nOOb--timing belt, water pump, sludge, coils
#1
08-26-2008, 08:30 AM
nOOb--timing belt, water pump, sludge, coils
First of all. Hello! This is a great forum and a great source of info for anything Audi. I hope you can answer a few questions for me.
My son is in Guam flying B52's. He rotates back home in a couple of months. Having sold his Jeep before he deployed, he's in need of a car upon his return. My wife and I have been tasked with the Audi A4 search.
To cut to the chase, this is what I've come up with. A 2004-05 ( preferably 05 with remaining factory warranty ) A4 1.8T Quattro with manual tranny. I've read that the FWD CVT may not be the most reliable transmission. And if you plan on any performance mods ( son had a Viper for awhile ), the CVT is restrictive. The quattro seems to be a well proven, bulletproof system. I'm not sure about the reliability and performance capability of the Tiptronic if he ops for an automatic.
Some of my concerns are the timing belt, water pump, and sludge. The class action law suit on the timing belt covers model years 2000, 01, 02, and 03. Was there a redesign in the 2004 and up engine that fixed the TB issues? Or, is it still a problem that has been addressed by the 40,000 mile inspection interval? Does the water pump in 04 & 05 still have a plastic impellar or has this been improved? And finally, the sludge issue. I'm looking for a car that is still under warranty with less than 50,000 miles. Were the later B6 models released with full synthetic oils to avoid the sludge problems? Also, was there any redesign in the oil pickup to avoid engine damage if sludge did become a problem?
My son can live with coils going out and clutch replacements. But I would like him to avoid engine rebuilds due to internal component failures. If the factory maintenance schedules are followed, is this engine as bulletproof as I've been told?
Thanks for any information you can provide.
Be careful out there.
Dave
My son is in Guam flying B52's. He rotates back home in a couple of months. Having sold his Jeep before he deployed, he's in need of a car upon his return. My wife and I have been tasked with the Audi A4 search.
To cut to the chase, this is what I've come up with. A 2004-05 ( preferably 05 with remaining factory warranty ) A4 1.8T Quattro with manual tranny. I've read that the FWD CVT may not be the most reliable transmission. And if you plan on any performance mods ( son had a Viper for awhile ), the CVT is restrictive. The quattro seems to be a well proven, bulletproof system. I'm not sure about the reliability and performance capability of the Tiptronic if he ops for an automatic.
Some of my concerns are the timing belt, water pump, and sludge. The class action law suit on the timing belt covers model years 2000, 01, 02, and 03. Was there a redesign in the 2004 and up engine that fixed the TB issues? Or, is it still a problem that has been addressed by the 40,000 mile inspection interval? Does the water pump in 04 & 05 still have a plastic impellar or has this been improved? And finally, the sludge issue. I'm looking for a car that is still under warranty with less than 50,000 miles. Were the later B6 models released with full synthetic oils to avoid the sludge problems? Also, was there any redesign in the oil pickup to avoid engine damage if sludge did become a problem?
My son can live with coils going out and clutch replacements. But I would like him to avoid engine rebuilds due to internal component failures. If the factory maintenance schedules are followed, is this engine as bulletproof as I've been told?
Thanks for any information you can provide.
Be careful out there.
Dave
#2
08-26-2008, 09:11 AM
Welcome!!! You should undestand that sludge maybe a "common" problem with 1.8t engine, but it doesnt happen often, if it would, nobody would be driving these cars. If previous owners were using full synthetic oil, then chances of having a sludge in a future drop dramatically.
I dont think there was a any redesign from 03 to 04. My thought is 04 is newer than 03, and not to many people have gone up high in the mileage wise. Also timing belt in Audis is improtant. That's like changing your oil every 3-5k, you have to change the Timing Belt every 80k or so, Audi suggest 105k though.
Coilpacks have a high chance of failing if they are sstock. You can always buy Hitachi or Beru or even OEM coils R from a dealer for like $35 each and swap them. But usuallly they ten to fail after the chip.
I dont think there was a any redesign from 03 to 04. My thought is 04 is newer than 03, and not to many people have gone up high in the mileage wise. Also timing belt in Audis is improtant. That's like changing your oil every 3-5k, you have to change the Timing Belt every 80k or so, Audi suggest 105k though.
Coilpacks have a high chance of failing if they are sstock. You can always buy Hitachi or Beru or even OEM coils R from a dealer for like $35 each and swap them. But usuallly they ten to fail after the chip.
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