charles 200TQ

Had one CV boot blow out a while ago, and I couldn't find time to replace it but finally got to it last weekend. I had noticed before that the outer sheath on my front brake lines was worn through so I got some stainless braided lines from ECS, and I was overdue for brake fluid flush, which I got the Motiv pressure bleeder for as well.

Tackled the brake lines first, and quickly became frustrated after finding the "exact fit" lines don't "exactly" fit in the stock Audi brackets. Now that I have removed and drilled out the 6 brackets to fit, I slightly remember reading that this procedure was necessary for those lines. Lost a lot of time with those stupid brackets, which were also covered in cv grease to make the experience more enjoyable.

Pressure bleeder was great and worth the purchase. I had high hopes of a rock-solid brake pedal upon completion but was a little disappointed. Might try cycling the ABS and re-bleeding in the future.

After pulling the front wheels for the brake lines, I found out that the other CV boot had blown out recently. Luckily I had prepared for this and purchased two boot replacement kits ahead of time.

The first CV boot was a pain, but once I had the techniques down, the second one went fairly smoothly except the joint was much more stubborn in popping off the axle. On the second boot job, I was able to jack the car up and prepare the joint for removal from the axle in 20 minutes. I did the pinch bolt method and found that swinging the axle out and over the rotor gave plenty of working space for popping the joint on and off. I noticed that each joint had signs of overheating, but no wear or pitting.

Following two days of what seemed a nightmare of brake fluid and grease (including a little brake fluid in the mouth... found it really ruins the taste of your coffee), I can now say that it went well. After seeing the overheating discoloration on the joints though, I believe I'll schedule replacing the front axles when it is most convenient.

AR15Texan

Are you talking about the rainbow color in the cup? If so that is not necessarily from overheating but possibly from the assembly process.

Redneck Truck

I've got a spare set of front axles for you, though I don't think the overheating you're referring to is abnormal. The joints are heat treated around the buckets where the ball bearings drop in, so is it possible that's what you're observing? Even the joints that were full of grease looked like that for me, and I looked at several of them. Anyway, if you want some spare front axles, let me know. I had one broken boot replaced on one axle, but from what I remember, all the joints are tight and move normally.

Also, thanks for the heads up on the soggy brake pedal. I was hoping for a hard pedal after replacing pads and fluid and it's still soft and squishy. I cycled the ABS pump, replaced all the fluid, and bled all four wheels till I was blue in the face and the pedal still didn't feel any better. One friend observed the firewall flexing just a tad, but he said what I was feeling was probably a deliberate "luxury" feel. Can someone else confirm? In the meantime, I'm not replacing my lines if it didn't do you any good. :-(

charles 200TQ

Concerning the cv joints, I wasn't terribly worried about either of them. It was obvious that one joint had considerably more rainbowing than the other, and no surprise it was the one that blew a boot longer ago. As I said, each seemed to show no other signs of wear and after packing with grease, they moved around smoothly. I am only considering replacement much further down the line when I am back in there, as at $140 each for new axles, they really aren't that expensive. I figure there is a lifetime for a cv joint, and at 140,000 miles and 10 years, they are probably reaching it.

As for the brakes, like I said they are exactly the same as before. I have nothing to compare the softness of my pedal to, but personally I feel that the pedal is too soft and would prefer something a little firmer under my foot. Again, nothing that alarms me but something I'd like to try to improve one way or another down the line.

watauga2.7T

Hi

I had the same problem with my 2.7T. I checked every thing and then I found the problem. It was my spider hose. Sounds funny but that was the problem. Check all of your vaccum lines that connect in and around the spider hose if you have one. Once I changed the bad vaccum lines and replaced the spider hose, my brakes are working fine.