Friday, April 5, 2013
Audi A3 Crankcase Breather Supplemental Check
06F 129 101 G New breather (PCV) valve
06F 103 215 A New pipe with checkvalve
06F 103 483 E Gasket
06F 145 757 F Gasket
The part numbers listed above are the recommended solution.
When I install those parts, Ill post an article with instructions.
Before these new parts were available, another means was devised to supplement the stock brather valve, and either protect for a non-failed valve or compensate for a failed one. The solution was originally posted by digitalhippie on the VWVortex 2.0T FSI forum. He located a check valve that was heat- and solvent-resistant, and which had opening and holding pressures that would work perfectly for this application. Putting this checkvalve in the breather line would prevent backpressure from reaching the original breather valve and leaking past it. I provided him with photos of how he originally described implementing the fix, but at the same time I posted that I would probably improve upon the idea by using silicone hoses.
The thing with finding silicone hoses is that the fittings on the engine work best with 19mm ID hose, and the new checkvalve fits tightly in 16mm ID hose. I located 19mm --> 16mm reducing elbow hoses and tried them as part of a new checkvalve assembly. The valve will screw tightly into the 16mm ends of the elbows (trimming of excess hose length is necessary), and I have so far not found the need to clamp the hose at the valve since it fits so tightly. The seal is such that no thread blow-by can occur.
I discussed this idea with the hose vendor, and they were cautious about using non-flurolined hoses because of possible degradation due to oil exposure. Given this, Im going to keep an eye on the hoses to see what the long-term effects are, but Im not overly concerned because the amount of oil exposure is relatively small.
Note: Several people who have tried this solution have reported failure of the checkvalve. This could be due to damage from applying too much clamping force on the valve instead of using tightly fitting hoses like I did, but there is no definitive answer as to what caused the valve failures. This article is provided for information only, do this at your own risk.
Installation of the McMaster valve:
This is the valve. It is available ONLY from McMaster-Carr. The part number is: 1424T37 (Nylon Spring-Loaded Piston Check Valve 1/2" NPT Male Inlet X 1/2" NPT Male Outlet).
This is the stock pipe that we will replace. Note the direction of flow! When you install your new valve & hose assembly, make sure to verify that the valve flows in the correct direction!
This is the new hose and valve assembly. The hoses must be trimmed slightly on each end. The silicone reducing elbows were obtained from Forge Motorsport.
If you are still using the stock engine cover (e.g. you dont have a third-party intake that eliminates the cover), then the hoses have to be arranged to fit in a particular space in the underside of the cover to prevent pinching. This is why the upper portion of the new hose assembly is a little bit longer and doesnt look quite symmetrical in the photo. This photo shows the underside of the engine cover with the stock hose laying in the groove (with the new McMaster valve beside it) for illustration purposes of how the replacement hose would need to route as well.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Audi TT DIY Fixing Your License Plate Lights
Problem: Rear license plate lights no longer work
Tools: #10 socket, #2 Philips screw driver, torx set
Parts: 8D0 943 022 A, 8D0 943 022
Standard disclaimer: Im not liable for the stupid things you do!
Ok, lets get started. First you will need to remove the 9 felt covered screws from the trunk lid. Once you have removed those, remove the two Philips screws inside of the trunk lid handle. The felt liner should pull away, although you may have to wiggle it around to get it to free itself.
Once the liner is removed, you will need to remove the two nuts from the locking cylinder mechanism.
The next step is to remove the two torx screws that hold the light molding in place. They are located on either side of the locking cylinder mechanism. You should see an access hole through the sheet metal.
At this point you will need to unplug the two wire connecters. I used a small flathead screwdriver to pry the connectors off. As you can see mine were pretty badly corroded!
The entire light assembly should pull off the trunk now. Remove the two screws holding on the clear plastic covers for the lamps. On the back of the light assembly are four screws that hold the lights in. Remove them and the lights should pull out. As you can see, more corrosion. One of the contacts is completely gone!
New light:
The next step is to reinstall your new lights into the trim piece.
From this point on everything is in reverse. Hope this helps somebody down the road.
Audi A8 Tiptronic Shifter Removal
- Removal of the wood trim to polish and remove scratches. This area usually takes the most abuse from items getting placed on top of it.
- Removal of the aluminum shifter trim for polishing.
- Repairing /replacing LED backlighting for the shift indicator lights.
- As part of doing a Tiptronic upgrade on a 1997 US bound A8.
- Cleaning of the rubber “tractor” shift guide. If your shifter is getting harder to move through the gears, cleaning might help. In my case, this was necessary due to a spilled drink, but Im sure they all get a gunk build up over time.
Time
Varies widely depending on what you do. Figure 45 minutes or so to get it opened up.
Tools Required
- “T” handle 6mm hex works best although an Allen wrench would work too
- Trim removal tools
You can find the instructions on how to remove and reinstall the side panels here. If you have a facelift car, youll need a 5mm allen wrench to remove the switch under the gas pedal.
Remove both the driver and passenger floor mats AND the sound insulation underneath. The sound insulation is the same shape as the floor mat only its much thicker and heavier.
On the drivers side, remove the two plastic inserts in the knee bolster below the steering wheel. They pop right out and will expose 6mm hex screws. Remove those screws and the whole piece will tilt down out of the way. Carefully prop it against the floor. You dont really need to remove it entirely for this project. Dont break the OBD harness, it will still be attached. Pictures and detailed description can be found here.
On the passenger side, look for a rectangular Velcro section on the transmission hump carpeting. Its around ankle height on the left side as you are sitting in the seat. Pull that back, remove the small plastic cover (pry off with a screwdriver) and remove the Philips screw.
In order to get the shifter assembly apart, you now need to remove the side panels to expose 6mm hex screws. Two of them secure the wood trim and two secure the aluminum shifter piece. Pull the side panels down and out on both the driver and passenger sides. They have tabs that catch behind the center console.
Once the side panels are out of the way (get them out of the car), look on each side, behind where the side panels were installed, for the 6mm hex screws and remove them. If you are taking out BOTH the shifter and wood trim, remove all four.
Once the screws are removed, you can pry up on the wood trim and remove it. There will be some friction from the rubber gasket but it will come straight up and out.
If you have removed the screws for the aluminum shifter, it will pull straight up as well but will NOT come out until you do two more things. Depending on what youre doing, this might be far enough do get what you need done. If you want to completely remove it, go to the step below.
Completely Removing the Shifter
If you are at this step, the wood trim has been removed and the aluminum shifter should be loose but still connected. If you want to remove it completely, do the following.
Disconnect the two wiring harnesses on the left hand side. Youll probably need to cut the zip ties that hold the connectors in place.
Remove the shifter. This can be a little tricky but let me explain. Just below the leather part of the shift knob, there is an aluminum collar that you need to loosen. Carefully wedge a screwdriver between the bottom of the leather and the top of the collar and press down. Its pretty tight but mine came off right away. I dont think you can “pull” it down with your hands so I came up with the screwdriver method. It goes without saying to do this carefully in case the screwdriver slips. I did it in one shot so hopefully its no big deal.
Once thats done, pull the shift button OUT and pull UP to remove the shifter. Just to clarify, the shift selector button is the one you push in with your thumb before selecting the gear. Note when reinstalling: you will need to use a pair of needle nose pliers to “grab” the shift button in order to pull it back out so you can reinstall it.
At this point the disassembly is complete and you can access pretty much everything related to the center console and shifter. Assembly is the reverse for all steps.
A couple of notes that might be helpful:
- I used a combination of wet sanding and 3 grits of polish on the wood trim. If yours is in pretty good shape you might be able to just polish or use Meguairs scratch remover. This is probably trial and error until you are happy with the results. The clearcoat looks pretty thick so theres a lot of material to work with. Reinstalling with the 6mm screws is optional. The rubber surround holds it tightly in place. This also means youll be able to pop it right back out without all of the disassembly the next time.
- If youre polishing the aluminum trim, I would recommend removing the shift indicator buttons by peeling off the white tape and pushing them out. You will also need to remove the white plastic piece on the back by prying out the four circle clips that hold it on. If you got this far, you wont get stumped with these details. At this point, you be left with just a machined piece of aluminum. I started with 240 grit sandpaper (deep scratches), 320, 400, 500 and then #00, #000, #0000 steel wool. Theres either an anodized coating or clearcoat that you will need to get through before you hit the aluminum. I think any of the grits of sandpaper will get through this pretty fast. I did mine in more of a brushed aluminum look by making the #000 steel wool the last step. If you want to get back to a highly polished finish, you will need to do some buffing too. I replaced these screws but you will notice that this piece is keyed when you reinstall it. You could probably get away without these too, which would eliminate most of this procedure if you wanted to this again.
- The rubber “tractor” looking piece has a pretty tight tolerance and needs to be clean in order to work smoothly. While you have everything opened up, clean it well and use some armor all so that its slippery. I had to do a more extensive cleaning on the plastic guides as it kept getting stuck. Unfortunately, you cant really “test” it until the shifter is reassembled. It needs to be held down in order to work correctly.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Audi Q7 Minor DIY Patch ReSpray
This will be PART I of the DIYr. I will follow up shortly with the rest including photos. Just wanted to get this part out of the way since ppl are asking.
Keep in mind, this type of DIYr is not black and white, it will take some patients along with trial and error. And remember, dont panic, if you screw up, the worst that can happen is you have to redo it - it may cost you some more time and paint, but with paint, nothing is permanent.
WARNING: I do not recommend first timers of this type of DIYr to try this on anything other than bumpers and valences - re-spraying door panels, hoods, fenders, etc takes a lot of practice and should NOT be attempted unless you feel super confident.
ITEMS NEEDED:
- 100 grit wet/dry sand paper
- 300 grit wet/dry sand paper
- 600 grit wet/dry sand paper
- 2000 grit wet/dry sand paper
(you can buy the larger sheets and cut them to size or buy the smaller stuff already pre-cut to fit the sanding blocks I will list below - I found that buying the bigger sheets gives you more for your money and you can always save the left overs for a future mod)
- Sponge sanding block
- Hard rubber sanding block
- Blue painters tape
- Masking paper (can be any kind of paper, but the brown paper rolls you get from Home Depot in the painters section seem to be cheep and work super well)
- Depending on the task at hand, you may need some sort of body filler to fill in holes or deep scratches on the item that you are painting. For items that are flexible such as bumpers and valences, bondo makes a two-part filler that when dry, stays somewhat flexible. For items that are hard and rigid, you can use any type of body filler that you are comfortable with.
- Plastic spreaders
- Rubbing compound
- Wax
- Applicator pads
- soft towels/cloths (for wax and compound removal)
- Some sort of power tool to apply wax/rubbing compound. You can use goodol elbow grease, but I find that a cordless drill and a applicator pad attachment saves a lot of time and energy and the results are much more apparent.
- Applicator pad attachment
- bucket (for clean water and for soapy water)
- sponge (to wash items being painted
- towel (to dry off washed items)
- Primer paint
- Base coat paint
- Clear coat paint
- Adhesive Promoter (if painting something plastic/rubber)
Audi A3 V1 Hardwiring
Keep in mind, this was on a B6, so I dont know if its that easy for a B5 or B7, but it might be the same. I didnt want to run a ground wire all the way throught the A-pillar, and down to the fuse box. There are 2 bolts that you can ground to less than 6 inches from where the 12v lead is. The only problem is that they are underneath the headliner, and a #*@&! to get too, unless you are using a small @ss wrench. It took me a while to get the bolt loose, to get the negative ground on there.
I mounted the V1 above the rearview mirror, to the right side.
I really need pictures on here! Sorry, but I had to rant, very happy with it!
Ok, so here are some pictures!!!
I started by removing the plastic coverings to the lights, which allow you to see two phillips head screws. Remove these, and the whole piece will drop out of the headliner with a little pull.
This picture shows where the 12V lead is plugged into... This is a switched lead, which turns on and off with the cars ignition, perfect for a radar detector.
A close up of the 12V lead...
This is where I put the negative ground to... Its a realy pain in the @ss to get too, but if you use a small wrench, you can get the bolt loose, and put your lead between the bolt and the frame of the car... I would not reccomend removing the bolt completly, because it might be that much harder to get it back on... If you dont use this location for a ground, you may find yourself trying to route a negative ground wire all the way down to your fuse box, and who really wants to do that?
A close up of the pain in the @ss bolt, A.K.A. "Negative Ground"
The finished product!!! Just tuck all of your loose wires into the headliner somewhere. I would reccomend that you zip tie the extra cabling, so that if you have to open up the compartment again, you dont have a bunch of cables drop down. All in all, you are left with a clean looking radar mount position, about 4 inches of coord thats visible, and the radar unit is just below the factory tint level, which does not inhibit the radar detectors performance. Very happy with it!
Audi TT DIY DesignParts Armrest w modified cup holder
Heres the quick how-to of the install:
1. First Im going to assume that the armrest is already installed with the tunnel cover off, as shown below:
The removal of the cup holders on the stock tunnel cover, as well as the installation of the armrest in the tunnel, is very well explained by the instructions provided with the Design Parts armrest, so I wont spend any time on this..
2. Here are the cup holders still attached to the tunnel cover:
3. To disassemble the cup holder piece from the tunner cover itself, remove the two dimpled aluminum covers - they can easily come off with your nails, or if you dont have any, a small flat-head screwdriver:
4. Removing the dimpled aluminum covers reveals a screw on one side, which is held by a nut on the other side. Remove the screw using a T15 bit:
5. Now you can see the mechanics of the rubber "flaps" that hold down your cups or glasses - its just one piece with two ends, kept under tension by a spring:
6. After removing the rubber flap piece and the spring, you can see the screw that holds the cupholders down to the tunnel cover:
Take that screw out (again with a T15 bit), while careful not to lose the washer as well.
7. Now in order to know where to cut, tape off the ends of the aluminum rails and the side of the plastic base you want to remove (either side if fine, as the cupholders are symetrical) with masking tape or electric tape:
8. To make the cutting job easier, remove the vertical center plastic piece off by twisting in the direction shown, while pushing down on the cupholder base to free it from the aluminum rails:
9. I first cut the base off to give more room for the aluminum rail, which are much stronger hence harder to cut:
Note that screw to the left of the following picture, on the aluminum rim - it holds the plastic base and the two aluminum rails together:
10. Now to the actual cutting of the aluminum - I used a circular blade to make the job quick & easy, but it still took a lot of dexterity to cut at the right place:
11. To smoothen the ends, I used a dremel tool with a fine drum sander bit:
12. Unfortunately the rubber flap cannot be cut in half, as the spring would lose its counter-part to load tension on the other flap which we will end up using. Instead, the flap that will be unused must be trimmed a bit to fit between the arms of the armrest (sounds funny doesnt it).
Heres where to cut:
and heres the flap after it was cut:
13. Now on to the final mutilation of the day: set the cupholder (note the lack of "s" now..) on the tunnel cover. You have to choices: cut the original tunnel cover so that it fits around the arms of the armrest (I know, I know..) or make 2 little holes in the tunnel cover provided the armrest to screw the cupholder in it. I chose the latter option, as I thought making 2 U-shaped cuts in the stock tunnel cover would be more painful than just drilling two holes..
To do that, place the covers side-by-side (vertically then horizontally) to get an exact duplicate of the position of the holes, and drill away:
14. Under the original tunnel cover, youll notice a rectangular-shaped metal piece with a drilled hole in it. Youll need to "steal" that piece (its lightly glued on, so just pry it off gently) and place it under your new tunnel cover:
15. Now everything needs to be put back together. Replace the vertical plastic center piece you took out in step 8 over the cupholders base and between the aluminum rails, insert the screw and its washer you took out during step 4 back in the vertical center piece, guide it through the hole and into the rectangular metal piece on the inside of the tunnel cover, re-assemble the spring and rubber flap (keeping in mind which end goes where) over the vertical center piece, slide the screw you took out in step 4 through the aluminum rails and vertical pieces holes and screw it into its nut, and replace the dimpled aluminum covers you took out in step 3:
16. Finally, take your new "chef-doeuvre" (masterpiece) and snap it under the armrest!
Thats it!!
Monday, April 1, 2013
Audi A8 euro blindspot mirrors Installation Fitment thoughts experience you know the drill
The highlights:
- Very easy DIY installation. You can handle each side in 45 minutes (tops)
- Fairly inexpensive...unless you have auto-dimming mirrors (see below)
- I only installed the drivers side mirror. After a month of use, I plan on buying the passenger side.
Bottom-line: Has made a noticeable difference when navigating in traffic (most of my driving is on the highway). These will probably make a bigger difference if you drive a lot in the city.
Description (I pulled this from another website): Why these mirrors arent available outside of Europe, we may never know. The Blindspot Mirror Glass adds safety and security to your vehicle, allowing you to see objects both near, far, and in areas that are normally easy to miss. While basically normal by all appearances, these European Blindspot Mirrors are curved (aspherical) at the outermost edges, allowing for greater range of view.
Fitment for Models/Years: C5 A6/S6/RS6/allroad MY1998-2004
(FYI - the mirror glass from a B5 A4 (MY1999.5-2001) and B5 S4 (MY2000-2002) is the same glass/part used in the C5 A6.)
- C5 A6 MY1998-1999 (those with the smaller passenger/right side mirror. For this car, I am not sure if someone offers a blind spot mirror for the smaller exterior mirror. You might need to install an exterior mirror housing from a newer C5 A6. Sorry, other than that…I can‼sup>TMt help you there (hint: search the forum for any details from those that have done it in the past).
- C5 A6 / S6 / RS6 MY1999.5-2004 (V6 and V8 models all have the same exterior mirrors)
- C5 allroad MY2001-2005 (V6 and V8 models all have the same exterior mirrors. I believe that only www.Vagparts.com offer the allroad versions)
Part numbers (via vagparts.com) for C5 A6/S6/RS6 (1998-2004) FYI - I used the part#s that they gave me for the B5 A4 1999-2001 as they share the common part; also a part# starting in 4B0-XXX-XXX might work).
Auto-dimming, heated version
- Left/drivers side: part#8D0-857-535H
- Right/passenger side: part#8D0-857-536H
NONE auto-dimming, heated version
- Left/drivers side: part# 8D0-857-535E
- Right/passenger side: part# 8D0-857-536E
Part numbers for C5 allroad MY2001-2005 (via vagparts.com)
Auto-dimming, heated version
- Left/drivers side: part# 4Z7-857-535A
- Right/passenger side: part# 4Z7-857-536J
NONE auto-dimming, heated version
- Left/drivers side: part# 4Z7-857-535B
- Right/passenger side: part# 4Z7-857-536D
C6 A6 from 2005 - ?:
C6 A6 MY2005+ ? I believe the B6 A4/S4 (and possibly the D3 A8) share the same size/shape exterior mirrors...but Im not positive (I posted the question on the C6 A6 forum a month ago…and I didnt get a response). In this scenario, you could add the euro blind spot mirrors as they are listed on www.Vagparts.com (both auto-dim and non auto-dim) under the parts section for the B6 A4/S4 (MY2002-2004).
Part numbers (via vagparts.com) for C6 A6 (and possibly S6/RS6…when available):
Auto-dimming, heated version
- Left/drivers side: part# 8E0-857-535H
- Right/passenger side: part# 8E0-857-536H
NONE auto-dimming, heated version
- Left/drivers side: part# 8E0-857-535E
- Right/passenger side: part# 8E0-857-536E
What if I have exterior auto-dimming mirrors?:
Chances are, most of the C5 A6 owners have the convenience package with interior/exterior auto-dimming mirrors. Ive noticed that the auto-dim blind spot mirrors are ridiculously expensive (Ouch! $500+ for a pair). Incidentally, the dealer charges $200/each for a replacement auto-dimming mirror (non euro blind spot).
Based on my research via the Bentley schematics, the three (two exterior and one interior) auto-dimming mirrors all work in concert together to adjust the dimming of all three. You might ask, "how do you know this?"...well my 2001 A6 didnt have the convenience package...and I REALLY wanted the interior auto-dimming mirror. Well, back in June 2002, Achtuning was running a Group Buy for the interior auto-dimming compass mirror for $200. What a bargain! (If you search on achtuning.com you will see the compass mirror listed for $250..but it is backordered). I then consulted the schematics in my Bentley manual and spent some time on the phone with the Audi parts department to figure out what parts I needed and how to hook it up. If anyone would like to add an interior auto-dimming mirror (and/or compass version) to their A6...just drop me an email (teddybgame@hotmail.com). I can send you the parts info for the wires/connectors etc. See also this great article by Joshua (Compass Mirror Tech Article)
Behind the exterior mirrors you will find a separate wiring harness (two wires - see link/pix)
that connect to the perimeter black membrane of the mirror. FYI - this black membrane is auto-dimming sensor.
I dont see why you wouldnt be able to just disconnect those wires and install none auto-dimming [euro blind spot mirrors]. Of course, all C5 A6s have heated mirrors, so these are all heated as well.
Thoughts after 1 month of use (based only on drivers side):
This mirror has already saved my a$$ twice while driving on the Mass Pike (Boston area). If you drive with these mirrors....then drive another car (i.e. your spouses car), it will be a bit disorienting. Ive grown accustomed to that added visibility...but when I go to drive my wifes 2005 Pacifica....I need to take some time to adjust. Of course, you could always just buy euro blind spot mirrors for both cars. Problem: solved! On the flipside, if someone (i.e. your spouse) else drives your car, then he/she will need to adjust to this convex lens as well...because it takes a little while to adjust to them.
Related posts (for those savvy enough to use the "search" function):
related post
related post
related post
related post
Installation fitment post
Source:
(Dear Forum Moderators: Before you decide to delete this post...please keep in mind that I only listed sources that are advertisers on Audiworld)
- Achtuning (AW advertiser): Not sure...as I could only find the version for the TT on their website.
- Stratmosphere (AW advertiser):
Stratmosphere
- EP Importers: http://www.epimporters.com/products/description.php?II=93
- VAG parts - they offer the allroad and the C5 A6 version (located under the 1999-2001 B5 A4 grouping) - (www.vagparts.com) Enter Online Shop/Product Overview/Audi etc. www.vagparts.com
https://sslrelay.com/s74326199.oneandoneshop.co.uk/sess/utn;jsessionid=1542419c21857c3/shopdata/index.shopscript
- ECS Tuning:
http://www.ecstuning.com/stage/edpd/pagebuild_v2.cgi?make=Audi&engine=2.7T&model=B5%20S4&submodel=Avant&category=Exterior
- Pure Motorsport
http://www.pure-motorsport.com/products/category.php/CA=562/PA=1
Links to helpful installation information (very easy job):
Installation post
Installation post
I hope this was useful for you. I tried to cover every possible question that the forum (nooBs and veterans) could ask of me.
Standard Disclaimer: I am not associated with any of the companies that sell/import these mirrors. You assume all responsibility for any damage or unsatisfactory result obtained by following this modification. Please read it all beforehand, just to make sure you understand the implications of this modification and how it will impact your driving ability.
- Ted (Go Celtics!!)
- http://www.stratmosphere.com/audi_mirrors_and_housings1.htm
- C5 Avant - "the Beast" (Ha!!)
- 2005 Chrysler Pacifica Touring (Nav, Sirius, Bluetooth, Xenon, TPMS, ParkSense, DVD Changer - basically loaded)
- 2003 Vespa ET2 (modified exhaust and carb -- so I can max out at 45MPH)
- John Deere Gator (4x2) for the boy
As of November 2006:
Accessory Add-ons:
(Definition: An item that provides a specific function - in a cyclical nature - and can be removed very..very easily.)
1) OEM winter floor mats
2) OEM rubber trunk mat and cargo net
3) VW Touareg cigarette lighter flashlight
4) Thule roof bars with Evolution 1200 roof box
Upgrades:
(Definition: A [bolt-on/bolt-off] item that enhances the appearance, performance or misc function of your car.)
1) OEM front/rear Euro black Recaro Seats (from a Euro 2003 S6 Avant)
http://forums.audiworld.com/a6/msgs/618112.phtml
2) OEM HID/Xenon (complete) housings (car never came with the Xenon option from the factory)
3) OEM Euro front/rear (avant) beam-style wiper blades/arms (available via www.vagparts.com)
4) OEM B6 S4 Interior auto-dimming black mirror with compass and on/off button
5) OEM Euro blindspot exterior mirrors
6) OEM S6/4.2 exterior lower door trim
7) OEM S4/S6/S8 aluminum mirror housings
8) OEM Euro rear license plate panel from 2002+ facelift avant (slight MODification to US plate required)
9) ?
10) OEM Euro RNS-E DVD Navigation system with MP3, SAT control and TV input
11) Dietz 1417 A/V input to RNS-E
12) Blaupunkt ME3 DVD/CD/MP3/TV Tuner with aftermarket amplified TV antenna in windshield
13) OEM Sirius tuner (special version to work with RNS-E)
14) OEM Phatnoise Phatbox MP3 player (trunk mounted) with custom interface cable to allow Sirius tuner and Phatbox to work together -- cool!!
15) ?
16) BBS RC 17x8 ET35 with Michelin Pilot Sports (summer tires)
17) 2002+ Rear bumper with valance openings for Magnaflow 3" exhaust tips
18) OEM submarine fin roof antenna for SAT / GPS / Cellphone (GSM)
19) OEM Euro gunmetal black avant roof rails
20) 2002+ Climate control faceplate to match faceplate color of RNS-E
21) Walnut wood trim near hazard button (above RNS-E) to match rest of interior wood scheme
22) OEM Euro Avant door panels with integrated sunshades (imported from Germany to match the black leather in my Euro Recaro interior)
23) OEM Euro blacked out front grille (no chrome perimeter)
24) OEM gunmetal black lower rear hatch strip (specific part# for avant vs. sedan)
25) OEM RS6 gunmetal black interior door latches; no need to add any RS6 badges in my car (Thanks Nelson!!!)
26) OEM Euro four spoke walnut wood and black leather (special order via Audi GmbH) multi-function wheel with tip buttons and OEM phone (BT) control
27) Upgraded "618" MF/Tip control module
Coming soon:
- rear mounted removable 7" LCD panel
MODifications:
(Definition: Any permenant change to a part or component of your car that you cannot reverse)
1) Tray under armrest to add aux. cigarette lighter
2) OEM avant CD changer bracket MODified (to fit two large CD changers etc) - now I just use it for Phatbox, OEM SAT tuner and OEM BT module.
3) Exhaust tips MODified to add Magna Flow (#35163) 3" dual walled tip
4) Factory wiring behind Sym I to simplify installation/removal of RNS-E
5) MODified glovebox to support fitment of Blaupunkt ME3 (a biatch to install!!)
6) MODified headlight switch bezel for fitment of GALA switch for "video-in-motion" for playing Blaupunkt ME3 through RNSE
7) MODified stock exhaust and had magnaflow 3" tips welded on (see above)
8) MODified rear Euro license plate surround to house 2nd rear foglight (2001 model only came with one from the factory); US license plate needed to be MODified a bit to fit inside the narrow Euro opening.
Audi A4 B5 Timing Belt Tensioner FAQ Water Pump and Thermostat replacement
Usual disclaimer applies here, I am not responsible for any of your work. This procedure is done at your own risk, and my write-up is merely a guide to help you do it (as model years and options vary).
Big thanks to SScott for filling in all the bolt sizes. Also, I must metion my partner in crime here, JustDave did most of the replacement of the timing belt and tensioner.
And one more thing, this is not the only way to change the belt. It can be changed without removing the A/C condensor and radiator, however I wanted to have plenty of room to work....so I took it all off.
TOOLS/SUPPLIES LIST:
Metric sockets: 10mm, 13mm, 14mm, 19mm (12 point).
Allen sockets: 5mm, 6mm, 8mm
Breaker bar
Torx sockets: T45, T30
Set of metric wrenches
Timing Belt "kit" from PureMotorsports (www.pureMS.com ) ~$180
Fresh G12 Coolant (2-3 bottles if you change the coolant)
2 Buckets to catch coolant and windshield washer fluid if you want to reuse those
Thats definitely not everything, but I dont think theres anything else out of the ordinary youll need. Screwdrivers, socket wrench, extensions, etc...just normal stuff. A lift would help if you have access to one, but its not necessary....jackstands will suffice.
FRONT BUMPER REMOVAL:
1. Remove the plastic underpan; 6 screws underneath and 2 plastic screws in each wheel well.
2. Remove two small grills and fog lights (if applicable) on front bumper; the grills come out just by pulling.
3. Disconnect the hose to the headlight washers by reaching through the hole where you removed the drivers side grill; it disconnects at the lightened area of the picture below. If you cant reach it, see step 6. Washer Fluid will SPLASH out, so catch it in a bucket in case you want to reuse that
4. Remove the two long 6mm hex bolts (see above picture).
5. Now grab the side of the bumper, almost to the wheel well and pull BACK (towards the rear of the car) and DOWN then UP. It takes a little finesse, but its really not that hard. Have someone else hold the bumper while you do this so it doesnt come crashing down and scratch the paint. See the picture below, notice how the two clips at the top and one at the bottom grab the bumper like a claw. So if you pull it down, and then up (or vise versa), then you should be able to work it loose.
6. If you havent disconnected the hose for the headlight washers, youll be able to do it much easier now; have someone to hold the bumper while you do it.
A/C CONDENSOR AND RADIATOR REMOVAL:
1. Drain the coolant. Loosen the cap on the filler tank in the engine compartment. See the red screw at the bottom on the drivers side of the radiator; open it just a bit and youll see where the coolant will come out. Either connect a hose (as depicted by the green line in the picture below) or put a bucket underneath to catch the coolant. You can also remove the screw to drain the coolant out rather fast
2. Disconnect the upper and lower radiator hoses, as well as the sensor just above the lower radiator hose. First, pry up the clip around the radiator fitting with a flathead screwdriver:
Do this for the top and bottom hoses. Now, just pull firmly (read: HARD) to get the hoses off. See the sensor above the lower radiator hose in the picture below
3. Remove the two "air guides" attached on each side of the A/C condensor. Theyre blocked in the picture, but the Phillips head screws would be where the green dots are in the picture.
4. Now pull the P/S cooler that runs in front of the A/C condensor out of the way. The two 10 mm bolts are shown by the red dots in the picture above. Check the clamps connecting the rubber hoses to the P/S cooler while you have it loose, mine were leaking upon reinstallation of the cooler
5. Remove the two brackets that hold the A/C condensor in place, theyre held by four 10 mm bolts. See the picture, where the bracket is actually already removed
6. Disconnect the sensor that connects on the passenger side of the A/C condensor (see above pic).
7. Now; pull up and then out on the condensor; "peel" the A/C condensor to the passenger side.
8. To remove the radiator, pry the small tab in the circular pin up, as shown here:
to the position shown here:
9. Now pull the top of the radiator out towards you (as if the bottom edge were a hinge), then up. The radiator is now free. Its a good idea to flush the radiator out with a garden hose at this time and let it dry while finishing up with the rest of the tbelt change
REMOVING LOCK CARRIER:
1. First unplug the horn(s) on the passenger side, as shown by the lightened ovals (on a 2000 there is one horn per side )
2. Remove the bulbs from the turn signals (see dangling bulb in above picture) and
disconnect the plugs to the headlights.
3. Remove the bumper post bolts with a Torx T45 bit. The passenger side will have 4 bolts while the drivers side will only have 3 which are holding the bumper posts
4. Remove the two Torx T30 bolts at the front edge of the hood on each side.
5. Remove one Torx T30 bolt underneath each headlight; see green arrow.
6. Slowly slide the lock carrier out towards the front of the car; be careful it is heavy and there are still wires running to the lock carrier (around the fan shroud), as you will see. Remove the hood release. Do your best to unclip the wires routed around the fan housings, so that you can lay the lock carrier off to the drivers side.
TIMING BELT:
First, lets make sure were on the same page as far as the parts in the "kit." As seen in the picture below, you should have (1) timing belt, (1) tensioner, (1) tensioner pulley, (1) bolt, (1) washer, and (1) metal collar/sleeve. By the way, DO NOT PULL THE PIN ON THE TENSIONER, until the instructions say to do so.
1. Remove the upper timing belt cover by releasing the two "clips" and moving the hose that runs in front.
2. Remove the viscous fan; have someone hold the plastic blades firmly, while you remove the 5mm hex bolts, circled in yellow.
3. Remove the A/C compressor belt by loosening the tensioner with two 6mm hex bolts. You will later upon reinstallation use a wrench attached to the red circle to tension the new belt back up
4. Remove the main serpentine belt by rotating the spring-loaded tensioner; use a crescent wrench and rotate clockwise, hold it while you remove the belt. If needed, remove this tensioner--three 13 mm bolts. You like my yellow crescent wrench? :-)
5. Remove the dampner pulley; have someone hold the pulley with a 19mm 12pt. socket on a breaker bar, while you remove the four 6mm hex bolts (allen keys wont cut it here, youll need a socketed hex).
6. Remove the lower timing belt cover; there are two hex bolts the top: one is a 6 mm and the bottom one is a 5 mm (green arrows), a 10 mm bolt (red arrow), and a 10 mm nut (black arrow).
7. This step is the very critical. Carefully align the 2 timing marks (one on the cam sprocket, the other on the edge of the valve cove) by turning the engine by hand, clockwise, using the 19mm bolt on the crank (where you removed the dampner pulley from earlier). While you have the belt off, you must make sure that these marks remain perfectly aligned. DO NOT use the top cam to turn the engine, always turn at the crank when the tbelt is installed!
Also make your own mark the lower toothed sprocket on the crank, just for your
own comfort of knowing that the sprocket remained in the same position throughout the
install. We scratched an arrow on the sprocket; as you can see in the picture that our arrow aligns with the tip of that protrusion in the metal above it. So after you have marked the top cam and the bottom crank continue to the next step you will also notice that the top cam is very hard to turn by hand so it wont most likely not move but marks are critical!
8. Remove the old tensioner and pulley. First remove 13mm the bolt holding the "guide pulley" (thats what well call it) on to the tensioner (green arrow); remove this pulley--save it. Now remove the two 10mm bolts holding the tensioner to the block (red arrows). Remove the 10mm nut holding the pulley on (as circled in yellow, partially hidden from view). The pulley/tensioner complex should now be free.
9. Remove the old pulley "stud" from the block; you wont need it with the new tensioner/pulley. Its 17mm.
WATER PUMP and THERMOSTAT change (5 steps total)
10. The engine should look like this now, the tensioner and timing belt had been removed. The water pump sits in the red area circled in the picture. Its not that hard to change so do it while you are in there, if you dont want to do this step skip to step # 16 and continue with the Tbelt change instructions
11. Use a screw drive and go through the whole in the P/S pulley there is a perfect crack that the screwdriver fits into so you can remove the 3 hex bolts that are attached to the waterpump. You might need to slightly hold against the belt so it doesnt slip on the pulley itself. The pulley attached to the waterpump is shaped like 2 plates against each other )( and will come off after the hex bolts are removed.
12. Now you need to use your screwdriver again and pry it in the whole of the other pulley for the oilpump and remove the red bolt circled in red. You dont have to worry if this pulley spins, it runs the pump and it very easy to turn. After you have removed that one you will have full access to the waterpump. The green dots indicate 10mm bolts that are holding the pump inside the housing, you will remove those after the next step.
13. The engine will still have coolant in it, so get your bucket from earlier ready again and remove the red waterpump drain plug. The coolant will drain out, now remove the 2 green 10mm bolts that are holding that black hose in the picture that is allready bended away in mine. This hose houses the thermostat and there will still be some coolant left splashing out so be prepared. Remove the old thermostat and remember that the spring part goes inside the pump housing then you reinstall it, the gasket comes in between the thermostat and the hose not the housing!
14. Bolt the hose back to the housing and remove the 10 bolts that are holding the waterpump to the housing, the pump should drop right out, now remove the old metal gasket and clean around the gasket area. Install the new gasket and pump in the same order as you removed it and reinstall the drain plug as well. Make sure that the gasket has a good seat and is not kinked anywere.
15. Reinstall the big pulley that you had taken off earlier in order to remove the bolts that were holding the pump in and where unreachable before. Tighten that one back up and move down to the newly installed waterpump. I hope you ordered new belts as well, use the new P/S belt and slide it over the P/S pulley and attach your )( plate pulleys with the belt. The new belt should be tight on those when you are tightening the pulley back onto the waterpump. You should now have a brand new thermostat and brand new pump installed with a brand new belt that powers both, arent those new belts nice looking compared to the old ones? You are now ready to continue with the timing belt install
16. Time to assemble and install the tensioner and pulley. First, attach the "guide pulley" to the new tensioner--hand tighten for now. Now install the new tensioner to the block. See below for assembly of the pulley and the misc. hardware. I forgot to snap a pic during the installation process, thus you get this VERY crude attempt at a 3D rendering.
Using a 14mm socket in your hand, slowly tighten the center bolt attaching the pulley to the block (careful not to cross-thread, if you feel resistance back it out and try again). The pulley setup should look like it does below. Now remove the brass-colored piece that hangs off the pulley; one bolt (blue arrow) attaches it to the pulley. The pulley should now be free to rotate, more on that later. You will need to remove this one so you can slide the new belt on and will reinstall it later on
17. Install the timing belt. Carefully slide the belt over the toothed sprockets, making sure that you dont move the sprockets. I found it easier to wrap the large sprocket up top first, then the smaller ones at the bottom, then around the tensioner pulley. Be sure there is no slack in the area outlined in yellow
18. Almost done. Now its time to put that brass-colored piece back onto the pulley. See that hex hole in the pulley? Put an 8 mm allen key in that hole, and pull clockwise. This will allow you to align the hole on the brass piece with the hole on the pulley so you can put the bolt through and tighten it up. Go back and double check all the bolts for the tensioner and pulley, be sure theyre all tight (no torque specs at the moment).
19. Make sure your setup looks like below. If so, PULL THE PIN! (BTW, thats Just Daves finger.....its the best pic I could get of him; hes very elusive when the camera comes out :-)
20. With the belt and tensioner now properly installed, hand-crank the engine around one full rotation to make sure your MARKS on the top cam sprocket line up at the same time your mark on the bottom crank sprocket. Turn the bottom crank sprocket one full time and get back to your original mark you made earlier, if the bottom and top mark match up = everything is fine
21. Thats it...reverse the process and re-install all of the above. You do remember how it all went together, right? It is easier if you but the bolts you had taken off or loosened up back into the whole where they came from to make it easier during reassembly
There, youve just saved yourself roughly $900 in labor @ the stealership. All I ask is that you let me know youve completed it successfully (hey, if you want to send donations thats fine as well ;-)
If you have any problems, questions, etc, youre welcome to email me: andytn.a4@gmail.com. Good luck.
Andy wrote the original timing belt writeup
Stephan (BSK) added the the water pump and thermostat replacement Nov 2005, After using this article to change his own timing belt.