strange noise, cant even get it looked at

[willster]

Hi everyone, ive recenty been hearing a very alarming knocking/rattling from the front end of my B6 A4 2.5tdi, i can feel it through the pedals and wheels and hear it quite loudly. its not intermittent or random , seeems to be rythmical i.e with every rotation of the wheel and increases with speed .
Apart from the fact it makes me cringe and grimace on the motorway , i also think it sounds quite dangerous and seems to be getting worse.

Ive got money to spend on it but cant book it in anywhere , awesome gti in Manchester cant even spare me half an hour till the 28th my more local specialist, shaftsbury motors cant look at it till about the same time.

Can anyone alay my fears or know of any other specialists in the North WEst ,idealy Manchester area i could try ? thanks alot guys :1zhelp:

[kenney]

Hi I would suggest checking the wheel bolts before driving anywhere

[willster]

cheers for the reply Kenny ,this did obviously cross my mind. But i just had my brand new wheels and tyres fitted at a vag specialist so that rules out loose wheel bolts, im hedging my bets on either wheel bearings or a spring damper issue, but im certainly no expert!

[RickT]

Just had new wheels fitted...

CHECK the bolts.. Sometimes on new alloys the bolts can come lose.. This happen to me years ago when i fitted some new alloys..

if that fails.. jack the car up and check for play in the wheel bearing... (this can be done by grabbing the wheel on either side and pushing forward and backwards)

Rick

[willster]

cheers rick will do that mate ,

[kenney]

cheers for the reply Kenny ,this did obviously cross my mind. But i just had my brand new wheels and tyres fitted at a vag specialist so that rules out loose wheel bolts, im hedging my bets on either wheel bearings or a spring damper issue, but im certainly no expert!
That is all the more reason to check the bolts and as Rick said the bolts can loosen

[willster]

agreed,i will check them before i next drive it. thanks

[willster]

you guys were right ! the front offside bolts were really loose, ive tightened them but the noise is still there only not as pronouced. It goes in to Auto Deutsch in Manchester on Friday so hopefully they will be able to shed some light on it. Im thinking of replacing all springs and dampers anyway really, as at 110k the ride is a little harsh. While i had the car jacked up checking for play on the wheel bearings i had a poke around underneath and discovered what appears to be a coolant leak. its about 1ft directly in from the front offside wheel ,the photos i took are from directly below, its really innacsessable so i couldnt see exactly where its coming from, it seems to be only losing a gobfull every 5days or so ,. Can anyone identify the probable source of the leak from the photos ? i would be very gratefull .

http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h209/rob256r/?action=view&current=IMG_1948.jpg
http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h209/rob256r/?action=view&current=IMG_1953.jpg