Magnet

Cheques for significant money saving advice can be made payable to ' Gareth@.........'

WHello Rubén, I thought it might be per month, but I then I thought surely not. Thats £2112 over 4 years for 2 Longlife services. I'm on gas and air here just on the thought of it! Still, on the bright side, if you change it again in 6 months you will have only paid them £260 ish for nothing - might be mire economical! Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Rubén, Just noticed your last October date on the original post, and dint realise Rockindic had given it the kiss of life. Apologies for my well out of date advice. So it's gone or going! Well done you - I don't buy a new pair if shoes every six months! Service plan on A5 -£44 and pricey? Not sure how often you are paying the £44. 19k service intervals too long? That interval was what I was referring to as a Longlife schedule. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Andy, Would I be correct in thinking your 20 inch wheels are a non standard fitment? If so, has this had something to do with them breaking /messing up the existing ABS sensor? If so, then you are genuinely in difficulties If not, then is there any problem about taking the part numbers off the existing part (or its opposite counterpart) and simply ordering one of these, or if that isn't possible, ring up your Audi dealer and have the VIN number to hand. If you are buying off the internet and using the guide tables on the listings then you could find - as many have- that they can be significanty inaccurate. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Rubén, The full devil will be in the detail and may include them changing chargeable items e.g.tyres etc. which you can obtain much cheaper elsewhere. Chances are, they will put this on a Longlife schedule so I it were me, I would be enquiring about the cost of such servicing over a 40k running period. My experience is that Longlife intervals can be as much as 18k so you might only need 2 services - and one brake fluid change after 2 years. As Rockindoc points out, if you are going to do 10k miles an hour then things are different , and you would want to employ air hostesses and be serving duty free! Enjoy the car. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. Being rather cynical, such packages are usually a route to the salesman's commission. No doubt you've been offered the much cheaper elsewhere GAP insurance , alloy wheel cover, tyre cover, super polish finish etc. etc.

Hello Paul, I really don't think I am going to be able to give you a specific answer to this, but at best, a pointer and a question so perhaps someone with direct experience of this engine, will be able to help. Apologies if this is the bleeding (pardon the pun!) obvious, but I assume you have the heater on the maximum temp. setting, you have the engine running and up to temperature , and you are squeezing the input and outlet pipes to the heater, which should both be equally hot. (Of course respecting all the safety requirements). If there is air in the heater then you should feel it passing through the pipes. Finally find the engine coolant bleed point/s and bleed off any air - again with caution. Where these are on this engine?? Final question:- had you drained the coolant before this problem arose? If not, I wonder if this is some sort of heater control fault. Kind regards, Gareth.

Isn't this Adrian Flux, Piotr, or I have I got this confused? Kind regards, Gareth.

I've had a definite leaning towards advising all potential buyers to study the V5 and to take as much notice of it as they should of service history. Some would say to the point of boredom! My belief is that say a history of 2 short-period ownerships for example would lead to suspicion that the car has been troublesome, and has been quickly offloaded. The V5 would provide that evidence via.the registered keeper and the previous keeper. Not any longer, since the latest version only shows the registered keeper and simply the number of previous owners - but no details of that previous keeper or how long they had had it. So if your potential purchase has been 'conveniently' registered to the selling dealer/seller to hide the fact that its previous owner was say a school of motoring, or a day hire company then you now just wouldn't have a clue! The DVLA has previously provided a service to registered owners whereby they could request details of previous ownership, and this was great for classic car owners who wanted to trace the history of ownership. Now discontinued - probably under some data protection cop out. No doubt though, set youself up as a car parking company, pay DVLA a small charge and up comes the current keeper details! Kind regards, Gareth.

Well now Scott, you are indeed having a good rant day, and we are tending to move off the mark with a number of assumptions, including owners of such expensive cars should (nay, are duty bound as a condition of ownership) to lavish care on them. Interesting assumption, but sticky wicket ground by suggesting 'I deserve to have one but you don't'. Just to add to your rant, I knew of one R8 that you needed to wipe your feet after coming out of! Mammy bought it? Well maybe. Uneducated? Maybe, but I did know someone who literally had a PhD in nuclear physics, and I would not have wanted to buy his barrow, leave alone his car! Thank the Lord ( am I allowed to say that?) we are all different, and whatever personal standards we have, it's not worth inflicting them on others, so if a set of Autogrips float their boat..... I might have missed something, but I'm not sure where the main dealer fitting assumption came into this. It might be worth keeping away from wealthy Mercedes Benz and BMW owners who don't have a clue about cars - bad for the blood pressure. I have confessed to not suffering from high blood pressure, but I am a carrier! Remember, grumpiness is contagious, and today is a day of your life which you will never have again (whether Mammy pays or not!) so it could just be worth a nice hour's drive in the nice car, and relax and watch the mad world go by. No more ranting for me today. Enjoy. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Scott, Not sure what part of the UK you are located, but over here in S.Wales the rain has pinched the sunshine and it's just plain humid. So it's a day when a good rant makes you feel better! - and I must say I like your style of rant. Without wanting to appear patronising, I think Steve comments has this boxed up and put to bed, and it would be very difficult for me to disagree with any of points he raises - which of course concurs with most of your views. A good rant does you good, as as we say in this part of the UK - fair do s you've got that out of your hair. As a casual observation Scott I get vibes of ' How dare you put budget tyres on a car that everyone must look after and up to, if they can afford to buy one'? That's tantamount to letting our side down! When I am tempted to have such a rant, our daughter just says 'Chill Dad'. Sound advice, soundly given, and I must say a new set of cheap Autogrips are better than a set of once factory Pirelli Kojaks! Great , its just stopped raining. Kind regards, Gareth.

Blinking heck Ralph - doing a c250 mile? round trip with a suspicion that the oil level was low!! Not that this is going to help you at all, but hopefully a sobering experience to other owners to realise the importance of regularly checking oil and coolant levels. Good luck in finding a new home for it. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jay, Sorry to hear of your issues. Of course, fortunately your car is still under warranty and you simply do not have to concern yourself about what causes what fault, but just leave that to the Audi dealership to diagnose and repair free of charge. In fact, I think there is a general and understandable dislike on their part if owners try to inform them of causes rather than simply and clearly outlining the symptoms. Re. the site being a pain to post on :- I must say in my experience, the administrators and moderators work extremely hard to ensure the site runs to the benefit of all those who post on here, and as I understand it and appreciate, the revenue from advertising is essential to allow that to happen - i.e. posters can post on here without charge, and are able to benefit from free advice, so it cannot be all that bad! Good luck with Audi sorting out your problems, Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Ralph, I really can see what taking the sump off and cleaning it is going to do ( and of course spending on sump gasket and oil). I would spend my money on getting the oil pressure checked first. If the oil pressure is indeed low, then its highly unlikely cleaning the sump is going to improve things unless this car has never been serviced! How long have you had it, and do you know anything about its service history? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Gnaneswar, This will be a 'main dealer part only', so just take or e-mail your photo to your local dealer. There won't be any need to have the part name since you have the photo. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Ralph, Sorry to hear of your issues. My first point would be - don't add oil to this engine unless the current level is low. Overfilling causes problems. Don't assume the oil pressure warning light indicates a low oil level. Apologies if all of this is obvious, but this light means the oil is not being pumped around the engine under pressure - serious consequences. Again, apologies if this is obvious, but on kick-down, the revs increase rapidly over a short burst and it seems this is when your problem occurred. If it were mine, I would not be starting this engine until I ascertain whether the oil pressure is indeed low (via. garage test, but do not drive it there!) or if the pressure warning sensor is at fault. You really are in a situation where this symptom requires the utmost respect if you are to avoid wrecking the engine. Good luck in sorting it out - perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Matt, Sounds great, but personally, I would want to see all the paperwork to substantiate the claims. I really don't want to spoilt any excitement with this, and I am not forming any judgement on any side, but it might be worth looking up the reviews on the dealer and indeed what is believed to be their previous trading name of Zone Cars and possibly something else before that. Please let me repeat Matt that I am not saying any of these reviews are meaningful, but have a look and form your own conclusion . Again with apologies for repeating, but if you don't fully (in capitals) understand the ins and outs of vehicle inspection and this particular model, then I would strongly advise you to 'buy in' some assistance with its inspection. However much it costs in the short term, it could save you much more in the longer term. Good luck with whatever you decide. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. It might pay dividends to contact said doctor's surgery and ask if it is possible to get message to him. The true story lies there.

Hello Matt, Thanks for being in touch. Others may be able to advise you on whether you should buy this particular car or not from the detail you have given, but for me, I would need to know much more:- Service history - full or part, when last serviced. Number of owners, how long has the last one owned it. Is it a garage sale or private. Full extent of warranty offered if garage sale. Part exchange deal or not. All of this is so important before even inspecting the car itself. Re. the all important inspection, are you sufficiently knowledgeable to assess the car's condition yourself? If not, If it were me, I would not entertain buying any car without professional advice. Perhaps you could fill in some of the gaps or us Matt. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Peter, It's really refreshing to hear of owners having respect for the way these mechanical devices are best treated to give them a good start in life and ensure they continue to give good service for many years to come. If it were mine, but owning up to having been motoring since Adam was a babe in arms, I have always found gentle treatment for the first 1000 miles pays dividends, and Audi's 3000 rpm would appear good advice. Occasional bursts to 5000rpm within this period?? - 120mph in top gear? Wouldn't be for me. Yes occasional burst, but to a max. of 4K would seem more than adequate. Good point in not labouring - very detrimental. Gradually stretching its performance legs after the first 1K miles sounds good. It might be worth bearing in mind that ....'as long as the engine is warmed up' ........ is usually thought of as being up to 'normal' on the coolant temperature gauge. However, the engine does not reach its optimum operating conditions until the oil is also up to temperature, and this generally does not happen until about 10 miles have been covered on a journey. Enjoy the car Peter. Treat it well, and with respect - as you would do with the lady in your life (am I allowed to say that theses days!?) and it will then look after you well for years to come. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Stuart, Can we take it Audi are still going to replace the gearbox, irrespective of the outcome of tests on the oil? Kind regards, Gareth.

It would be worth checking what make the battery is Sebastian, to see if it's original of some replacement/ used -substituted-for-sale battery. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Sebastian, Not saying this is going to solve your issues, but such problems can be caused/aggravated by poor battery condition. Attack the simple things first. I notice the car is now 7 years old, so I would be starting by getting the battery checked - if only to eliminate it as a source of your problems. Make sure you take the car on at least a 10 mile run before getting the battery condition checked. An independent auto electrician (not a battery retailer ) would be best, but if you cannot find one locally then Halfords can do this, but they do sell batteries. If you take it there, and they say it's below par, you might like to consider if you are prepared to pay a premium over the general on-line specialist battery retailers. Also worth getting the alternator output checked at the same time. It would be good if you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Steven, Sorry to hear of the issue. If it were mine, I would not (should be in capitals) be plugging in anything to the OBD point, since it could be taken that you have been fiddling with it, and the supplying garage may then argue their way out of this. I'm really not sure what you would intend to get out of it anyway since your rightful concern should only be that the fault is fixed - you should not need to have any involvement in finding its cause. I'm sure they will attend to this for you, but it might be worth realistically bearing in mind that it is highly unlikely that any 7 year old car will be free from faults or issues. Good luck with getting it sorted. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Praveen, I'm very much with Cliff on this.This would appear to be bordering on the too cheap to believe side. Secondhand panels? It would be worth registering your wants with the on-line parts finding agencies into which the scrap yards link - Parts Finder (I think) etc. Although it sounds great if you can find panels of the correct colour, it is realistic to keep in mind that even if you do find the correct colour ones, they are unlikely to be free from minor storage/transit marks and so its possible they will need some refinishing. If it were me - and sorry to continue to be pessimistic - I would still be wary of the moped rider being advised (been involved in in accidents Sir? type salesmen) to claim against you at some point. It would be a great shame if you had then spent your money only to find a claim materialised, and you lose out both ways. Let's hope not. Worth holding fire for a little while? Good luck. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Daniel, Really sorry to hear of your problem. Belt or a chain on this engine? Kind regards, Gareth.

PHello Praveen, Sorry to hear of your problem, and it is likely that what I am suggesting you think about may not be to your best advantage. From your description, it would seem you were pulling out of a side road into the road on which the collision occurred, and despite the bus driver calling you out, I think you will find it is your responsibility to ensure the road you are pulling out into is clear. In this case it wasn't, and the the moped rider collided with your car when he was (seemingly) correctly overtaking the bus. In other words, as unfortunate as it is for you, the accident appears to have been caused by you, and the moped rider has little to lose by claiming against you. If he does, then there is no point in you repairing the car yourself since your premium will be affected irrespective of the total value of the claim' so you just as well have your car repaired by a body shop. Now of course, you may well have other relevant information which points to the moped rider definitely (should be in capitals) not claiming against you for some reason. Good luck with sorting this out. Kind regards, Gareth,