Magnet

Hello Adrian, Thanks for being in touch. If the gauge is reading true at c70 degrees, then yes, you must suspect the thermostat. I would look into getting this renewed, but I would carefully consider the brand of the replacement you are going to use, if not using a genuine VAG one - which is what I would use. Some aftermarket ones can be of variable quality, and could lead to having to spend twice, rather than once and wisely. You could try Audi Parts Direct at Cardiff, who would probably do one mail order at discount. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello John, It would seem by your description that the variance in idle RPM is marginal around the just-above, just-below 800 rpm. Diesel is rather variable density wise in relation to temperature, and although I wouldn’t claim this to be an influencer, if it were mine, I would not be too worried about it at this stage. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Steve, Many thanks for being in touch. As much as folks on here would like to help, I’m sure you will appreciate that trying to diagnose such an issue without inspecting the car and hearing the noise, can be an almost impossible task. Could I ask, that if you have an assistant standing outside the car, is there a possibility that the noise may be tracked down to a particular wheel/axle? Possible guesses - corroding brake back plate/plates rubbing on disc, bit of road grit jammed between disc and back plate - but guesses they are. If this were mine, I would be contacting the seller to report the issue, and seeking permission to get the car inspected at a trusted local garage, if the seller isn’t local. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Alan, Not wanting to put a dampener on your intention, but I guess you have considered the negative effects on your Audi’s warranty by getting this done - and of course the insurance implications. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Andy, Thanks for being in touch, and sorry to hear of your issues. A couple of back to basics to consider:- Fuses may not necessarily fail (blow), but the holder slot may have a high contact resistance and give a reduced voltage. The assumption from the fuse-not-blown check, is that the component it feeds is at fault. I obviously can’t claim this was the issue with your original pump, but if this car were mine, I would be treating all the fuses to a good spray of contact cleaner and a good wiggling, to ensure the contacts are clean enough to make good connection. The second consideration is that your new pump has actually failed. After 1000 miles though?? Not sure what make of pump you fitted, but if aftermarket, some components via. this supply route can be of highly variable quality and service life. Of course, unless you do a low annual mileage, the fuel should be replaceable under warranty if indeed it has failed. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. Can we take it you have changed the fuel filter in recent times? If not, then it would be a good move to renew it (using only a good quality replacement) once you have your fuel supply reinstated.

Ok Sarah, now we know it’s seriously damaged. No criticism meant, but more often than not, the lack of important detail as the posts progress, leads to suggestions being made which are not applicable, yet time consuming to compile as replies. Taking bits off the car? In my experience, you either buy the salvage as a complete unit, or you don’t - and you don’t ‘asset strip’ the remains! Kind regards, Gareth.

Makes more sense to first sit at home and give TPS a ring William - don’t forget to ask for a copy of the drawing. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Sarah, Not wanting to protract this, but trying to concentrate the mind in perhaps a positive manner - air bags deployed may represent major damage or minor damage. Since I sense you are understandably attached to this car, it might be worth sitting back and giving the repair route a coat of thinking about since you will have a budget of >£4 ( less whatever they will change you to buy the salvage ) to get your ( in caps) car back to the condition you cherished. Having a bit more cash than offered? It may sound attractive to barter for another couple of hundred or so, but then you have to find another similar car of unknown pedigree. Having said that, only you know the full extent of the damage. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks for coming back Sarah, OK, cutting to the chase - what has been said is reasonable, constructive and progressive. I note you still say that yours has ‘this and that’, whereas others don’t, but it will be boring to repeat that such one-time-expensive extras are effectively worthless as the car ages. Your ‘near enough’ Autotrader link is in reality a mile-off as a comparison since it is a 3 year younger vehicle, and its reassuring to note that you too don’t see it as worthy of comparison, but it leads me to believe that you are still looking for that exact match ( specification wise) rather than looking at the more reasonable broader picture valuation. It would be great if you you could share the extent of the damage, and by considering the repair route, you will of course end up with an exact match for what you had, and who knows, by buying the salvage and paying for repairs, you may just end up with some money in your pocket! Regarding any offence taken in respect to not actually using your name, I feel I must defend Cliff’s post ( if I need to) since I’m sure the last thing he intended was to be offensive. Its interesting Sarah that you say you have other things to do apart from staring at a computer - don’t we all! I would again defend this forum as being an absolute free source of assistance - at the drop of a hat- for anyone who feels they only need to ask for it, and it’s now my turn to moan, but it’s rare ( as hen’s teeth?) for a very few to hang around and subsequently take their time to help others. Now that’s my rant! - with apologies. I don’t want to claim any accolades for contributing on here, but if you can spare a couple of minutes to calculate the time I’ve spent on posting/assisting/boring posters at over 2,600 posts at say an underestimated 4mins/post, I bet it represents a fair (waste?) of my time. Anyway, I really wish you well with your quest to obtain an higher than offered pay out, following compiling your supporting evidence. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello William, So is there a problem finding a quality aftermarket one without the part number? Kind regards, Gareth. You could try TPS and ask them if they could send you a photo of the drawing to make sure you are enquiring about the correct part.

Hello William, Thanks for being in touch. I wonder if you would be kind enough to fill in the story of why secondhand. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Peter, I suppose the all important question to answer first is - Is there a ‘retrofitter’ who could possibly/ said they can, retrofit this system for you? If not, then the second question of why they can and Audi can’t, is rather academic. Could it be that your Audi dealer doesn’t really want to try to fit it, rather than they cannot? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello David, I must say that your research should stand Sarah in good stead with regard to arriving at a realistic valuation for her car, and the suggestion in your last paragraph may be of particular interest, since as you say, the decision to declare the vehicle a total loss seldom equates to serious damage on a vehicle of that age. Having said all that, and respecting all the time, interest and research which goes into compiling these helpful replies, it’s a great shame that the original poster appears to have shown zero interest in all of this - having joined, posted and last visited, all within a 3 hour window. Apologies for being blunt, but it really does make you wonder why we bother to try to help, since this is not untypical and not certainly restricted to this post. Sorry, but..... Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sonny, Sorry, but the full information is coming through slowly. So you’ve owned it for 2 months, but was the car indicating any (in caps) misfiring issues when you bought it, or very shortly afterwards - how many miles have you covered in it? Depending on your answers, I would be finding yourself another trusted mechanic who will be able to provide you with test data which will confirm the car has HGF - if it in fact does. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sonny, Thanks for the additional information, which would have been good to have had within your first post. If the diagnosis is that the head gasket has failed due to the engine overheating - and it hasn’t and doesn’t overheat, then you have to seriously question the diagnosis. Can you tell us how long you have owned the car and what mileage it has covered before further advice is given. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sonny, Thanks for being in touch. Misfiring cylinders usually result from problematic coil packs or associated wiring, and isolating the actual cause can sometimes be helped by swopping coil packs from the cylinders which are firing fine, and seeing if the problem gets sorted/ moved to another cylinder. Great, if you have the experience to do this, but if not, then you will obviously need to get a trusted local garage to check it out for you. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Johnathan, Thanks for being in touch. I share your concern with regard to having to add oil to this new car. Just to make sure we understand it correctly, this car was bought ‘new’ earlier this year with a delivery mileage of 33 miles, and has now covered a total of 1500 miles (in how many months?) and at which point it needs to be topped up with 1 litre? of oil. Perhaps you could confirm we have the detail correct. My first port of call would be to register this fact (by e-mail will do) with the supplying main dealer, and anyone who may be involved with providing finance for the car - if applicable. My feeling is that the dealer/Audi will claim that it’s not unusual for vehicles to consume oil in the first few thousand miles, and it is possible that this consumption will decrease from that point, but..... It would be interesting to know how long it’s taken you to cover this 1500 miles, and what your average journey mileage is, and what type of roads (speeds?) are used. Re. Grade/specification of oil to use - see handbook. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Liam, Thanks for being in touch, and sorry to hear of your issues. Before taking the gearbox out again, I would be carefully examining the engine and gearbox mountings to ensure they are sound and serviceable. They can take a bit of strain when attempting to remove the gearbox. If they prove to be OK, then I guess it is gearbox out again for a recheck. Can we take it you changed all three clutch components, as well as the DMF? I guess so. Knowing that Audi clutch components are very expensive, would I be right in thinking you used aftermarket parts, and if so, what make did you use? Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks Steve, Euro Car Parts then? Attractive discount code!? I’m not saying this new part may be faulty, but personally, the only make sensor I would fit - if not a genuine VAG one - would be by Bosch. Not sure about the fronts, but the rears are signalled by a weak magnet in the hub.These (rears) can be a source of problem, and if at fault, the only solution is to replace the hub, irrespective of the bearings being serviceable. Kind regards, Gareth.

Rather terse Kevin, and yes, based on this, it’s still possible that someone might just step out of line and actually help you. But the likelihood of this ?? Still....... However - still kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sarah, Thanks for being in touch, and sorry to hear of your problems. Your thread heading gives the forum a good indication of where you currently are with this, when you state ‘Loss Adjuster’, rather than ‘Assessor’. I’m not sure if this your choice of title, but loss adjusters are employed to minimise claims made against insurers, whereas assessors actually assess that loss. A subtle but important difference! Some basis facts that may help to illuminate the picture:- The car is 12 years old and will certainly have a greater ‘worth’ to you than it’s actual market value. Statements like ‘....new MOT...’ will add little to the discussion on price, since yes, it must have an MOT. Unfortunately, no one on here is going to be able to give you a definitive valuation on the car without examining it, and having information on it’s mileage, service history, history of ownership etc. Even armed with this information they would then need at have access to trade valuation guides ( which your ‘loss adjuster’ should). If this person hasn’t actually viewed your car, then she cannot come up with a reasonable valuation - but only a guide valuation - and it appears she is simply pushing a guide valuation to some sort of limit due to your (understandable?) discontent. ‘Cannot find another for sale in the UK....’. Obviously you aren’t going to find an identical vehicle, but surely you will find many 2008 3 door A3s for sale - exact same spec? - possibly not, but all the bells and whistles seldom influence the market value when the vehicle comes to the age it is. I would do two things here:- Compile of short list of advertised prices of 3 door and or 5 door 2008 A3, noting mileage, service history etc. You can then average these figures to give you a better understanding of whether what you are being offered is reasonable or not. Second (and more direct route) would be to wander over to you local trusted used car sales site and ask them for assistance. They are most likely to have on-screen systems where they can value the car for you, in terms of retail and part exchange valuations. I think, these systems are now able to base the valuation via. your actual registration number, rather than the more generic model, age, mileage basis. Hope some of this helps Sarah, and although I can respect you are angry (as you say) in my experience, anger never wins the day, reasonable discussion and reasonable aims ( for which you will have done your homework) generally leads to those making the decision being more lenient in your favour. Good luck with sorting it out, and perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Eric, Sorry to hear about the issues with the car. As has been said, the issues are minor for a 13 year old car, and are surely sortable with some specialist input. Since both faults are electrically associated, If it were mine, I would be investing in an hour’s time with a trusted local auto electrician, who should be able to at least diagnose the causes, and possibly sort them for you. Not sure when the car was last serviced, and whether you have local independent specialist who you use, but if it’s not been serviced lately, it might well be worth rewarding it with a good check over. Kind regards, Gareth.

Um! Ok. Come back the old BT advert - ‘It’s nice to talk’! Why is the mobile phone industry a multi billion pound industry?

Thanks Kevin, E-mail? If it were me, I would be picking up a phone and having a good old fashioned chat with them. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Brenda, Many thanks for coming back with the additional information. Not much point in going backwards, but signing up for services and MOT is the road to putting more money into the seller’s pocket, and particularly in respect of MOTs where it can be lucrative to find issues which they can then charge you for. In addition, you don’t have any control over the quality of the parts used for the services, or possibly the type/level of service you are getting for your money. Anyway, going forward:- I would still do what I suggested and check (with Cardiff Audi - now Mon Motors?) that it is belt driven, and whether ( from the reg. no.) there is a record of it being changed. You can also check their prices, but worth asking if there is a promotional price for the belt - in particular - there often is. Back to those who sold you the vehicle:- ask the mechanic who said you can wait until next year to change the belt ( if it’s now due) if he would like to guarantee his advice! It seems your previous unfortunate experience will stand you in good stead as far as his statement is concerned. Second, and very important consideration, is what parts are they going to use? Aftermarket parts can be of variable quality, particularly water pumps, and personally I would only use main dealer parts for this critical application. Good luck and kind regards, Gareth.