Instrument display showing the Pre sense restricted function warning

Audi Pre Sense Fault: What the Warning Means and How to Fix It

'Pre sense: system fault' or 'Pre sense currently restricted' on the dash of your A4, Q5 or A3? Audi files several systems under one name. Pre Sense Front is the collision side, reading the front radar and the windscreen camera. Pre Sense Rear watches behind the car, and Pre Sense Basic is the seat-belt side a calibration doesn't fix. The front pair is shared with Adaptive Cruise Assist and Active Lane Assist, so one knocked sensor can fill the dash. The checks that cost nothing come first; calibration, when your car needs one, is from £162 inc VAT.

Please note

Safe to drive, the auto-brake is off

You can drive the car. With Pre Sense flagged, the automatic emergency braking side isn't watching the road for you, and whatever shares the faulted sensor tends to drop with it: Adaptive Cruise Assist where it's the front radar, Active Lane Assist where it's the camera. Pre Sense Basic, the seat-belt side, runs from the body sensors rather than the road sensors, so it's usually unaffected. Normal brakes and steering are untouched. Leave more following distance and treat the assists as not there until it's sorted.

What's actually triggering Pre Sense on your Audi

Audi Pre Sense reads the same front radar and windscreen camera that feed Adaptive Cruise Assist and Active Lane Assist, which is why one disturbed sensor can put several warnings up at once. The Rear side runs from its own radars in the back of the car, and Pre Sense Basic doesn't read the road at all. The triggers, most common first.

The trigger we see most on the A4, A6 and Q5. The front radar sits behind the grille or bumper, right where the work happened, and a bumper off and back on moves its aim by enough for the car to stop trusting it, so it flags Pre Sense rather than run emergency braking on bad data. The body shop's panels and paint can be perfect and the warning still right: the calibration is a separate job, and it's the step that gets missed.

On most ADAS-equipped Audis the forward camera mounts to the windscreen itself, so it moves with the glass and the old aim no longer holds. Pre Sense and Lane Assist warnings can follow the screen home from the fitter, though not always straight away: the camera can sit out of aim while the dash stays quiet. The fix is a front camera calibration to Audi's documented procedure: £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT) at a centre.

The radar transmits through the grille zone, so an RS-style grille, a gloss-black badge surround or paint over the radar area can scatter the signal; an aftermarket grille is one of the typical Q5 triggers in our model coverage. If the warning dates from a styling change, putting the original part back costs nothing to try, and a slow walk round the front end for an unnoticed parking knock is worth the same five minutes.

Pre Sense Rear watches traffic approaching from behind, and it runs from radars in the rear of the car rather than the front pair, the same units behind Audi Side Assist where that's fitted. Rear bumper repairs and rear-end knocks disturb them without touching the front systems, which is why a Rear warning can stand alone. The fix on that side is a blind spot radar calibration: £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT).

Pre Sense Basic is the seat-belt side. It triggers on rapid deceleration or skidding read from the body sensors, not from the radar or camera, so it doesn't fault from a lost aim, and a calibration isn't the fix. A warning that specifically names Basic points at a body sensor or the ESP side, and we'd rather tell you that than book you in. On models with Pre Sense City, the camera-led variant, the windscreen camera is the sensor to look at.

Nothing was hit, but the warning's up anyway. After a flat battery or a battery replacement the car can treat the radar's aim as unconfirmed and park the systems that lean on it; on the A8 (D5) that classically reads 'adaptive cruise control currently unavailable' with Pre Sense flagged beside it. Clearing the codes won't talk it out of that. A calibration verifies the aim and the systems come back together.

Packed snow, thick road film or mud over the grille zone can blind the radar, and a dirty or misted patch of glass in front of the camera does the same on the camera side. The car parks Pre Sense until the view clears. This check costs nothing: clean the front of the car and the windscreen patch, drive, and if the warning goes and stays gone there's nothing to calibrate and nothing to book. A warning that keeps returning on a clean car is the aim, not the view.

How we fix it

Worth checking first: note which words the dash actually uses, Pre Sense Front, Rear, Basic or a 'currently restricted' message, because that points at the sensor. Then the free checks: clean the grille zone and the windscreen patch in front of the camera, look along the front end for signs of past work or a parking knock, and think about when the warning started. One that arrived in packed snow or after a filthy motorway run can clear itself once the sensor can see. One that arrived with a windscreen swap, bodywork or a styling change won't: the sensor moved with the work, and the car keeps flagging until the aim is reset.

Still showing? The job starts with a diagnostic scan, £54 inc VAT (£45 +VAT), always itemised as its own line. A Pre Sense fault has more than one ending, a camera moved by a glass swap, a front radar knocked off aim by bodywork, a rear radar disturbed by a rear repair, or hardware that's genuinely damaged, and the scan says which car you have before anything is booked.

From there it's one of three jobs:

  1. The camera's lost its aim. The usual outcome after a windscreen swap. It's re-aimed to Audi's documented calibration procedure: front camera calibration, £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT) at a centre.
  2. A radar's lost its aim. The normal outcome after bumper work or a knock, front or rear. It's a static procedure against measured targets, and calibration runs to full manufacturer specification. Front radar calibration is £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT); a Pre Sense Rear case books as a blind spot radar calibration at the same rate.
  3. A sensor was replaced. Audi routes new modules through component protection, so a correctly fitted radar stays locked until it's coded to your car, then aimed, both in one visit. Front radar replaced: coding costs £232.80 inc VAT (£194 +VAT), then front radar calibration is its own line at the multi-system discount. Same for the camera coding line below. Front camera replaced: £229.20 inc VAT (£191 +VAT). Two or more systems in one visit: the highest-priced system is full price and each additional system is 35% off at a centre.

Every job closes with the paperwork. Certificate to manufacturer tolerances, the same standard dealers issue. Your quote is confirmed in writing before anything is booked. The procedure itself, step by step, is in our ADAS calibration guide.

Audi calibration prices

One system is the usual quote here: the front radar or the windscreen camera behind Pre Sense Front, or the rear radars if the dash names Pre Sense Rear. Rates are the same at every service centre, per system, shown inc VAT with the net figure alongside. Your total is confirmed in writing before anything is booked.

Calibration — per system

Service At a service centre
Front camera calibration £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT)
Front radar calibration £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT)
Blind spot radar calibration £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT)
360° / surround camera calibration £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT)
Reversing camera calibration £206.40 inc VAT (£172 +VAT)
Parking sensor calibration £184.80 inc VAT (£154 +VAT)

Coding a replaced part to your vehicle

Service At a service centre
Front radar replaced £232.80 inc VAT (£194 +VAT)
Front camera replaced £229.20 inc VAT (£191 +VAT)
Blind spot radar replaced £226.80 inc VAT (£189 +VAT)
Reversing camera replaced £213.60 inc VAT (£178 +VAT)
  • When your job needs a diagnostic pre-scan, it's £54 inc VAT (£45 +VAT), itemised separately. It reads available fault information; finding the cause may require further investigation. A post-scan is a separate operation.
  • Two or more systems in one visit: the highest-priced system is full price, each additional system is 35% off at a centre. Scans aren't part of the discount. Front camera and front radar together come to £267.30 inc VAT (£222.75 +VAT).
  • Replacement configuration and calibration are different operations. The work required depends on the vehicle and what the installer has already completed. Configuration prices do not include supplying or fitting a replacement part, or an automatic calibration bundle.
  • Unsuccessful work, further investigation or a return visit may carry charges, including at a service centre. The appointment terms and written quote set out the work and applicable charges before booking.
  • Mobile calibration is available for garages and bodyshops with workshop conditions. Ask us.

Get your Audi's Pre Sense calibration booked

Send your registration and a line on what's happened. We come back with the itemised quote, the nearest of 80+ UK service centres, and the soonest slot.

  • Per-system pricing, from £162 inc VAT.
  • Your quote is confirmed in writing before anything is booked.
  • Certificate to manufacturer tolerances, the same standard dealers issue.
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Frequently asked questions

Usually not. Pre Sense Basic is the seat-belt side of the system: it reacts to rapid deceleration or skidding read from the car's body sensors, and it doesn't read the road. A lost radar or camera aim doesn't touch it, so a warning that specifically names Basic points at a body sensor or the ESP side rather than a calibration. Check which variant your dash names before booking anything: Front and Rear are the road-sensor sides this page covers, and Basic on its own usually isn't a job for a calibration bay, so we'd rather say so than book one.

It's priced per system, and which system depends on what set the warning off: the front radar after bumper work on cars like the A4 and Q5, the windscreen camera after a glass swap, the rear radars when the dash names Pre Sense Rear. Front camera calibration is £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT), front radar is the same, with the full rate card on this page. Two or more systems in one visit: the highest-priced system is full price and each additional system is 35% off at a centre. A diagnostic scan, when your job needs one, is priced and itemised separately. Your quote is confirmed in writing before anything is booked.

Because on most ADAS-equipped Audis the forward camera mounts to the windscreen itself, so it came off with the old glass and the refitted aim no longer holds. Some glass fitters arrange the calibration, many stop at the glass, and that gap is where Pre Sense and Lane Assist warnings come from days after the screen went in. The warning isn't guaranteed to show straight away either: the camera can sit out of aim while the dash stays quiet, which is why the calibration step matters even when nothing seems wrong. Front camera calibration is £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT) in a centre visit.

No. The job takes a calibration bay, the right target equipment and Audi's documented calibration procedure, and that's the setup our service centres run; none of it is franchise-only. Provided the work runs to Audi's specification, an independent calibration doesn't invalidate your warranty under UK block exemption rules. Certificate to manufacturer tolerances, the same standard dealers issue. Dealer quotes for ADAS work run £300 to £900 in quotes customers have shown us.

It means the car has parked part of the Pre Sense function because a sensor can't be trusted or can't see. There are two endings. A blocked view, snow, road film or mud over the grille zone or the camera's patch of glass, clears when you clean it, and that costs nothing to try. A lost aim doesn't clear: the car keeps restricting the system until a calibration verifies the sensor, and clearing fault codes won't talk it out of that. The pattern that points at calibration is a restriction that survives a clean car and a restart, usually dating from bodywork, a windscreen swap or a battery event. Front radar calibration is £162 inc VAT (£135 +VAT) at a centre.

Usually component protection. Audi routes new control modules, the front radar among them, through a security layer that leaves the part locked until it's married to the car, so a correctly fitted radar can still hold the warning up. Bolting the part on is only half the job. The rate card has a line for exactly this: front radar calibration following replacement, £232.80 inc VAT (£194 +VAT), covering the coding a replacement module needs as well as the static aim. Tell us whether the unit was new or second-hand when you enquire; a second-hand radar can be attempted, but coding one successfully is never guaranteed, and the centre confirms the scope with you before you book.

Related ADAS warning guides

Pre Sense shares its sensors with the rest of the assistance suite, so the same underlying fault can surface under different wording. If your dash uses different words, these guides carry the detail.

  • 'Front Assist not available'

    Some Audi dashboards flag the forward system with Front Assist wording. What triggers it, why your repair garage can't always clear it, and what calibration costs.

  • Forward collision warning fault

    The cross-make guide to forward collision warnings, whichever wording your dashboard uses.

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