Free Audi Health Check Results: a whole bunch of problems, need help please :)

RickyG512

Member
Helloooo Guysss

i am a proud new owner of an Audi A2 SE with the 1.6 FSI engine, 60k miles and 53 reg, im quite an enthusiastic person so im going to try and be a very active forum member and try and do my part :). i live in croydon if thats near anyone else.

ok so here it goes, went to Audi for there Free Complimentary Audi Health Check and they produced the following list of results with quotes:

  1. Break Disks need replacement £320 plus vat
  2. Brake Fluid needs to be changed £120 plus vat
  3. Cambelt and Waterpump needs to be changed £810 plus vat
  4. Pollen Filter needs a change £102 plus vat
  5. Tyre repair kit out of date
  6. 3x Engine Fault under quick diagnosis, not full diagnosis they said, which has a charge £144 plus vat

im am going to ask my friend next week if he can change the cambelt/water pump using a Timing Belt Kit + Water Pump Bundle and also the brake disks to keep the costs down, or is there any guides so i can do the cambelt/brake disks my self?

The brake fluid change doesnt sound like a hard job even thou ive never done it before, would anyone be able tell me how to do it myself? is there any guides

The pollen filter i did myself this morning using a guide on this website, i also added loads of drops of scented oil, smells nice :)

not going to worry about the tyre repair kit, not yet anyway

ok now the biggie, 3x engine faults, i believe their caused by the following two problems:

1. The engine doesnt idle, everytime i start the engine, it has to be revved to about 2000 RPM, otherwise it will stall straight away, even if the engine is warm. if i dont rev it up, it wont stay on, it only needs to be revved for 2 seconds then it will stay on as normal, but audi said it shouldnt be like this, the engine should start and idle without pressing the throttle

2. another issue ive noticed is when i start the engine, it has a very loud rattle for about 3-5 seconds then the rattling quietens, is that normal? also the engine is generally quite rattly/diesely, but its a 1.6 FSI petrol engine, is that normal? i would say it sounds half way to what a diesel sounds like. but when starting the engine for the first few seconds is sounds more rattlier than a diesel lol, so i dont know if thats normal

i dont have the exact engine faults as they want me to pay £144 for a proper diagnosis

but anyhelp would be greatly appreciate and i thank you all in advance ;)
 
Hi Ricky

Welcome to the forum. As a proud owner of an A2 then you've come to the right place to meet like minded souls.

As you have a FSi I''ll let others answer most of your queries (I've a TDi). I would make the following observations:

re Pollen Filter needs a change £102 plus vat - wow! As you found it's an easy and cheap job - did you go for a carbon filter. Anyway, at that price I'm wondering if there has been a misunderstanding and Audi are referring to another filter?

re Cambelt and Waterpump needs to be changed £810 plus vat - again expensive. See this thread
http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showthread.php?18851-Cambelt-service-at-stoke-Audi&p=143171#post143171
where cambelt, water pump and belt for aircon were replaced at Stoke Audi for £450 inc vat. Many of us use independent Audi dealers, especially those who intend to keep our A2s for a long time and therefore do not worry by not having main dealer stamps. Besides the water pump there are a few other bits like tensioner that ought to be replaced at the same time.

re Tyre repair kit out of date. Some A2s had space saver wheels and tyres. They can be a bit like hens teeth to find though and you may need a false floor or to add the brackets to an existing false floor. Having said that, I stopped using the brackets as I found where it located the wheel wasted space in the underfloor compartment. Someone will probably say I'm at risk of a flying loose wheel in a mega accident!

Good luck with the other faults
 
I think you need to find a local VAG specialist. More typical prices are:

Front pads and discs £150
cambelt + water pump £350
brake fluid £50

at the same time the garage should be able to solve quite a few of your other problems.

Good luck.
 
Hi Alan, thanks for your reply and warm welcome :)

lol i agree the pollen filter replacement price is insane!!! well all their prices are insane, but its due to their crazy labour rate, which is £120 an hour. For the Pollen filter, it says, 0.6 hours = £72 and £13.50 for the filter totalling £85.50 which equals £102 inc vat. I bought a Bosch activated carbon filter for £10 and fitted it in 15 mins max which my very own blend of scented oils lol

yep the cambelt stuff also insane, they want 4 hours labour which equals 4x £120 = £480 just on labour !!! Thats why i want to buy the kit which is around £100 or £120 with the water pump and see if i can do it myself if there any videos or guides or someone on this forum who will do it for a price. The kit has all the bits and bobs like tensioners and idlers and bolts and stuff which is quite good. is there a way i can find out about any main dealers near croydon?

I have a false floor, maybe i can hide it in there lol

anyone know anything about the engine faults?
 
Helloooo Will :)

this is probably a silly question but what is a VAG? ive seen that word around quite abit on this forum, and VAGCOM iswell i think.

My Health Test report said i need to change the brake fluid, surely this must be easy isn't? can the fluid just be bought and topped up or drain and replace or something like that or replaced in the same fashion as engine oil or windsrcreen wash?
 
Regarding brake fluid change: search for specialized garage for brakes: in Slovenia this costs around 35 EUR. Though check with local Skoda authorized garage: here they were offering special package for brake fluid change for total 21 EUR (jup, brake fluid+change :); if I would buy the brake fluid it would cost me almost this amount :)) and since A2 is similar to Skoda Fabia they changed brake fluid also on my A2 for the same price. It took them half an hour.
Regarding rattle at start: as far as I remember this is usual with 1.6FSI and should not be a problem: search the forum and you will find lot of threads on this.

PS: Check also if AC has been serviced. It is good to renew oil and gas every few years: of course not with authorized Audi garage, but specialized garage for AC. Here normal price is around 50-75 EUR, but there are special prices for 25 EUR :). It takes cca. 20 minutes.

PS2: Just off topic advice: find the part numbers if you will need any spare parts and then go to Skoda dealer to buy them (of course, if the parts you need are not specially for A2): they are the same and much cheaper (20-30%) ;).
 
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Helloooo Will :)

this is probably a silly question but what is a VAG?
a former name for the Volkswagen Group, a German automaker, used from 1978 to 1992 - Volkswagen Audi Group.
My Health Test report said i need to change the brake fluid, surely this must be easy isn't? can the fluid just be bought and topped up or drain and replace or something like that or replaced in the same fashion as engine oil or windsrcreen wash?
Changing brake fluid is not so easy, because you have to get the air out of the brake system. If there are some air bubles in the system that means that brakes will not work correctly and you do not want that.
If you are doing this manualy you have to pump out the air with ''pumping'' brakes, but specialized garages have a pump that they connect it to brake fluid reservoir and they push the new brake fluid directly through the whole system. Also you cannot just top up the brake fluid, you have to change it completely. From my point of view (at least in Slovenia) it is better to be done from specialized garage since the price is not so expensive.
 
...
  1. Break Disks need replacement £320 plus vat
  2. Brake Fluid needs to be changed £120 plus vat
  3. Cambelt and Waterpump needs to be changed £810 plus vat
  4. Pollen Filter needs a change £102 plus vat
  5. Tyre repair kit out of date
  6. 3x Engine Fault under quick diagnosis, not full diagnosis they said, which has a charge £144 plus vat
...

1. Plenty of references, I'm sure you're sorted on info already.
2. Usually every 2 years (I do that with air con recharge service, every 2 years also). It is an easy job that costs little if you go to a garage
3. They are ripping you off, Audi does fixed price service on <2.0L cars. http://www.audi.co.uk/owners-area/servicing-with-audi/affordable-servicing.html £429 for Cambelt only, they'll add about £100 with a water pump I've quoted at dealers before. £810+vat they are thieving b******s!
4. You've sorted, again, what a bunch of thieves.
5. get a space saver spare
6. the £144 will most likely be the same computer diagnosis they ran already, then look up which parts are involved with the fault code then tell you to replace without actually checking if something is wrong.

As for your idling problem, sticky throttle body? Try to clean it yourself, use some 3rd party cleaning spray or ask your friendly garage. As for the diesel sound, certainly in line with what every FSI owners describes. What you want is the print out of the engine faults and search the forum. Intake flap, coil pack ...etc.
 
Hi Ricky, your nearest main dealer is Coulsdon. Used it many times for spares.
 
Cambelt and Waterpump needs to be changed £810 plus vat

Haha, that's a good one. I was quoted £750 by Audi, which is disgraceful.

I would suggest that you find a good local mechanic, try Good Garage Scheme for suggestions. Mine charged my like, under 300 for a full belt change, with water pump and tensioners on my 1.4. Takes about half a day, probably less for experienced mechanics.

Make sure you get it done asap though, from memory you're about 20K/5yrs overdue if it hasn't been done already! Make sure you get the full kit as well, because each bit, especially water pump is liable to fail separately and each will cause a knackered cam belt (and therefore engine!). It can be done yourself, there's a guide for the 1.4 somewhere around here I think. I wouldn't recommend it unless you've got a lot of experience though.

generally quite rattly/diesely, but its a 1.6 FSI petrol engine, is that normal?

Normal for an FSI due to direct injection



Oh and £144 for a scan!! That's insane. Any auto electrics store will be able to do one for about 20-30 quid, which is still steep for what it is. Alternatively if you can find a member near you with full vagcom you could get it done for free ;)
 
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Bleeding brakes is easy, no need for expensive equipment, just takes two people, a brak bleeding hose (costs about £2 and only lets fluid out, not air in) and a few plastic bottles to bleed into. Really easy job.
 
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