Envy

Still think you are missing the Ultra part of an A6 specification... Ultra refers to the lower emission engine, not the overall spec. This is no Ghia or Vandem Plas sort of thing. You can buy Audi A6 Ultra in Base, SE, S-Line, Black spec and then there are all the tick boxes for options on top. I looked at some but none were in the colour , spec and price when I went looking for mine. All the Ultra tick brings to the party is £30 / year road fund licence and supposedly more MPG.

With the Ultra being just an Engine option and the rest of the build coming from the Audi pick list the only thing you will be dropping with the Ultra option is some MPG and road fund licence. Plenty of A6 out there with some reasonable spec.

I have 245/45/18 on my A6 - I live in the Town where they are made but that is not a reason for buying them. I used to rate the Uniroyals but decided to go for Avon ZZ5 as had to get a new tyre in a hurry after a blowout. So far so good - hard to judge economy but noise and road manners are excellent. Yes Avon has great heritage in both Cars and Motorcycles - good price but not economy performance.

Mine don't seem that bad although they do not have electric adjustment apart from the lumbar support. Might have seemed a bit "alien" when I first started driving the Audi coming from an Insignia Vauxhall but have to say I can drive all day without complaint in my A6. When you mention a wedge cushion is this to help with pelvic tilt or back angle? The S-Line seats seem to have both covered although yours being a year younger and having electric adjustment might not have the same adjustment ranges.

Please

Only way the brakes would be overheating is if they are binding on - you would smell them after stopping after a long run and your fuel consumption would be impacted severely also. If the pedal is creeping down I would take this to be a leakback on the master cylinder. While on the m-way you will be using the brakes less than if you were pottering around during a short journey.

Groin

https://www.audi.co.uk/audi-innovation/advanced-technologies/ultra.html Interesting that the 2.0 TDi Ultra has the same power output as the "standard 2.0 Diesel but less emissions resulting in less road fund licence / year. I believe the engine choice is available across the range and when buying second hand, you rely on someone ticking the boxes at original build to suit. From what I can see online the Ultra is most popular with Fleet buyers due to C02 figures although being VAG they should be taken with a heaped spoon of salt. My non Ultra 2.0 Diesel Avant Auto returns about 40 MPG real world and I don't drive like Miss Daisy is in the back. I had a budget set but when presented with my present car at the dealers I dug deeper to get it. Items on your wish list will be the Tech Pack and Heated seats (cant believe they are an Option). 20" wheels had nothing but cost to running the car over time. S Line seats a lot better than standard although non S Line models are not uncomfortable. Mine has had the emissions update and is on 27k miles. Having experienced EGR valve failures on other Cars it is a general fault not just Audi and luck of the draw - If the EGR does croak post update Audi have been fairly supportive in the past but note support is born from loyalty so Main Dealer Service History will smooth the way there.

Repetitive

Is it that temperamental putting it on too? Does not sound like it's the axle end if it disengages normally when required by motion. Could the switch be failing. 10 years of operation and where it is, it is subject to the usual grime build up over time -(not saying you don't keep your car clean). Electric window switches suffer the same over time.

Hmm - petrol or diesel? Glow Plugs or Glow Plug relay - if its cranking well then you have to be looking at initial fuel delivery or cold start assistance. Hand brake light could be a red herring

Note that 4WD will get you and keep you going but when it comes to general handling while moving and stopping Quattro is as near as good as a 2WD Car. Seen many a smug 4x4 driver punch a complacent hole through a hedge before. Keep the speed down and remember how much your insurance excess is as that will be your minimum cost to repair post exuberance . Also keep one eye out behind as your stopping may outperform the folk following you. If you really must venture out prepare for the worst. Quattro will help you through snow but when the masses get stuck and block the road you are going nowhere too.

I have Green Flag joint personal membership - this covers me and the Mrs in any vehicle that is not on hire to me or that we are not paying passengers on. Primary car is part of membership. I have Home and Roadside cover with recovery included and pay a little over 106£ Have used it in the past for both me and the mrs and cannot fault them - they do use 3rd Party Service agents but they have always got me home or at least to a garage of my choice.

With the MMI Jukebox hard drive, SD Card Slots and a USB Port and BlueTooth interfacing you will have more room for music than you can practically fill. The Advanced MMI has a slightly wider screen and you will get the full display between the Clocks. Head Unit plays DVD. If you can fond and afford a 3.0 Diesel then this is the obvious choice

One major thing to check is the rear diff - a Mate has one and it has been in to Audi due to an oil leak. Major job stopping leak and if you cannot stop the leak its new diff time. not a massive concern for Audi but there have been enough cases to be notable. His was the active diff - worth asking the right questions regarding the rest of the car too. Service history a must. S-line seats are not so bad - some would prefer them to the RS Wing Backs that can be too supportive - especially for the larger driver / passenger. Any Audi model that has an RS derivative will suit Wing backs. Note there may be some electrical harness issues if the specs of the seats you have vary from the prospective seats.

So had to bite the bullet and get another pair of tyres - have had ZZ5 Avons on the rear for a while now but hard to judge their performance on the back, they just got on with the job. The Continentals on the front have done a job (26500 miles worth) but the price of their equivalents are prohibitive. With new ZZ5s on the front and 100 miles in I have to say the car is better now than when I purchased it 16000 miles ago. When reversing off of the drive I used to get the awful stepping like you had skipped of a kerb - not any more. Also gone is the tracking over banding in the road surface - every commute for a year I used to get the same shimmy over a section of bridge but that too has gone. All for under £230 fitted. As with everything new - time will tell. I used to like the Uniroyals but I am (for now) converted.

Hi Jenny - glad you got a fix - maybe Vanessa read the same if she has not already had it sorted. Time to get back to enjoying the car again.

Fashion

I saved a mate a fortune when he was told his ECU was shot on his Volvo V40 Electrical connections will deteriorate over time - this was the case on the Swede's ECU. Unplug , clean the contacts, dress them and pug back in and hey presto - hundreds of the Queens faces saved. Please give credit to the poster above regarding the Lambda Sensor - CANBUS Serial means what it says - the sensors are connected in series - if one pops - they all suffer. Not sure the Lambda readings will tell you much - maybe a continuity test on the sensor will tell you - !Removed! to get at but a multimeter is a valuable diagnostic aid. Also Lambda Sensors will go as are sat in exhaust stream for their lifetime.

Smacks of binding brakes to me - colouration (blueing) is a strong indication of this. They do not look that badly lipped but scoring is down to opinion. Mine is they are safe to roll on but if in warranty and low milage then Audi have a case to answer.

I think a light on the dash would just raise more concern and questions with many Audi owners - there is a trade off between DPF maintenance and economy- I heard that keeping gas flow up is critical hence the more spirited driving. Note the higher tickover speed of the engine. I try and keep mine between 2 and 2.5k revs when I believe it is in regen mode - easier for me as 70% of my driving is on Motorways although I do also enjoy a spirited A road drive once in a while.

Your pressure and level sensors are likely to be 4 - 20mA (Current flow) type. With both being affected it could be a common fault or coincidental that both detecting devices are faulty at the same time. If it is a common fault I would first look at the instrument cluster wiring checking contacts, cleaning them and refitting them. The fuel and temp gauges are probably on a common ground (Guessing as do not have schematic) and if the resistance is high on the ground then this is your issue. Good luck with your quest.

Hi Matt - Diesels hate short runs but this should not be a problem as long as the regenerations are permitted to complete. Is yours an auto or manual gearbox? The reason i ask is that mine is auto and very seldom gets run past 2k revs short shifting for economy. When mine is doing a regen the only real indication I see is the engine ticking over, when the car is at rest, at 1k revs instead of 800. When I do notice this what I do is put the drive mode into sport so the revs are kept higher before shifting - increased engine revs = more heat and gas flow to assist with the regeneration process. If yours is a manual then just hold onto each gerar a little longer before shifting up. I used to worry about shutting the car down when parking up at a destination but the car seems to be able to cope with this and commences regens on the next journey. Yours may regen more often due to the shorter journeys.

Seething

Phillips