Stevey Y

Hi I would clear the last fault and see if it returns but reading the date frequency info would suggest its just the can bus system spitting its dummy out, would suggest fitting the right fuse rating for that station as the can gateway would in theory pick up any resistance caused by the wrong fuse rating. Steve.

Hi, like Orac stated big difference but probably still less than Audi want for what is laughingly referred to as O.E. I can't really understand why all these disc manufacturers present their product to MIRA at no small expense for testing if the tests are flawed, the rules are they have to meet or exceed the specifications of the originally fitted units, there is no grey area, they either meet or exceed or no pass is applied, according to the other theory if the short journey with frequent stopping is applied it wouldn't matter what you bought they would wear the same which rather negates the extra value in buying Audi discs, but as this is a delusion because all the discs are tested the same way and I am sure they won't have forgotten to factor in the town driving scenario. Steve.

Hi depending on how drastic the split is buy a tube of loctite black flange sealant clean the affected area with solvent abrade the edges either side of the split with sandpaper or similar then working with a small amount push the sealant into the split wiping the excess over the sides of split then as it begins to cure smooth it with a teaspoon dipped in white spirit. Steve.

Hi have a look on eBay or try Brake Depot, it is impossible to buy sub standard brakes since the advent of E11/EC90 regulation test, if the manufacturers don't meet these exacting standards, IE the same as O.E. or better than O.E. they are not allowed to sell their products in the UK or EU. Steve.

Hi carry on looking after it as you are and I bet it will make the same milage as Steves and some more, I use my Avant as a cab and its just hit 100k with no real reason for it not to hit 250k plus by the time it can't be a cab any longer due to its age, I keep on top of the bodywork and interior so in another three years I might take up the years extension option just for the hell of it. Steve.

Hi they are like chalk and cheese but the rule of thumb is use good fuel and service it every 9k and it will last forever ask Steve one of the moderators on here he has squeezed over 300k out of his car and it shows no signs of giving up just yet. Steve.

Hi the smoke you refer to is the ash content being discharged it gets more noticeable as the car gains milage, your assumption that the DPF is close to full is a bit shy of the truth as the DPF will soon let you know when it is not even close to full by lighting up the dash like a Christmas tree as soon as the ash/soot loads start encroaching on the wrong side of acceptable, try using a cetane booster as this makes the soot particles smaller therefore the burnt ash behaves reciprocally and is less noticeable on its exit from the exhaust. Steve.

Hi its well documented all DSG boxes need regular oil and filter changes every two years or 30k, I doubt Steves car possesses any magical properties that others don't, good housekeeping is the key to a long life which I am certain he has observed. Even my manual gearbox gets its oil changed every 50k. Steve.

Hi find local independent garage to fit it, specialist garages are getting as imaginative as the main dealers. Steve.

Hate to point out the obvious but if you had phoned the local thread recovery service they are mobile and charge about £50 to restore most wrung threads in situ, have done this many times in the past and its saved a fortune as well as not having to replace the offending part risking doing it to another bolt further along the chain. Steve.

Hi Chaps, managed to fix the rogue sensor, the top picture was after I removed the splash guard, fourteen fixings, four massive splined bolts and the rest were an even split of Torx and Phillips headed screws, the fixings for the sensor were Torx and please note the three millimetre thick metal shroud over the front facing area of the sensor this is to prevent shearing in the event of a sump ground out. When replacing the sensor I can recommend a smear of engine silicone as the gasket is pretty thin on the edges where it meets the sump face which is perfectly flat, just a bit of peace of mind, then rotate the tightening of the fixings to 10nm and again to 18nm. The picture below the first shows both the new/old sensor spot the difference the one with the numbers on it is the O.E. sensor the Febi sensor has had all the numbers and logos removed but the numbers that remain are identical, so a little quiz, who made the original?, correct Febi but they can't be seen to be selling O.E. brand parts for less than half dealer price. BTW the reason for the failure is that there is a small PCB at the base of the unit which spends most of its life in boiling oil therefore dredging my memory I think its called built in obsolescence, designed to fail after a suitable period of time, this endorses my theory on aftermarket parts as long as you buy branded they are most likely the same as what you have taken off. Steve.

Hi Gareth, you do live in a particularly beautiful part of the world which no one in their right mind would want to destroy but I don't see many people promoting how clean fossil fuelled cars have become over the last decade, especially diesels, this beggars the question why do they always want to Dump on those who can least afford it. Good points raised by yourself and hopefully we won't reach the edge of the abyss before the like minded in Great Britain raise their objections as one voice. Steve.

Well put, its only because people are becoming like sheep and Boris and Co are border collies, how many times do we get screwed before we learn, wasn't that long ago that that deviant lying piece of cr@p Tony Blair told us all to buy diesel and then promptly took us into a war no one wanted which later killed one of my customers sons, for what?, look at Afghanistan now what was that all about. its not you ranting its the truth and if that upsets anyone, sorry about that I said, if you don't like it try and educate yourself properly before making an informed statement, half the people propelling these pro electric statements haven't got a clue about how a car works or why, I have had this conversation with loads of customers and most of them have no concept of what Adblue is and the few that do think you put it in with the diesel, I DESPAIR. Steve.

Anyone been watching Guy Martins worlds fastest electric car?, well worth a look as this week he tried to drive from Lands End to John o Groats and back in an all electric Hyundai and guess what half the chargers didn't work or the ones that did on the motorway cost an arm and a leg to charge up, one of them which was allegedly a fast charger only won him 45% after an hour, anyway watch it on catch up you want be disappointed. There are a lot of people around the town I work have bought all electric Audis, its not about their green credentials as the first thing the wives tell you is how much they cost a bit like the character Loadsamoney during the eighties, the husbands sit there quietly with a no comment policy, now we come to the owners of most of the fuel driven models I had some guy banging on non stop all the way to stansted airport about how quick his new S6 was and how well it handles, these cars are inspiring the electric ones are not, I thought the concept of the motor vehicle was that immense distances could be driven with stops to simply refuel and drive on. Having watched this years Goodwood festival of speed I realised that the two clowns who had hijacked the technology part of it were obsessed by all the goodies installed in the new all electric vehicles, nothing about handling, or the limited range on a motorway, the end of the program left me wondering if the presenters wouldn't benefit from a Cranial !Removed!, stock up on Anusol chaps they are going to force this on us like it or not and it will hurt. Steve.

Hi Paul try this number 4L0862153D but better still try eBay item 183390965004 which is where I got my one about a year ago, Gareth will be all over this because its a genuine part, let me know. Steve.

Hi, I have just discovered another insane piece of kit on my Audi, just over ten days ago I serviced my car [All Bosch filters and Quantum oil] measured the oil refill from a Sealy oil filler can 4.7litres all good went for a test run, came back checked the oil level on the MMI which tells me to reduce the oil level, ok, so took out 500ml, drove it again and rechecked the oil, still the same, it would appear that the oil level sensor is up the wall also fitted a new bonnet open warning switch as they are known to cause problems no big deal at £27.00 OE. Now we come to the sensor itself £150.00 from my local Audi Dealers + a two day turn round, I declined gracefully and Saturday morning bagged the same sensor for £69.00 from my local spares outlet it will be available at nine tomorrow morning, pixxed off as I will have to fork out for more oil and a filter, I wonder which lunatic thought this system up I had three Fords which I racked up over 800,000 miles in and one of the only things that never failed was the Dipstick, have drivers become that lazy/stupid that they can't lift a bonnet and lift out the Dipstick, going to do the job tomorrow will try and post some pictures. Steve.

Hi, yeah the solenoid is easy enough to get at by removing the inner trim on the filler side of the boot its basically one 10mm bolt and an electrical connector, I would not bother electrically testing the unit as they are rubbish and can be bought on eBay for about twenty quid and the unit is plug in and play, there is also a video on youtube about fitting it. Steve.

No Gareth this is what happens when someone throws in a completely random question into the middle of a thread, it blows a hole in it, its case of where were we. Steve.

Hi one less to worry about, do you have the facilities to reprogram the new unit?. Steve,

Hi back to basics, did you do a re learn of the new values, adaptations, if not that could be your problem, the only other thing it could be is the inlet manifold is bunged up and will require stripping and cleaning and a new gasket set. Steve.

Hi, this is only an educated guess but how long had this problem been on going?, it possible the extra fuel has got in with the engine oil, check the level, this would have the effect of thinning the oil making it harder for the pump to work, sort the injector and it will need re coding then sort out the low pressure light. Steve.

Hi sorry for the late reply, the answer to that one is NO, they were designed as a direct replacement for OE shocks and in some cases were supplied as OE, what appears to make them stiffer is that they are a monotube design which is more progressive in its damping dynamics, I.E. the unit compresses and returns in a more controlled manner without relying on the spring solely for support under harsh braking/cornering. The majority of other aftermarket shocks will openly describe their products as twin tube, the problem with that design is that both monotube and twin tube use oil in their construction the monotube design is about sixty percent less likely to suffer with oil foaming which degrades the units handling capabilities when under constant stress when driven hard, the twin tube design suffers more with foaming and oil degradation as the unit wears over milage. Over 800,000 miles I have had the opportunity to try most aftermarket brands and although most have performed more or less adequately I have found Bilstein to be the most robust right up to the end of life, if you really want stiff try the B6 version I fitted these to my Mondeo Sport, yes the handling was pin sharp but that was at the cost of the ride quality even with standard springs. The name of the game is to use standard springs with a more progressive shock absorber this maintains more tyre contact with the road without the skipping effect caused by over stiff springs and shocks which will manifest itself in accelerated tyre wear and handling problems, oversteer/understeer. Steve.

I normally find that if you remove the measuring cap and just poke a hole in the silver metal seal just slightly to one side, the side you intend to tilt when putting in tank that works well and it won't leak. Steve.

A new set of shocks and mounts would not go amiss and while they are there change the drop links as they are famous for causing premature wear on the shocks, both the shocks and the links are probably responsible for tearing the mount in half, have to be honest in all my years I have never seen a mount break like that Steve