Magnet

Hello Kevin, You will certainly need a hair dryer to remove the old plate, and judging by Derek’s experience -to remove the tape remnants. You will usually find that the plates are stuck on by 3 strips of pads, and as I said, you can attempt to remove as much of the old pads as possible, but with the potential to damaging paintwork. I tend to leave the old sticky pads where they are, since they tend to retain some of their adhesion, and I cannot really see much advantage in removing all of that. Again as said, I simply stick the new pads alongside the old and all is well, without extra effort, no damage and no great downside. Its probably worth getting your new pads from the plate suppliers to ensure they are the correct external useable type. Worth cleaning the body area where the pad goes with meths - also the corresponding section of the plate. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Graham, It could depend on the professional level of your diagnostic equipment. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Kevin, Thanks for being in touch. I take it you want to renew the current number plate, rather than take it off and put it back on again. No screws = stuck on, and they do stick well! To get them off entails the use of a hair dryer and carefully pulling (not levering). Getting the remnants of the patches off? Take it as not worth the effort - just reposition the new patches so they don’t overlap the old. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Neil, Come on Neil - catch up! Percy Verance’s contact details are @ perseverance! Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Mike. It’s always been Bosch Aerotwins for me. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello John, Thanks for being in touch. I just wonder exactly what is actually wrong/unserviceable about your engine, which now leaves you considering an engine transplant. I’m sure you will of course appreciate that the cost and work involved would obviously exceed the value of the car, and the cost is likely to go a long way to buying a replacement oven-ready car which may better suit your needs. Kind regards, Gareth.

Sounds like it’s game-on in the battle against Audi then Neil ! Since Audi has sold you wheel insurance (with a nice commission) then you have a zero cost (Audi) route to rectifying the problem. To many/most? that would be the all important and minimum hassle consideration, and it would be job done. Of course, if it’s important to spank Audi’s bum, (but with the same visual end result as far as your wheels are concerned), then that is a totally different consideration, and it is indeed ‘let battle commence’. Percy’s contact details? Of course, just let me know - he’s a good chap to have on your side. Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks Neil, Well, it has to be said that yes, you are indeed a text book car cleaner! Way forward? If you are determined to peruse this with VAG on a warranty basis - and why not?- then I think you are going to need the assistance of my good friend Percy Verance, but if that is your quest, then again why not. The final resolution may be via. the Small Claims Court, backed by reports and court visits from your expert friends, and my guess is that VAG may back down at that stage, take the car off you for a couple of days, and get the offending wheels refinished. It probably boils down to the the worth of the hassle factor vs. the potential gain, and only you can decide if the battle is worth fighting - compared with getting your friends (or their contacts) to do a paint rectification job for you at preferential rates. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Graham, Many thanks for being in touch. Although I am not a fan of putting my dependence on plug in diagnostics, then you might have to resort to this in this case. This should diagnose which is the offending wheel, and you might find it’s an ABS sensor or an inferior signal to the sensor - from the hub. Of course this would be a guess (not what I like doing!) Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mike, I guess you are looking at aftermarket on line factors - nothing wrong with that, but sometimes these sites can be wrong. Having said that, the previous owner may have taken notice of another website and bought one which was shorter than should be! If the sites are recommending 26in rather than your current 24in, then you could try taping small 1 inch protruding pieces of cardboard to your existing wiper blades to test if they can be accommodated without issue. This can be considered a trial pending someone coming along on here to help you out with what theirs are. In terms of makes of replacement blades, if not using genuine VAG, then the only ones I would use would be Bosch Aerotwin. Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks for the additional helpful detail Neil. I guess your answer points to the car having always been cleaned by yourself, and never by commercial vehicle cleaners - correct? The only other questions I can ask is:- is the car washed by the old fashioned bucket and hose method, or is it sometimes supplemented by the use of pressure washers? And - do you use alloy wheel cleaner as part of your cleaning regime. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Marcia, Have you tried on-line car breakers link sites such as Partsfinder ( there are more) where you post your ‘want’, and breakers who have what you want, make direct contact with you? Kind regards, Gareth.

Right then Mo - Many thanks for the short reply. ‘Fuses good...’ Does that equal you have removed/wiggled the fuse to check it? If so, this act may well have re-established good contacts. If this were mine, then I would be buying some contact cleaner and giving the fuse box a good spray followed by wiggling each fuse to ensure there are good contacts. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Neil, Many thanks for being in touch and sharing your experiences. Could I ask:- Have you owned the car from new, and how is it cleaned? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mo, You just filled up my computer memory with all this detail! With respect to your heading of ‘Wipers not working’. Daft question, but was the bonnet properly shut? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Danny, Many thanks for getting in touch. The poster Phil, has not returned to the forum since this post at least 18 months ago. Not wishing to judge the legitimacy of any arrangement with ‘non -authorised’ adverts for services on this or any other forum ( sure Incarexpert will understand) but it’s probably wise to proceed with caution with any arrangements you make with such contacts. Kind regards, Gareth.

You are very welcome Muhammad. Yes, absolutely correct - an auto electrician. Try to choose a local one with good reviews, or one who has been recommended to you. You are indeed very wise not to fiddle with electrics unless you are competent with such things. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jack, As Cliff says. OK, you have made the mistake of overlooking the logical fault of an unserviceable battery. Batteries which allowed to remain discharged can, and usually do, suffer terminal damage. Personally, I would swallow my pride and not bother to replace the original glow plugs at least until you have renewed the battery. Let’s hope it’s just a battery issue, but come what may, you won’t go far wrong in investing in a quality battery. Battery to buy? Buy once and wisely. Personally, I only buy Varta/Bosch with at least a 4 year warranty, and I buy online from specialist battery suppliers and not from online motor factors offering discount codes - the use of which can still end up with you paying more than the competitors! Battery suppliers:- e.g. Tanya, Battery Megastore - there are more, and I don’t have any connection. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jonathan again, Wondered if you are now also disappointed in the performance of your car, as well as it’s economy. To be considering spending more money on a vehicle you think you may have already paid a lot of money for, may not be the logical way forward, but..... Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Mohammad, Thanks for being in touch. It appears the unit is not receiving power, and that should be your first port of call. Actually connected? If so, fuse OK etc. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jonathan, Many thanks for the helpful additional information. The following pointers may clarify the realistic situation:- Anticipated journeys of 8 to 12 miles for a diesel are just the sort of journeys such engines were not designed for - particularly since they take a comparative long time to warm up, and are unlikely to deliver anticipated optimum mpg under these operating conditions. Automatics will not give you the best of mpg compared with sensible driving with a manual. I think it is realistic to apply the following logic:- These are large (expensive) vehicles, and are seldom bought with economy being a priority, and an average of 36mpg may be considered as reasonably acceptable for a luxury automatic car. Sorry, this might not go down too well, but spending a large amount of money on a luxury car, then being concerned about its economy on short trip usage is a little contradictory. Regarding ‘duff engine’ is more likely to equate to ‘(un) reasonable expectations’ , rather than anything actually wrong with the vehicle. If it were mine, I would fill the tank up and stretch it’s legs on a nice couple of hundred miles or so, on an enjoyable motoring day out. Refill the tank on return, and see what you get mpg wise. If you are still disappointed, then I would book it in to a trusted local diesel ( in caps ) speciality to get it checked over. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jonathan, Many thanks for being in touch. I think it’s highly unlikely that either of the posters will be coming back to respond to you since neither has returned to the forum in 2.5 years. I note your concern/ disappointment in the mpg you are attaining, and it goes without saying that manufacturer’s claimed figures can be grossly exaggerated, and real like figures will be significantly influenced by journey patterns and driving styles. Although you say your average is 35 mpg and you don’t know why, it would be useful to know what your average journey pattern is and a little more about your driving style. Also, automatic or manual? Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Dan, ECP? Um! Why the first port of supposedly authoritative call for so many?? Calm, collected, assertive, but dignified approach now Dan. Those who shout lose the battle! Good luck. Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks Dan, I do indeed feel for your predicament, but I still question my original thoughts of why an aftermarket kit from LUK for example should not have been available, since it’s likely that this clutch would have been fitted to earlier models as well. As for other aftermarket kits (if available?) - personally I’d steer well clear of them. Still..... Current slave cylinder construction and location can be a nightmare, and it’s not uncommon for these to fail prematurely, but to fail in 10k miles is unreasonable. I think your last statement is certainly worth investigating with the supplying main dealer, although it’s really not your place to do that. For (cynical!) me, I would be wanting to have all information first hand, rather than relayed through the garage. Will the garage be able to give you an invoice number for the various parts bought at different times? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Dan, Thank you for sharing your experiences with this car. Perhaps a couple of points to clarify:- No aftermarket clutch parts available for a 4 year old car. I would have thought this was odd and rather surprising. So, do you have confirmation that the clutch kit which was fitted was actually a genuine VAG kit? If so, as expensive as £700 is, I would not have been surprised if the price was more than this, since VAG clutch part prices are (very?) expensive. At the point where the clutch started to slip, it was found that a gasket was missing from the (slave?) cylinder. I would wonder why the clutch specialists didn’t notice this before they fitted it. Now the -new? (slave?) cylinder has failed (again?), and you are left to discuss warranties with the supplying dealer rather than the fitters. This seems odd, since your contract was with the fitters - to supply and fit genuine VAG clutch components - as you understand it. Unless, you were involved in supplying the parts - ? This really is a disaster for you, and I just cannot see why you are left having to peruse who pays for what, when you employed specialist clutch fitters to sort out the clutch for you. Odd - as I said. Kind regards, Gareth.