If you hear this...

[Loek]

Had a problem last week... I heard a low vibrating noise coming from the engine whenever the clutch hit the disk (I'm sure there's a better way to say this in English - we call it Aangrijpingspunt in Dutch - it's the point at which the car starts shaking a little when you slowly release the clutch). Anyway, the problem existed in all gears, so I brought the car to the garage.

The mechanic was a very nice guy who had no problems with me watching what he was doing. He even showed me all major components of the car when he put it on the bridge.

After removing the wind shield (the plastic cover beneath the engine that improves aerodynamics and keeps the engine clean) he showed me a black rubber gasket (Dutch: pakking) with two cables in it, running from the dashboard to the gear. Turned out there was not enough oil in it. Every time the clutch hit the disk the car would start shaking a little (which is normal), causing the two cables to shake even more, resulting in a low vibrating noise.

After he put some oil in it, the problem was solved.

I also told him about my climate control problem... you know, the white foil coming loose from the condensor. He said he'd heard about it before. I made an appointment to have it replaced, but it's indeed as you said: it'll take at least 8 hours, because the condensor is right between the dashboard and the engine compartment. The entire dashboard needs to be removed.

He showed me the little sucker (from another A2). Looks like some kind of mini grill. It's exactly as you said... most of the foil was gone.

 

[John Disdale]

Loek,

It sounds to me as though your dealer is very thoughtful and professional, and it’s highly refreshing to hear that they did not argue at all over fitting a new condenser unit. It looks like you are the first A2 owner to witness the erosion within the condenser, so perhaps when you return to the garage again you could photograph it and post it on the A2OC website for all to see. Indeed other A2 owners could copy it and show their dealers exactly what is happening in the event of any dispute.

I still contend that the aspect of potentially breathing in small particles of aluminium is a health issue – so surely all cars known to have this inferior component should be urgently recalled by Audi for an immediate replacement.

Regards
John Disdale

 

[Loek]

Thanks John, I will definitely try to make a picture of that condensor. By the way, I'm not sure whether the white particles are aluminium particles - it's definitely some kind of white paint that covers the grill of the condensor.

As long as you breathe through your nose (as most people do), I don't think much can go wrong, as the particles are big enough to be caught by your nose hair (sorry for going into these details *grin*). Then again, the mechanic agreed this was definitely not how things were supposed to be, repair was absolutely necessary.

I must say I'm very satisfied with my dealer's performance. Mmmh... where shall I start? They're called Kamsteeg Autoplaza. They have several offices near The Hague (Voorschoten, Alphen aan de Rijn, and a few more). http://www.kamsteeg.nl/

For starters, I've received several presents since I started leasing my A2 there. A huge plant (Ficus) when I moved to a new house, genuine chocolate from Belgium on my birthday, and a few more things.

Whenever I feel something is wrong with my car, I simply drive by and hand over my car keys. They then offer me coffee and cookies. I can walk around a little in the showroom, sit in the TT pretending I'm Schumacher, enjoy the view of the reception desk (the ladies are nice - just don't tell my wife *grin*) or just watch the mechanics doing their work. The mechanics love the interest you display: it gives them an opportunity to explain about their work and daily life (stories I'm sure their wifes already heard a hundred times *grin*).

If the repair takes longer then say 1 hour, and if I've called them in advance, they make sure there's a replacement car. Before they arrange the replacement car, they call me and ask what model and colour I want (provided I don't ask for the TT or A8 every time *grin*).

I've owned this car for about a year now, and it has been damaged on 4 different places. One 10 cm envy scratch on the back, a huge 30 cm black scratch above the left rear wheel (paint completely revmoed - caused by some unknown idiot who wanted to park his car on my one - he drove away without leaving any info behind), a few minor scratches above the same wheel (caused by another idiot who parked her bicycle on my car - I've got her address), and many scratches on the left rear wheel itself (caused by another idiot, namely me, when I tried to park my car on the edge of the curbstone in a parking lot).

I called my dealer and told them I'd like to have this damage repaired, as especially the left rear wheel looks terrible (as you can imagine reading the above - for some reason it seems to attract damage). My own risk at the moment is 136 Euro. Hearing my story, the dealer said that especially the 30 cm scratch would be very costly to repair. So costly even, that it would normally raise my own risk to 1000 Euro.

Ofcourse I was not happy to hear that. So I told him how carefully I handled my car, how much I loved it, blablabla, and that if you don't damage the car yourself, somebody else will do it for you. I told him how mad I was when I found out the idiot that caused that scratch never left any note behind... we then started discussing some negative trends in society which cause people to do this... and in the end he said: "You know what, I understand your frustration. I'll make sure your own risk won't raise". He estimated the repair will cost the garage several thousand Euros.

And that's that. I'll bring my car to the garage in October, they'll arrange a nice replacement car, and this guy is going to make sure that my own risk will stay 136 Euro.

If anyone is ever planning to buy/lease a car in Holland, I can definitely recommend these people. They are incredibly professional, and they completely focus on customer satisfaction.