couple of quick questions

[nskeates]

I have now had my 1,8T for a couple of weeks and i'm very happy with it, gives a great drive without one tiny rattle or squeak. there a couple of things that i need to sort out tho :-

1. can only get warm air from heater, changed thermostat which solved the engine running cold but has not totally solved the heater problem. it has been suggested maybe water pump starting to die. is there a way i can check this before spending out on a new one ? or does anybody else have any other ideas ?

2. rear brake light warning lights !! i will get the rear brake light bulb failure come on maybe once every half hour but one time it will be the left hand bulb then next time it will be the right hand bulb, but each time the brake light bulb will be working again within the minute.

any help to solve these issues would be much appreciated as love the car.

thanks
neil

[elPaulio]

Hi there,

Glad you are happy with your A4 :)

1) I take it by only warm air you mean you can get cold and warm but not hot? If thats the case then I would suggest that the heater matrix may be blocked. Either that or a problem with your Climatronic module in that it thinks the car is hotter than it is. A VCDS scan would show up the Climatronic problem, not sure on the heater matrix though. Possibly a flush and re-fill of the coolant may cure this.

2) Sounds very much like a dodgy connection. Best to check everthing you can, starting with the earth wires in the boot near the lamp holders. Check the wiring to the holders also.

Hope that helps

And long may you be happy with the car :D

Paul :biglaugh:

[Crasher]

The poor heater output is probably a water pump failure but heater matrix blockage and head gasket failure is not unheard of and can cause the same problems. Rev the engine up to about 3K at a standstill and see if the heater output improves.

[nskeates]

thanks for the replies.

i can get cold and warm air but its just the hot side !!

will give the engine rev a go tonight, when i think about it, the temperature of the air does seem to improve a bit when i go on the motorway and do the speed to get the 3k revs. would this point to the waterpump ?

what sort of job is it to replace the waterpump ?

seems like the rear brake light left hand side has finally failed, can any body quickly say how to take cluster out, i know there is a link at top of page but i cannot download that while i'm at work and would like to change bulb before i set off home.

thanks
neil

[bez101]

look in boot theres a small cover remove and u will see a cross head remove pull light out 5 min job

[Crasher]

Water pump is a big job, front end and cam belt off.

[nskeates]

temperature definitely seems to increase with revs which i suppose points to the water pump. :confused:

[elPaulio]

Eeep!!

Did you get it from a garage or private?
If a garage then you could try asking them to foot some of the bill!

If not, then shop around, there are wildy varying prices for getting the waterpump and timing belt replaced.

Paul :biglaugh:

[nskeates]

it was a trader but one that operates from his house, so dont think there is much chance getting anything out of him !!

i have a good cheap mechanic that i use so thats not an issue.

Is it worth getting the water pump from the main ******** or are the ones from GSF just as good. timing belt was only done 10k miles ago.

[Crasher]

http://www.vwaudiforum.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=48541&highlight=********

[nskeates]

i take that comment back then !! have spent too many years on bmw forums where that remark is used all the time. will not use it in future.

now does anybody know if the water pumps from GSF are as good as the ones from the main dealers ? :o

[Crasher]

That’s because BMW’s are the car of the devil. The water pumps from GSF are fine, come with a metal impeller (which isn’t as big a deal as people make out although probably what is wrong with yours) but don’t come with the two year labour inclusive warranty VAG pumps carry.

[nskeates]

not sure if these are related but i have got my car booked in to have the waterpump and timing belt done next tuesday but since my last post the heat from the blower has reduced alot. the air coming out is not even warm now, is this a sign that i dont have much time left on the pump ? also not sure if this is linked in but when the engine has warmed up and i seem to come to my first stop (ie traffic lights) i get a burning smell and there is a very small amount of smoke coming from down the right hand side of the exhaust in the engine bay, this will continue for a couple of minutes then stop. i would have thought something is dripping onto the exhaust while the car is parked up. has anybody got any idea what is down that way that might leak ?

thanks for any info as i'm getting rather peed off with the car that seems to be one thing after another !!! :(

thanks
neil

[Crasher]

Probably the pump failing but can also be a silted up matrix and the smoke will be the usual 1.8T cam cover leak.

[nskeates]

can you disconnect the matrix and connect a hose to flush it out or is there a better way ?

the cam cover, is that a gasket replacement ?

thanks
neil

[Crasher]

I have tried to flush the matrixes out with a pressure wash and even an air line at 150 psi and have failed to get the silt out of the tubes which are vertically mounted and U shaped so the silt sits at the bottom of the U. If one tube is clear and the other 20 or so blocked, all that you force through goes through the one that is open and the others remain blocked. The only cure for a blocked matrix is replacement which is an evil job.

The cam cover gasket leak may be just the gasket but the covers are also prone to warping, if I remove the cover, I replace it as they are often covered in thick oil sludge on the back which takes longer to remove labour cost wise than a new one costs.

[nskeates]

thanks crasher for the all the info.

Is there an easy way to check to see if the matrix is blocked before i get the waterpump changed.

just dont want to change the waterpump then find out its the heater matrix.

thanks
neil

[Crasher]

Very difficult to diagnose and both are as likely as each other. One way I try and get a feel for what is wrong is to get the engine hot and bring the revs up to around 3K and hold them there, if the engine doesn’t start to get too hot with the fan kicking in and out normally and no or little heat comes out then I would judge it to be the matrix.

[nskeates]

i did do the test that you previously suggested, sit there and rev at 3k and if the heat increases it should be the water pump. well the heat did increase but i would never have said it got hot.

[Crasher]

Then I would think it is the pump.

[nskeates]

thanks for the help crasher, will keep my fingers crossed and plum for the water pump. annoying thing is that the cambelt was only done 9k miles ago.

thanks

[Crasher]

And the water pump wasn't?

[nskeates]

didn't own the car then so will have to try and find out if it was done

[nskeates]

had the water pump done today and the old one was shot to pieces so i thought good that must be the problem, but i was wrong !!! still only get hot air when on high revs !! i take it the only thing left is the heater matrix ?

what sort of job is this ? how much for replacement parts or can they be cleaned ?

thanks
neil

[bez101]

had the water pump done today and the old one was shot to pieces so i thought good that must be the problem, but i was wrong !!! still only get hot air when on high revs !! i take it the only thing left is the heater matrix ?

what sort of job is this ? how much for replacement parts or can they be cleaned ?

thanks
neil

could be the stat

[nskeates]

changed the thermostate before the water pump !!

[nskeates]

my mechanic said that the AC compressor is running constantly, is this correct ?

thanks
neil

[euroslap]

If you're not on the ECON setting then yes it will run constantly.

[nskeates]

even with the econ button pressed it still runs, so i take it this is wrong and could maybe a reason why i cannot get warm air out of my vents. is there a way i can disconnect the ac compressor just to see if is solves my problem ?

[euroslap]

I suppose you could try taking the fuse out for the aircon, but with your's being climatronic I don't know if it'll disable the display/controls aswell but could be worth a stab. :confused:

[Crasher]

The A/C pump may not always be running, people often think that but unplugging the clutch wire (very easy) will confirm if it is receiving a constant voltage. The heater matrix cannot be flushed out in my experience, I have tried and failed on a number of occasions using every trick I can think of, chemical, pressure wash and air line.

[nskeates]

Hello Crasher,

thanks for the reply again, becoming bit of a saga !!

what sort of job is it to replace the heater matrix (roughly) ? do you have any idea on price for a replacement ?

thanks
neil

[Crasher]

Private Message me the cars reg number.

[Crasher]

The matrix is £123 genuine. I didn’t notice yours was an 8E model (I should take note of the section I am looking at) but on these (compared to the 8D), changing the matrix is really easy as it slides out just like on a Mk1 Golf without stripping down the whole dash BUT these are not so prone to becoming blocked as the capillaries are horizontal, just like on a Mk1 Golf. Audi only quote 90 time units for this job, less than an hour and that is for left hand drive which takes a little longer as the accelerator pedal is in the way.

For a laugh, I called my local Audi dealer to see how much they would charge. When they eventually answered the phone (at least 5 minuets of sitting there waiting for them to answer) they spluttered around for another ten minuets and eventually came back with an estimate of £600 labour plus the matrix…

[nskeates]

not sure if this will help pin point the problem but i have been messing around with the heater controls this morning and found out that you can have the heater on and it will be blowing out just luke warm air but if you turn the heater off for 5 mins then back on the air is nice and warm for a couple of minutes then will go back to being just luke warm. :confused:

[Crasher]

Poor flow into/through the matrix. By turning it off for a time, you allow the matrix to heat up again. Think of it as a radiator cooled by an electric fan. Try revving it with the blower on and see if it stays hot.

[nskeates]

disconnected the clutch on the ac compressor at lunchtime with no difference so its seems that everything is pointing towards the heater matrix. will get it done and report back.

thanks for all the info crasher.

neil