New member! Bought a poorly A2 - some expert advice needed!

mikkey180

Member
New member! Bought a poorly A2 - Boost + Oil leak

Hello everyone! I am new to the forum and new to A2 ownership!

Here is my 2001 A2 SE 1.4TDI

20160818_073033_zpsla5fek47.jpg

She has done just shy of 150,000 miles and has a couple of issues, the biggest issue for me at the moment is what I think is a boost leak and a major oil leak.

Under acceleration there is a whooshing sound coming from the engine bay, I am not 100% sure where abouts it is coming from, the engine still gets some boost as it accelerates ok but there is some black smoke from the exhaust as it would appear the engine thinks its getting more boost than it is actually getting which is making it overfuel.

I think the sound may be coming roughly from where the intercooler is but I haven't been able to check or have a look under the car as of yet.

Also there is a large oil leak, it would appear it was an advisory on its last MOT 10 months ago and hasn't been recitifed, the entire underside of the engine bay is blathered in oil so I cannot pinpoint where the leak is coming from, it is leaving small patches on the ground when parked too (running off the lip on the front bumper I think) According to the dipstick the oil is overfilled so I am not driving the car for now until this is sorted as I don't want it to run away.

I am worried that the intercooler has split and the oil is being pumped from the turbo to the split which would mean the turbo is shot, but there is no blue smoke from the exhaust at all and no oil burning smells when the car is being driven.

Any help would be greatly appreciated as I love the little car, I bought it on the cheap and was hoping to get it fixed up as I love the style and engineering that has gone in to the A2!
 
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Hi


Welcome to the A2 owners club.

Sorry to hear of your woes. It does sound very much like a boost leak if you are getting the whooshing sound on acceleration.

I have sent you a pm (private message) containing lots of useful information about the club.*

You can access this by clicking on the word 'Notifications' at the very top of this page.**

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Best wishes

Steve

(A2Steve) Member relations*
 
Hello Steve,

Thanks for the warm welcome, it looks like I may have found both of my issues in one, I jacked the car up and had a look whilst my girlfriend revved the car lightly so it created some boost and I could see and feel straight away that the bottom of the intercooler has split, unfortunately it looks like that might be where the oil is coming from too so I would assume my turbo is toast :( not good when I spent all of my disposable income on buying the car.

Mike.
 
When an Intercooler splits the first sign is often oil accumulating around the split.

If you are getting full boost (or more or less full) then the turbo may not have gone.

It is possible that the oil seals have gone in it, but it doesn't sound like the oil is running out? It si more of a drip, small trickle?

The overfilled oil is a worry, that can do a lot of damage if it is very overfull, so you are right to hold off from using it until you get that back to normal. It may well be contributing to the oil leak too, too much oil in thr sump can cause "blow by" as the oild gets past the piston rings. But you would expect to see a little blue smoke if that is happening.

As for the black smoke, I wouldn't worry too much about that, a tdi on full throttle will often have a touch of black smoke, but you don't always notice it. It is more obvious when looking in the rear view mirror in the dark and the headlamps from the car behind illuminate it.

And you need an intercooler anyway, so why not replace that and see what happens?

Steve B
 
Hello Steve B, Thanks for the useful advice!

I jacked the car up this morning and drained roughly a litre of oil out of the sump, this put the dipstick reading to just a smidge over full (shows how full it was origionally, I feel bad for driving it nearly 100 miles home!)

Took it for a trip to the local supermarket petrol station and topped my tired up with air then drove home, letting it sit now and currently waiting for any more evidence of it leaking oil, if this has sorted the issue which I hope it has it looks like all I will need is an intercooler, does anyone know the cheapest place to get one?

Thanks,

Mike
 
Always worth trying eBay. Lots of dealers on there.

Being inquisitive I looked on ebay and see there is quite a price variation, even on new items:

BÖLK Intercooler, charger fits Audi A2 1.4 TDI 1.2 TDI £56 (France)
AUDI A2 8Z0 1.4 TDI 2000.02->2005.08 AMF BHC 55kW INTERCOOLER RADIATOR (no brand) £88
Audi A2 8Z0 1.4 TDI Genuine Nissens Intercooler £100
AUDI A2 1.4 TDI CHARGE AIR INTER COOLER 8Z0145805E NEW GENUINE AUDI PART £250

£6 to £8 delivery on some of these. Currently there are no used intercoolers on ebay.

Any opinions / experiences of these brands?
 
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Hello all,

I have ordered a new J Deus intercooler from eurocarparts, normally £91 but they have 30% off until midnight so hot it for £64 which seems to be a good price for one thats in stock ready to collect.I'll let you know how I get on with the repairs!

Mike.
 
Hello all,

I have ordered a new J Deus intercooler from eurocarparts, normally £91 but they have 30% off until midnight so hot it for £64 which seems to be a good price for one thats in stock ready to collect.I'll let you know how I get on with the repairs!

Mike.


That sounds good Mike.

I hope it works out well for you.

Steve B
 
Hello all! Quick update, I replaced the intercooler over the weekend. Unfortunately I damaged my radiator whilst doing so, but thanks to Dave I managed to source a replacement over the weekend! I had to replace my old MAP sensor with the newer type as my sensor did not fit into my new intercooler, but the local scrap yard had the parts I needed from a seat Ibiza tdi, my A2 is now running perfectly! I will upload pictures from my PC tomorrow of the job, over the moon with my car now, it pulls so much smoother and stronger in every gear.

Regards,

Mike.
 
Thank you Dave, It was nice to meet you and thanks for the radiator!

Just a quick update, my A2 is still running fantastically, no boost leaks, no smoke and no oil leaks / usage. I have noticed that when the turbo is just starting to spool at light throttle in each gear it whistles a little, which is audible when the front windows are down, the car is just about to clock 150k so I am assuming this is just normal wear and tear for a car of this mileage and age? I will be servicing it next payday!

Regards,

Mike
 
I have a slight turbo whistle Mike ... mainly in 4th and 5th gear under acceleration. I think its quite normal and it doesn,t worry me it so I think it will be okay.

Cheers
Dave:)
 
Tdi 90s often have a "chirp" /"whistle". It is a characteristic of several I have driven and I find it quite pleasant.

But I have not heard many 75s make any such noise?

since you have checked for leaks it may not be anything to worry about.

Steve B
 
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