ShaunAustin

Cheers Steve. Really useful information, thanks. I've always bought used cars (ford's, nissans) that are around 3 years old and low mileage, and I've never had a new timing belt fitted. Sounds like I've just been lucky! I'm getting the Audi booked in a.s.a.p, hopefully for next week.

Yes you've got it wrong Gareth. I'll be going to a VAG specialist today (the one who fixed my Adblue pump) and will be getting it booked in. My questions are motivated by wanting to go there armed with some knowledge, rather than trying to justify doing nothing.

Thanks Gareth/Steve. What's interesting is that I have an Audi service plan, the car was serviced 12 months ago (at which point it was 6 years old) and they didn't mention a cambelt change was due! I would have thought it was something that their database would flag. I wonder whether it's worth asking a VAG specialist garage to check the tension? Steve - you mentioned that yours had stretched. Presumably, if mines in good condition then it doesn't need replacing? Or is it one of those cases whereby the cost of inspecting it means I may aswell change it anyway? Ultimately, I'll get it changed, because I'd sooner have the peace of mind. The timing is awful though (no pun intended!), but better than the alternative! Cheers

Stumbled across this post. My A6 is 7 years old. I bought it 3 years ago from a Audi dealer and it's now done 50,000 miles. To my knowledge, it's never had a cambelt change so is probably due! I contacted Audi UK to check and they confirmed: I'm suspicious of the 'UK recommendation'. To me that reads 'UK Premium'! I do a lot of short journeys so going off what I've read, I need to get it sorted! Problem is - my Adblue system has just packed in and that has cost me the best part of £1,300 to replace. So my appetite for now spending god-knows-what on a cambelt change is pretty low. Thanks to everyone who's contributed to this post. Some really useful info.

Thanks Gareth, I've been to the garage today and been there whilst they phoned their supplier. It turns out the supplier sent them the S-Line model by mistake, so they're sending them the right one and fitting it at no cost to me. It is an aftermarket part as we thought. I did phone both my local Audi and the one you recommended. Audi were £160 and your recommendation was £130. Considering I paid £175 all in the first time around, I guess it makes sense that it was an aftermarket part or it would have been much more expensive when you factor in labour. I'm now going to try my luck with Audi to see if I can get my £175 back, since it was covered by warranty but they were closed. I won't hold my breath though! Cheers for your advice. Much appreciated 👍

HI Gareth, Thanks for your advice. I've checked the distance from the wheel arch to the center of the wheel and it's 34cm on the offside and 37cm on the near. To be honest, I'm not convinced it was ever right. As soon as it was done I didn't think it was completely level but assumed it was down to my driveway not being level. I've since checked it on a completely flat surface to confirm it's definitely off. By 'third-party spring' they basically mean it isn't an official Audi part (which I assume would be significantly more expensive). They didn't mention this at the time but being honest, I assumed it wouldn't be given the price they quoted. I would still expect it to be compatible though. I even stressed to them that it is the standard A6 Avant and not the S Line (which I know will have different suspension) to make sure they fit the right part. It's possible that the new spring is broken, and I hope it is as that will be a more straightforward conversation. However, it definitely isn't sagging as much as it was when it originally broke so I'm expecting that it's fine from that point of view. If I allow them to fit the same spring to the other side, then essentially the front of the car will be 3cm lower than it was originally. This sounds like a big drop to me, which may effect the handling, but I'm not clued-up on this kind of thing to be honest, so if you have any advice then great! I'm hoping they can just fit the correct spring, even if it's more expensive and I have to pay the difference. It's frustrating because I only bought the car (used, from Audi) in October last year and it came with a 2 year Audi warranty. The fault happened right at the start of lockdown and Audi promised to call me to arrange "inspection" as soon as they were open. I waited as long as I could before paying for it to be fixed (I wasn't confident the Audi warranty would cover it anyway). They still haven't called me to this day, but, assuming the spring isn't actually broken again, I'll now be unable to take it to them anyway! Thanks again for your advice. Much appreciated

Hi, Looking for some advice over a suspension problem on my 2015 A6 Avant. Back in March my front offside suspension spring broke. The car is under warranty but Audi were closed due to Corona, so I eventually paid £175 to get it repaired at a local garage in early June. Everything seemed fine at first, however I've recently noticed that the car is again sagging on one side. Measuring from the wheel arch to the ground, it's about 3 centimetres lower on the offside. I've spoken to the garage who did the original repair and they've said it must be because they used a third-party spring, and I'll need to have the other side done as well so they match. To me, that is completely unacceptable. Surely when the new spring was fitted it should have been the same or at least compatible with the other side?? Should I look to get the new spring removed and replaced with one that matches the near side spring? I don't really want to car to be lower than it was - I want it as it should be! Any advice would be great!

Hi Gareth. Thanks for your reply. I tend to agree regarding the warranty, I think coil springs are often blamed on the road surface. It's been frustrating because Audi wouldn't give me any answer without seeing the car. I have since got another quote from a local garage which was well over £300, so on that basis £200 including recovery seems reasonable. Cheers, Shaun

Hi all, In mid march (right at the start of lockdown) the F/O suspension coil broke on my 2015 Avant TDI (Auto). The car is covered by a 2 year Audi warranty. Audi service centers have been shut ever since lockdown and Audi won't even confirm if the fault is covered without inspecting the vehicle. I've been quoted a price of £200 by a local garage. This includes approx £30 for recovering the vehicle (I'm local, so only about half a mile). Is that reasonable? It's frustrating since I've been waiting for Audi to open so I can get it fixed under warranty, however, although the showrooms are open, the service centers aren't. Any advice would be great. Cheers, Shaun