nick_b

Hi All – and greetings from the UK. First time post to this group.

I have had the car from new (2019 A4 40 TDI S-Line – DSG). Mileage is high (161k) but up to date on all maintenance / DSG fluid changes etc…). Car drives fine, no knocks, vibrations etc… and the gear shifts are smooth.

That said, I am starting to become more aware of a specific noise – it may have been there for a while but for some reason noticing it more. It is best described as a faint whine from the front end when cruising at a constant speed 60 – 70 mph) with small throttle opening. Coming off the gas the noise goes away, apply a little more gas (to accelerate or if needed to maintain speed) the noise goes away, shift into N, the noise goes away. It is best demonstrated by cruising at 70 mph, coming off the gas and then very, very gently applying a little gas.

Changing down a gear does not make a difference – it seems related to road speed not RPM – and a very small throttle opening / small load on engine / driveline.

Most of the time it is drowned out by the normal noise of 19” wheels – so most noticeable on a smooth road surface (something of a rarity in the UK)

It is not in itself causing a problem and in most cases I don’t really notice it – but I do long trips in Europe and want the car to remain reliable.

Any ideas much appreciated.

sandune

Hi Nick,
I hear the same with mine. It only has 40,000KM on the clock and no other issues. The best I can describe it is a slight whine when maintaining highway speed, usually at about 80-100KPH. I do not notice anything else concerning about the vehicle at the time and to me it seems like it is a higher pitched gear whine when driving down the highway. I just took it for perhaps the gears of a transfer case or something like that and have not been overly concerned with it myself thinking this was just normal for the car. I've had to get used to several different sounds from this car that are considered normal for its operation. I'd be curious to hear from someone if it isn't though.

While nothing to do with a sound, the one thing I will never, ever get used to is how it slams on the brakes while reversing even when there is nothing back there. I'm sure it's a great safety feature but WAY too sensitive sometimes.

Cheers,

Vag4life4

Same issue here, it driving me insane. Odd thing is when the bypass hose from the turbo back to the coolant bottle exploded and sprayed coolant all over the engine, the noise stopped for about a week. Maybe the coolant lubricated something ??

I am going to change the transfer case oil and see where that get me, if the noise is still there well... I might have to get rid of it.

Vandelay

My theory is this is caused by the DSG. It sounds like gear whine and I think this is related to load (hence if you lift off the throttle the sound goes away). I don't think it is an issue - just more something to get used to. Sounds like a manual trans to me (which the DSG is basically).