cliffcoggin

David. If by "clocks" your mechanic means the instrument panel, it's a known failing in A3s. They can be easily repaired for about £250. There are several companies in England that can do it so I daresay there might be a few in Eire. You or a mechanic would need to remove the panel and post it to the repair companany, who will then fix it and post it back. Search through this forum's history and you will find some reports of owners who have had theirs successfully repaired.

So the problem is dependant on temperature, which may give a clue to somebody familiar with that engine. Unfortunately I am not and don't know what to suggest.

Undoubtedly.

You imply that there is no stall on a hot start. Is that correct?

Congratulations. That's a substantial amount of work and expense on a fourteen year old car.

Aleandra. Flexible pipes are fitted because engine vibration and movement would fracture rigid pipes, which is exactly what happened to yours. By the way, dealership warranties for secondhand cars are not worth the paper they are written on.

Sorry Catalin, your pictures require me to sign in to Google which I will not do.

No it should not need doing now, but it will do in another 30000 miles. If you plan to keep the car that long then it will save you another strip down if you do it now.

So you would buy the car on that assumption, would you?

Do the water pump while the engine is stripped if you have not done so already.

Yes that bush undoubtedly needs to be changed. As a general rule, if there is movement in any rubber bush it is worn out. The static appearance of rubber bushes tells you nothing; the bush must be stressed or loaded to test it.

For oil to blow out of the filler cap there must be pressure in the crankcase. The most likely reason for that, though not the only one, is worn cylinder bores and or pistons. A compression test should be able to confirm that diagnosis. While it is perfectly possible to repair your engine the cost of doing so will not be far off the cost of a rebuilt secondhand engine in which all worn parts have been replaced. Look here to find the cost https://enginesrebuild.co.uk/reconditioned/Audi/A3 Considering your car is 12 years old I doubt that a brand new engine would be worthwhile.

If it did not go into limp mode people would ignore the problem and continue belching nasty emissions into the atmosphere.

Adam. I vaguely recall reading of a similar problem to yours on this forum a year or two back. I can not find the topic myself but it might worth you scanning over the history for it.

Let us know the outcome.

I'd agree there is no servo assistance, and since it is newly repaired I would take it back. Jordan can you hear the servo motor charging the reservoir when the car is first started after standing overnight. It should run about 20 seconds.

It might be the caliper has seized, but I think it more likely there is something jammed against the disc, such as a broken fragment of pad, a stone, or a broken spring clip. If so, it should be easy to remove if you have any tools with you.

Jordan. Just to clarify the problem for me, are saying the pedal is really locked solid, immobile, and impossible to move no matter how much force is applied; or is it just very difficult to push down and lacking any servo assistance?

Is there an equaliser for the two cables Gareth? I have not worked on A3 handbrake so I am not sure. Equalisers were a common source of jamming back in the day.

The solution is simple: you need a new battery, however you and your father have convinced yourselves that the existing battery is fine, so I don't propose to argue any further.

Not enough information. Does the fascia illuminate? Can you select channels? Can you change FM to AM etc? Do the steering wheel buttons do anything? Fuse, radio code (password), aerial connection, power connection are possible faults but without a complete description of the problem we can only guess.

A battery that is fully or largely discharged can be damaged in such a way as to be able to still crank the engine over but not supply a stable enough voltage to the electronics, which can lead to the sort of problems you reported. I am not saying the battery is entirely responsible for those problems, but it is a strong contender. See what the code reader tells you before doing anything.

I agree you need the car scanned by a decent code reader, however the battery warning light may be a clue. A substandard battery can cause all the symptoms you describe and a few more that you have not. I assume the battery was disconnected during your repair work. Did it lose charge during that time?

Stuart. While it is possible the water is rain coming in through the heater if its drain hole is blocked, or the heater matrix is leaking engine coolant into the cabin, or the windscreen sealant has perished, the obvious candidate has got to be the rag top. The fabric may be intact, but it must have some sort of seal around the edge which may have been damaged. I have never dealt with a soft roof so I can not be any more specific. You also said cleaning the drainage channels helped, so if they are accessible can you test each one by pouring a little water through them to see if they really are clear?

YES. Even on my 2007 car.