cliffcoggin

I am not convinced it is a myth. My A3 glow plug light goes out at the same time as all the other lights except in temperatures of zero or below, and the engine starts instantly. As for Easy Start, that only reduces the auto ignition temperature thereby enabling low compression engines to fire, so one could argue that Ryan's problem could equally be caused by low compression.

Funny you should mention that. Here is one of my favourite Youtube channels: https://www.youtube.com/user/EngelsCoachShop

Is this the same car you mentioned in https://www.audiownersclub.com/forums/topic/18217-audi-a3-8p-engine-bay/ and https://www.audiownersclub.com/forums/topic/18005-power-steering/

I can't help with your question I'm afraid, but I am puzzled why an LPG engine would need a fuel pump. Doesn't the gas have enough pressure?

I didn't know Alfas lasted that long <g>

Ah, I understand now. It's the quality of the rubber bushes and ball joints that concern you, not the metal arms. I can't help on that score I'm afraid. It will be something of a lottery without a reputation to rely on. Years (decades actually) ago Quinten Hazel was the brand I relied on, but even if they still exist I would be surprised if their parts were not made in China.

Hello Gareth. Let me start by saying I have no knowledge of the differences between cast (or would they actually be forged?) and pressed arms, and no experience of changing them on a A3. I am unclear of your reason to change to cast arms. Is it a matter of cost, durability, availability, strength or something else? If the current pressed arms are the originals they have lasted 15 years, and I imagine pressed replacements would last more or less as long, so durability is not a problem unless you plan to keep the car running past the age of 30. In your position I would fit whatever was available and known to fit, in the expectation that they would last the rest of the useful life of the car. If that means unbranded pressed steel parts so be it. Cliff.

https://www.audiownersclub.com/forums/topic/17979-esp-light-wont-go-off/

Nevertheless I still suspect air in the system. Has it been opened or disturbed recently?

There is air in the system. (Air expands and contracts.) Does the heater work?

Yes, press the belt inwards, it should barely move. If the noise began immediately after having the cambelt and water pump done I would be suspicious that something had been neglected in re-assembly.

Normally I would suggest an air leak to cause a hiss, but that would not be affected by clutch operation. Perhaps you are hearing the start of some belt slippage.

That's unfortunate, but there is a limit to what can be diagnosed through the necessarily brief written descriptions in a forum like this. This leaves you little choice but to get a proper diagnosis done by a competent mechanic, unless you enjoy throwing good money after bad by renewing one component after another.

Almost certainly the problem is an air lock created when the thermostat was changed. The coolant system should have been vented by the mechanic who did the work, so I suggest you take it back and get him to finish the job properly as it can be a devil of a job to do yourself.

Hello Balzout. I doubt that it is a worn wheel bearing, the sound is wrong and would be unaffected by clutch operation. However a wheel bearing can be tested by jacking it off the ground and turning the wheel by hand. A worn bearing will make a low rumbling sound. You may even be able to feel looseness in the bearing if you rock the wheel left/right and top/bottom. Don't be misled by any scraping or scuffing sound from the brake discs. I speculate that there might be vibration of the clutch hydraulic pipe against some part of the steering linkage. That would explain why the noise is affected by turning and clutch operation. My car is an automatic so I don't know the route of the pipe, hence my idea could be sheer nonsense. Nevertheless it would be worth looking at the pipe route around the engine bay, rattling it in search of loose clips. Check too that the steering rack is firmly mounted by getting another person to move the steering wheel to and fro while you look at the rack.

Steve. If you can justify the expense of an accurate diagnostic machine, which I can not on a 14 year old car that rarely has problems, then I have no doubt that is the best way to go. The problems I see on this forum are cheap inaccurate readers, used by owners with little or no knowledge of mechanics, which induce them to waste a lot of money on unnecessary parts. Cliff.

In regard to general non-specific warnings like ESP I take the car to an independent Audi specialist. Its expensive, but cheaper than buying a succession of new parts in the hope that one might resolve the problem. If the warning light is specific (such as "low coolant level") or there are no warning lights at all, I'll first turn to my experience of diagnosing and repairing my own cars for the last 53 years before deciding whether I can carry out the repair myself or take it to aforesaid Audi garage. Working without diagnostic equipment years ago is what I meant by being old school.

The point about old batteries is not so much their remaining capacity in terms of ampere-hours; it is more to do with internal faults that can interfere with the car's ECU. I am no electrician so I can not explain it in any more detail, but I am aware that batteries can suffer internal short circuits, sulphating of the electrodes in lead/acid cells, sediment at the bottom, and other faults that are not apparent to the ordinary user without special test equipment. Can you get the battery tested by an auto electrician? When I last had a new battery fitted as a result of similar false warning lights, loss of turbo, and loss of cruise control, I was told it had to be "coded" to the car. Being a natural cynic, that phrase instantly made me suspicious that I was being told BS. Even though the new battery cured all the problems with the car I still don't know whether to believe this coding story.

You mentioned at the start that you had a faulty battery which you dealt with. Did you fit a new battery or a secondhand one? Old batteries can cause a variety of apparently unrelated faults even when the alternator is putting out a good charge.

Good point about scrap yard absences. I too am sceptical of error code readers. I see many examples of false diagnoses on this forum, though I am too old school to have personal experience of them.

Rob. In regard to question 1, the first press of the key fob button unlocks the driver's door only, a second press within five seconds of the first unlocks all the other doors.

None of us doubt how easy it is to change that switch. The important question is whether you simply struck lucky in choosing that option from the many possible causes of an ESP warning, or did you know it to be a particular weak point of the A3?

Ryan. Colourless fumes or slightly grey smoke would be just an exhaust leak, but white smoke suggests coolant is mixed with exhaust fumes. Is the water level dropping? I seem to recall that the EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) valve is water cooled, which might be the source. Not sure on this point.

Getting rid of the warnings and resetting the codes is pointless unless you cure the fault that is causing them. If the yellow ESP light has been on since you bought the car that is the first thing to investigate. It is not something that can be diagnosed on a forum unfortunately because so many circuits are linked to it. You need professional help to solve the problem.

It's impossible to guess with such meagre information. See this for suggestions: http://www.auditech.org/acont-654.html