Magnet

I'm with you on this Dan, but my fellow Welshman, Mike, ends with ..... 'without blowing the budget' - but we we don't know what the budget stretches to. I've followed your logic, but alway then shopped around for the best price for that brand and type. I feel by this means, the best of both worlds are satisfied. Again following your logic, we must not ignore VAG's buyers who will purchase premium brands at the best possible prices, and the whole thing will not depend solely on the 'handling' abilities of the chosen brand. Interestingly, Mercedes Benz appear to be currently supplying some new vehicles with Hankook tyres - now I always believed they were a mid range brand, so perhaps cost is king now! Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Maureen, Perhaps some of the following may be worth considering:- Certainly as Graham suggests. If you daughter is unhappy with the attitude of the appointed repairer, then she should notify and record this dissatisfaction with the insurers, and have the car removed to another repairer. She is under no obligation to have the car repaired at the insurer's 'authorised repairer' . Although they are likely to hold her to ransom in relation to providing a courtesy car during the period or repair. In addition to/alternative to Graham's suggestion she could consider taking the car to her local Audi dealer for assessment and estimate for repair. Last resort - Possibly use of the advise of the legal cover provided with the insurance. ( if this option was chosen at the time the insurance was taken out). Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mr. Honey Badger, Welcome to the forum. I think we have all been in a similar situation to yours with vehicles at some point. Boiling this down, I get the impression that you 'fancy a change', and are quite logically setting up some sort of economic justification to buy a car which you fancy more than the one you have. Nothing wrong with that, but I would break your consideration down to go with what you really want to do, if you can afford it. As I see it simple economics point to to spending out more money to do that, so if it's economics, then you will tend to stay with what you want. If it's heart, you will exchange it. Of course, others may possibly have alternative points of view on this. Good luck with whatever you choose to do. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks June, As you say, it's odd that you cannot get access to readable codes. I think if it were mine I would be getting in touch with a trusted local diesel specialist ( taxi boys normally know who to go to and who to avoid) and invest in an hour's visit to check it out, and identify the fault. Afterthought - nothing daft like fuel cut off switch? Kind regards, Gareth.

As I said Rich, if you are admitting you don't know what to do, then leave well alone. Aerosols of paint, lacquer, fillers, various grades of wet and dry papers, cutting compounds, masking tape etc. - rough idea of material costs? I would estimate at around £30 before you start. Repeating, just get a couple of quotes from the scratch and dent removal chaps before doing anything on a DIY basis. Deduct your £30 material costs, then work out if it's worth you DIYing it and keeping fingers crossed you don't make a mess of it. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello June, You will need to let us have more information. When you say it won't start, do you mean the engine does not turn over when you turn the key - or the engine does turn over on the starter, but will not fire up? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Rich, Its difficult to know whether this colour is metallic/pearlitic or not, so advice would depend on this, and your ability to correctly use aerosols. It would appear that this is through damage and will either dictate flatting down the surrounding area to blend in the damage, or filling the damage - but more likely a combination of both. Other than simply touching in the damage with paint applied with a suitable brush, then anything else is going to entail spraying in an area greater than the damage - before lacquering the repaired paintwork. I have seen such damage well repaired and painted with an aerosol, but the majority of DIY attempts generally end up looking worse than it started. Options if you are not experienced to carry out the above - and not meaning to sound critical, but if you were you would not be asking:- Insurance, as Steve suggests. Personally, I would run a mile from this, since even if it was proved that the other driver was at fault,and your excess was reimbursed, your premium would rise at the next renewal simply because you had been involved in an accident. Scratch/dent repair specialists. There are usually a selection to choose from covering your locality. I would choose only on recommendation from friends or colleagues. Kind regards, Gareth,

Well Kirt, it seems flushing it you are going to do! .. I wish you success. I think you will find that the days of mechanical levers and controls for heating selection are gone, and have been replaced by electronic controls - that is why I suspect this to be associated with a control problem rather than a heater core circulation issue. Still... Let's hope you are right. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Kirt, It is simply an assumption that the heater core is blocked, and if it is, then it would be reasonable to suspect that the main radiator core is also partially blocked, since cores only get restricted following years of 'abuse' via. not renewing the coolant. Personally, I would be wanting to eliminate the heater controls as being the problem before suspecting the heater core. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Derek, Before doing any other part replacements, I would be carefully inspecting all electrical connections near to and feeding the coil packs - no.1 in particular. Kind regards, Gareth,

Hello Martin, Sounds like the mind has been made up, so all that is now needed is to get it advertised - on here could be a start. Additional advertising:- Classic Car Weekly, Classic Car Buyer, Classic Motor Mart. There is another relatively new publication- name evades at moment, but Modern Classics?? Good luck in finding it a good home. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Rick from the Homeland, If it were mine, I would keep it away from mechanics armed with spanners and other wallet emptying devises until you let us know if the car blows out any (generally white) smoke when the engine is revved to around 2000rpm - and held at that for around 2 mins - when hot. Simple things first:- carefully look around the engine and cooling system for any signs of red deposits (assuming OAT coolant is in use). When you have done that and perhaps failed to see any evidence of a leak, remove the undertrsy if possible, and clad the floor where the car is parked with cardboard or similar and leave overnight ( placing the cardboard there as soon as the car is parked up after a run). Any significant leaks will obviously cause damp patches on the cardboard. Also carefully inspect the radiator core for evidence of staining. A worth-a -try 'investment' would be to replace the coolant reservoir cap with a new one - not off E what's it, but from the VAG dealer! If all of the above fail to find the answer then there are other non-dismantling tests which can be carried out to try to find the source of the coolant usage. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Peter, If it's one thing I gain from reading your diary is that I'm grateful for retirement - and I'm still trying to find out what that is suppose to be! As I see it, you are going to meet yourself coming back! I find that generally people 'excuse' the words of the more elderly, and think 'he's old, bless him! , so thinking twice about what to say seldom comes into it anymore. Anyway, excuse me if it causes any grief, but wouldn't it be far more polite to refer to your wife/partner/whatever, as her name - Caz - rather than 'She' as in the opening of the last two posts? We used to refer to the definition of 'She', as the cat's mother! Anyway Peter, grizzle over. I just have to resign myself to sitting down after reading your posts now, otherwise I get giddy. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Martin, As you probably realise, 7 years standing means new tyres, renewing brake fluid and checking systems, before any other expenditure and deterioration work is undertaken. Totting that up, probably means there isn't much left for profit, if you bought it to pass on, as I guess was the intention, otherwise it would just be a question of you recommissioning it and enjoying it. If it were mine, I would not be breaking it, since this is hard work, and you are always left to clear the unwanted bits. Of course Martin, we don't know what the condition of this car is, what you paid for it, and what your longer term plan was for it, so it's rather difficult to advise. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Tony, I'm not sure about the detail of your particular model, but it's not uncommon for many makes and models to suffer not-the-best wiper arrangements in right hand drive form. I believe ( and leaving it open to correction) that worldwide, something like 80%? plus of vehicle production is to cater for a left hand drive set up, and as such you may find that if you sit in the passenger seat! the wiper set up may be far more acceptable. Daft I know, but economics matter, and I am pretty sure that all new car design development starts from a LHD concept, and if they can - for example- harmonise the wiper set up, then that is what they will do. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Doug, This car will be on an 'intelligent' charging system, and as I understand it, ordinary battery chargers cannot be used to charge the battery. Solar charger with ( I guess) very low charging currents suitable?? I don't know, and I think you are wise to check on this, and if it were mine I would be seeking some specialist advice. A better route would be to invest in a the latest 'intelligent' charger - not cheap as I understand, but cheaper than messing up the car - and plugging this in via a timer - assuming the car is indoors. When you say you have work commitments for 3 to 4 months, does that man that you cannot get to the car at any time during that period? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, I wouldn't claim that this is the cause in your case, but such issues can result from problems with the wiring harness as it passes from the body into the boot/hatchback. Problems arise since with continued opening and closing, the wires within this flexible section of the harness become hard and brittle and eventually lead to intermittent contact problems. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Luke, You need to establish from them whether the two low cylinders are adjacent to one another. If so, this could be a head gasket issue - if not, then obviously there is something else wrong. Also bought two years ago:- From the same Audi dealer? Another Audi dealer? Somewhere else? Full main dealer service history prior to you buying it? Servicing during the last two years - where and when? This evidence is likely to be critical in any 'good will' contribution dealings with Audi UK. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Luke, Sorry to hear of your problems. To some extent, it is difficult to follow Audi Belfast's logic by claiming that the engine itself is at fault, unless they have carried out some 'basic' engine mechanical checks and advised you of the results. To try to keep it concise and simply, a new engine might be reasonable advice if they have carried out a compression test on all cylinders and found one in more to be low. If so, then they can let you know the readings. Assuming the compressions are reasonably correct, then I would be carrying out an oil pressure test to check if the engine's lubrication system is serviceable or not. If they haven't carried out these basic tests and are advising an engine strip down is necessary to find out what is wrong, then personally I would not have much faith in them, and would get the car transported to a reputable independent for a second opinion before making any decision. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Alex from the Homeland. If it were mine, I would be making some enquiries with the folks who remapped it for you. Glow plugs? Highly unlikely I would have thought, since they only assist cold starting. Kind regads, Gareth.

Hello Andy, Well worth following Steve's suggestion. Has it been the rainy season in Trinidad? Not really very up on this, but does this earlier version have a body control unit (BCU)? If so it might well be worth checking the connections onto this. Kind regards, Gareth.

Oh blinking heck Peter - I feel for you. That's about as open ended as it could be! I think that would test my loyalty towards this engined vehicle, and even towards the brand. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Scott, Now you are testing the memory, but I recall many many years ago having a similar issue when fitting a replacement Pioneer radio cassette in our then BMW. In that case it was something to do with a lack of connection to ((I think) a aerial signal booster for fm. Of course, this may not apply in your case since the BMW s were not fitted with a standard radio/cassette at the time. Having said all of that, my guess is that it's to do with a supply connection which needs to be made. Sorry this is vague, but it may lead you in a search (on other forums?) which will solve the issue for you. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Steve, Logic would point to :- If the noise was not there before you changed the components, then it's highly likely its associated with the fitting of the new bits. Eliminate the simple things first. I would start with removing one of the new plugs and carefully comparing it with the ones you took out - particularly in terms of the reach of the plug (length of thread and electrode). Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Hazel, OK, bucket and sponge. Bang goes my theory of acid contamination of the discs/pads then - unless hubby uses spray-on wheel cleaner when he washes it. If it were mine, I think I would insist on having new pads fitted, and the discs thoroughly cleaned up. Chances of getting Audi to do that under warranty?? Kind regards, Gareth.