Magnet

Hi Paul, 'As low as' £70 per hour surprises me somewhat, even in this more-in-the-sticks area. Even if it is as low as £70 then that amounts to £84 when you add the dreaded VAT. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Alan, Not that it really makes much difference, but what mileage has the car now done and how many times (if at all) has I been serviced. Others will no doubt have more up to date costings on servicing than I do, but from memory I seem to recall our daughter paying that amount on her A3- and more many years ago, so to me, the costing would seem on to be on the reasonable side of reasonable! Getting I serviced elsewhere? Again others may offer more specific advice, but as I see it, in theory (and theory may need to be in capitals) it is acceptable to have the car independently serviced at a non Audi, VAT registered, garage provided the parts used are Audi approved (genuine Audi to be sure, if it were mine), without invalidating the warranty. How much money are you likely to save? Is that saving worth the arguement when anything goes wrong and the servicing becomes a debate. By the sound of it, you have this on a PCP, and OK, pessimistic it probably is, but the hand back condition is sometimes subject to debate with such things as kerbed wheels etc. etc., and if it were mine, I certainly would not be wanting to have the servicing introduced as well. I'm sure, larger chain garages - who will be glad to take your money- will no doubt tell you everything will be fine, but will they be at your side when any debate take place?? If it is on PCP then very often the monthly payments can be extended to take in servicing. Were you offered this? You might just find its all part of your repayment plan. Worth checking? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Imran, I too am confused and indeed concerned for you. If you are saying you are you are putting in 5 litres a day (that's just over a gallon!) then you really should not be using this car- there must be somrthing seriously wrong with the cooling system. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Brent, Sorry to hear of your problems. We can of course all be very clever in hindsight, but a 'hobble' job on any cambelt - recommended??? Moving positively on:- you need to get this car into a local trusted diesel specialist. A good source of recommendation would likely come from your friendly local taxi boys. These chaps normally know who to go to and who not. Good luck in sorting it out. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sean, OK, so it seems the air conditioning isn't working, but when was the cabin filter last changed? Check and attend to the simple things first, and that would be my first port of call. If it's dirty and damp, it's going to aggravate/ cause your problems. It sometimes lives up under the passenger footwell or sometimes high on the bulkhead under the bonnet. You would need to check where it is. As an aside, have you checked to see if any of the carpet is damp? Kind regards, Gareth.

Diesel or petrol Neil?

Hello Imram, When you say the local garage couldn't find any leaks:- Did they pressurise the cooling system and leave it pressurised and most importantly - confirmed that the pressure they applied did not drop off? If not, I would suggest you find another garage to check this. Did they check the operating pressure in the system when it is hot? Sorry, but more questions:- How much coolant are you adding on a daily basis, and are you checking it when cold, and to what mark are you filling it? Last question :- Is there any smoke evident when the engine is hot and revved to around 2000rpm and held at that rev. for a couple of minutes? Kind regards, Gareth.

As Paul says, but instead of e-mailing individual breakers, you can register what you want on sites such as Partsfinder (I think it's called - and there are more). Breakers link into these sites and respond to you directly if they have one. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Marius, Let me quickly say that I regret I cannot help you, but would like to let you know that I am sure a lot of us would have loved to have had such an opportunity to be involved. Probably common sense, but have you tried the breakers yard search facilities, where you can simply request what you want and sit back and wait for the breakers to respond? Again I could be wrong, but these boys normally have a great knowledge bank on what engines give most problems and become most sought after. Could be worth a go. I think Partsfinder is one, but there are probably many more. I genuinley wish you good luck with this project. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Edgaras, It depends on how long it was standing unused, but if it were mine, I would be adding Redex diesel cleaner to a tank full of good quality non- supermarket fuel and giving it a good run. Again, depending on how long it has been standing, and unless you know the engine oil and filter have been changed, it would be worth doing that too. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sian, I'm very sorry to hear of your problem, and I would most certainly agree with Steve's advice and also suggest you read all the other posts on this thread, not to depress you further, but to familiarise yourself with the experiences of others who have had these things looked into as the stage 2 dealer investigations - which you are about to engaged in. Any homework you can do is likely to stand you in best stead. There might be a couple of points to keep in mind here:- I would guess that you might have done 800/1000 miles in this car since it was subjected to the recall. Now the dealer may take this as being ' not our fault then', but bear in mind that the journeys you do are car-use friendly, and shorter journeys would probably have resulted in these faults showing sooner. Not wanting to add fuel to the concern fire, it it might be worth giving the dealer's response to you question about the faults not being associated with the recall. I wouldn't really agree with your conclusion that he already knows it was - as he may well do- but an admittance of that is highly unlikely. Probably worth doing some thought homework on that possibility too. I would not be too concerned about the baffling - a -female bit. My belief is that these dealers are working to a VAG script in such cases - female , male or whatever. I really wish you good luck with this Sian, Kind regards, Gareth.

I am sure that anything I am going to say is only going to cloud an already clouded debate, but just for no other reason than for me to try to get my head around the economics and real time meaning of all of this, could I ask the following questions:- On the road prices of the two cars under debate, so that I can work out the actual % additional insurance on cost we are talking about here to convince myself we arn't talking about three quarters of Porthcawl! Are we expected to be really wrapped up in (theoretical?) figures on paper, and are we seriously talking about the importance of 0.1 of a second necessary to accelerate to 60mph? How often during a day is this performance going to used, how is 0.1 secs. going to be measured, and when it is measured, what is anyone going to do with this additional time!? I think that if am trying to say anything at all Chris, it's absorb the extra insurance on cost (which I'm sure in real terms is minimal), buy yourself the extra 0.1secs, since my impression is that you will be disappointed with anything else. Having said that, I'm sure that whatever you choose, it will be the envy of all your mates, and should attract the fair !Removed! at a rate of knots faster than your 0 -60 time. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. This is very much age-showing, but from the text book of experience:- In my youth, most of use were trying to espire to a sorts car to impress the ladies. One of us though chose an Austin Maxi. ( you will need to look it up unless you are of a certain age of maturity!). Guess who grabbed the ladies - the Maxi owner since that car's seating could be converted into a 6 ft. 10inch bed! Life is strange isn't it ?

Sorry Chris, now understand what you mean with the tyres. I would indeed do what you suggest, - shopping around for the same make and tread pattern. I'm sure the car dealer will point you in the right direction since it is likely they put that new tyre on the one side. Good luck with it all. Kind regards, Gareth.

Cliff raises good points Chris. Wheel alignment is lucrative, and this expensive equipment needs to earn its keep. It can ( and probably not always) be used and operated by tyre fitters who have had some basic training on this sophisticated equipment by the supplier, and may or may not appreciate the finer points of particular vehicle's suspension adjustments - which can be complex. Perhaps it's just me experiencing the steering wheel being off centre after alignment adjustment. This is really ABC learning, and not appreciating that this is inevitable if you only adjust at one side! You would need to keep evetything crossed if the same person was let loose on the rear adjustment! Still, perhaps it's best not to listen too much to my pessimistic views on such things. I would put money on it that the tyre on the back with uneven wear has spent most of its life on the front of the car, and has not worn like that because it has been on the back. Not unusual for used car dealers to do this sort of swopping. If you are going to have this alignment adjusted - and would I, without first putting an even tyre on the back and seeing what happens ??? - then I would most certainly get this alignment carried out only via.the people fitting the springs, otherwise you will leave any subsequent issues of tyre wear to debate between them and the alignment company you are going to use. 'Not me gov"! Not sure what you mean by putting the same tyre on the side that is worn. Kind regards, Gareth.

Every two years should be fine. Kind regards, Gareth.

Well done Chris. Inside of the tyre wearing badly is/would have been a significant point in deciding what to do, had we known. Cats and pigeons - might this tyre have been on the front until recent times? Clue might be if the rear tyres are not a matching pair. If this inside-wear tyre is worn because it's been on the rear for some time then it could put a whole lot more emphasis on establishing why this car is not sitting right. But.... Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, I think your closing really statement sums where you go from here, and the bottom line is :- I think it's fair to assume that the inspecting garage cannot really find anything wrong with the car. It does not have any fractured springs, but it seems common sense to suggest replacing both springs with a matching pair of new ones and your car's ride height should (emphasis on should) be correct and even. I think the supplying used car dealer action can be considered reasonable - it is a used car - and it might be worth considering that if you had bought a not-new house, you would be expected to have to spend to correct wear and tare. Their offer to do this work free of labour charge therefore seems generous. I take it Optiline must be a wheel alignment - are you able to confirm that? The call must be yours Chris since only you know how strongly you feel about this - my feeling is you feel (rather) strongly about it and if that is the case you must buy a pair of springs and ask the kind car dealer to fit them for you - end of. Wheel alignment necessary after doing this?? Not sure how many others have seen tyre wear following such adjustments where there wasn't tyre wear before. So.... .? Perhaps others on here have different thoughts, but I would return to your ..." on level ground the don't look like its leaning...." Good luck with whatever you decide. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. Shock absorber- think this has been covered already.

Hello Judith, As a general rule of thumb those who reliably inform that things can be done, can usually actually do it. If they can't, then the advice is best treated as not being very useful. In this case however, I would be tempted to believe that it probably can be, but would I adjust one? I most certainly would not, since these roofs normally have delicate micro switches etc. and you may end up with this roof simply not opening or closing properly, leave-alone leaking a bit! Its difficult to fully grasp where this leak is - could you post a photo of the 'joint area' where the leak originates? A DIY bodge may be that you can add a strip of foam rubber , but very difficult to offer meaningful advice without looking/photo. I see your location as Cradley. Is this Cradely Heath? If so, I might be able to point you towards a source reasonably priced advice/assistance if you are prepared to travel into S.Wales. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Steve, Sorry to hear you have a concern about this car, but you are quite right in being concerned, and you should treat this concern as a significant issue, and in my book certainly not use the car until it is checked. Looking at the age of the car it is highly, highly unlikely that this warning light is warning you of low low engine oil level, but is warning you of low oil pressure - a significant concern, since with oil being circulated at pressures less than it was designed to be, then continued use beyond that first point of warning will inevitably lead to engine wear/failure. You have to establish with some urgency whether this is a simply a low oil pressure sender fault, or if the pressure is indeed low. You should really be keeping everything crossed that it's a faulty sender! Simply book it in to the nearest trusted garage without delay (and continued use) and ask them to check the actual oil pressure when the oil is hot, and report back to you what that reading is. Some might just change the sender, which might temporarily solve the light problem, but if it were mine, I would want to know what the operating oil pressure was on this engine. Was this issue present at the point you bought it Steve, or has it occurred since? The answer to this may give useful additional helpful information. Good luck with it. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, No offence meant, and indeed I guess we have all been there at different times, but it is possible to get too tuned in to a certain issue, and simply get bugged by something which might just not be as significant as we worry it is. A clue could be ..." on level ground the car don't look like its leaning...." I define a 'problem' as the worse thing that is happening at any one time, and very often that problem/issue disappears from the worrying state when something more major comes along! Perhaps we have been too critical of the supplying garage, who have probably inspected the car and cannot find a significant issue, but simply kept the door open by saying, 'if you can source the issue then we will put it right' . Perhaps very fair in hindsight. I think you are now doing the correct thing and getting this car inspected locally. As Cliff says, springs can break within the spring seat even, and can be difficult to spot. In a way, I hope they do find something wrong and you will have peace of mind. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, Apologies for labouring this, but there some significant points about which we are not clear of here, and which may dictate the course of action you need to take from this point on. Can we take it you did not buy this car direct from an Audi main dealer? Car is 5 year old so probably not. How long have you owned it? Did you have a HPI type search done on the vehicle before purchase to establish if it had been accident damaged or not? Probably hasn't been, but.... Was the car bought with this issue, or has the problem arisen since you bought it? If the car came with the issue, did it come to you with a recent MOT at which it would have been spotted? Appreciating Cliff's opinion that 1/2 inch difference is significant, all other things being serviceable, this may not be considered to be a significant 'claimable' issue with a 5 year old secondhand car. If it were mine and it bothered me, then I would be informing the supplying used car dealer that you are going to have this car inspected with an aim of locating the reason for the issue - getting their permission to do so. Try to find a reputable independent in your area, since trying to diagnose the problem via. a forum ( although a good start) is rather hit and miss, when anyone would need to see the actual animal to offer meaningful explanations. Again from the school of the bleeding obvious, but we take it you are checking this on absolutely level ground. The drive here has multiple minor ( and I mean minor) differences in flatness, and you wouldn't believe how lopsided vehicles can look when parked on certain parts of it. Good luck in getting it sorted. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. Shock absorber associated issue? Unlikely in my opinion.

Hello Prav. Have you posted this under the 'For Sale' section as well? Kind regards, Gareth.

Right then Chris, The answer isn't there then! If it were mine, I would now be monitoring the life of these new bulbs and see how they last. Now, did I read somewhere where quality makes (such as Osram?) were being faked, and were available on the Interweb at supposedly cheap and attractive prices? Might be worth simply getting any other ones direct from VAG dealer? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, I'm very much with Paul on this. It would be the sellers responsibility to diagnose the problem, and your responsibility simply to identify there is/maybe an issue. Having said that, let's first get some measure on what we are talking about here. 'Bleeding obvious' this might be (but never ignore the obvious) - take a note of the exact sizes of the tyres on the rear and confirm they are a match, particularly the profile part, e.g. the middle figure, say 50 , 55 etc. You say the height difference is around 10mm, but I wonder how you are measuring this. If from the ground to say the underside of the arch, then this isn't the way to measure it. Measurements should be taken from the underside of the arch to the wheel centre to ensure the tyres are not influencing your measurements. 10mm? OK, a difference, but perhaps borderline significant. Might be accounted for by the higher side having had a new spring fitted at some time ( not uncommon for springs to break in this cost cutting design change situation), leaving the opposite side with its original (settled) spring. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, There are a couple of things to go through here:- Have you had the actual operating voltage checked in this car? It should charge at around 14volts, but may just be putting in a higher voltage if the alternator/regulator is at fault. Of course, voltage much higher than 12v will adversely affect the bulb life. When you replace the bulbs, what quality replacements are you using? Some can be of very dubious quality and just don't last long. If the voltage is within reasonable limits then it might be worth investing a bit more by buying bulbs from VAG dealers. Fuses would really only be worth looking at if the lights don't work when the bulbs are known to be serviceable. Kind regards, Gareth.