Magnet

Thanks Fi, Yes, Kent, so no lead there on why the subframe is rusting ( as is not too unusual). Guess it depends on how long it’s been ‘gone North’ as we used to say in the Rugby world! Are you having to travel far to see it? If so, if the service history evidence comes to you and you are happy with it, I would suggest you Google a recommended Audi independent in the sale area and arrange for paid-for inspection before travelling. Should have mentioned that it’s worth enquiring about remaining tyre tread on all wheels. Should be relatively even on all four on 4 wheel drive. Good luck, Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Fi, If those are the first two characters of a personalised number, then unfortunately it will not help. Knowing where it has mainly operated in can help to determine the likely adverse effect of high usage of winter salt in some areas of the U.K. If by chance GC is its ‘returned to’ registration, I think that would have been from the S.E. - but that is from memory, which is a bit chancy! Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks Natasha, A consumption of 1 pint every 200/250 miles is certainly on the excessive side of excessive, and at that consumption you would expect to see blue smoke from the exhaust when you rev. the engine. Do you? Also, are you aware of any oil leaking externally? Sorry about all the additional questions, but has its consumption changed during your ownership? What grade oil do you use, and has it had an history of sound servicing, before and since you have owned it? Many thanks and kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mick, Thanks for joining, but without being dismissive, you really should entrust this issue to your supplying dealer. You will have/will be paying a lot of funds for this new vehicle, and you really should not be expected to trouble-shoot issues with it. Have you contacted them? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Fi, Unfortunately, this issue is not too uncommon even on ‘modern’ cars, but its extent and severity can only be assessed by inspection. It’s really all to do with simply spraying a light coat of black paint on subframes and associated suspension hardware, rather than subjecting them to a good coating of preservative. Upshot is, you would be well advised to get an independent and experience assessment on it, and if found not to be too bad at this stage, get some Waxoyl type treatment applied to reduce the deterioration. Is this worth it? Depends on how it stacks up when the service history is requested and the evidence seen. What area has the car been operating in? First two letters of the registration? Kind regards, Gareth.

Very good point on age Steve. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Ionut, Declan hasn’t returned to the forum since the date of his last post. I would suggest you send him a PM, and perhaps you could update us on how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Buying the salvage and repairing it Will?

Sounds good Pete, I guess you can moderate your asking price in relation to what you paid for it 3 1/2 years ago, unless you bought it with a view to making a profit on it - and that’s fine too. If you want your space back, I would suggest you list it on EBay with a starting price of what you paid for it, and see how it runs from there. Good luck with finding it a good home. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Brain, (not Brian?). Sounds great - as Steve says - but to me, an expensive overkill at that mileage. Basics - OK ‘with genuine Audi parts’…. your choice of course, but I would simply use (just as good) German origin filters such as Mann, Bosch, Hengst, at a comparative fraction of the cost, with no compromise. As an aside, if this car has been serviced to schedule it will still be running on its original air filter since it hasn’t yet got to 45k ( yes, daft I know). Why pay your independent £90 to carry out a four wheel alignment when they are likely to subcontract this to a local tyre depot? Not sure what your local ATS is like, but the chaps at my local branch are great, and they do it for around £60. But the over riding consideration is:- does it need doing? Are the tyres wearing unevenly? If yes, get it checked, if no, very much leave well alone. Why are you renewing the glow plugs on a 44k vehicle? Gearbox service - not normally until c75K. Apologies for questioning/contra opinion. I’m very much into adequate, even reasonably over, servicing, but within sensible limits. Hope this is not too negative, but have you had a good study of the benefits and downsides ceramic coating? Good luck with it all. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jennifer, Pending finding a permanent solution, follow jdragon’s advice above. Kind regards, Gareth.

Perhaps you could update us on the definitive answer from the Parts. Dept. of your local main dealer Bill. Kind regards, Gareth.

Can we start by requesting you to fill in your profile properly?

Sounds like a longer term good move Fi. Could I reinforce the procedure I go through before viewing:- Check the on-line MOT history. Check the DVLA vehicle check to see when the latest V5 was issued. Can give you some idea of last change of owner. Ask the seller to e-mail copy of the Audi on-line service history and/or any servicing receipts. If you have opposition in any respect - start twitching! At the same time as requesting this off the seller, ask your local dealer if they would outline ( and ideally provide copy) the service record they have on the Audi system. All this can be done from the comfort of your arm chair, and will form the backbone of sound research before you decide to view. Good luck with your quest, and please let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Any updates for us Fi? Kind regards, Gareth.

Can any Q7 members respond to Natasha’s request. How long have you owned yours Natasha, how many miles has it done, and how much oil does it consume in x miles? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Bill, You could be right about your engine running on a chain rather than a toothed belt. However, I had a feeling that when I checked some time ago, there was conflicting references to chains and belts. Definitive answer? Take a trip into your local main dealer ( armed with your V5 - with the VIN) and ask for the Parts Dept. -not Service Reception - and enquire about the cost of the belt and tensioner assembly. You will then be informed it has a chain, or a belt. I wouldn’t attempt to do this over the phone. If it does indeed have a chain, then I would still get the auxiliary belt renewed on your 12 year old car, unless you have evidence that it’s been changed in recent times. Back to cambelts (if fitted ) and scheduled changes. Choices:- Follow Audi’s current guidance and forget about changing it until 130K miles with no time limit - by which time the belt is likely to have snapped, and all you have to then worry about is scrapping the car. Renew it every 5 years or say 75K miles, with the all important caveat -‘Whichever comes first’. My choice is obviously the latter. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on Bill. Kind regards, Gareth.

How long have you owned this Pete?

Thanks David, Would you like to share your solution with other forum members? Many thanks, Gareth.

Not a lot to go with there Matt. Oil level light? Oil pressure light?

Thanks for being in touch Linds. When you say your small garage tightened the belt, and it now makes a noise - concerns. I’m also intrigued to work out how you actually know the belt is tighter than it was. If (in caps) the belt is tighter than it should be, are you happy to entrust the fitting of a new belt and assembly to them? Water pump? - if cambelt driven on your engine. Wondered what you propose to do about that. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello again Jim, Saying it as it appears to me - Im getting a little twitchy about your posts - 4 year gap in responding ‘….’Getting back to topic…..’, ignoring sound and progressive advice with regard to your initial enquiry (and of course that is your prerogative), but more importantly your emphasis on promoting your You Tube Channels. I can’t see me needing to respond further to the initial reason for your contact, and I’ll leave it to Admin to decide the way forward if necessary. Kind regards, Gareth.

I feel for you Shaun. You have indeed learned the expensive way - treat any claim of service history made by any seller, as if not never existed, until you have sight positive that it does exist. Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome Fi, and thanks for joining. First things first:- Can we take it you have studied copy of the on-line MOT history for this car? Also, have you seen evidence of its service history? Have you done an on-line DVLA Vehicle Check to see when the last V5 was issued? This will give you some idea of how long the last owner has owned it? Short ownership - possibly not good. Down to specifics:- Water leaks- search the forum for issues and possible solutions. Panoramic roof - potentially a problem area due to generally non solvable leaks. Personal view ( pardon the pun!) I wouldn’t be interested. Hopefully owner members will fill in the remaining answers for you. Hope some of this helps, Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Francis, Welcome to the world of ‘Modern’ classic car ownership. This hobby is one of ‘make do and mend’, and has always been so, and to my mind, things will become even more difficult in the future, to discourage retention of aged vehicles. I don’t have any reason to support Audi’s spares stocking logic, but the car is 30 years old, and it would be unrealistic to expect them to manufacture and retain spares for your model - no more than you would expect to be able to buy parts for a 30 year old washing machine! I think what you are doing is what you need/ will have to do, and the only additional advice I can offer is to do searches for companies who are prepared to recondition pieces of electronics, so that failing parts can be repaired as needed. Good luck, but don’t give up. Kind regards, Gareth.