boostbuddy

I'm in a tight spot and I could use some experienced advice from fellow 2.7T owners.

Background - My 2004 A6 2.7T is at a shop and I have been told by the shop that I have water in one or more of my cylinders after having the t-stat housing replaced and system pressure tested (long, painful story). I'm guessing busted head gasket(s). I have an extended service contract with Interstate that is (suppposedly) all inclusive with no deductible.

The repair shop works on Euro cars but is FAR from an Audi specialist. Basically honest, but located in the sticks and they probably see one Audi a year if that.

The shop is telling me that they need to remove the engine to remove the cylinder head(s). They say that three sources (Alldata, etc.) tell them they need to remove the engine to remove the cylinder head(s) and that labor for removing engine is 26 hours.

Potential Problem - Shop is going to call Interstate telling them they need to remove engine to remove head(s) and that this will require 26 hours to remove and replace engine/head(s). If Interstate doesn't think engine needs to be removed, I could be on the hook for the hours less than 26 that Interstate won't cover and I'm potentially looking at paying LOTS of money to have a reapir done that supposedly should be covered under my contract (it's an all inclusive contract - everything except wera./tear is covered).

Question #1 - Does engine need to be removed to remove heads per published repair guidelines like Alldata?
Question #2 - Does engine need to be removed to remove heads if you know what you are doing?
Question #3 - Is 26 hours labor reasonable for R&R of engine/heads.

The 26 hours of labor is just to determine the problem(s), not fix them.

Thanks for your insights.

Prospeeder

All data does say first step remove engine, and in the labor guide it does say about 26 hours. I have worked with lots of the aftermarket warrenty companies and this will be covered no problem. They use all data or somthing similar and they will just look at book time to do the job, which is 26 hours. so dont worry about it.