Well, as I wanted to be a real STWan@@r, I thought I needed an Audi.

Found one in the right colour for the Boss on Autotrader.
HPI’d it
Drove it
Took it to an Independant Audi dealer for an inspection
Haggled
Bought it
Felt smug.

Yesterday, took it to my local garage to fix the coolant pipe leak picked up at the inspection. A bit of digging reveals the coolant leak is from deeper in the engine, requiring Gearbox and Engine head removal, and 20 hrs of labour!!!!

Garage not on a scam, as I know them well, and their recommendation was to sell it on.

Really, all I’m saying is buyer beware!! As a private sale, you have very few rights. I did all the right things, and have just been stung for 2 grand, having had the car less than 2 weeks.

What was the point of the inspection?
Did it not come with any sort of guarantee?

Took it to an Independant Audi dealer for an inspection

Er…?

Welcome to the world of Audi ownership!

Surely if you paid for an inspection there is some comeback if they didn’t diagnose the fault correctly?

Radweld? Worth a punt?

Troll.

I wanted to be a real STWan@@r

Interseting and novel way to enguage us..

No, the inspection didnt have a guarantee, it was really a piece of mind check that I wasnt buying a dud – oops!!

My local mechanic said he didnt blame the other garage, as originally he agreed with their diagnosis. It only came to light as he dug deeper.

I know I should get rid of it, but now we know about the issue, trying to fob it off on someone else isnt my style.

dantsw13 – Member
Garage not on a scam, as I know them well, and their recommendation was to sell it on.

Once fixed or before?

should have got a bmw, turbo is a much cooler expensive problem to have 😯

BBuoy – humour?? Having effectively flushed 2k down the loo this morning, I need something to laugh at.

Glupton – yep, I’m a huuuge troll. Only here to wind you up? Normally I just scam people in the classifieds, but I thought I’d just get some posts in other sections to make me look kosher.

Why didn’t you buy a new one then you’d have a guarantee?

RADWELD

They said flog it now. Doesnt feel right though.

£2k – could have bought a bike for that.

Or take it to someone who doesnt charge ~£100/hr for labour….

he didnt blame the other garage, as originally he agreed with their diagnosis. It only came to light as he dug deeper

so you knew about the problem before you bought it? Just not what the exact problem was?

Wwaswas, yes, I was told the coolant hose had a hole in it. Which it did. It just wasnt the only problem.

20 hours work, plus parts, plus fluids, plus vat for £1800-2000 isnt £100/hr for labour.

£2k for a 20hr job is bloody expensive – what exactly is the job?

Cheaper to just replace the whole engine?

Welcome to the world of Audi car ownership!

FTFY

Glupton – not 100% sure what the name of the leaky part is. The car is a 3.2V6 Quattro with DSG gearbox. Apparently the Gearbox, Timing chains, and engine head all need to come off for the job, and the cylinder head pressure tested and faced before refitting.

Sound to me like the cylinder head gasket has gone (going by the pressure testing and grinding) . It’s not a £2k job though by any stretch of the imagination. £6-800 at a smaller independent garage…..

With all non labour items coming in at under £200.

You bought a 3.2V6 Quattro for 2K and weren’t prepared for expensive bills from now on???

not 100% sure what the name of the leaky part is

http://kalecoauto.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1

😉

Glupton, that is a small independant garage. If you are a car mechanic, thats interesting, Ill get a second opinion.

Turnerguy. No, the car was 4800 on a 53 plate with low milage.

I’m not a mechanic, but there’s not many jobs I havent done on various cars over the years. And blowing head gaskets would appear to be a speciality of mine.

It wasnt the head gasket, but a job that required the head off the engine. On the A3 quattro 3.6, I dont think there is a lot of room in there, so taking off the Auto gearbox, and the 4wd linkages and the head first makes it a big job.

Say its 20 hrs at £80/hr, plus gearbox/engine oil (has to come from VAG) plus new timing chains, new gasket, facing the head, pressure testing, the price ive been quoted sounds ballpark.

trying to fob it off on someone else isnt my style.

Good man, you might own an Audi but you haven’t adopted the mentality that usually goes with it.

Not really an Audi specific story is it ? Doesn’t sound like the car has been looked after properly, the mileage might not be genuine either. It doesn’t make sense that such a major problem would appear on a low mileage 9 year old car.

Timing chains etc probably need replacing at a certain mileage anyway, you can pay the money and have the car you want.

What is the job then?

And £80/hr is more than double the going rate in Edinburgh….

£80/hr

Is that really what mechanics are charging?

yes, I was told the coolant hose had a hole in it. Which it did

You see, that would instantly ring alarm bells to me
Why would someone not get something fixed to sell it when fixing it is always way cheaper than selling it at a reduced price?

answer, they wouldn’t

2k? If you have to change both heads on a Subaru its only 1.5k.

Are you being had OP? No offence meant but a coolant leak can be anything and anywhere – tight engine compartment or not. Theres always a way to get to it.

If it was me I’d top up and monitor the coolant level whilst getting a couple more opinions.

A 2k bill on a 4.8k car would make me very focused. A 2k bill on a 15k car would piss me off but I’d swallow it better. Whats my point? I’d throw a lower % amount against a cheaper car…

BTW have you checked its mileage history back to circa 2006 online? Might not show you anything but if theres a discrepancy I’d be back at the private sellers house to discuss.

Jambalaya, no, its not Audi specific, but seeing the Audi bashing that goes on here, and the fact I now have one, and my sarcastic mentality, it seemed a fitting title.

The mileage seems genuine. The HPI check, MOT’s for the last 5 years, all showing small increases, and the job/profile of the owner all fit a low mileage town car.

As for the chains needing doing at some point, that is a fair point.

The worst bit is my missus has just informed me gleefully, that its all fine, as it will be financed by my lack of a bike holiday next year!!!! Why did I marry a lawyer??

Hora – I agree.

The coolant level isnt dropping, but crystalised coolant residue is all over. Under a pressure test with the airbox off, coolant dripping can be seen from behind the timing unit.

Heads off these days means its as well to replace the timing belts etc while you’re at it.

I’d hold off the 2k fix then and monitor/carry out more research. I’d even go as far as seeing if that engine (in different cars) has a known older problem etc etc etc on different forums.

At that sort of age you shouldn’t be paying that much if you can get away with a fix that’ll last a few years 🙂

Carry coolant and drive on.

What’s the worst that could happen? A toasted engine?

Probably not much more than £2k to get a re-conditioned one if that does happen – after all it’s the kind of car people crash.

A toasted engine?

Thats only IF it runs dry and you’ll get used to knowing how much it consumes anyway.

It doesn’t make sense that such a major problem would appear on a low mileage 9 year old car.

Id’ be more worried about a low mileage old car than a high mileage one.