just laying around out there. It would be worth a search, though. Alternatively, a locksmith should be able to gain access for you.

Blackfunk

Leave it to a German engineer to complicate such a simple matter of getting into your car, but you can't cause the battery is dead but the only way to access your battery is through said locked door. LOL

Pothole5000

The physical key should always be able to open the door, the battery has nothing to do with that. Sounds like you have another issue besides a dead battery.

bg_2007Q7

If you do get this worked out, make sure you scan the Q. I'm sure you have door handle drain issues, and that is easily fixed.

Dee84

Did anyone get the answer to the above question please? My Audi Q7 2013 plate, has just done the same, except my battery was replaced on Tuesday (4 days ago), had been working fine until I left it overnight, tried opening the boot & it wouldn’t open, then tried the ignition & it wouldn’t start, although the radio kept coming on, so I switched off the radio & auto lights, locked it & went home. When I returned later, the central locking wouldn’t unlock the car, as it was dark I realised some of the dashboard lights were on & couldn’t even unlock the car with the key manually. Obviously something must be draining the battery, but how do I get into the car to find out? I’ve only had the car 3 months & typically the warranty run out 3 days ago 🥲

'10Q7TDI_Prestige'

Curious, as you should still be able to manually unlock the driver door by turning the (actual) key in the manual lock cylinder in the appropriate direction and pulling out on the door handle while holding the key in the unlock position to engage the handle, etc.

If your battery was replaced 4 days ago, then it's either an old battery was installed, the wrong size/capacity battery was installed, it wasn't coded to the car's battery management system (you also didn't mention 'freshness' date code on battery or where you got it from), and/or you've got significant parasitic battery drains going on in combination with all of the above.

If you bought from aftermarket, it is pretty typical for auto stores to sell what they have in stock, which is generally not the correct sized battery for a Q7 (H9 size), and I've seen local batteries with really old production date codes on them too. You want a fresh battery (but you have to ask for that, or verify yourself via the date code sticker) and the proper size for this car power consumption, which is why it comes with such a high capacity (110 amp hours) battery from the factory.

Not knowing any other details around your battery purchase/installation/coding, etc., etc., or how old the last battery was (date code sticker on the battery), it's just a crapshoot at this point.

JohnnyJ

This is ridiculous. I'd open the trunk in 10 seconds with a proper external battery!