Hello all. I recently purchased a 2003 A4 quattro, mtx, sport package, cold weather package. For lack of a better word, this car is simply fantastic. I love the way it handles, I love the looks, interior, etc. etc. As I'm sure most new Audi owners do, I read the car's manual front to back. The manual said that headlight washers are only an option with Xenon headlights. My car has headlight washers, but not Xenon headlights. That got me thinking. The dealer I bought the car from told me that it was involved in a "minor" front end collision, where a headlight and grille needed to be replaced. My question is - could the manual be wrong in that if the car has headlight washers, then it must have Xenons? if not, I think the previous owner swapped the Xenons for regular headlights. Any feedback is appreciated.

 

if the owner replaced them with something else, clearly it wont say int he manual. but if the manual says that you can only have washers with xenons, then you must have had xenons.
yay.

[IMG]local://upfiles/12576/8000079E3C6043748E3981BD5C705287.jpg[/IMG]

 

Audiusa used to have a way to register your VIN. It would break down all your options your car has.

 

Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)

What is it?

A car’s vehicle identification number (VIN) is the automotive equivalent of
human "DNA".

It sets the vehicle apart from the millions of other vehicles out there. In recent times it has been reflected in 17 digit characters. It displays a car’s uniqueness and heritage and provides a form of "factory to scrap yard" identification. It can be used to track recalls, registrations, warranty claims, thefts and insurance coverage. Each character or digit has a particular purpose.


History of the VIN

Detroit automobile manufacturers began stamping and casting identifying numbers on cars and their parts in the mid 1950's . The primary purpose of this vehicle identification number (VIN) was to give an accurate description of the vehicle when mass production numbers were starting to scale in very significant numbers. The early VINs came in a range of variations depending on the individual manufacturer at that time.

In the early 1980's the U.S. National highway Traffic Safety Administration (USDOT) required that all road vehicles must contain a 17 character VIN. This established the standard fixed VIN system which major vehicle manufacturers use currently. The result was a unique "DNA" style number for each individual vehicle rolled off the assembly line.



The Vehicle Identification Number was originally described in ISO Standard 3779 in February 1977 and last revised in 1983. The ISO-VIN was designed to identify motor vehicles, trailers, motorcycles and mopeds and consists of several parts described below.

How to read a VIN

1st character- Identifies the country in which the vehicle was manufactured.
For example: U.S.A.(1or 4), Canada(2), Mexico(3), Japan(J), Korea(K), England(S), Germany(W), Italy(Z)

2nd character- Identifies the manufacturer. For example; Audi(A),
BMW(B), Buick(4), Cadillac(6), Chevrolet(1), Chrysler(C), Dodge(B),
Ford(F), GM Canada(7), General Motors(G), Honda(H), Jaquar(A), Lincoln(L), Mercedes Benz(D), Mercury(M), Nissan(N), Oldsmobile(3), Pontiac(2or5), Plymouth(P), Saturn(8), Toyota(T), VW(V), Volvo(V).

3rd character- Identifies vehicle type or manufacturing division.

4th to 8th characters- VDS - Vehicle Descriptor Section. These 5 characters occupy positions 4 through 8 of the VIN and may be used by the manufacturer to identify attributes of the vehicle. Identifies vehicle features such as body style, engine type, model, series, etc.

9th Character - The check digit "character or digit 9" in the sequence of a vehicle identification number (VIN) built beginning with model year 1981 (when the 17 character digit format was established) can best be described as identifying the VIN accuracy.

A check digit shall be part of each vin (since 1981) and shall appear in position
nine (9) of the VIN on the vehicle and on any transfer documents containing
the vin prepared by the manufacturer to be given to the first owner for purposes
other than resale. Thus, the vins of any two vehicles manufactured within a 30
year period shall not be identical. The check digit means a single number or letter
"x" used to verify the accuracy of the transcription of the vehicle identification
number.

After all other characters in the VIN have been determined by the manufacturer
the check digit is calculated by carrying out a mathematical computation
specified. This is based on vin position, sample vin, assigned value code,
weight factor and multiply assigned value times weight factors. The values are added and the total is divided by 11. The remainder is the check digit number.
The correct numeric remainder - zero through nine (0-9) will appear.
However, if the remainder is 10 the letter "X" is used to designate the check
digit value/number.


10th character- Identifies the model year. For example: 1988(J), 1989(K), 1990(L), 1991(M), 1992(N), 1993(P), 1994(R), 1995(S), 1996(T),
1997(V), 1998(W), 1999(X), 2000(Y)------2001(1), 2002(2), 2003(3)

11th character- Identifies the assembly plant for the vehicle.

12th to 17th characters- VIS - Vehicle Identifier Section. The last 8 characters of the VIN are used for the identification a of specific vehicle. The last four characters shall always be numeric. Identifies the sequence of the vehicle for production as it rolled off the manufacturers assembly line.
that was by VINGARD

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en...in+plate&meta=

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?im...lr%3D%26sa%3DN

have fun

 

You probably have already found your answer, but on the AudiUSA site under My Audi, the features for this model include headlight washers and halogen headlamps. I have an '03 also and I'm weighing whether or not to do the Xenon conversion...

 

when you make the conversion is it just plug and play or do you have to set up ballasts and all that ****?
its on my to do list as well

 

conversion requires ballasts there's DIY's on here... I thought that the bulbs in my car were xenon just not HID. whats the diff.? I think ppl are confusing xenon 4 HID in here or maybe i'm confused...

 

Where on AudiUSA can you search your VIN to see what original equipment was? Can't see this feature anywhere on site.

Thx

 

Used to be able to do it from here:

http://www.audiusa.com/myAudi

 

Don't se it anywhere on My Audi... unless they buried it somewhere.