Are You being Service(d)?

C

CWD

Guest
Hello All

Just had a variable service and a brake fluid change plus a couple of other things done at an Audi dealer. Very expensive but I'm sure it is worth it in the long run. Mmm...

However, there are some issues it has raised:-

1) They have reset my service indicator and it is currently only reading 9,300 miles until the next service. That is not going to last me anywhere near 2 years. Have any other members experienced such a low number of miles following a reset?

2) They have advised me that the front anti-roll bar sleeves are cracked and will need replacing and consequently, I will have to have all 4 wheels aligned. This will cost £490.00 if I do it there. Is there a less expensive way of getting this repair carried out? I vaguely remember that there have been some posts already about this seemingly all too familiar repair.

3) Very worringly, my dealer can't tell me when the cambelt was last changed. My 1.4 TDi Sport is 4 and a half years old and has done 65,000 and the cambelt was supposed to be changed as a condition of sale when I purchased the car in December 2006. Is there an easy way of checking the cambelt status? If I do have to change it, are there garages that members can recommend that will carry out the necessary work (including the water pump) for considerably less than the £520.00 quoted by my main dealer?

Sorry that this is such a long post. I do like and enjoy my A2 but I'm just a little disconcerted by its current appetite for my hard-earned cash.

Thank you in anticipation for your help. Seasonal best wishes.
 
I'll see if I can have a go at some of your queries - you've certainly found the right place to get answers!

1) 9,300miles is normal. You should find that this figure will change as you start driving. Depending on your driving habits you could get up to 2 years out of it. However, if you only do lots of stop-start journeys, you could find that this is about right. Go for a good run at 60 on the motorway and see what happens - that normally sees the indicator go up on Rosie. :)

2) You could try a different VAG garage: VW or Skoda should be able to do the work, and their labour rates won't be as horrible as Audi's.

3) If you bought the car from the dealer, and the same dealer said they would do the cambelt, and you're asking the same dealer about their work, they should really know! Check your documentation (particularly the service book, to see if a note was made about the cambelt change) and present them with the facts. My dealer can call up all their works on my car, AND the work done at their sister dealership where I bought the car from. Yours should be able to do the same, although you might have to press them - especially if they forgot to do something.
 
Hi CWD

Regarding the roll bar repair, some of our members have removed the cracked plastic sleeves and fitted Polo bushes. These have a smaller internal diameter to clamp directly on the roll bar once the sleeves have been removed (don't forget to clean off all surface rust from the bar) This is a straight forward repair which does not affect the suspension geometry so the 4 wheel alighment check is not necessary.
See post 70 onwards in the attached link http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showthread.php?t=5793&highlight=rollbar
For info, the official Audi repair entails dropping the engine subframe for access and replacing the complete anti rollbar. In practice its possible to bolt the subframe back in exactly the same position so the wheel camber should not be affected. Audi play safe and insist on the alignment check so there is no comeback if they get it wrong. It is however wise to have an alignment check every few years but don't pay Audi prices - go to someone like Awesome GTI instead

Cheers Spike
 
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Thank you as ever to everyone for their helpful and informative replies.
 
Anti Roll Bar Bushes

I've just had the Anti Roll Bar Bushes replaced on my wife's 2001 A2 Tdi, 60,000 miles.
My local garage charged £3.96 for the bushes and £31.50 for fitting them, + v.a.t. it came to £41.67 which I thought very reasonable and not worth doing myself.

Has anyone had this done at a dealership?
How much do they charge?
 
CWD said:
Is there an easy way of checking the cambelt status?
Click to expand...

Is anyone able to answer the above question?

I've just had mine replaced and would like to check that and the water pump were actually replaced. Thanks
 
Easiest way to check the cambelt is to, eer, check the cambelt. Just look at it to see if the rubber is glazed, or cracked, or if any of the teeth are misshapen.

I don't know if you can tell from visual inspection if the water pump has been changed but I'm sure someone else will advise.

To repeat the above comment about anti-roll bar bushes/sleeves - replacing these does not require a wheel re-alignment, and any half-decent mechanic could do this job in 20-30mins on a ramp.
 
dan_b said:
Easiest way to check the cambelt is to, eer, check the cambelt. Just look at it to see if the rubber is glazed, or cracked, or if any of the teeth are misshapen.
Click to expand...

I'm displaying my ignorance here. But to get access to it, I guess you need to remove the engine camcover. Is this trickly?
 
To check the cambelt, it really needs removing, turning inside out and then inspecting to see if there are any cracks in the grooves of the teeth.

To do this, you need to get the car on stands, remove the offside wheel, wheel arch liner and then the air intake tubing.

Remove the upper cambelt cover, then the lower, having removed the auxilliary belt and tensioner, then undo the lower engine mount and the drivers side mount bolts and jack up the engine.

Release the cambelt tensioner and finally remove the cambelt.

Basically, if you are doing all this work, you should just renew the parts anyway, the same goes for the water pump.

Cheers,

Mike
 
Thanks guys.

I just wondered if you could tell from the top whether the belt was brand new or several years old. Seems not.
 
Not really Will - if there's doubt over the belt, best bet is to have it changed, otherwise you're looking at a 4-figure bill if it snaps!

Cheers,

Miike
 
No serious doubt. I paid for it to be replaced today and I just wanted to check if it and other items had been done.
 
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