Technical Service Bulletin
87 Unpleasant odor from heating and ventilation system
87 14 54 2010146/11 August 28, 2014. Supersedes Technical Service Bulletin Group 87 number 14-47 dated
February 27, 2014 for reasons listed below.

Model(s)

Year

VIN Range

Vehicle-Specific Equipment

All

2005 - 2017

All

Not Applicable

Condition
REVISION HISTORY
Revision

Date

Purpose

11

-

Revised header data (Added model years)
Revised Service, Warranty, and Required Parts and Tools (Added information about
models with two evaporators)

10

2/27/2014

Revised Warranty (Clarified conditions under which the repair will be covered)

9

4/24/2012

Revised Required Parts and Tools (Price change)

8

6/16/2010

Revised header data (Added model years)
Revised Warranty

7

5/19/2009

Revised header data (Add model year 2010)
Revised Required Parts and Tools (Provided price)

6

1/14/2009

Revised header data (Added model year 2009)

5

12/5/2008

Revised Title (Added Repair Group)

• There is an unpleasant, musty odor coming from the heating and ventilation system.
• The odor usually occurs when the vehicle has been sitting unused for five hours or more.
• The odor usually occurs within 20 to 60 seconds after the vehicle is started.

© 2014 Audi of America, Inc.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property rights of
Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior
expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
Technical Background
Condensation, which is a normal condition in all A/C systems, can cause a musty odor.
If the odor is noticeable in the vehicle when the engine is not turned on, the cause may be mold and mildew in the
passenger compartment, and not be related to the A/C system. All other possible sources of the odor must be
investigated before this bulletin can be performed. Before proceeding, consider the following:
• The evaporator housing drain must be open and free of debris.
• The cabin must be sealed with no water ingress into the passenger compartment.
• The plenum drains must be clear and free of debris.
• The pollen filter must be clean and free of moisture.

Production Solution
Not applicable.

Service
Contaminants are effectively neutralized by the Aircomatic® II Ultrasonic Climate System Cleaner (VAS 6189A)
and Airco-Clean® Ultrasonic Air Conditioning Treatment (VAS 6189/1). No other cleaning methods are permitted.
1.

If the vehicle is equipped with an in-cabin pollen filter (such as in the A3, A6, and Q7), remove the pollen
filter element and reinstall its cover before proceeding.

2.

Start the engine.

3.

Adjust the following climate control settings (Figure 1):
• Set the temperature to its lowest setting.
• Set the fan speed to its lowest setting.
• Set the airflow direction to the dash vents only.
• Activate recirculation and ECON modes.

Figure 1. Climate control settings.

© 2014 Audi of America, Inc.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property rights of
Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior
expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
4.

Thoroughly shake a 100ml bottle of treatment and empty it
into the filling chamber (Figure 2).

Figure 2. Pouring the treatment into the filling
chamber.
5.

Connect the outlet tube (Figure 3).

Figure 3. The connected outlet tube.
6.

Place the cleaning unit into the passenger side footwell, ensuring that the unit is as level as possible.

7.

Connect the unit power cord, and route it through one of the
windows, which should be slightly open (Figure 4). All other
windows and the sunroof should be completely closed.

Figure 4. Window is slightly open so that the
cord can pass through.
8.

Turn the unit on and position the outlet tube so that the vapor is drawn into the recirculation air intake
(generally in the passenger side footwell area; see appropriate repair information for exact location).

© 2014 Audi of America, Inc.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property rights of
Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior
expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
9.

Close all doors. The atomized cleaning fluid will begin to come out of the vents. After 15-20 minutes, the
treatment is complete and the machine stops automatically.

10. If the vehicle is equipped with a four zone climate control
system with 2 evaporators (such as Q7 and A8), repeat the
procedure for the rear A/C unit before proceeding. Use the
same A/C settings listed above. Position the outlet tube
toward the fresh air inlet vent for the rear unit. The
configuration of the Q7 is shown in the illustration (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Correct positioning of the outlet tube
on a Q7.
11. After the procedure, air the vehicle out for approximately ten minutes.
12. Check the Aircomatic® manual for instructions for unit maintenance after each use.

© 2014 Audi of America, Inc.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property rights of
Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior
expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
Warranty
• This bulletin is allowed only once per vehicle. The vehicle must be within its first 12 months of service and
under NVLW.
• There must be an original customer complaint of the specified odor symptom on the repair order for this bulletin
to apply. Adding this procedure on is not permitted.
• Subsequent applications, should they become necessary, will be the customer’s responsibility.
• Replacement of the pollen filter under warranty is not allowed within the performance of this procedure. The
pollen filter is covered only where specified at the appropriate maintenance interval.
When procedure applies to vehicles under warranty, use the following:
Claim Type:

Use applicable claim type. If vehicle is outside any warranty, this Technical Service Bulletin
is informational only.

Service Number:

8760

Damage Code:

0049

Labor Operations: A/C clean - All models with single evaporator

Diagnostic Time:

8701 2999

70 TU

A/C clean - All models with two evaporators

8701 3099

135 TU

GFF

No allowance

0 TU

Road test prior to service procedure

0121 0002

10 TU

Road test after service procedure

0121 0004

10 TU

Technical diagnosis at dealer’s discretion
(Refer to Section 2.2.1.2 and Audi Warranty Online for DADP allowance details)
Claim Comment:

As per TSB #2010146/11

All warranty claims submitted for payment must be in accordance with the Audi Warranty Policies and Procedures
Manual. Claims are subject to review or audit by Audi Warranty.

© 2014 Audi of America, Inc.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property rights of
Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior
expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
Required Parts and Tools
Part Number

Part Description

Quantity

VAS 6189A

Aircomatic® II Ultrasonic Climate System
Cleaning unit

1

VAS 6189/1

Airco-Clean® Ultrasonic Air Conditioning
Treatment (100ml bottle @ $22.34)

1 bottle (For models with single evaporator)
2 bottles (For models with two evaporators)

Additional Information
All parts and service references provided in this TSB (2010146) are subject to change and/or removal. Always
check with your Parts Department and service manuals for the latest information.

© 2014 Audi of America, Inc.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property rights of
Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior
expressed written permission of the publisher.