Magnet

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. 

Hello Zeshan, 
Welcome, and thanks for joining. 
I think this will have more to do with finding someone who is prepared to do it, rather than finding someone who will do it at ‘reasonable cost’. 
It is also important that you have confidence in whoever you choose, rather than finding the cheapest option. 
Isn’t it possible to renew the hub support casting, rather than spend good money on getting someone to try to successfully drill the remains out and accurately tapping a new thread! 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 
 
 

Hello Oliver, 
Welcome and thanks for joining. 
Having had one in the family since new, and now sitting on 172k miles, I can assure you your car is absolutely as it was when new. 
‘Drinking fuel on motorway trips…’ You will find that they aren’t that economical - around 38 mpg on steady speed-limit motorway driving, and about 33mpg around town. I don’t want to tempt fate, but despite that, I wouldn’t swop ours, judging by some of the issues listed on here with later models! 
What I would advise to preserve its hopeful longevity is:- 
Treat it to an oil and filter change. ( I use Quantum Longlife 5w/30 and change it annually - use a quality German filter) 
Renew the air filter every 2 years. 
All important - renew the cambelt ( and alternator belt) assembly unless you have documented evidence that it’s been changed within the last 5 years. 
Hopefully, if you look after the car, it will treat you well. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Just had a look on eBay for you - Quantum 5w/30 Longlife 3 from  CE Automotive is £35.75. 
Think I got my last lot from them, but no connection. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

I would drain it off for peace of mind Jaspal.
Kind regards,
Gareth.

Hello Marcin,
The overall diameter of the wheel plus tyre must come into this equation, so if you are fitting small diameter wheels, then the tyre profile must increase ( for the same wheel width). The object is is to retain the same overall diameter. 
There should be online calculators that will check compatibility for you.
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Brian,
Thanks for joining, and sorry to hear of your issue. 
Not wishing to cause more concern, but I think you are right in needing to get this professionally sorted. 
Audi dealer sufficiently experienced to sort it?? 

If it were mine, I would be searching out a local-ish tow bar fitting specialist and getting them to give this a good couple of coats of inspection, and hopefully rectify any issues. 
Kind regards,
Gareth.

Hello David,
I’m not sure if this is going to help, but here in the U.K. we have on line search facilities that allow you to list what you want, and this gets circulated to all registered car breakers. 
Same on the Continent, which might supply over to Mallorca? 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Thanks Thomas,
You should find a manufacturer’s make somewhere on the set. 
Worth listing your ‘want’ with on line breaker links such as Partsfinder - there are more.
I would strongly advise removing your e-mail address from your post as quickly as possible - not advisable on an open forum. 
Anyone who can help will be able to contact you by PM. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Roshy,
Even a secondhand ( and probably damaged) bumper is not going to be cheap.
My way forward would be to get a new piece of plastic fabricated to match the others and get it plastic welded on. Any reasonable bodyshop should be able to do that. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello John,
Do you want a build record for your particular car, or do you want a list of the full ‘extras’ to choose from for that model year? 

If the former then any main dealer (Parts Dept. would be my best option) should be able to give you a print out from the VIN. 
I would do a visit rather than try to do it over the phone. 
 
If it’s a list of all options available, then I would be searching eBay for a copy of original sales brochure for your year. 
This maybe available as an on- line print out, but for me, a nice original copy would be preferred. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

In view of the amount of dismantling involved, it would not make sense to just renew the release bearing assembly. But it’s your and your mechanic’s choice. 

Hello James,
Electrically assisted power steering rather than hydraulic? 
If so, the culprit is likely to be a failing battery, aggravated by cold weather. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello Gorman, 
New discs will be required. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Hello John,
I think you have answered your own question. You are considering a model with the suspension biased towards road holding and not comfort. I think the S Line attracts due to the additional features which come as the package, but the trade off is understandably a harsher ride. Don’t like a harsh ride? Best not to buy an S Line. As well as so called ‘sports suspension’ you will probably find it has low profile tyres, and maybe have the much harder sidewalls of run flats. If not, possibly XL. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Thanks Ian,
So it’s maths time on a Monday morning then! 
3,000 miles at 60mpg uses 50 gals of fuel. 

If ( in caps) you would hope for an optimistic 10% improvement in mpg then you would save approx. 4.5 gals on your 3,000 mile round trip - or around £36 at current U.K. prices. 
Cost of chipping? Maths points to needing to travel approx. 8.5K  miles to recoup per £100 chipping cost. 
On-cost for increased insurance premiums -? This will obviously add to miles needed to be covered to reach the cost neutral point. 

Is a 10% increase realistically achievable? I think I would be pleasantly surprised if it was, and not too disappointed if it wasn’t. 
Your current 60mpg would be happy-days to most across the motoring spectrum. 
I think you’ve now got something to work with Ian.
Incidentally - average diesel cost/litre in S of Spain?
UK is around £1.80/ litre at the moment. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Pending someone coming up with an answer to this Adrian - it is well worth considering having the auxiliary belt renewed at the same time. There have been reported incidences of these belts parting company, getting tangled up in crankshaft pulley, and putting sufficient rotational strain on it to cause the cambelt to jump teeth. 
On-cost should only be around the cost of the belt. 
Appreciating you have enough expense ahead of you, but if you think the cambelt should have been changed in 2018 (and again now in 2023) then one expense has been ‘saved’. 
Kind regards,
Gareth. 

Many thanks for the advice.
A bit of an update:- 
Had the ‘offender’ diagnosed as the centre left sensor, so now have a replacement on order, so fingers crossed. 
Diagnostics was done by an independent, when travelling to W.Wales. Incase it helps someone at some time, they are P.W. Motorsports at a village called Clunderwen, just off the St. Clears to Haverfordwest main road. 
I must say, I found them efficient and most helpful, and to me - the icing on the cake is that you can talk with them, rather than a service receptionist. Karol Gos runs the place, and he quickly gave me the Audi part number and advised not to pay Audi’s £160! but to buy an aftermarket one. All in all, a superb service in my book. I can’t vouch for their service work, but I was certainly impressed with the assistance I had. 
Well done Karol, and thank you for your help. 
So it will be bumper off to get at this one, and I hope for good luck. 
Many thanks again.
Kind regards,
Gareth.