So what is the breather tube at the back of my 1.8T engine for anyways? I got a CEL last weekand checked the code with my new scan tool (very cool!)- which said the car was running lean. Doing some poking around thisforum, it seemed pretty consistent with a bad hose connection to the engine...and that is exactly what it turned out to be. But I still don't really know why the car has a breather hose and why the exhasut needs to be recirculated back to the engine. Can someone explain?

Finally, how the heck can a hose crack after only 3 years and 46000 miles? Seems like a pretty crappy hose - is this a common failure?

Thanks,
Phil

2003Audi A4 Avant 1.8T

 

crankcase ventilation...relieve pressure from the crankcase.....
it is a weak link....everyon I know with an a4 has had to replace it.

 

yep i had to replace mine too

 

had to do mine as well, but i used better hoses

 

Just returned from the dealership, the car has 36,000 miles on it and I was told that "breather hose on back of valve cover is brittle and will need to be replaced. Estimate is $323.50 to replace". Ouch, to replace a hose? The oil change was close to $70 because it is "synthetic". Under warranty, they thought it was perfectly okay to change the oil every 10K miles, now all of a sudden, it is 5K miles.
Rotors are shot which are $600. All of a sudden my brakes which I thought were fine are acting weird. I wonder if this dealer is a ripoff artist and I hope they didn't create problems for me.

Based on the forum, I am confused about one thing. Are there more than one breather hoses in this car? I have A4, 1.8T. I have read that the hose can be painful to repace. Do I need special tools or a lot of elbow grease?

Thanks.

 

I had to do this also...Not hard to DIY

 

no special tools just very flexible hands

 

$70 for an oil change at a dealer@ $100/hris believable (more than i would ever pay, but believable.)
and yes, you should only be using full synthetic (like syntec 5w40)and not letting it go any longer than 5K miles, thats no baloney.
you can get good zimmerman rotors for $50/ea. rotors from the factory are cheap and thin, usually need to be replaced with the first set of pads (true for most cars nowadays.) stick with plain oem-type rotors. check out the A8 upgrade kits at purems . com and axismotorsports . com for ideas.
my local indy place was going to charge me $60 to replace the breather tube, i got it for less than $20 at the dealerand diy (purems has them for $12.95)

 

hey guys, i just replaced my breather tube t hose and the one attached to it going into the crankcase... i paid $9 for the t hose and $43 for the other plastic hose to the dealership which i guess it was a nice price... i did it in nearly 2 hours and only had to take out the coolant tank from its place and used my non-flexible hands to do it. it was really a PITA, however i never got a CEL. i dunno how come it happens. there was a huge crack on the hose and actually i needed to go to the dealership without that hose, cuz it was already busted while examining it, and i definetly didn't get a CEL... did ya guys all get a CEL because of that breather hose?

 

yea, the dealer is a rip off.. if you cant do your own work, i would reccomend finding a local vw/audi mechanic

unless your car is under warrenty.. then use up all the free replacement parts and labor while you can