Magnet

Hello Plamen, When you want to have the air co. on does the ECON button show the red light? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Plamen, Do you have an illuminated press button with ECON written on it, and if so is the red light showing? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Tim, If this were mine, I would be getting the battery tested as a starting point. Current vehicles are so dependent on correct electrical voltages, and a serviceable battery is a must. Why did it go flat? It’s not unknown for batteries to remain substandard following being left to go flat, and don’t recover on recharging. Halfords will/did test batteries if they are open. Buying a replacement from them if needed? Have a look on line for a premium brand first . Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Tina, I think you are more likely to get meaningful advice if you describe the damage and hopefully provide a photo. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mark, In addition to what Steve says, you cannot overlock the significance of the effect of a lack of lubrication on the moving parts of this assembly. The car is 12 years old, and it must be appreciated that the roof mechanism has been subjected to potentially harsh conditions over that number of years, where it will have suffered from varying degrees of humidity/condensation and heat. What we need to ask here is despite possibly a book full of the deemed important service history, has the hood mechanism/ linkages seen any form of lubrication in that time? Motor issues? Possibly? - but motors generally work or don’t work, and tend not the work properly when overloaded against resistance. Kind regards, Gareth.

Well, Sarah, if that’s what a pre sales service and service history amounts to then so much for that service schedule - where even the air co. was non operational, so not checked. You don’t share whether this was purchased from a main dealer or some other dealer/ car supermarket. ‘........I plan on getting a warranty and the dealer offered a month......You now say ‘....comes with 1 one ? warranty..’ I seriously think it’s worth you doing searches on consumer law in relation to car sales, to see what warranty period should apply in your case, rather than depend on what the seller tells you,

Hello Sarah, You must return this car to the dealer (main dealer?) who has to rectify the faults to ensure the car is fit for purpose. Re. warranties:- again the dealer is responsible for rectifying faults which render the vehicle unfit for purpose within the first 3 months (maybe more - so do searches on this and my 3 month figure). You must give them an opportunity to rectify the problems, but they do not/cannot, you should be entitled to reject the car. Simple observation that the car was not checked before sale, would be the non working air con. What is the history of the car service and ownership wise? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Savannah, The first potential culprit would be a sub standard battery - stop/start is usually the first function to stop working when the battery efficiency drops below par. Halfords were doing battery checks - when open. Buying a replacement from Halfords? Worth shopping around on-line specialist suppliers first. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Nath, I guess you are talking wheel spacers to increase the track of your car? If so, be aware that manufacturers design wheel hubs, bearing set up and wheel design to ensure that there is a natural inline and even loading on bearings and shafts. By moving wheels out by adding spacers, you are likely to end up with this loading being offset. Good idea engineering wise? No. Kind regards, Gareth.

Special kit Marcus. It’s a sort of manometer tube arrangement, best left to your trusted local diesel specialist. I’m not claiming this is definitely an injector issue, but these are often overlooked in favour of replacing glow plugs, which really only influence the cold starting ability in fairly cold weather. It sounds like you have spent a fortune on this car, and to my mind, it’s always worth investing in a couple of hours inspection by a diesel specialist ( for get main dealers or independents) before spending money on anything. Finding a good local diesel specialist? Ask for recommendations from local taxi owners. Kind regards, Gareth.

Leak-back test on injectors Marcus? Kind regards, Gareth.

Very much so Steve, Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Ryan, Many thanks for the additional meaningful detail. A couple of points which you may like to consider:- I would put these items under the heading of ‘advisories’, and if was your intention to keep the car, then it is useful information to allow you to better plan its ongoing maintenance. Tyre wear - are the tyres currently showing uneven tyre wear? 3 mm left on thread could see you through, but obviously you will need to stay legal. Future uneven tyre wear - not really going to affect you if you are not keeping it. Since you are not going to keep it, my view would be to spend as little as you can on the car, since you stand very little/no chance of recouping your expenditure. Realistic situation is the car is worth ‘ 3/4 of not much’, and to spend on is likely to result in a potential buyer clapping his hands before offering you a good bit less than your asking price! As for trading it in, there will be a basic price dependent on visual condition with no add on for recent expenditure. If you couple the above with a possibility that some others faults may be detected when it is MOT’d - e.g. emissions etc. you may find you had spent to sort advisories, but worse case scenario will be it fails. Personally, I would get it MOT’d when you decide to part with it, and spend the minimum amount to secure a pass, and as little as possible meanwhile. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Ryan, ‘.......had a full service....’. Who did the service? Trying to apply a bit of logic here:- If any of the wear issues were considered excessive, then the servicing garage would most likely have declared that, and would have been reluctant to let the car leave their premises. Have you had the car MOTD during your ownership, or did you buy it (from a dealer?) with a new MOT? When would the next MOT be due ( appreciating the Covid extension)? My plan would probably be to present it for an MOT. If it fails on any of the above then replace whatever it fails on. If any are listed as Advisories then schedule them as funds and time permits. If there isn’t any mention then I would be tempted to sit back and just keep a regular check on things. Perhaps you could fill in the detail. Kind regards, Gareth.

Chances of success with double sided tape??? Contacting Audi? If this were mine, I would be searching out trusted local (classic car) trimmers. I think that is where you will have the best chances of getting meaningful advice. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Terry, Just picked up your latest post. If this were mine, I would be investing in an hour’s time of an auto electrician. Trusted Audi independent. Audi dealer. In that order of preference. Kind regards, Gareth. .

Hello Terry, We take it the radiator gets hot since as you say, the coolant temperature reaches normal and maintains a normal temperature reading. I agree that’s it’s unlikely a code reader will give you any meaningful information in this case, and I am with Steve on this and my guess at it would be to suspect the actual heater control unit - ignoring the fan resistor, since I believe you said you can select various fan speeds. Blocked Hester core? Possibly, but unlikely in my book, since your description points to suggesting there was a sudden rather than a gradual deterioration in the amount of heat from the system. Kind regards, Gareth.

Apologies Terry. That latest question was addressed to Kev. I would suggest forgetting about your issue being due to a faulty thermostat. Kind regards, Gareth.

So the car would have been overheating then.

Jammed - open Kev? If so, then the coolant temperature would be reading below normal after say a 3 mile run. We now need to ask Terry - Does the coolant temperature gauge rise to normal and maintain that reading? If so, forget about a thermostat issue, if it doesn’t then indeed it could be suspect - but we need to know before passing judgement. Perhaps you could come back to us in that. Kind regards, Gareth.

How competent and equipped are you with dealing with the safe removal of the plastic edgings Philip? Worth thinking about that while also researching suitable adhesives.

That decision would need to to rest with you Tom, since only you know the motive for compromising ride quality. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Tom, Without boring you with the maths, your current wheels and tyres will have a theoretical rolling dia. of 653mm, and the proposed 20 inch ones will be 661mm, so not significantly different. Obviously what you do need to bear in mind is that the ride quality of the new set up will be much harsher than it is - 30 profile tyres are akin to solid tyres! Also worth checking whether the tyres are run-flat, since if they are, that will make it even worse. Not for me to judge why you want these, but what you will be doing is compromising ride quality for ‘nicer looking’ wheels - which of course, you won’t be able to see, since you are inside the car! Still..... The new wheels will be 10mm wider, so you will need satisfy yourself that you you have more than sufficient clearance to allow for this, if the offset is the same. Then there is the insurance consideration, which to me is a must consider factor to avoid the risk of your cover being declared null and void. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Philip, Personally, I would be taking some specialist advice on the correct (spray-on?) adhesive to minimise the risk of you don’t end up having any adhesive bleed-through etc. through your headlining, and it has the best chance of remaining re- stuck. Perhaps it would be better to delay any work on this until appropriate businesses reopen and you can seek advice. Trimmers would be a good place to start getting advice, but you can always gather more knowledge online meanwhile. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Tom, If you are looking to replace your original wheels with non original 20 inch diameter ones and are concerned whether they will fit or not, is a bit like asking if you will get away with buying and wearing oversize shoes! The answer to that will be - probably yes - but,.......... Questions:- Diameter of original wheels and size of tyres fitted? Are replacement 20 inch wheels genuine Audi, or aftermarket? Do these wheels (secondhand?) come with tyres already fitted, and if so, what is the tyres size? Let’s assume the wheel stud holes are the same as your original ones - but you don’t tell us - whether they are suitable will depend on the final outside diameter of the new wheel and tyre, being the same as your current ones, so bigger dia. wheels will require much lower profile tyres to ensure the car’s gearing is not affected. So Tom, bit of homework to do, and that’s before you inform your insurers and see how they react to fitting non standard wheels and tyres to your car. Perhaps you could come back to us. Kind regards, Gareth.