Magnet

What is the history of the car Mark, and how long have you owned it? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Thomas, Sory to hear of your problem, and it would seem you gave been spending some funds on replacing components without finding the route cause. It concerns that you are now considering replacing the wiring harness, which is both an insurmountable operation and an uneconomic proposition on a 14 year old car. Appreciating you seem to be capable of continuing to try to sort this, bit I think it may now be far cheaper for you to put this in the hands of a trusted local independent. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Paul, Good on you for having a go at repairing this. I'm from the school of older car renovation and it's very rewarding to repair something and preserve oriiginality rather than simply replacing the whole thing. Having said that, in your case, would I use epoxy resin glue to repair it? No I wouldnt, and if I did, I would most certainly use Araldite rather than Unibond. I would say the way to go is to weld repair the broken plastic bits - glues will just split under stress- whereas weld bonding will achieve a lasting bond. These bumpers can be welded using a good soldering iron and is not difficult to do on a DIY basis. If the plastic bumper is distorted then it can be brought back into shape using a reasonable output hair dryer, or in extreme cases a hot air gun. If you do succeed in gluing the broken bits, you are likely to find they will break again, and usually do so after you have spent your money on repainting! I'm surprised the garage suggested this, and personally I would be tempted to find someone else, and a small local body shop may be a good alternative. Good luck with it Paul, Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Gregor, Private or dealer sale? Apologies for painting the black picture, but if a dealer sale then I guess you will be forgoing any warranty, based on the impractical 10 hour round trip to get anything fixed. But Ok, if it is with a deale have you checked how long the ore ours owner has owned it, and have you actually talked with them. If it's a private sale then obviuosly the warranty will not apply, but again I would be concerned about the any short term ownership. Seeing your location, I would guess the car is for sale in the south of the countr, and I wonder if someone down here may be near enough to have a look at it for you, since photos always paint a rosy picture. Is it possible that you are going to spend in excess of £120 on there and back fuel? If so, I think I would be investing in an AA/RAC type inspection before gambling this money, but still having done the previous ownership research first. Car buying should be pleasurable, and as a local RR enthusiast says, nice cars should always be bought from nice people, and over a nice cup of tea! It might be worth giving all of this a good coat of thinking about Gregor since as you say ..."I think the car looks great" ... and it's all too easy to fall in love with something and think a 12 hour road trip is worthwhile. Possible MOT issue? If you would like to share the registration number (or pm me if you prefer) then perhaps someone might give a second opinion. DPF? Might be worth not getting too hung up about that and keep in mind other things which might be worth thinking about on a 6 year old car. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Lee, Halfords and botching eh? Thought they were too expensive on bits to be associated with botching! Still... Couple of 'ifs':- If things haven't changed on EBay over the last 6 months, and if your 2009 is the same as my 2006, the replacement clips for yours/mine are not available via. these sources. Yes, EBay has a variety of Audi clips, but at least not for mine, and I have the benefit of knowing what mine looks like! Like glittering and gold, all that''s on EBay doesn't fit everything I'm afraid. Good luck in finding one, and if you do, perhaps you would be kind enough to let us know. Kind regards, Gareth.

I too would go with 5w/30 and indeed I would certainly agree with the use - and use myself- of Quantum (Longlife) as David ( Fatbloke) recommends. If this car has covered 10k miles without topping up the oil ( on Longlife service schedule I guess) then it's certainly doing very well in terms of it's oil consumption, since I would guess it now requires just 1litre to bring it back to the full mark. (But check the handbook). Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Lee, Sorry to hear about this, but if it's any consolation, our 2006 clip failed a couple or so years ago, although our clip remains attached by its one- side- still - in tact bit. Problem is, or was, when I last looked into it, was that the clip is not available as a separate part and you have to buy the whole padded lid. As I recall, this was going to injure the wallet to the tune of c£70+ ( your trim code should be on the plate on the car). I had thought about some very small magnets, but I must confess I've not got around to it yet. This is probably the most economical route. Clutch judder? Our 1.6 has never had the smoothest of clutches from new, and I sometimes swear at it, although my wife thinks it's fine! , and an independent assessment by a neighbour mechanic declares its me not the car, so........ !! Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jon, Your problems seem rather complex, but Steve is right when he says the compressors can be a source of issues at the age and mileage of yours. They can usually be 'reconditioned' by renewing the piston ring , and it would be worth looking up BagpipingAndy on EBay who manufactures good new ones at least for Jaguar and Land Rover. I've done a couple and the most fiddly part (with Jaguar anyway) is getting the pump out. Having done what you have done, it should be in your capabilities and a least a good insurance against future issues. Re loss of pressure on some lines, all I can suggest is all lines are individually pressure tested. Dont know how much of this is going to be of help Jon. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Alan, "A local reputable garage has quoted 70 guide for the same work....." Someone must be seriously confused here Alan, since it is highly unlikely that you will even buy the genuine Audi parts - inc. their approved oil - for that. If you accept that the minimum ( should be in capitals!) labour rate for any 'reputable' garage must be at least £35/hr to which you have got to add VAT - and let's say they can do this service in a record 1 hour, then the labour charge alone would be £35 + £7 = £42. This leaves £28 for parts and oil! Can I even buy 5 litres of Quantum oil for £28? No. Something is just wrong here Alan. No offence meant and I know the Welsh share of loving of fondling money for as long as possible! , but sometimes bullets have to be bitten to secure the absence of longer term hassle. I have to be direct and say I think you are making a mistake here, but your call. Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide, but bear in mind that future services will be more expensive, and if you follow the same route you will be handing a car back with zero main dealer service history. That might seriously hurt at the time. Kind regards, Gareth. Just to have a laugh on the tight Welsh:- Headlines in the Cardiganshire paper:- Up-the-ladder window cleaner hit on the head by 50p coin which falls out of his pocket. (Think about it!) And we are supposed to have short arms and deep pockets!

Hi Paul, 'As low as' £70 per hour surprises me somewhat, even in this more-in-the-sticks area. Even if it is as low as £70 then that amounts to £84 when you add the dreaded VAT. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Alan, Not that it really makes much difference, but what mileage has the car now done and how many times (if at all) has I been serviced. Others will no doubt have more up to date costings on servicing than I do, but from memory I seem to recall our daughter paying that amount on her A3- and more many years ago, so to me, the costing would seem on to be on the reasonable side of reasonable! Getting I serviced elsewhere? Again others may offer more specific advice, but as I see it, in theory (and theory may need to be in capitals) it is acceptable to have the car independently serviced at a non Audi, VAT registered, garage provided the parts used are Audi approved (genuine Audi to be sure, if it were mine), without invalidating the warranty. How much money are you likely to save? Is that saving worth the arguement when anything goes wrong and the servicing becomes a debate. By the sound of it, you have this on a PCP, and OK, pessimistic it probably is, but the hand back condition is sometimes subject to debate with such things as kerbed wheels etc. etc., and if it were mine, I certainly would not be wanting to have the servicing introduced as well. I'm sure, larger chain garages - who will be glad to take your money- will no doubt tell you everything will be fine, but will they be at your side when any debate take place?? If it is on PCP then very often the monthly payments can be extended to take in servicing. Were you offered this? You might just find its all part of your repayment plan. Worth checking? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Imran, I too am confused and indeed concerned for you. If you are saying you are you are putting in 5 litres a day (that's just over a gallon!) then you really should not be using this car- there must be somrthing seriously wrong with the cooling system. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Brent, Sorry to hear of your problems. We can of course all be very clever in hindsight, but a 'hobble' job on any cambelt - recommended??? Moving positively on:- you need to get this car into a local trusted diesel specialist. A good source of recommendation would likely come from your friendly local taxi boys. These chaps normally know who to go to and who not. Good luck in sorting it out. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sean, OK, so it seems the air conditioning isn't working, but when was the cabin filter last changed? Check and attend to the simple things first, and that would be my first port of call. If it's dirty and damp, it's going to aggravate/ cause your problems. It sometimes lives up under the passenger footwell or sometimes high on the bulkhead under the bonnet. You would need to check where it is. As an aside, have you checked to see if any of the carpet is damp? Kind regards, Gareth.

Diesel or petrol Neil?

Hello Imram, When you say the local garage couldn't find any leaks:- Did they pressurise the cooling system and leave it pressurised and most importantly - confirmed that the pressure they applied did not drop off? If not, I would suggest you find another garage to check this. Did they check the operating pressure in the system when it is hot? Sorry, but more questions:- How much coolant are you adding on a daily basis, and are you checking it when cold, and to what mark are you filling it? Last question :- Is there any smoke evident when the engine is hot and revved to around 2000rpm and held at that rev. for a couple of minutes? Kind regards, Gareth.

As Paul says, but instead of e-mailing individual breakers, you can register what you want on sites such as Partsfinder (I think it's called - and there are more). Breakers link into these sites and respond to you directly if they have one. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Marius, Let me quickly say that I regret I cannot help you, but would like to let you know that I am sure a lot of us would have loved to have had such an opportunity to be involved. Probably common sense, but have you tried the breakers yard search facilities, where you can simply request what you want and sit back and wait for the breakers to respond? Again I could be wrong, but these boys normally have a great knowledge bank on what engines give most problems and become most sought after. Could be worth a go. I think Partsfinder is one, but there are probably many more. I genuinley wish you good luck with this project. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Edgaras, It depends on how long it was standing unused, but if it were mine, I would be adding Redex diesel cleaner to a tank full of good quality non- supermarket fuel and giving it a good run. Again, depending on how long it has been standing, and unless you know the engine oil and filter have been changed, it would be worth doing that too. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sian, I'm very sorry to hear of your problem, and I would most certainly agree with Steve's advice and also suggest you read all the other posts on this thread, not to depress you further, but to familiarise yourself with the experiences of others who have had these things looked into as the stage 2 dealer investigations - which you are about to engaged in. Any homework you can do is likely to stand you in best stead. There might be a couple of points to keep in mind here:- I would guess that you might have done 800/1000 miles in this car since it was subjected to the recall. Now the dealer may take this as being ' not our fault then', but bear in mind that the journeys you do are car-use friendly, and shorter journeys would probably have resulted in these faults showing sooner. Not wanting to add fuel to the concern fire, it it might be worth giving the dealer's response to you question about the faults not being associated with the recall. I wouldn't really agree with your conclusion that he already knows it was - as he may well do- but an admittance of that is highly unlikely. Probably worth doing some thought homework on that possibility too. I would not be too concerned about the baffling - a -female bit. My belief is that these dealers are working to a VAG script in such cases - female , male or whatever. I really wish you good luck with this Sian, Kind regards, Gareth.

I am sure that anything I am going to say is only going to cloud an already clouded debate, but just for no other reason than for me to try to get my head around the economics and real time meaning of all of this, could I ask the following questions:- On the road prices of the two cars under debate, so that I can work out the actual % additional insurance on cost we are talking about here to convince myself we arn't talking about three quarters of Porthcawl! Are we expected to be really wrapped up in (theoretical?) figures on paper, and are we seriously talking about the importance of 0.1 of a second necessary to accelerate to 60mph? How often during a day is this performance going to used, how is 0.1 secs. going to be measured, and when it is measured, what is anyone going to do with this additional time!? I think that if am trying to say anything at all Chris, it's absorb the extra insurance on cost (which I'm sure in real terms is minimal), buy yourself the extra 0.1secs, since my impression is that you will be disappointed with anything else. Having said that, I'm sure that whatever you choose, it will be the envy of all your mates, and should attract the fair !Removed! at a rate of knots faster than your 0 -60 time. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. This is very much age-showing, but from the text book of experience:- In my youth, most of use were trying to espire to a sorts car to impress the ladies. One of us though chose an Austin Maxi. ( you will need to look it up unless you are of a certain age of maturity!). Guess who grabbed the ladies - the Maxi owner since that car's seating could be converted into a 6 ft. 10inch bed! Life is strange isn't it ?

Sorry Chris, now understand what you mean with the tyres. I would indeed do what you suggest, - shopping around for the same make and tread pattern. I'm sure the car dealer will point you in the right direction since it is likely they put that new tyre on the one side. Good luck with it all. Kind regards, Gareth.

Cliff raises good points Chris. Wheel alignment is lucrative, and this expensive equipment needs to earn its keep. It can ( and probably not always) be used and operated by tyre fitters who have had some basic training on this sophisticated equipment by the supplier, and may or may not appreciate the finer points of particular vehicle's suspension adjustments - which can be complex. Perhaps it's just me experiencing the steering wheel being off centre after alignment adjustment. This is really ABC learning, and not appreciating that this is inevitable if you only adjust at one side! You would need to keep evetything crossed if the same person was let loose on the rear adjustment! Still, perhaps it's best not to listen too much to my pessimistic views on such things. I would put money on it that the tyre on the back with uneven wear has spent most of its life on the front of the car, and has not worn like that because it has been on the back. Not unusual for used car dealers to do this sort of swopping. If you are going to have this alignment adjusted - and would I, without first putting an even tyre on the back and seeing what happens ??? - then I would most certainly get this alignment carried out only via.the people fitting the springs, otherwise you will leave any subsequent issues of tyre wear to debate between them and the alignment company you are going to use. 'Not me gov"! Not sure what you mean by putting the same tyre on the side that is worn. Kind regards, Gareth.

Every two years should be fine. Kind regards, Gareth.

Well done Chris. Inside of the tyre wearing badly is/would have been a significant point in deciding what to do, had we known. Cats and pigeons - might this tyre have been on the front until recent times? Clue might be if the rear tyres are not a matching pair. If this inside-wear tyre is worn because it's been on the rear for some time then it could put a whole lot more emphasis on establishing why this car is not sitting right. But.... Kind regards, Gareth.