Magnet

Thanks Rit,
Motorway miles will be easy on brake pad wear, and unless you are ‘last seconds on the brakes’ then standard pads should do you fine. In case it helps, I’ve been using Brembo of late on family cars to good effect. Same with discs if needed. I buy mine via. eBay at competitive prices from reputable suppliers. You could try Parts in Motion for example. 
If you want something a bit more ‘performancy’ then you could choose from the EBC product range. 
Please let us know how you get on.
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Michael,
You seem to have posted your plea and not returned to view the responses. 
We trust you are OK. 

The only way you are going to know is to get it on a lift and see what the behind- grille access is like when the front undertrays are removed. 

Hello Angela,
Do an Adblue search on here and you will find all the potential issues, but bad news travels fast. 

I believe so Greg - something like 5 degrees. 
I do understand your frustration if that is so. Our non-Audi does the same, and you do need to clear them of mist. 
The 2006 A3 appears to demise them at any temperature, but latest one - probably not, but I could be wrong. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Nick,
Handbooks cover all options, but the only way to establish what yours has and hasn’t got is to obtain a build record for it. 
A visit ( rather than e-mail) to your local dealers Parts Dept. might well come up with that if you talk nicely with them. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 
p.s. Take your V5 with you as proof of ownership in case needed. 

Hello Simon,
Not sure if you have asked the question about heavier springs of Parts in Motion - ideally over the phone-? 
 My feeling is the answer will be no, and it’s likely the estate springs will be heavier than the saloon anyway, but ‘heavier than heavy’ ?? 
Might be worth looking at LLL Parts website to see if there are varying part numbers. 
Perhaps you could keep us updated on both avenues. 
Kind regards,
Gareth.

Welcome Paul and thanks for joining. 
No doubt you would know, or be able to find out if all three are identical or not.
If they are identical - option:- 
Buy one from Audi, then buy 2 matched tensile strength ones from on-line suppliers such Kay’s. 
Appreciating that buying from Audi will not be the most economical route, it will be the safest, and factoring in the labour-free DIY replacing, it’s always better to ‘invest’ in the known correct parts. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Many thanks Steve for clarifying this for the benefit of others. 

Hello Tony,
I’m not sure what you now want to believe, but you have a battery of dubious origins, and I believe until you replace it with a reputable branded one, and get it coded to the car, you stand little chance of getting anywhere with this, but it must be your choice. From my side, and apologies if this appears critical, but you seem to be bombarding us with unnecessary detail. 
Anyway, back to your battery and charging check:- 
A couple of observations - the charging voltage measured at 13.8v at best, is below par, and I would be expecting around 14.5 volts. 
I’m not sure what he told you about CCA measurements, but surely Cold Cranking Current would be measured in what it is - amps. not volts.
If you are going to decide on fitting a reputable branded battery, you won’t go far wrong with a correct-for-car Exide from Tayna Batteries. Give them your reg. no., and they will advise on the correct one.
You will need to further investigate the alternator output.  

OK, so it’s back to a question of should I sell it to WBAC for (around) £600 - cater for it to be lower on inspection, or break for parts? 
Break for parts, if you are prepared to remove parts on demand, have the car in bits on the drive or whatever, advertise the parts, the get fed up and ask the local scrappy to come and take it. 
No brainier - as the say - in my book. Just take whatever and run. 

Hello Andrew,
I would help if you gave us all the necessary information you have from the outset. 

Hello Clarke,
I take it you are aware that it’s not all about looking good, and you have to ensure that whichever diameter one you choose, it’s tyres must match the accepted Audi alternatives in terms of profiles etc. to ensure the rolling diameter remains the same. In effect - the larger the wheel diameter, the lower the profile will have to be. 
As Snappy has pointed out - low profiles = harsher ride, and I would have thought the A8 ride would have been comfort biased. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Zeshan, 
Welcome, and thanks for joining. 
I think this will have more to do with finding someone who is prepared to do it, rather than finding someone who will do it at ‘reasonable cost’. 
It is also important that you have confidence in whoever you choose, rather than finding the cheapest option. 
Isn’t it possible to renew the hub support casting, rather than spend good money on getting someone to try to successfully drill the remains out and accurately tapping a new thread! 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 
 
 

Hello Oliver, 
Welcome and thanks for joining. 
Having had one in the family since new, and now sitting on 172k miles, I can assure you your car is absolutely as it was when new. 
‘Drinking fuel on motorway trips…’ You will find that they aren’t that economical - around 38 mpg on steady speed-limit motorway driving, and about 33mpg around town. I don’t want to tempt fate, but despite that, I wouldn’t swop ours, judging by some of the issues listed on here with later models! 
What I would advise to preserve its hopeful longevity is:- 
Treat it to an oil and filter change. ( I use Quantum Longlife 5w/30 and change it annually - use a quality German filter) 
Renew the air filter every 2 years. 
All important - renew the cambelt ( and alternator belt) assembly unless you have documented evidence that it’s been changed within the last 5 years. 
Hopefully, if you look after the car, it will treat you well. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Just had a look on eBay for you - Quantum 5w/30 Longlife 3 from  CE Automotive is £35.75. 
Think I got my last lot from them, but no connection. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

I would drain it off for peace of mind Jaspal.
Kind regards,
Gareth.

Hello Marcin,
The overall diameter of the wheel plus tyre must come into this equation, so if you are fitting small diameter wheels, then the tyre profile must increase ( for the same wheel width). The object is is to retain the same overall diameter. 
There should be online calculators that will check compatibility for you.
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Brian,
Thanks for joining, and sorry to hear of your issue. 
Not wishing to cause more concern, but I think you are right in needing to get this professionally sorted. 
Audi dealer sufficiently experienced to sort it?? 

If it were mine, I would be searching out a local-ish tow bar fitting specialist and getting them to give this a good couple of coats of inspection, and hopefully rectify any issues. 
Kind regards,
Gareth.

Hello David,
I’m not sure if this is going to help, but here in the U.K. we have on line search facilities that allow you to list what you want, and this gets circulated to all registered car breakers. 
Same on the Continent, which might supply over to Mallorca? 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Thanks Thomas,
You should find a manufacturer’s make somewhere on the set. 
Worth listing your ‘want’ with on line breaker links such as Partsfinder - there are more.
I would strongly advise removing your e-mail address from your post as quickly as possible - not advisable on an open forum. 
Anyone who can help will be able to contact you by PM. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Roshy,
Even a secondhand ( and probably damaged) bumper is not going to be cheap.
My way forward would be to get a new piece of plastic fabricated to match the others and get it plastic welded on. Any reasonable bodyshop should be able to do that. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello John,
Do you want a build record for your particular car, or do you want a list of the full ‘extras’ to choose from for that model year? 

If the former then any main dealer (Parts Dept. would be my best option) should be able to give you a print out from the VIN. 
I would do a visit rather than try to do it over the phone. 
 
If it’s a list of all options available, then I would be searching eBay for a copy of original sales brochure for your year. 
This maybe available as an on- line print out, but for me, a nice original copy would be preferred. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

In view of the amount of dismantling involved, it would not make sense to just renew the release bearing assembly. But it’s your and your mechanic’s choice. 

Hello James,
Electrically assisted power steering rather than hydraulic? 
If so, the culprit is likely to be a failing battery, aggravated by cold weather. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Gorman, 
New discs will be required. 
Kind regards,
Gareth.