Cambelt advice, Gearbox Oil, "Full" service?

gclough

gclough

Member
I have three issues really, so I'll break them up:

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My new A2 only has 31k miles, but is a 2002 model... so the cambelt is over 7 years old and needs changing. Usually I'll always do the rollers, water-pump, etc. but in this case I'm considering only getting the belt done subject to an inspection when they've got it apart.

Am I right to assume that the belt will perish over time, but the other ancillaries should be fine?

The next scheduled change will be at 90k (existing 30k, plus 60k new miles), so what are the chances of a pump/roller failure during these "extra" 30k miles?

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What of the brake fluid, gearbox oil, etc? I'm going to get the brake fluid done, as this car only did 1-2k miles a year for the past 4 years and I'm sure that the fluid has absorbed a lot of water in that time.

... but what of the gearbox oil? I can't see any mention of it in the service book, but I presume it needs to be changed at some point. I'm a bit worried about water contamination... so should it be changed too?

The girl at Finchley Audi wasn't of much help... but she was very good at explaining their current specials. Gee thanks, I need a sales-pitch when I'm calling up for technical advice... good job Audi. <sigh>

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I'd really like to get it back onto an Audi service history, but I'm confused as to their "Interim" and "Major" services. From what I can figure:

Interim Service - £99
* Engine Oil
* Engine Oil Filter

Major Service - £249
As Mini Service, plus
* Spark plugs
* Air filter

That's about it... and it seems that an extra £150 for 4 x spark plugs and an air-filter is mad (even by Audi standards), and if I want the pollen filter then that's another £50.

Am I missing something?
 
Am I right to assume that the belt will perish over time, but the other ancillaries should be fine?
Click to expand...

No. Replace the belt, relpace the rollers, replace the pump. You are saving sixpence when the expenditure is nearly a guinea.

brake fluid, gearbox oil
Click to expand...
Brake fluid: test it, you don't necessarily need to change. I was pleasantly surprised by mine. YMMV, test.
Gearbox: a change is not seen as necessary by Audi. TAF-X. Get it done, it should be €100 or so.

Don't take it to Audi, there is no point.

Plugs are only every 6 years, air filter too, so just don't bother. The pollen filter is a 10 minute DIY job and the activated charcoal version costs a total of €12 IIRC.

Bret
 
OK, sounds like I'm going to get everything done with the cam-belt (water pump and rollers), and go for the full service to get everything back onto a "known" timescale. I'll leave the Brake Fluid and Coolant to be tested, and then decide if that needs doing too.

I'll definitely do the Pollen filter myself, as the photos I found on A2OC are great. Simple job, and saving £35.

Thanks to everyone for the advice.
 
They will have to drain the coolant to do the water pump so its sensible to have it changed at the same time. The anti-corrosion additives deplete over time and this will not show up in any test to check the low temp freezing levels.

Cheers Spike
 
Aspiotis

Make sure they've secured the undertray properly after a cam belt removal
Had mine done 2 weeks ago and the undertray flopped down halfway through a 1400 mile autoroute trip across France. Flapped like a gaping mouth!
Gaffer tape came to the rescue and Streetwise Bristol just fixed it this morning
Had this problem once before on a Golf GTD. I think they must be fiddly to replace all the fixings or something
 
Good point. I've seen lots of A2's with that completely missing, and I suspect the plastic clips that hold it in place aren't that durable. I had the same problem on a Golf I once owned, so I presume it's a common VAG problem.
 
gclough said:
Wow! I couldn't find a service interval for the gearbox oil, so I guess they life it for as long as the gearbox lasts. Sounds like I can safely skip the gearbox oil then.
Click to expand...

That's the theory!
In practice a few of the guys who have had the tall 5th gear fitted found the oil level was extremely low. Secondly, over time the oil will oxidise and moisture from condensation etc depletes the oil properties. As all A2's are at least 5 years old, replacing the oil is a good preventative maintenance measure. Checking the oil level is the absolute minimum you should do.

Cheers Spike
 
spike said:
That's the theory!
In practice a few of the guys who have had the tall 5th gear fitted found the oil level was extremely low. Secondly, over time the oil will oxidise and moisture from condensation etc depletes the oil properties. As all A2's are at least 5 years old, replacing the oil is a good preventative maintenance measure. Checking the oil level is the absolute minimum you should do.

Cheers Spike
Click to expand...

Interesting. I've just bought an Audi special tool for checking or replacing the transmission oil on my (2001) B5 A4 2.5 TDi Avant Quattro. I was also planning on changing the rear diff fluid. Car has 107k. Suffice to say - I'd have done my wife's A2 at the same time. It's a 2002 1.4TDi with 87k.

When I asked my local Audi dealership for the quantity and oil specification - you'd have thought I'd asked for some sort of enigma code (not unlike a scene from Marathon Man with Dustin Hoffman and Laurence Olivier!):eek:

I was met with a blank stare followed by much whispering. I know it's not in the bleed'n service schedule - but surely it's hardly a trade secret. To date - I'm still waiting for the information.

Details here regards procedure for an A4. I'm sure the A2 is not dissimilar. Anything I should be aware of before attempting this? I know the car should be to operating temperature, on the level - and always to pull the filler plug first!:D

Transmission: http://www.audiworld.com/tech/misc32.shtml
Rear diff: http://www.audiworld.com/tech/misc33.shtml
 
spartacus 68 said:
Anything I should be aware of before attempting this?
Click to expand...

Before you remove the plug, ensure it's clean. Normally I'd clean the general area, unscrew the plug 1 turn to dislodge more dirt, then give a thorough clean. A wire brush is great for this job, if you can get access to the plugs. Any dirt contamination is death.

Secondly, the fill level is usually to the bottom of the fill plug hole... unless VAG have changed their procedure. So all you need to do is fill it until it won't take any more. Probably between 2.25 and 2.5 liters. I'd get someone to double-verify this, but I'm pretty sure I'm correct.

Thirdly, and very importantly, a lot (all?) of VAG manual gearboxes use bronze internals, and if you use the wrong grade of oil (must be 4, not 5 or any type of 4/5 hybrid... from memory) then this badly affects those parts.
 
Just to clarify, TDi 75 takes 1.9 litres of oil and the TDi 90 takes 2 litres exactly.

Also, it seems that Audi have gone back to G060 oil now - the 070 is no longer available.

The info for petrol models is entirely different!!

Cheeers,

Mike
 
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