Magnet

Price Mike please? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Katie, Thanks for joining and sorry to hear of your altercation. Have you tried:- EBay, and registering your ‘want’ on on-line car breaker link sites such as Partsfinder ( there are far more, if you search). We take it you have had a ring around your local car breakers -? Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. I’m assuming you don’t want to buy new. Colour? I guess you are aware that you are likely to have to have the replacement sprayed to your colour, otherwise you seriously restrict the chances of finding one. An aerosol will be sufficient. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello folks, Time for an update:- All the wiring looks good, and since there isn’t any noises/ vibrations at any of the four sensors, I thought I would swop the module ( for a secondhand one due to Audi’s anticipated cost). Outcome - still the same. I have done some spray work on the bumper, but no more than would be expected to respray a new one, and everything was fine for a week or two after. Tried WD 40 on all four. Where to now? As I see it, I ideally need diagnostics, and the question I need an answer to is, will that isolate which sensor/s are at fault ( if a sensor) rather than me ‘investing’ in a new set of fouron the off chance that may sort it? On a rare cadge for some help, would there be any member around the Cardiff area who has the necessary test gear, and be prepared to help, or indeed W. Wales, where we travel to occasionally. I don’t mind paying, but not really an uneconomical main dealer rate. Many thanks and kind regards, Gareth.

Any comments on the asking price to further my experience? Road tax €1.8K/a! Blinking heck, that sounds like a ‘gas and air moment’!

Hello Barry and Steve, €16K for a 125K ( low, but not low, mileage if you see what I mean) model? Since it’s being sold by a specialist then I would expect a premium price, but wondered if this was indeed near the going rate. Take it you have checked the MOT history etc. Barry. Kind regards, Gareth.

That’s fine Duncan. Best left as no score draw half time then.

Thanks Harminder, I think Jon clarified that his 21k equated to infrequent longish journeys, but you raise a good point in my book. Low mileage can result in above average wear and tear on many components, not really encountered on a high motorway mileage example of the same age. Shame Jon never came back to advise whether he had the same degree of success that he did with JLR. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Mohammed, Sounds like you’ve boiled this down, and you simply want to progress along the lines of the video. That’s great. Personally, I’d still want to work from my back-to-first-principles and get the battery (and alternator) efficiency checked to eliminate these before moving on, but your call. You ‘voltage seems good’ check done with a simple multi meter under no-load condition? Just out of interest - make of your battery? Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Duncan, ‘…not totally correct…’ Um! Let’s try and boil this down:- Is stoping and restarting an engine (with zero oil pressure) unlikely to have any negative effect on the engine - particularly over many years of repeating that procedure numerous times/day? If your answer is ‘No it doesn’t have an adverse affect’ ,then it would be great to hear your reasoning to support that. As I see it we have two camps here who are not stop/start averse:- Environment supportive motorists who are happy to accept the engineering averse system, based on the ‘temporarily on stop’ emissions reduction. I certainly don’t have any any argument with that, since I guess they know that they are paying the cost. Other group - my car has stop/start, and that’s posh and somewhat impressive, and I want it to work for that reason, and it won’t be impressive if I switch it off. Different, and they too obviously know about the increased wear element. Back to your ‘… not totally correct….’ Interesting third group? Many thanks Duncan. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mohammed, Simple eliminations first:- worth getting the battery efficiency checked, before moving on to more complex possibilities. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Any form of slight obstruction or disturbance of any of the components can result in the symptoms you have. Personally, I would not be hanging my hat on the motor being the offender here. I would be more interested in searching for some localish specialist inspection/advice before attempting to remove anything. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, Should be listed in your Owner’s Handbook. Kind regards, Gareth.

How do you work that out Mathu?

Thanks Jess, In marking your homework! :- MOT history? ( as opposed to date of MOT). Has it ever failed, and why. Advisories? Have they been attended to? This 11 year old car is not being sold directly from a main dealer is it ? Don’t expect any paint warranty on an 11 year old car. Obviously too late now, but deposits are usually non refundable ( but probably transferable at the same seller) so my pre-purchase procedure is to always do all the homework, and gather copies of evidence before paying any deposit. Apologies for the pessimism, but unless you are competent at fully assessing this vehicle, then the ‘insurance’ is to invest in a professional inspection - particularly since you’ve already have one bad experience under your belt. Good luck with it. Kind regards, Gareth.

‘Few weeks back…’ - should have a warranty. After all, a convertible would be expected to have a working roof, otherwise it’s not fit for purpose. Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks Jess, but I fear you are going to look at this car without having done much homework, and that puts you into a potential ‘falling in love with the appearance’ situation. Personally, I wouldn’t do it. ‘until I get there I won’t have check the service history etc…’ why not? ‘But there are other costly services I should be checking’ - what are those. Shall I boil the homework done?:- Look at the online MOT history recorded against the registration number. Look at the DVLA Vehicle check to see the date the last V5 was issued - this can give you an idea of how long the last owner has owned it. Short ownership - suspicious. Ask the seller to e-Mail you copy of whatever service history they have. Ring up your Audi dealer and enquire about whatever service history they have recorded in their ‘National’ system. Is it the car for sale at some distance? If so, you may have to kiss goodbye to the practicalities of getting any guarantee work done there. It’s interesting that you mention ‘Black Edition’ - as if this is more important than mentioning anything about its mileage etc. at that stage. Sounds like the pitfalls of falling in love with the looks of it, and what it has. You mention ‘costly checks’, but costly checks can save you an awful lot of money going forward, so consider the costs as a potential investment. Perhaps you could come back to us and let us know the homework details Jess. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Frankie, Trade or private sale? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jess, Thanks for joining. To save us suggesting what you may already have checked, what have you looked into in terms of this particular car’s history? Also, trade or private sale? Local to you or not? Are you contemplating having a professional inspection on the car before committing, to minimise the risk of ‘getting stung’ again? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Nadim, Many thanks for posting your advert, and for the comprehensive description. Just a couple of points you might add:- Number of owners, and how long you have owned it-? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jordan, Many thanks indeed for coming back on this. I can only repeat my earlier suggestion of booking this in with a trusted local bodyshop, rather than Audi, but I appreciate that your route may be more acceptable and reassuring for you, and give you greater peace of mind. Whatever you decide to do Jordan, perhaps you could let us know the outcome. Kind regards, Gareth.

And the ride is likely to be harsher Karol, due to the lower profile tyres. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Hampshire Steve, Apologies, but my view rests in a similar camp to Steve Y, but I’m old! We read that the 20 mph limit is going to be introduced on a wide scale by late next year, so unless we live on a motorway junction, we are all going to be doing more fast walking pace than go-faster pace! This is going to sound harsh Steve, but you’ve got an estate car - built for carrying loads, so why the quest for more power? - unless you intend to carry heavy loads at a faster pace. We are all different, and for some, it’s great to be able to talk ‘torque’ down the pub with like minded folks, so I guess unfair of me to stand in the way of ‘mine’s faster than yours’. Anyway one person’s take on this, which might just help to raise a few contra opinions on here. Tongue in cheek, that’s what it’s aimed at. Good luck with whatever you decide to do Steve. Kind regards, Gareth.

Where have you tried Sanjay? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, Put a pessimistic hat on and hope for the best. I think you will hear too many stories of ‘full service history’ prior to viewing, only to find after you have travelled a fair distance, the claims cannot be substantiated to the same extent as you understood. I would be asking for e-mailed proof ( apologies if you have already done so). Can we take it you have viewed the on-line MOT history and the date of issue of the last V5? Homework is king Chris. I think you might be well advised to have a professional (AA type) inspection carried out before travelling. OK it’s an expense, but buying at a distance can be a gamble. Also considers the practicality of any guarantee offered - due to the distance involved. There are many indicators of enthusiastic maintenance - such as matching tyres on the same axle etc. etc. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. any clutch repairs carried out?

Hello Shane, Personally, I would steer clear of clutch specialists, based on they will have their own choice of clutch components which could be highly price influenced rather than quality biased. They will probably promise you everything you ask for, but you’ve no idea how much of it will actually materialise. Repeating - if it were mine……. Kind regards, Gareth.