My A2 Project - 'The Pocket Rocket!'

EGR / Anti Shudder Valve

I noticed after my first long journey that there was a strange noise coming from the engine bay Another post I read described the sound perfectly, 'sounds like a thud of a subwoofer in the cab of the car' and that was exactly it. I know a lot of you guys helped me in resolving or should I say accepting this noise as it turned out that it was the standard noise of the ERG Valve operating, however, after seeing the state of the EGR valve on the car I had my mind set on either cleaning the valve or buying a new one.

After looking at the prices of new EGR valves I decided agains a new one and got a second hand one from Lithuania and cleaned this up over a few nights, a lot of carburettor cleaner and elbow grease got the EGR valve looking like new ready to be fitted. At this I figured it was time to book the car in again at WOM Automotive to have the few bits done on the car.
 

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The Concert Stereo

Okay so I wanted to get a few bits done in the interior of the car, the one thing that was really annoying me was the Concert 1 stereo that was fitted into my A2 especially after TIMMUS had informed me that the reason the stereo fitted wasn't working correctly was because it wasn't the correct one, my A2 required the Concert 2 with a Can Bus connection to get the lights working and the radio turning on and off with the ignition. I managed to pick one up off the forum for a good price and fitted it to the car, looks 100% better, I also installed an iPod interface to modernise the entertainment system a little. The stereo sounds fantastic and finished off the dash board. The volume control can sometimes be temperamental as I think the potentiometer is worn, but that is the only little issue and something I have learnt to live with. If anyone has any suggestions for repairing this please add to this thread :D
 

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The Fuel Flap Release Button

So the time had come to put some diesel into 'The Pocket Rocket' I drove down to my local Shell garage to fill her up with some V Power Diesel. I pressed the release button and nothing happened, in a bit of a panic I started frantically pressing the button, but nothing. A little embarrassed after making a rather large queue I got in the car and proceeded to flood the engine :eek: when I finally got it started I quickly drove off with my fuel light on!

Once I had calmed down again I remembered reading about an emergency release flap in the boot, phew! At least I could get some fuel now, I had a look on eBay for a replacement switch however these were expensive, I thought £30 was a little steep for a button, however after a lot of searching I managed to get one for £25, still a little expensive but I wanted it working!

Took around 4 days to come, fitting was easy, 5 mins max..
 
Trip to WOM Automotive

So while sorting out some of the interior issues I was able to save up some cash to get "The Pocket Rocket" into WOM Automotive to get the ERG Valve, Thermostat and Fan Switch changed. I took the car to the garage and left it in Marcus's capable hands, they swapped the EGR valve and the thermostat, but, we had some issues with the radiator fan switch, as it turns out because my A2 doesn't have air-conditioning it needs a different switch, Rob did his best to get hold of the correct switch, but, every supplied had the part on back order it must not be a commonly used part?

However Marcus managed to clean up the old switch and got it functioning, the connection was badly corroded which was causing the issue. My A2 is due to make a return trip to the garage once the new switch arrives as I wanted it replacing because I don't know how long the fix will last, plus the connections did look badly corroded...
 
Bonnet Drains

So while cleaning "The Pocket Rocket" on Sunday as per my usual routine I checked the coolant level to make sure that it was okay after having the thermostat replaced, it needed a little top up, I also had a look at the bonnet drains as I had recently read a post about the gearbox been filled with water because the bonnet drain wasn't aligned properly and after replacing the gear box oil this was the last thing I wanted.

I noticed that the passenger side pipe had a cracked pipe and that the scuttle drain pipe was missing all together, incidentally due to the damage to the passenger side drain pipe it was leaking over the gear linkage counterweight and the radiator fan switch, I think this is what had caused the corrosion on that.

I ordered some re-inforced rubber pipe off eBay, the Scuttle drain is 26mm in diameter and the bonnet collection cups are around 18-19mm. The only pipe diameter I could get was 25mm and 20mm so I also ordered some jubilee clips.

I fitted these pipes last night and with some help from forum members found where the scuttle drain was routed. We have had a good downpour today and I can confirm that they are working correctly
 

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I bow to your perseverance, diligence and passion to restore your pride and joy back to full health. A good read of your journey to-date and I look forward to reading of your journey ahead; may it be somewhat of a more smooth road, but as equally rewarding. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Darren
 
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I enjoyed readin this, and found out that my tdi is missing the same pipes, so my to do list is growing. And I thought I was doing a slow but steady progress :(
 
I enjoyed readin this, and found out that my tdi is missing the same pipes, so my to do list is growing. And I thought I was doing a slow but steady progress :(

Hello 67boris, the pipe I got was off eBay and was around £3.20/Meter item number is: 322205804990 I got the 25mm diameter, I had to use some boiling water to heat the end of the pipe to make it more maluble and then a little silicone spray to aid getting it onto the drain pipe, it's a good tight fit but I put a jubilee clip on just to be sure :D I know what you mean about the to do list mine is no where near finished yet :rolleyes:
 
So What Now?

There is still many jobs that need doing on 'The Pocket Rocket' and the list keeps growing, most of them are cosmetic I wanted to get the car mechanically sound before I started spending money on the less important tasks apart from the rear springs and radiator fan switch which is in hand the car now drives perfectly (Touch Wood) and so the time has come to start ticking items off the list. I am going to use this post as the current to do list as off 26/07/2017:

  • Drivers Door - Dents and Scratches from years in storage.
  • Rear Drivers Side Stop Lamp - Small piece missing, caused by the garage door!
  • Rear Number Plate Light - Screw has sheered off any unit requires replacement.
  • Front Drivers Side Headlamp - This doesn't sit correctly, it looks as though the A2 has had a bump at some point :(
  • Bonnet - This has been given a poor respray probably due to the bump, I just can't get a good shine one it!
  • Interior Alarm Sensor Button - This is very, very badly worn and looks out of place next to the new fuel flap button.
  • Headlamp Switch - This is badly worn, was thinking about adding the auto healamp feature to give the car a more up to date feature.
  • Roof - So the roof fix isn't perfect at all, it was only meant to be a temperary fix, plus during a heavy downpour the other week it leaked on the drivers side, I think I have found the source of the leak and patched it up, so far so good, but, I want a proper fix for this moving forward.
  • Colour DIS - When I saw this post on the forum I was so excited, I really think this will help to bring the car up to date without taking away from the original styling
  • Gear Stick Gator - I would like a red leather gear stick gator as I think it will finish the interior off nicely and complement the red leather seats.
  • Cup Holder - One of the cup holders is broken on the dash, it seems to be jammed in position so I assume a replacement is required.
 
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I'm seriously impressed at the handy work and rather offhand blasé confidence in tackling all this but the thing which takes the top prize is using a VHS of 'let's get physical' as a display mount for your cleaned EGR valve! I also see the nutty professor in the background - class! Well played sir, well played!


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Okay so I have been doing some work on 'The Pocket Rocket' got a automatic headlight switch from Birchall, I fitted it originally into the standard headlight switch and I have to say I was impressed with the functionality, but, I didn't like the way the new switch was recessed into the surround. I saw that a few members had modified the switch surround to make the switch fit correctly so I thought I would give it a go. Because it was my first time using a Dremel before I got a headlight switch off eBay for £18 so that I didn't damage my original switch, it also gives me the option to go back to stock if I ever wanted too. You have to remove alot of plastic from the surround with the dremel you have to take your time as you could do alot of damage it you slipped. I then resprayed the part as it was in poor cosmetic condition. See photos below
 

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I've haven't done mine yet but getting a bit cold feet! There is not much plastic left after enlarging the hole. Is it strong enough?

Thanks for sharing - photo is worth a 1000 words as they say.
 
Hello Alan, it's surprisingly strong, don't forget you have to glue the new icon ring into its place this hopefully will add some strength, I also have got a chrome ring in the post to help finish the job off neatly, this will hopefully add some strength too, I have decided to use two part epoxy as this is super strong
 
Hello Alan, it's surprisingly strong, don't forget you have to glue the new icon ring into its place this hopefully will add some strength, I also have got a chrome ring in the post to help finish the job off neatly, this will hopefully add some strength too, I have decided to use two part epoxy as this is super strong

I've recently done mine, actually second one! The first one (practice) was very rough.
You certainly have to remove a lot of the surround. I managed to retain some of the inner "shroud" which stiffens it all a bit.
I haven't yet permanently assembled it all, as that's where I went wrong last time by getting glue everywhere!
What did you use for the re-spray of the fascia?
Regards
Steve M

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Looking good Steve, hope mine comes out looking like that, it definitely looks better than the stock switch.
 
Steve I used some Matt Black plastic spray paint, it's soft touch but hard wearing compared to the Audi Stuff takes 24 hours to dry though and waiting for my chrome bezel should be here tomorrow with any luck.
 
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