A4 Quattro Loads of issues

[mintminty59]

My beloved Audi A4 1.8T quattro has been the vein of my existance since I clapped eyes on it and have no idea why people say these are reliable, mine has been anything but.

Issues I have had, Sludge Oil, Vacum leaks gallore, wheel bearings, and airbag light (fail MOT now)

Really bad performance and turbo seems useless.

I now have a new problem, at slow speeds and up to 70 Mph I have this horrid wheering sound which is louder at slower speeds and fades away getting close to 60mph. And it gets louder slightly on breaking, and now and again I hear a thump come from centre of car if I am to keen with the throttle from a standing stop. I have had all wheel bearings checked and there ok. The car has only done 80K miles. I have had some reports it could be the centre support bearing on the drive shaft but at £1,500 to replace I think id rather set fire to it. I wondered if anyone else has had this issue and maybe its been something simpler. My garage is unable to determin where the noise is comming from. It just appears to be comming from the front. Any help you can shed would be greatly appreciated.

[mikeybutch]

Wow some headaches.I think these can be abused as my son has an S3 and he saw a lot of rubbish before he found a good one.The speed related noise could be the brakes or something caught in one.Check the discs for scoring .The thump does seem like a drive shaft or maybe an engine mount is loose.Hope you find its not too bad

[mintminty59]

Wow some headaches.I think these can be abused as my son has an S3 and he saw a lot of rubbish before he found a good one.The speed related noise could be the brakes or something caught in one.Check the discs for scoring .The thump does seem like a drive shaft or maybe an engine mount is loose.Hope you find its not too bad

Thanks for your reply, thats next thing garage checked, and he machined all the disks to be flat and he said there is no rubbing. It almost sounds like wheel bearings but it isnt if that makes sense. Its like a dull humming

[mikeybutch]

Maybe they are symptoms of the same thing play in the driveshaft

[mintminty59]

Maybe they are symptoms of the same thing play in the driveshaft


If it is the drive shaft then I am going to have to scrap the car because no way im spending £1,500 on a drive shaft with the list of problems I have had lost total faith in it.

[spartacus 68]

First things first. It's unusual for the drive-shaft to fail. Have you checked the rear diff for signs of leaks, etc? There are drive-shaft seals and a prop-shaft seal that can weep. There's no scheduled maintenance interval for renewing the gear oil, and Audi won't recommend unless it's leaking, but worth doing all the same, and definitely if mileage is over 100k.

Regards the centre support bearing, Audi don't sell a replacement part, which is where your figure of £1,500 for a new prop-shaft assembly comes from, however there are various threads on adapting a BMW part. Couple of links here: http://www.audifans.net/ftopict-29318.html and http://www.s2forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7353&highlight=prop+centre+bearing

[mintminty59]

First things first. It's unusual for the drive-shaft to fail. Have you checked the rear diff for signs of leaks, etc? There are drive-shaft seals and a prop-shaft seal that can weep. There's no scheduled maintenance interval for renewing the gear oil, and Audi won't recommend unless it's leaking, but worth doing all the same, and definitely if mileage is over 100k.

Regards the centre support bearing, Audi don't sell a replacement part, which is where your figure of £1,500 for a new prop-shaft assembly comes from, however there are various threads on adapting a BMW part. Couple of links here: http://www.audifans.net/ftopict-29318.html and http://www.s2forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7353&highlight=prop+centre+bearing

The gearbox oil was topped up only needed 300ml apparently. I ask him to look for leaks when it goes, the car has only done 82,000 miles thanks for the heads up on that I ask him to take a look at it when it goes in on thursday for the cam belt.

[jimma04]

Check the tyres for uneven wear the tyres can wear in a saw tooth fashion around the side it doesent have to be that bad but it can make it sound like a wheel bearing or two gone I am a vag tech and I've seen a lot of people change a lot of part when all it needs is a tyre or two

[mintminty59]

Check the tyres for uneven wear the tyres can wear in a saw tooth fashion around the side it doesent have to be that bad but it can make it sound like a wheel bearing or two gone I am a vag tech and I've seen a lot of people change a lot of part when all it needs is a tyre or two


Its funny you should say that, I had 2 front tyres replaced about a month ago. Sound was there before but it has made it worse. Do you think it could be as simple as the tracking or something along those lines. I have decided although its knocking under neath the prop shaft should not be the problem. Also does anyone know if Audi are still taking recalls for the coil packs? As I have noticed a big drop in the power

[sam.bird3]

Also does anyone know if Audi are still taking recalls for the coil packs? As I have noticed a big drop in the power

Yes, I had mine done about 6 weeks ago and fellow member Killakam78 had his done about 2-3 weeks ago.