Magnet

As I understand it Dan, you run the risk of letting the airbags off if you don’t disconnect the battery a half hour or so before unplugging. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Dan, ’whip the seat out……just 4 Torx bolts’. Did you disconnect the battery half an hour or so before disconnecting the plugs? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Paddy, I doubt if you will be disappointed with it, but please keep us up to date. I bought one for a non-Audi and would have been totally satisfied with it if it had cost twice as much. Delivery May take longer than stated, but….. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello David, It would be best to send Stevey Y a PM. He hasn’t been on here for a couple of weeks, and I’ve been meaning to PM him to check if he’s OK. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mustafa, Thanks for joining. Is it as simple as a significant drop in temperature causing the for rubbers to be less flexible? Kind regards, Gareth.

I could well be wrong, and I often am! Some other marques do, and have done so for some years. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mark, It sounds like you have already been on the homework quest! Higher mileage example at a nationwide retailer, but not available until Dec. sounds unusual, since they don’t normally advertise what they don’t have available at that time, but…. Also 31k to March of this year, and then a sudden increase in mileage since, would suggest a different owner during this year - a bit off putting in my book, but again I could be wrong. The local low mileage example makes more sense and probably explained by the owner choosing to buy a new Skoda rather than its stablemate Audi. Prices would seem to be a bit ‘blinking heck’ to me, but prices are bordering daft these days, but possibly not as daft as a year ago, as new vehicles appear to be on a shorter lead time. Good luck with whatever you decide to do, and see if you can sneak a quick view of the last owner’s name on the V5 and seek them out! If not, they sometimes forget to blank that detail off the computerised service history. Kind regards, Gareth.

New/ secondhand motor need coding to the car??

Battery - or Tayna, which will certainly your most economical route to a good quality battery at the most competitive price, but you may prefer to leave it to your garage. Just one point of caution if leaving it to them - I certainly wouldn’t have Lion or Lucas brands, so worth asking what brand they would be fitting. You are getting there! Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Mark, Re. the higher mileage one :- being sold by a main dealer? If not, how long has the current owner owned it, and bear in mind that he must be buying a ‘bit newer’ car for some reason - rather than new if not main dealer. This could be significant in the homework stakes. Re low mileage one :- again main dealer? FSH. As asked - have you seen the service print out to confirm it’s had 3 or 4 annual services rather than 1 ‘Longlife’ service - which wouldn’t be appropriate that the low annual mileage. If not being sold be main dealers, it’s worth questioning in your mind why not, since up to 5 year old models usually are. Have you checked book prices for both via. Parker’s or similar? 4 new tyres on the 15k one. Quality brand or budget? On higher mileage one, you will need to be assured that all tyres match ( certainly on same axle anyway) and all have similar tread depths. Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome to the Audi Owners Club ! Good to have you onboard. Hello Ian, I guess you know the wipers don’t work unless the bonnet is fully closed. Kind regards, Gareth.

Sigh of relief Sarah! Breath easy now. If it were mine, I would be making a list of the jobs which Audi have told you need doing, and take that to your local garage between now and 12th of Dec. and ask them to estimate the costs of the individual jobs, so you have an idea of how much less you are going to have to pay - compared with the Audi quote - considerable I would expect. Once you are armed with that, then no doubt that will be a significant stress reliever, and don’t be surprised if some of the quoted jobs are found not to be essential to do at this particular time. Battery? Just forget about renewing that at the moment ( unless Halfords did declare it to be substandard), or indeed if Audi tell you it needs replacing - in which case don’t (in caps) allow them to. Just comeback if and when. Just refer back to the forum at any point where you are unsure. It will all work out much better than forecast. It really will. Kind regards, Gareth.

I’ve found it’s often better to actually visit the dealership rather than try to do it over the phone or by E-mail. Take the V5 with you as proof of ownership. Let us know how you get on Peter. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Sarah, I would just take a very deep breath and STOP ( sorry about the caps) until these quotes are clarified. Who’s quotes are these Sarah - the garage who are currently working on the car, or someone else? Let’s wait for your clarification re that, but these are highly questionable figures in relation to what would be expected away from Audi. As well as damaging your finances, it seems that this has the potential of damaging your well-being, and safeguarding that as best you can, is vital. Not that it matters, but let’s say I have many years of retirement behind me! - and I’m still learning how best to manage my well being, and now at the stage where I realise it is so important. We hope to talk you through all of this Sarah, as best we can remotely. Take care and kind regards, Gareth.

Oh blinking heck Sarah - £4.5K work necessary. What on earth is wrong with this car, and what mileage has it covered, what service history does it have, and how long have you owned it? In terms of renewing the battery - did Halfords test results show it to be below par? If so, I’ve recently bought a couple of Exide batteries from Tayna Batteries. I usually buy via. their EBay listing where the postage is free, and the code SAVES8 might still work to give you an extra 8% off. If you give them your reg. no. then they will direct you to the correct battery, but beware, they will promote their own Enduroline brand which will be more expensive than the good quality correct Exide one. Audi’s £450!! I’d need gas and air! Obviously just come back with any queries to avoid paying more than you need for anything. Kind regards, Gareth.

I guess you’ve asked your nearest Audi dealer for an E-mailed print out of the computerised service history. Probably worth having the VIN to hand Incase its previously been on a cherished plate.

OK Peter, So you will need to get it serviced annually, and I find its best to get it serviced a month before the MOT is due, so the vehicle gets a good check over to minimise the risk of any undue surprises with the MOT. You didn’t say when it was last serviced and what was done at that service. This will be important to know what you will need at the next service. When you say -‘independent garage’, will that be a VAG independent specialist, or an ‘ordinary’ garage. Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome to the Audi Owners Club ! Good to have you onboard. Hello Mark, Thanks for posing the interesting question, and sorry to have to ask some questions before responding:- 47k example - ‘ready by beginning of December’. Why, and what is being done to the vehicle that delays its availability? Could be a simple explanation that it’s not coming in in part exchange until then, or more sinister, it’s undergoing mechanical or body repairs. Have you seen the vehicle in the flesh, or if not viewed the service history print out, and enquired about its ownership history, and in particular how long the last owner has owned it for. 15K example:- same as above in terms of viewed/ not viewed-? With an annual mileage of less than 4K, this vehicle should have been serviced on an annual schedule. Beware, it may not have been serviced annually, and just had ( or may not have had even) - one service in its lifetime. Although low mileage is an attraction (and I’m not commenting on the £3.5k premium), it’s worth giving some thought that the vehicle is likely to have been operating over short journeys when it seldom gets up to operating temperature, and may therefore had more of a mechanical hammering that a vehicle doing a much higher mileage over long trips at optimum operating conditions. Are these vehicles being bought ‘remotely’ rather than locally? If so, then in my book, doing your homework is essential, and at least requesting e-mailed copies of service history printouts before travelling to view. Being cynical, it’s surprising how such evidence seems to disappear once you actually view. Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome to the Audi Owners Club ! Good to have you onboard. Hello Peter, Could you please let us know what your anticipated annual mileage will be, and what service history came with the vehicle, when it was last serviced (when and at what mileage), and what service items were renewed at that service, Also:- will you be carrying out your own servicing, having it serviced at a main dealer, independent, or local garage? Kind regards, Gareth.

Checking if there is any remaining evidence of a bag or crystals, I guess would be a good place to start. Having said that Hamza, you really don’t have to concern yourself about the cause or fixing of the problem. All you now have to do is to check it’s fixed ( properly) once the seller informs you it’s sorted. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Anything to do with the bag of crystals that was/still is added to the expansion tank, and can break up and find its way into the heater matrix? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Miley, Possibly pessimistic, but free radio codes maybe a thing of the past, and has regrettably moved on to where £13 has become loose change in terms of ‘parts’ for cars. Appreciate we all want to save money, but more often than not, it’s turns out to be far more convenient and time saving just to bite the bullet and pay. Having said that, it could be worth waiting a couple of days or so Incase someone does come up with a free source. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks David, Of course, you are right in saying it should have an oil change (at least) once a year, and for some marques the in-brackets ‘at least’ ’ bit becomes very important, since low mileage use gives the engine more of a hammering that a similar engined vehicle covering high mileages when the engine is always running under optimum coolant and particularly, oil temperatures. So upshot is I would (as I do) change the oil and filter annually on our petrol engined car, and if a diesel - which I guess yours is - I would be considering a twice yearly oil change due to possible oil dilution, and I certainly wouldn’t extend that beyond an annual change. Audi recommends an annual service schedule for low annual mileage anyway. Oil is cheaper than accommodating engine wear! Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome to the Audi Owners Club ! Good to have you onboard Hello Hamza, Is the car getting up to normal operating temperature on the gauge or display? If so, you will need to check if both smaller bore rubber hoses from the heater matrix are of matching heat when the car is up to temperature, and the heater set to hot. Are you able to return the car to the seller for them to sort out the issue? Kind regards, Gareth.

Great Bob, Any particular reason why you are suspecting the parking module is the offender rather than one of the sensors? If indeed it is the module, then I have a spare one - probably for the same reason as you think yours is defunct! Keep us posted Bob. Kind regards, Gareth.