Magnet

Thanks Angela, Apologies but I’m a little lost with this - I think! So is the cam cover gasket still leaking. You suggest it is. ‘Leak about the size of inside hand’? Can we keep this simple and direct? Are there drips, or just an oil stain. If we revert to ‘….inside of hand’ are you describing an amount of oil that can be collected in the cupped palm of your hand? If so, over what period? ‘Thinking of getting this fixed’. I’m certainly echoing what you appear to have been told/read elsewhere, and what Cliff points out:- it’s likely the freedom from a leak at this point after repair will be short lived, since at that mileage the crankshaft bearings - and particularly the thrust bearings will be showing wear and the shaft will then be putting a significantly increased ‘load’ on this new seal. Sorry Angela, it could be me, but the description of severity and extent of this leak leaves me still uncertain of how bad it actually is, and whether if you don’t overly mind a bit of stain on the drive, and are prepared to get the engine cleaned pre MOT, is there a significant issue with this well used car? Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome Angela and thanks for joining. Sorry to hear of your plight. The important piece of missing information is - how severe is this leak, and what inconvenience is it actually causing you, that makes it difficult to live with? If it’s the rear crankshaft seal then it’s either gearbox (automatic?) out, or engine out to fix this. Is the leak bad enough to result in an MOT failure, or has it been previously listed as an Advisory? If you can live with it between MOTs, then you could consider getting the offending area cleaned just prior to MOT and hope you get away with it - which you may well do, unless it’s a drip. There are so called ‘Stop Leak’ products on the market, which you add to the engine oil. Personally, I don’t favour them since they effectively ‘attack’ the rubber of the seal, and will affect other engine seals. I suppose it all boils down to:- Severity of leak? When MOT due? How long do you intend to keep it? I think you already appreciate that fixing it would be an uneconomical process with a car of this age, unless it is a low mileage/ superb in all other respects - example. Perhaps you could colour in the detail and let us have your thoughts Angela. Kind regards, Gareth.

Understand Johnny, I favour Febi, and tend to buy ( mail order) from Parts in Motion at Exeter. Worth trying their website, but they frequently list on EBay as well, so you could also check there. There will be other EBay sellers you can then compare prices with. Kind regards, Gareth.

Bit late now Jonathan, but I believe your hub also contains the built-in sender for the ABS sensor to sense - hence likely to need to renew the hub (and bearing) before the bearing wears out. As I understood it (well with my earlier one) the difference in price between a new hub with bearing was not that much more than buying a bearing. What make did you go with after and where did you buy it? Kind regards, Gareth.

Many thanks Jonathan, Can we take it you are renewing the hub assembly rather than putting a new bearing in the existing hub? Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Pete, but we don’t do ‘Offers’ on here, since it just results in you and forum members being messed around, so an answer to Cliff’s question will be necessary. Perhaps you can attend to that for us. Thanks and kind regards, Gareth.

You know it makes sense - as Dell Boy used to say!

Have you registered you ‘want’ with on-line breaker link sites such as Partsfinder? There are more. Kind regards, Gareth.

If you cannot alter your profile name, then please at least respond to let s know so, and we will ask Admin to do it for you. Some response from you since posting on 27th Aug. would reasonably be expected.

I think the days of the same caters-for-all-extras wiring loom being fitted to all vehicles has long gone. Most likely the harness is built to only cater for the equipment listed on that specification. I think you are wise to leave any ‘additions’ to a specialist, unless you are fully experienced with such things. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Dave, We are currently waiting for the OP to return to the forum to view any of the suggestions and questions asked, after asking for help.

It will end up a mess with touch up, and just devalue to car. The small amount extra for an aerosol will be a must. Obviously spray them before fitting.

Thanks Gordon. Do you need to actually remove the rear bumper to get at the sensor? I did on our A3 since access would have been otherwise very difficult. Be prepared for a tussle with removing the electrical connector - well it was a headache on mine. Getting the sensor out of the bumper was less so. You going to spray yours before fitting? Front, and arch removal? Don’t know, you will just have to lay on your back and see what you can see, and get at. Would guess you would get away with arch liner removal, but….? Please let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks for joining Gordon. Right means when viewed from the rear - as RHD for example. Sensors:- I guess you know Audi will extract north of £110 from your wallet for one sensor. I bought a replacement off EBay a year or so back, and it even had the Audi part number ‘cast’ into it - less than £20. Initially fine, but doesn’t like wet weather! Time over again:- would pay a bit extra for a Valeo one. Any better in the long run?? Let us know how you get on Gordon.. Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome Colin, and thanks for joining. As far as I’m aware, a weld repair on a subframe will lead to an MOT failure, so in essence, the answer is no, you cannot weld your rusty one. Even if my take on it is not absolutely correct, I would have thought you would be taking a chance on a failure having done all the work necessary to get to that welding stage. Alternatives:- List your ‘want’ on the on-line breaker link sites such as Partsfinder - there are others. Look up a site called IM Axles ( I think that is what they are called). They do new sub frames for more modern cars. For your model?? - but worth an ask. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

To save us repeating where you have tried, where have you looked so far William?

Welcome Robi, and thanks for joining. Did the alignment people thoroughly check all aspects of the suspension and steering before making their adjustments, or did they simply stick it on the machine? When did this wobble occur? - have you had any new tyres on the car before it started? Any time tie up with having new discs and pads fitted? Are the tyre treads reasonably evenly matched on all four wheels, and are the brands matching - at least on the same axle? Kind regards, Gareth.

Wondered when you are thinking about sharing your name with us Mr. G ?

Any answers for us Oliver?

Thanks Michael. Let us know how you get on with P in M quotes. Should I mention you may need the dual mass flywheel as well! Just let us know if we can help further. Well worth contacting LUK Technical if you have any ambiguities. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks, so the appropriate fuse was in tack then -? If so, I would suspect a break in the elements. Have you got a multi meter to test it for continuity? Kind regards, Gareth.

Oh blinking heck Michael - hope it was super cheap, and you like work. First double check it is the internal type. Pretty sure it is but… Why ECP, particularly since they no longer offer discounts on so called retail prices. Didn’t buy much before, since even with the high discounts, they seldom worked out cheaper than alternative suppliers? If it is internal, then it’s obviously gearbox out, and it would be daft not to replace the other clutch components while it’s out. The only make of clutch I would fit would be LUK. Try inputting your reg. no. into Parts in Motion website - down in Exeter. They are usually competitive. Perhaps you can let us know how you get on Michael. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Alan, but surely it’s not your responsibility to fix or diagnose. Did the car go to the garage with the warning light illuminated? Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Cliff, but there is no need for Dan to apologise. I guess it’s what we can expect to top it off when we sit here being a rapid and free source of advice. My turn to apologise to you Dan- I won’t be offering any further comments on your posts. Kind regards, Gareth.

Welcome Michael and thanks for joining. My stab at it is it is most likely to be inside the bell housing. This is going to cost many hundred of pounds to fix if I’m right. Did you buy it from a trader? Did you buy it knowing it had or had had this issue? If bought privately, how was the advert worded? Perhaps you could come back to us Micheal. Kind regards, Gareth.