B5 Audi A4 2.8 Quattro Avant
Discussion
Right, i've had a few days to take a few deep breaths and collect myself.
There will be a bit of overlapping with the previous posts but i've some photos and can expand upon what's been going on.
Last week the car went in to fit a new cat, change pads on the rear and do the diff oil.
Last week the car also decided it wanted a new Lambda sensor, New springs, didn't want new diff oil and fought for some new callipers.
When they were removing the Lambda, the threads left the chat. And annoyingly for me - it's a weird plug. So there was a cock up with ordering (well it just never turned up) and why it missed the initial MOT slot. Apologies for some of the quality of the photos, they're just grabbed from videos.
Whilst a wee bit blurry you can pretty much see it's not happy.
And nice new Bosch? unit i think. Can't remember.
Anyway once this was all back together, we found out that both cats had failed. Maybe i've hit the limiter one to many times?
Next woe, the boot on the pass calliper is mangled but piston still runs smoothly. Something to keep an eye on for the future. One of the sliders was solid as well so that got freed up. The pads are some new Textar units. Which feel good but i mean, i haven't done much driving with them in yet,
Brakes/handbrake were both good on the test so at least that is a positive.
Pesky wee diff. I've spent a few weeks trying to soak the fill bung but obviously it's helped less then a smart motorway system. The drain bung comes out easily, i assume as it's sitting in oil constantly. Breaker bar, shocking it etc did not work. So this is something we shall revisit in the future when money and time permit.
And then the broken coil spring was found. As you can see in the photo it's the original red sachs sport shocks. So i am assuming original springs too.
Car is going back tomorrow for new springs and shocks on the rear. I had previously discussed about lowering it but i think ultimately i am going to stick with OEM sport flavour, which is a nice height. Specially once we have sorted the front wheel fitment.
Will find out what we are ordering soon and continue further updates as i know with MOT bits.
Anyway, SOME good news. f
k you drivetrain shunting, i've finally found you. A mate had mentioned that the front diff mount can go. HE resovled his with tiger seal. Tiger seal is roughly 60A hardness which i think corresponds closely to OEM rubber? Anyway the reason why this is the route i chose to go is. I could buy a used one, which will ultimately have the same issue for £150 quid, or buy a solid one for £300+ which i didn't want for harshness/cost.
Whilst the car was at the garage, i got under and pushed up on the bush. There was considerable movement. I noted there was good access to it, even if jacked up from the floor and the bolts looked good. Friday evening, went up to my mates heated garage and whipped the part out.
Propping the diff up with a few workshop essentials, being careful to not make the axle stand live.
All fairly clean behind the bush which was nice. Took a little time to remove as the bolts are longer then the queues at the dartford crossing.
So all the gaps were filled in. In the bottom photo, that large amount of tiger seal is there as it's all pretty much open space. Only the very central is rubber bush. And the right is a metal plate which is then what sits on the chassis.
Anyway, now that's done. There isn't horrendous low speed shunting. or jerkiness and the gear sick is a lot more positive.
There will be a bit of overlapping with the previous posts but i've some photos and can expand upon what's been going on.
Last week the car went in to fit a new cat, change pads on the rear and do the diff oil.
Last week the car also decided it wanted a new Lambda sensor, New springs, didn't want new diff oil and fought for some new callipers.
When they were removing the Lambda, the threads left the chat. And annoyingly for me - it's a weird plug. So there was a cock up with ordering (well it just never turned up) and why it missed the initial MOT slot. Apologies for some of the quality of the photos, they're just grabbed from videos.
Whilst a wee bit blurry you can pretty much see it's not happy.
And nice new Bosch? unit i think. Can't remember.
Anyway once this was all back together, we found out that both cats had failed. Maybe i've hit the limiter one to many times?
Next woe, the boot on the pass calliper is mangled but piston still runs smoothly. Something to keep an eye on for the future. One of the sliders was solid as well so that got freed up. The pads are some new Textar units. Which feel good but i mean, i haven't done much driving with them in yet,
Brakes/handbrake were both good on the test so at least that is a positive.
Pesky wee diff. I've spent a few weeks trying to soak the fill bung but obviously it's helped less then a smart motorway system. The drain bung comes out easily, i assume as it's sitting in oil constantly. Breaker bar, shocking it etc did not work. So this is something we shall revisit in the future when money and time permit.
And then the broken coil spring was found. As you can see in the photo it's the original red sachs sport shocks. So i am assuming original springs too.
Car is going back tomorrow for new springs and shocks on the rear. I had previously discussed about lowering it but i think ultimately i am going to stick with OEM sport flavour, which is a nice height. Specially once we have sorted the front wheel fitment.
Will find out what we are ordering soon and continue further updates as i know with MOT bits.
Anyway, SOME good news. f
k you drivetrain shunting, i've finally found you. A mate had mentioned that the front diff mount can go. HE resovled his with tiger seal. Tiger seal is roughly 60A hardness which i think corresponds closely to OEM rubber? Anyway the reason why this is the route i chose to go is. I could buy a used one, which will ultimately have the same issue for £150 quid, or buy a solid one for £300+ which i didn't want for harshness/cost. Whilst the car was at the garage, i got under and pushed up on the bush. There was considerable movement. I noted there was good access to it, even if jacked up from the floor and the bolts looked good. Friday evening, went up to my mates heated garage and whipped the part out.
Propping the diff up with a few workshop essentials, being careful to not make the axle stand live.
All fairly clean behind the bush which was nice. Took a little time to remove as the bolts are longer then the queues at the dartford crossing.
So all the gaps were filled in. In the bottom photo, that large amount of tiger seal is there as it's all pretty much open space. Only the very central is rubber bush. And the right is a metal plate which is then what sits on the chassis.
Anyway, now that's done. There isn't horrendous low speed shunting. or jerkiness and the gear sick is a lot more positive.
fking fkety fk, fk. What an absolute .
Well, worst fears have been confirmed.
Rear shock towers are rotted out.
Minor good news, under the rot is good metal. And there are repair panels available which have been ordered.
Wrong shocks and springs have been sent out, surprise surprise. Fairly minor in the grand scheme of b5 fkery.
Slowly getting acquainted with the GTE, managing to charge it up at work which is helping with fuel bills. Loving the blue tartan. And adaptive cruise control is absolutely wild. View from within the vehicle is poor. God high belt line design is bloody annoying. I hate auto dimming rear view mirrors. It's like looking into a cats arse hole.
king fkety fk, fk. What an absolute . Well, worst fears have been confirmed.
Rear shock towers are rotted out.
Minor good news, under the rot is good metal. And there are repair panels available which have been ordered.
Wrong shocks and springs have been sent out, surprise surprise. Fairly minor in the grand scheme of b5 f
kery. Slowly getting acquainted with the GTE, managing to charge it up at work which is helping with fuel bills. Loving the blue tartan. And adaptive cruise control is absolutely wild. View from within the vehicle is poor. God high belt line design is bloody annoying. I hate auto dimming rear view mirrors. It's like looking into a cats arse hole.
Cambs_Stuart said:
I'm sensing some frustration?
Stick with it, it's just time and money and all repairable. And it'll be much nice to drive afterwards. It's all part of the fun of driving an older car.
Some car and life frustrations culminating in this being a difficult time. Stick with it, it's just time and money and all repairable. And it'll be much nice to drive afterwards. It's all part of the fun of driving an older car.
But yes, this far into it now. So have to stick with it. Again thankfully, i have a loan car.
Jhonno said:
Just checking in to see if this has been lowered yet.. 
Looks like you've got your wish. fks sake. Struggling to get OEM parts for the sport suspension and for a 4wd car - people keep sending FWD shocks.
There was a deal on ST suspension (KW) for shocks and springs with a 30mm drop (-10mm for my car). And we have ordered it.
SO yeah, merry xmas me/car and a happy mental breakdown.
I suspect final bill will be in region of £1500.
I've mixed emotions. It's something i wanted to do, just not something i wanted to be dealing with right now. As for lots of people money is tight, so it'll be an interesting couple of months. However, i can't wait to get it back.
Scoobydrew95 said:
I've mixed emotions. It's something i wanted to do, just not something i wanted to be dealing with right now. As for lots of people money is tight, so it'll be an interesting couple of months. However, i can't wait to get it back.
Exactly what happened with my E46 when the rear trailing arm bushes gave up.. Big bill, bad timing, but something I had wanted to do. Luckily I had been stock piling a few bits here and there so it wasn't as painful as it might have been.Jhonno said:
Exactly what happened with my E46 when the rear trailing arm bushes gave up.. Big bill, bad timing, but something I had wanted to do. Luckily I had been stock piling a few bits here and there so it wasn't as painful as it might have been.
Really is a pain isn't it. Thoroughly looking forward to driving it once it's back though!
Confirmed this morning,
That i shall not be getting the Quattro back till the new year.
Parts have been delayed.
And will have to use this utterly hateful 2009 base spec A3. Genuinely the worst care i have had the unpleasure to drive with the culmination of it's stness. Christ does it give me horrendous hip pain, i'm bloody 28 and not something i should be complaining about.
That i shall not be getting the Quattro back till the new year.
Parts have been delayed. And will have to use this utterly hateful 2009 base spec A3. Genuinely the worst care i have had the unpleasure to drive with the culmination of it's s
tness. Christ does it give me horrendous hip pain, i'm bloody 28 and not something i should be complaining about. Just read through your thread. I have a 1.8T quattro one of these and I have owned it for 20 years. Mine is red saloon.
I use it as my winter car now as an excuse to keep it.
They were very well made and for about the first 15 years I barely needed to pay for any maintence other than normal servicing. The past 5 years have got a bit more expensive (turbo, oil pump, rear shock towers, clutch) but its to be expected I suppose.
I use it as my winter car now as an excuse to keep it.
They were very well made and for about the first 15 years I barely needed to pay for any maintence other than normal servicing. The past 5 years have got a bit more expensive (turbo, oil pump, rear shock towers, clutch) but its to be expected I suppose.
PaulJC84 said:
Just read through your thread. I have a 1.8T quattro one of these and I have owned it for 20 years. Mine is red saloon.
I use it as my winter car now as an excuse to keep it.
They were very well made and for about the first 15 years I barely needed to pay for any maintence other than normal servicing. The past 5 years have got a bit more expensive (turbo, oil pump, rear shock towers, clutch) but its to be expected I suppose.
Ah god, you poor soul - that's a lot of drivel to sift through. I use it as my winter car now as an excuse to keep it.
They were very well made and for about the first 15 years I barely needed to pay for any maintence other than normal servicing. The past 5 years have got a bit more expensive (turbo, oil pump, rear shock towers, clutch) but its to be expected I suppose.
That's quite the job, keeping it for that long. I certainly wish to keep it as long as it is feasible.
And a great winter car? Not really had the chance to delve into the quattro with snow yet.
They do seem generally very well put together and i'm hoping after this whopping bill there wont be much more needed until the next belt service. I really do miss it, has really greatly got under my skin.
Finally - prayers have been answered. I now finally get to enjoy frequent fuel stops again.
The car passed its MOT at about 5pm last night.
Minor advisories. Chip in the screen. Oil leak but that's for a warmer day.
And the perished tyre I think is a tad harsh to even note. It's barely visible.
Anyway, I took some screen shots of the plethora of videos Steve sent me whilst getting the wagon through it's 2 months and 11 day hibernation.
Well let's start with the big ticket item. The st suspension by KW. They're 10mm lower then standard sport suspension and about the only thing we could find to fit a quattro which wasn't a full coilover set up. They were approx £500 which I'm fairly happy with. We did try to get springs and shocks bought but found it very difficult to source quattro bits. Kept getting sent non sport or fwd bits.
From here th quality of photos won't be so great. Apologies.
Shame we couldn't find any OEM red shocks but never mind. Yellow springs I guess makes up for it!
The other major problem was the rear strut towers. Mud gets caught between the body and the tower and rots it out. It's quite thin sheet metal and tbh you'll only ever find out if you take them off. We ordered some repair panels from Germany as it worked out as a more cost effective way then buying used ones which we couldn't verify structural integrity. Annoyingly other then the back panel. Mine are in very good condition. And still solid.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/GG3G1oSd[/url]
All the spot welds need to be cut out and then panel removed and cleaned up.
The main panel can then be spot welded back into place and then formed to the turret. Once that's done a second piece needs welding in, as this clears the spring.
Afterwards then painted and waxoiled to within an inch of their life. Hopefully they'll outlive the car, me and nuclear warfare.
They also treated some of the body as well after cleaning it.
All nice and shiny and assembled.
A few more exhaust woes, trying to get the cats sealing. I think in the future we might look at sports cats. But it is sealed up for now.
They also added a second bracket. Unfortunately when I purchased the car the brackets were missing that supported the down pipes. You can buy the individual parts online but for one side it would work out at like £100 when I last checked.
So just a spacer and some washers were put together to support it.
All in, it's cost a fair bit but I'm happy to have it back.
Next weekend will be travelling towards Birmingham as I've finally found a non rusty red bootlid for a fair price. As that's the one panel that really lets the car down.
I can't decide if I want to de wiper the car whilst I'm doing that process.
From driving some more modern cars the one interaction that really lets this car down now is the shifting. The linkage doesn't feel great. However I believe to get to the bushes it's almost a gearbox out job?? Might be Passat b5 that though. Will look into and go from there. Plus the other jobs I have to do. Rocker cover and chain tensioner gaskets. Snub-nose mount. Etc etc.
The car passed its MOT at about 5pm last night.
Minor advisories. Chip in the screen. Oil leak but that's for a warmer day.
And the perished tyre I think is a tad harsh to even note. It's barely visible.
Anyway, I took some screen shots of the plethora of videos Steve sent me whilst getting the wagon through it's 2 months and 11 day hibernation.
Well let's start with the big ticket item. The st suspension by KW. They're 10mm lower then standard sport suspension and about the only thing we could find to fit a quattro which wasn't a full coilover set up. They were approx £500 which I'm fairly happy with. We did try to get springs and shocks bought but found it very difficult to source quattro bits. Kept getting sent non sport or fwd bits.
From here th quality of photos won't be so great. Apologies.
Shame we couldn't find any OEM red shocks but never mind. Yellow springs I guess makes up for it!
The other major problem was the rear strut towers. Mud gets caught between the body and the tower and rots it out. It's quite thin sheet metal and tbh you'll only ever find out if you take them off. We ordered some repair panels from Germany as it worked out as a more cost effective way then buying used ones which we couldn't verify structural integrity. Annoyingly other then the back panel. Mine are in very good condition. And still solid.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/GG3G1oSd[/url]All the spot welds need to be cut out and then panel removed and cleaned up.
The main panel can then be spot welded back into place and then formed to the turret. Once that's done a second piece needs welding in, as this clears the spring.
Afterwards then painted and waxoiled to within an inch of their life. Hopefully they'll outlive the car, me and nuclear warfare.
They also treated some of the body as well after cleaning it.
All nice and shiny and assembled.
A few more exhaust woes, trying to get the cats sealing. I think in the future we might look at sports cats. But it is sealed up for now.
They also added a second bracket. Unfortunately when I purchased the car the brackets were missing that supported the down pipes. You can buy the individual parts online but for one side it would work out at like £100 when I last checked.
So just a spacer and some washers were put together to support it.
All in, it's cost a fair bit but I'm happy to have it back.
Next weekend will be travelling towards Birmingham as I've finally found a non rusty red bootlid for a fair price. As that's the one panel that really lets the car down.
I can't decide if I want to de wiper the car whilst I'm doing that process.
From driving some more modern cars the one interaction that really lets this car down now is the shifting. The linkage doesn't feel great. However I believe to get to the bushes it's almost a gearbox out job?? Might be Passat b5 that though. Will look into and go from there. Plus the other jobs I have to do. Rocker cover and chain tensioner gaskets. Snub-nose mount. Etc etc.
Edited by Scoobydrew95 on Friday 2nd February 10:31
Edited by Scoobydrew95 on Friday 2nd February 10:33
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