ZMS_A6

Hi everybody, I recently purchased a 2004 3.o Liter A6, after my 1997 Acura RL got wrecked in the Reading, Pa hailstorm . And wanted to get some advice as far as regular maintenance and things to be aware of going forward. The car is fairly well taken care of, dealer serviced, new timing belt, and 94,000 miles. One of the things my Dad and I were worried about is selecting the best oil for the car, is there a standard that Audi Garages use? Also I have Pirelli P6 Plus (Traction A Temp A Tread 400) all season tires, (new on the front, 1/2 tread on the back) is that a good set up?

Just Me

Audi has a spec ( in the manual) i believe yours is VW 505. But the best advice ( and we have lengthy discussions here so let's not start again) is to use a good 5w40 synthetic and change it every 5k miles. M1 0W40 is fine too. If your climate is not hot, and you dont drive it really hard/hot, a good 5w30 is OK.

Front control arm ball joints and bushings are not very durable.

Service, do not flush, auto tranny every, oh, 50k ( fluid and filter).

Check CV joints regularly.

Clean drains in firewall.

Enjoy.

Grant

ZMS_A6

Okay thank you. The owners manual is not very definitive (surprisingly) about what oil to use. Although what they say does generally aligns with what you said, Ill have to review the service record the dealership gave me and see what they used. I have heard a lot of people talk about tranny problems, especially in the two more powerful engines, how worried about that should I be? Additionally, what is the consensus about using the triptronic?

Just Me

First, worry less about WHICH oil than it being fresh ( meaning not diluted and acidic, dirt is not the issue)and appropriate weight. Worry also about taking it easy when cold and the motor parts are not at spec ( yep,they expand when they get hot). Want something simple and cheap? Rotella T6 5w40 at wally world. or M1 0W40 same place. For a DD non-track car i would have no hesitation using 5w30 edge either. The higher number is ONLY required under hot, high RPM conditions. Most of the VW specific requirements are to make it last ( maintain PH etc) under extended drain intervals, which i discourage in the first place.

transmission issues are mostly torque converter. More torque = more trouble, so you are on the safer side, but i know of 3.0s with tranny issues.

I use the tip on the track (rare, i have a track car). In normal use i find it annoying frankly and greatly prefer sport mode.

ZMS_A6

Okay, I looked over the service records, it looks like the previous owners were using 5w-40 Castrol Edge, perhaps I'll consider a switch down to 5w-30 since I really won't be using it on a track. I was mainly after good economy so I personally prefer the conventional shift program over the sport program (although it switches over to sport automatically if you don't ease the throttle). So thats why I thought maybe the tip would help with that. Another small issue I have is it seems that the headlights (note I have the halogen headlight option) are pointed down at the road too sharply. Is there any way to override the automatic adjustment to my preferences?

Airbag

Halogen was an option over HID zenon ?

ZMS_A6

Yeah thats what I meant, I got the terminology mixed up.

SloopJohnB@mac.com

I always put the new tires on the back….better to understeer.

SloopJohnB@mac.com

AFAIK the halogen headlights were not level adjusted….just adjust them. Unless they're really HID..in which case the motors may be broken in the headlight assemblies (linkage, mostly) or the transmitters in the left front and left rear wheel wells are disconnected, sometimes the wires (which are too eefing small!) break at the chassis harness connectors...

ZMS_A6

I do in fact have the HID package. What techniques can I use to diagnose the problem? Fortunately I have a short warranty that should cover the headlights if it's a problem.