Lower engine Cover Missing

[wombleman]

Hi All

We have just had our Audi A4 Cab Mot'd and have been advised that the lower Engine Cover is Missing.

The car was serviced 1000 Miles ago and apparantly it was there at that point.

The car was Serviced and Mot'd at the same main dealer.

The dealer advised us that we may have lost it going over a speed bump!!!

Surely this is a large cover and would notice this falling off of the car.

What are the chances of this happening....We don't go over that many speed bumps and when we do we go slow...

I am going to check the undercarriage and if all of the screws are missing I am sure that it has not fallen off.

Does anyone have engine experience who would know of this cover and how it is fitted and what the possabilities are of this falling off and us not noticing it.

We were advised that this is removed when they service the car....

Any help & advice would be appreciated..

Thanks

Mike

[vwcabriolet1971]

The screws and clips that secure VAG undertrays do get rusty and weak over time and then because the clips get very weak because they are so thin , the screws can fall out . Most garages ( including VAG dealerships) do not stock these parts so consequently they are not replaced as & when necessary. Also garages ( & VAG) lose screws and do not replace them .
I had a VW ( untouched by anyone else) serviced Golf that had half the screws missing after 3 yrs servicing !
A simple dip of the screws in anti-seize copper slip and a brush coat of grease on the clips extends their life by a a factor of about 3. The clips and screws are not expensive so I cannot understand why VAG dealerships do not stock a minm. quantity.

[wombleman]

Having a picture now of this cover...it is huge..!

I think I would know if it dropped off!!

It must have 7 or 8 screws holding this thing in and it was only 1000 since its last service...

Something smell Fishy to me!

[fourringsrus]

I lost my lower cover on an S3 when I ran over a dead badger late one night, believe me , you will notice the very second that the cover comes away.

[scotty33]

Off the top of my head, it slots into the bottom of the front bumper, which locates the front edge, the rear is held up by 3 large self tapper style screws into a carrier/mounting strip. There are also 2 fastenings each side, at the front of the wheelarch - these are coarse threaded studs (like self tapper screwthreads), the nuts which screw onto these are plastic, and easily overtightened, which strips the threads, if the rear screws were missing or fell out, I could see that it could fall off, but as above I am certain you would notice this..