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Just want to wish all you dads and soon to be dads a happy father's Day 🙂

Many thanks indeed Stephen. Great stuff, and I’m sure it will be a great help to others who intend to tackle these jobs. Certainly a good and often overlooked tip is to replace the auxiliary belt at the same time. Thanks for reinforcing that recommendation. Only thing I would have added was to set the heater controls to max. heat before switching off - really an historical procedure on my part, and possibly not that relevant now-? Looking forward to Part 2. Kind regards, Gareth.

....UPDATE.....you will need a timing locking tool kit(pic 1) some spline split sockets/triple square sockets(see pic 2) torx sockets,t20/t25/27 and more.a pry bar.scaffolding bar or similar for leverage(if your needing to remove the alternator to get to the thermostat housing)....replaced the timing belt,tensioner,3 pulleys,thermostat and housing(thermostat and housing replacement is all in one for this engine).and would suggest replacing auxillary belt,tensioner and pulleys at the same time.(mine already done)(i did not change the alternator pulley as way too difficult to remove in situ at the time.changed the oil and oil filter and sump plug.i left the air cabin and fuel filter as all had been changed a while back.....this is how i did it,i am no mechanic,and please put me right on any mistakes to help others.....start the car.put in first gear.switch the engine off.chock the back wheels.undo the negative battery(10mm)loosen the nuts on the 2 front wheels.jack up the car and put an axle stand underneath each side.remove the 3 bolts immediately under the front bumper,(torx screws on mine)then remove more torx screws from the large plastic undertray.and remove the tray.while your there put a(in my case)a washing up bowl under the oil pan and undo the 16mm and remove the sump plug..once drained replace the sump plug with a new one(sorry dont know the nms for this)i just tightened it to what i thought was tight enough. i then removed the oil filter(32mm)noting where the 3 rubber rings are and replace them and the filter, but remembering to clean the oil filter container out first before putting the new one in. .sorry dont know the nms for this either, so i just tightened it to what i thought was tight enough.i then unscrewed the expansion bottle cap which holds the pink coolant(g13)and unclipped the small pipe from the front of the expansion bottle.then i used another washing up bowl and put it underneath the nearside left bumper where the black drain hole plug is and unscrewed this carefully with a pair of plyers and let the cooland drain off.once drained i tightened the plug back up.i then removed the top plastic cover that sits above the radiator(4 torx screws)then a small plastic cover( where the air filter box is.(2 torx screws).i then unplugged the wiring from the both headlights.then i removed 3 torx screws from the front right wheel arch cover and peeled the arch back so i could get to one( i believe) 10mm bolt on the front edge of the wheel arch and unscrewed that.(you will need a long extension bar for this bolt and a torch to see it))..do the same on the nearside wheel arch. then i used 2 axle stands underneath the fron bumper to support it as i peeled back carefully either side of th edges of the front bumper and then carefully pulled the front bumper forward just far enough to undo both fog light switches.then carefully remove the bumper.i then undid one pipe from the top right of the radiator(see pic) then went underneath and removed the coolant pipe immediately below the radiator(the one with the black drain plug on it its hel one by a clip just lift that clip up.then on the front nearside of the car is a large air pipe remove that with a large screwdriver.then go to the front offside of the car and remove the bottom part of the pipe from its plastic housing with the same screwdriver.next there are six bolts holding the crash bumper bar on.i used a long extension bar plus a scaffolding bar for leverage to undo them.i think they are 13mm bolts.(2 of the bolts are in a recess.again a torch needed.you can then bring the front end forward a few inches what mechanics call "a service mode".carefully keeping the front end supported on the axle stands.to prevent putting the ac pipes under pressure....next remove the top timing cover ( x3clips)then remove the middle (i think) 3 tork screws then to remove the bottom timing belt cover you have to remove the rubber cover from the crankshaft pulley with a screwdriver then remove (x4 m10 bolts)(i marked the pulley to make sure it went back in the same position.)then removed the pulley.mine came off easy, some are tight. remove x2 torx screws and take the bottom timing cover off...."Now" i suggest you look on youtube(i will show a video i saw on youtube once i have finished a write up. or wherever the info maybe available to you.i tried to follow some youtube videos on how to set the timing.but mine never lined up no matter how many times i turned the crankshaft pulley(19mm socket).frustrated i grabbed a cuppa,then went back to the car and realised instead of looking for the camshaft pulley hole i looked at where the other 6mm locking tool hole was at the side of the small cog to the righ(see youtube video)and noticed 2 "prongs" and noticed once in view around a quarter to nine,then the hole lined up in between the prongs.then checked the camshaft side and that hole was lined up too in what i call a smiley face opening....so locked them both in with the locking tools.then was able to use the red locking tool to lock the bottom cog."NOTE" i used the locking tool with the arrow showing to the left of the red locking tool so it lined up with one of the crankshaft holes...."please seek advice" as many will know that you can destroy your engine if you set the timing wrong...i then loosened x3 m10 bolts from the camshaft pulley and 3 from the small cog to the right of the timing(is it called a diesel pump cog).apparently the reason for loosening the 6 bolts is to get the timing belt cover off and to get it back on easier.(it was still tight.)please now follow the video for the rest noting the belt information(numbers and letters runs to the right when fitting and make sure when inserting the tensioner into its lug(see pic)and when the time comes to tighten the tensioner,that the arrow lines up with the gap in the tensioner so before tightening the tensioner nut.........moving on to the thermostat which comes complete with the housing i had to buy 2 new bolts separately to go with it.cost around £62.....the thermostat lies in an awkward place at the back and to the left of the alternator.i found the best way to remove the thermostat and housing was to remove the alternator, large airpipe, and the throttle body(good excuse to clean that while its out(left the old orange gasket in.so remove the auxillary belt by pushing down on the 13mm tensioner bolt then removing the belt noting which way round the pulleys the belt went(i have already changed the tensioner belt and pulleys(apart from the alternator pulley.then remove the 2 long bolts from the alternator(one is hidden in a recess i think they are 13mm ones.then grab a pry bar/crowbar and at the top of the alternator carefully force the alternator away from the engine and eventually after a bit of jiggling will come lose then unplug the switch from the back of the alternator and then undo a 10mm or 13mm nut from the back of the alternator too.and remove it.now remove the throttle body(which was attached to the large air pipe) x3 torx bolts...the thermostat housing is in a recess,once you have undone the 3 pipes that are attached to the thermostat housing then undo the x2 bolts holding the thermostat housing in place with a 10mm socket and long extension and ratchet.mine was well and truly stuck in so had to use a crow/pry bar.once removed clean the area where the thermostat sat.refitting is reversal of removing."NOTE" what a pain trying to re-attach/join the small thermostat pipe back to the long pipe to the right of where the thermostat fits...its getting your hand in to try and push the pipe back on...once i got it on i clamped it after springing a leak from it once it was all back together(a few hours of work wasted).....tips..... there is a thread that the tensioner sits on(timing belt side)....in order to remove it i put a 15mm nut and yes 13mm nut together tightened them up then held the 13mm nut in place and undid the 15mm nut anti clockwise to undo the tensioner thread and put a new one on.i could not undo the other thread below to replace it as it was rusted in(apparantely these can break off).and i could have broke it so i left it in place.pictures coming soon dont forget to clean out the water pump once you have removed the 3 10mm bolts...."NOTE" there are conflicting ideas of what nm settings nuts and bolts should be thats why i have not put them in this listing.i am posting 2 videos up here from youtube....both videos show how to do the timing....my timing set up is in the first video....but the reason i want to show you the 2nd video is that they show some of the neutimeter settings(not perfect).....just found out the 3 camshaft sprocket bolts and the fuel pump sprocket bolts should be tightened to 20 Nm.as stupid as it may seem.make sure when replacing the rollers that they go back the right way.apologies for a yawning write up and any mistakes thanks...ps i used shell ultra pro 5/30 for this engine and it takes 5 litres

Hi all it disappeared for quite a while. btw I checked for engine codes-nothing. Did notice it again recently- which makes me think it’s related to Warmer weather- (air/fuel mix? Which made me think of a potential coked up intake) so I took off the intake pipe easiest to access- after turbo and took a pic- it did show some build up near the swirl flap??? (Think it’s called) ive just tried one of those egr/intake cleaners a few days ago, and it definitely did clean out some crap, as my dpf blocked and failed straight away 🤦‍♂️🤣 Then bought some dpf cleaner, took it for a good long run and all sorted. must admit- the car seems a little more responsive under part throttle load now 👍 whether all is well remains to be seen- but I think it was worth the £13

I'm not sure whether people here will be interested in this post. However it is an Audi Q8 website so here goes. If this is boring or not interesting please just ignore or delete. I started a topic some weeks ago about putting an order in for a replacement Q8 55 TFSI for my existing one and being informed that the lead time for delivery from the Factory would be 25 weeks. Since then the supplying Dealership got in touch and said that they had just had a new Q8 55 TFSI delivered and would I be interested rather than wait for the new order. I gave it some thought and then 2 weeks ago drove the 180 miles from my home to where the Dealership is located to take a look. The car was a good spec for me. It was in the colour I wanted, black, and had the C and S pack that my last car had. However rather than an S line it was a Black Edition with 22 " wheels rather than 21's The car had all its protective stuff still on but it looked good and I made a decision to purchase it. Just a note to any other prospective Q 8 buyers on this Forum. This car is listed as a 23 spec model. In the next couple of months Audi will be supplying 23.5 models. Now the only diffference is that the C and S pack will now be called the Technology pack or Plus pack. Depending on what spec you choose, this gives you the full integrated camera system and uprated sound system as before but with a heads up display and a panoramic sunroof. By the way, all UK spec Q8's now have " Parking Plus pack " too. Now I decided that I have been fortunate enough to have owned some pretty decent cars for over 55 years now and managed to live without a head up display and a sunroof which I would never open so I decided to go with the car that had just come in. I have had the car for 1 week now and after 250 miles I am quite surprised how different it is to my old Q8. By the way, Iam old school so I intend to run this car in carefully for the first 1500 miles as I did my old one. The differences are surprising and all good and probably a testament to the Audi engineers constantly tweeking and improving the car. For a start the suspensionn seems to be much more supple than my old one. Despite the fact that this car runs on 22 " wheels on a 40 profile tyre rather than the 21 " wheel with a 45 profile. I wasnt expecting that and it is a suprise. It might have to do with the Original equipment on the 2020 car being Hankook tyres and this one running on Continental Contact Sport 6 tyres. Also I tend to run the car in " Comfort " mode most of the time. The second suprising thing is how Audi seemed to have worked on the dreadful lag in the lower gears on pick up. Something that seems to affect many newish Audis and is something to do with the softwear I believe. Even carefully adapting my revs at the moment before it is fully run in, the engine seems much more responsive and lively. Apart from that and a few minor " design " changes like the oak effect panels and facia and the black start / stop button rather than a siver one, the car feels very " Audi ". Unsurpassed buid quality....no squeaks or rattles....beautifully comfortable and quiet and a distinctive Audi look on the road that all Audis seem to have As I said at the beginning, I hope this is of interest. If not, please ignore or delete Frank.

Thanks Stephen

The supplying dealer is lying to you in my opinion. I'd seriously be looking at getting your money back from finance company if you can.

Yes that bush undoubtedly needs to be changed. As a general rule, if there is movement in any rubber bush it is worn out. The static appearance of rubber bushes tells you nothing; the bush must be stressed or loaded to test it.