Magnet

Thanks, could you please complete your profile, so we know what vehicle we are dealing with, and who, and where you are. Many thanks.

Hello Gareth, Sorry to hear of your issues, but pleased you have been able to find ‘culprits’. Re. eliminating the battery via. testing:- what battery tester do you have? If it were mine, I would be getting it tested ( after charging with an ‘intelligent’ charger - as you’ve been using??) at one of Halfords shops. They will be able to check the all important CCA as well as other parameters. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello again Jennifer, As Steve says - but by what I can see, and what you say, this is already troublesome. As for the legal implications, personally I feel we are totally ill equipped to advise you there, but CAB should be able to - if you and you your neighbour can’t sort it out between you. I guess CAB would want to know the background of why this is thought to be necessary on a private (No through?) road, etc. , but I don’t think we should be commenting further on this topic, unless anyone else on here disagrees. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Dave, With any ‘Christmas tree dashboard lights’ get the battery efficiency checked before doing anything - Halfords stores should be able to do that. Always carryout cheapest option first! Although it shouldn’t yet be an issue on a 9 year old car, it would be worth checking the wiring in the flexible harness section leading into the tailgate. However, I wouldn’t bother to do this until the battery is checked and confirmed to be serviceable. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on Dave. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. If the battery tests as sub standard, it would probably be worth letting us know before buying one.

Thanks Peter, Opinions may vary, and I can only say what I would do if it were mine - I would fit a dealer pump, rather than an aftermarket one, particularly if it’s not the easiest of jobs. Try Audi Parts Direct at Cardiff ( part of Mon. Motors - previously Cardiff Audi). You might find you can get a bit of discount. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on Peter. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Jennifer, I just apply a bit of simple logic in such cases:- Did it make this noise before the new belt etc was fitted? If no, then there is something not right. ‘…. I would have thought water pump bearing ……that it is new’. Unfortunately (these days in particular) it is pure assumption to believe new = without fault. Do you know what make of water pump was fitted - main dealer or aftermarket? If main dealer pump, then I would be tending to discount this as being the primary cause. If aftermarket -?? Possible cause:- belt tension is too great, and is straining the pump and tensioner bearings, but that can only be a guess. Was the auxiliary belt changed (on an age basis) at the same time? Even if not, these are generally on an automatic tensioner and shouldn’t be an issue, but temporarily removing that belt should eliminate it as the source of the noise. Back to the water pump - if it had been mine, I would not have changed it (for possibly an inferior quality one) since you say the car has covered an extremely low mileage. Apologies Jennifer, there’s not a lot more I can add, but this car is trying to tell you something, and I’d be tempted to treat it to a second opinion/inspection. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. I like the ‘engineers’ bit!

Hello Clarke, I take it you are aware that it’s not all about looking good, and you have to ensure that whichever diameter one you choose, it’s tyres must match the accepted Audi alternatives in terms of profiles etc. to ensure the rolling diameter remains the same. In effect - the larger the wheel diameter, the lower the profile will have to be. As Snappy has pointed out - low profiles = harsher ride, and I would have thought the A8 ride would have been comfort biased. Kind regards, Gareth.

New windscreen George?

Welcome Alan, Any chance you could do a short recording of this noise? Am I allowed to introduce a little seasonal humour into this ‘…..when I accelerate I get a vibrating exhaust blowing noise’ - solution - cut down on the sprouts! Sorry, couldn’t resist that. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello John, Thanks for joining. Worth a forum search - wasn’t there something about poor engine earths, and adding another earth-? Kind regards, Gareth.

Try registering your want with Partsfinder - there are others.

Many thanks Neil, ‘….company car ……so thought it would have been done..’ Probably unlikely, since as far as I know, it’s not an official scheduled item. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Ed, Probably best to send Glen a PM, since he hasn’t been on here for a few years. Hopefully, he may be using the same registered e-mail address. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Matt, Re. 2. - I should be able to help you via. checking with my Walker catalogue next week. Can you wait until then? Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks for the update Gaz. For National Tyres read Halfords - same umbrella. I managed to get a good deal on a family member’s 4x4 with them some months ago, but ATS turned up with the best deal for Michelins for our A3. Hope that 2024 is kind to you as well. Kind regards, Gareth.

Great bit of luck Thomas. Thanks for letting us know. Well worthwhile making sure the under-bonnet latch and the cable are now well lubricated. Kind regards, Gareth.

Just to finish off this thread:- Quantum oil is a VAG exclusive brand, but is available at competitive prices from a number of EBay (for example) sellers. I choose reputable sellers rather than cheapest price. Although I believe it was blended by Castrol, I understand it is now blended for VAG by Fuchs. Trust this may be of help. Kind regards, Gareth.

If it’s one thing I leant along my way to dotage, it’s there no such thing as a daft question - daft answers perhaps, but……

Hello Neil, Welcome and thanks for joining. Auto gearboxes should benefit from an oil change around 75K, but even if it hasn’t yet covered that mileage, then it would be advisable in your case to get a specialist to give it a look over. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Lee, Many thanks for joining. Easiest way to gather the information you need:- There has been a number of posts on this topic, so well worth a forum search. Aftermarket wheel suppliers often have tabulated effects of changing wheel diameters. Summary - if you increase the wheel dia. you will need to decrease the tyre profile - with potential adverse effects on ride quality. Consult your owners handbook where you should find the appropriate tyre sizes for alternative wheel diameters. Perhaps you could let us know how you get on Lee. Kind regards, Gareth. There will be other considerations such as offsets.

Hello Gideon, Looks great. Answers:- If you don’t want to pay Audi dealer price for a handbook, then search on EBay, or get seller to provide you with one - as should be the case. AdBlue:- Handbook will confirm yes or no, but I would guess yes. Spare wheel:- If the car isn’t equipped with a spare wheel, it won’t have a jack, but it should have a smallish compressor and a pressurised container of tyre ‘gue’ which you release into the flat tyre before re-inflating with the compressor. This is to be treated only as an emergency get-you-home procedure, and renders the tyre unusable. The seller should have ensured the car had a compressor and gue, so it’s a trip back there if not. Want to convert to the more reliable ‘space saver’, jack and wheel brace su stem -? Again search EBay, but you are likely to need the foam insert as well to store the Jack etc. Speaker in well ? You will obviously need to work out how to relocate that. Perhaps you could keep us updated Gideon. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. I can’t open your images.

Thanks, but do you have any connection with ‘Chip Express’ was what I was asking - I thought clearly enough.

Any connection Martyn?

Thanks Steve, What you were told is fine for normal annual mileages, but low mileage use does add more potential wear and tear, so annual services are recommended under these conditions. Not that we need to protract this, but cost saving is fine at the front end, and let’s hope it works out at the hand-over stage. When you were told 19k or two years, I guess they understood your low annual mileage. Re. The ‘first’ service and independent servicing:- It is understood that this is acceptable, subject to the service provider being VAT registered, uses authorised parts, and has the facility to log the servicing data on to the VAG’ database. Kind regards, Gareth.

You are very welcome John. If it were me, I would be walking in for a chat - rather than ringing - and trying get a general feeling whether you want to entrust the alignment to them. Good luck with your search. The forum’s Christmas wishes to you and yours. Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. what I omitted to say was we were invited to return the car in 3 weeks for them to recheck the alignment. Thought that was good.