cliffcoggin

Frankly Ieaun it doesn't matter what the fault is. The car is clearly defective and should be returned under guarantee for either a refund or a replacement.

Give us a clue. What engine is it?

Overfilling the oil is wasteful and can cause problems, so if I was going to use that stuff (which I never would,) I would drain 400 ml. first.

I can't Ben, and evidently nobody else can or he would have replied by now. I guess it is time to get advice elsewhere.

Dare I ask how old you are? If, like me, you are past retirement age then more powerful headlights are not the answer for night driving. Only new eyes will provide the vision needed.

When it comes to replacing parts like headlamps, on-line car breakers can be useful. I doubt you could get individual window rubbers or clips, but significant assemblies were available. Central locking seems to be a regular problem on this forum. In my case it was a broken wire inside the driver's door. Search through old topics and you will find one regarding repair of broken wires and cleaning corroded contacts.

The benefit of forums like this is that many opinions are available to questionners. The pity is that there are not more of us willing to contribute ideas to get the widest possible range of experience. I can think of no more than four of us who do so regularly.

Well I suppose what was written is ambiguous "it doesn't start with easy start, it fires up for a second". To my way of thinking if it fires, it starts. Whether it continues running is different matter. I am not denying the possibility of the glow plugs being at fault, but the chances of all of them failing are far lower than other possible explanations for the starting problem. I would want to see more conclusive evidence instead of guesses about glow plugs or fuel metering solenoid.

I am not convinced it is a myth. My A3 glow plug light goes out at the same time as all the other lights except in temperatures of zero or below, and the engine starts instantly. As for Easy Start, that only reduces the auto ignition temperature thereby enabling low compression engines to fire, so one could argue that Ryan's problem could equally be caused by low compression.

Funny you should mention that. Here is one of my favourite Youtube channels: https://www.youtube.com/user/EngelsCoachShop

Is this the same car you mentioned in https://www.audiownersclub.com/forums/topic/18217-audi-a3-8p-engine-bay/ and https://www.audiownersclub.com/forums/topic/18005-power-steering/

I can't help with your question I'm afraid, but I am puzzled why an LPG engine would need a fuel pump. Doesn't the gas have enough pressure?

I didn't know Alfas lasted that long <g>

Ah, I understand now. It's the quality of the rubber bushes and ball joints that concern you, not the metal arms. I can't help on that score I'm afraid. It will be something of a lottery without a reputation to rely on. Years (decades actually) ago Quinten Hazel was the brand I relied on, but even if they still exist I would be surprised if their parts were not made in China.

Hello Gareth. Let me start by saying I have no knowledge of the differences between cast (or would they actually be forged?) and pressed arms, and no experience of changing them on a A3. I am unclear of your reason to change to cast arms. Is it a matter of cost, durability, availability, strength or something else? If the current pressed arms are the originals they have lasted 15 years, and I imagine pressed replacements would last more or less as long, so durability is not a problem unless you plan to keep the car running past the age of 30. In your position I would fit whatever was available and known to fit, in the expectation that they would last the rest of the useful life of the car. If that means unbranded pressed steel parts so be it. Cliff.

https://www.audiownersclub.com/forums/topic/17979-esp-light-wont-go-off/

Nevertheless I still suspect air in the system. Has it been opened or disturbed recently?

There is air in the system. (Air expands and contracts.) Does the heater work?

Yes, press the belt inwards, it should barely move. If the noise began immediately after having the cambelt and water pump done I would be suspicious that something had been neglected in re-assembly.

Normally I would suggest an air leak to cause a hiss, but that would not be affected by clutch operation. Perhaps you are hearing the start of some belt slippage.

That's unfortunate, but there is a limit to what can be diagnosed through the necessarily brief written descriptions in a forum like this. This leaves you little choice but to get a proper diagnosis done by a competent mechanic, unless you enjoy throwing good money after bad by renewing one component after another.

Almost certainly the problem is an air lock created when the thermostat was changed. The coolant system should have been vented by the mechanic who did the work, so I suggest you take it back and get him to finish the job properly as it can be a devil of a job to do yourself.

Hello Balzout. I doubt that it is a worn wheel bearing, the sound is wrong and would be unaffected by clutch operation. However a wheel bearing can be tested by jacking it off the ground and turning the wheel by hand. A worn bearing will make a low rumbling sound. You may even be able to feel looseness in the bearing if you rock the wheel left/right and top/bottom. Don't be misled by any scraping or scuffing sound from the brake discs. I speculate that there might be vibration of the clutch hydraulic pipe against some part of the steering linkage. That would explain why the noise is affected by turning and clutch operation. My car is an automatic so I don't know the route of the pipe, hence my idea could be sheer nonsense. Nevertheless it would be worth looking at the pipe route around the engine bay, rattling it in search of loose clips. Check too that the steering rack is firmly mounted by getting another person to move the steering wheel to and fro while you look at the rack.

Steve. If you can justify the expense of an accurate diagnostic machine, which I can not on a 14 year old car that rarely has problems, then I have no doubt that is the best way to go. The problems I see on this forum are cheap inaccurate readers, used by owners with little or no knowledge of mechanics, which induce them to waste a lot of money on unnecessary parts. Cliff.

In regard to general non-specific warnings like ESP I take the car to an independent Audi specialist. Its expensive, but cheaper than buying a succession of new parts in the hope that one might resolve the problem. If the warning light is specific (such as "low coolant level") or there are no warning lights at all, I'll first turn to my experience of diagnosing and repairing my own cars for the last 53 years before deciding whether I can carry out the repair myself or take it to aforesaid Audi garage. Working without diagnostic equipment years ago is what I meant by being old school.