No, not weather related...<p>Just as a caution, a few weeks ago I saw a nail head in one of my rear tires. I dropped the car at my friendly local tire shop and walked down the street for lunch. When I returned, the car was still on the lift which isn't a good sign.<p>Turns out that one of the lug nuts was stuck and they couldn't get it out. Before they had Bruno come with the big stick, they wanted me to give the go-ahead. This is on the 7 spoke sport wheels. I decided to have the dealer risk it rather than these thoughtful guys. Anyway there was no nail after all, but if you ever take your wheels off for any reason, probably wouldn't hurt to slap some anti-seize on those lugs before reinstalling. Glad I didn't discover this on the proverbial dark and stormy night. Had a similar problem on BMWs alloys once also.<br>

They should be able to plug it with it still on the car...

All they are doing is pulling out the nail a plugging the hole. Why would you need to take the tire off??? You could do it. Yank the nail, stick in the plug. It's easy...<p>The only time the would have to take the tire off is if the nail made a puncture in the sidewall. Then they would de-rim the tire a glue a patch if the hole is small enough...

Not only should you put a little anti-seize on them, make sure the dealer tech's don't over-torque them.<br>One thing that makes me insane is that my dealer's techs use those compressed air tools on high speed to torque my lugs. When we tried to get the wheel off to put the 17" on they had it torqued to 150lbs.!<br>Very dangerous. I complained to them that they shouldn't do that. Of course I know that it's wasted breath because they don't listen. <br>-C.

Off The Subject:<br>I have a question for you. See my response to your post under "Concorde?" in the non-automotive section. Thx.<br>-C.

That's one reason I like these guys. They do actually use a giant torque wrench instead of air-powered mega-force. Now THAT's fun to try to take off at home!<br>

<br>(nt)

My experience has always been that you should plug a tire from the inside, and only when it is on the tread. If the puncture is on the sidewall, I have always been told to replace a tire, as the structural integrity of the thinner sidewall could be in question (especially if you drive at higher speeds). Not that I ever do that. ;-)

Pluggs and Patches are different things. You DO patch from the inside.

If it is just a nail hole. You will be better off plugging it. Why go through all the trouble taking the tire off the rim. It's not worth it...

What should the torque be?? I don't remember seeing this anywhere.

It's like this. A puncture of ANY type in the sidewall immediately destroys your<br>speed rating, as well as adversely affects the tires integrity. A tire is a complex system<br>of belts and rubber, etc. which work together to support your mighty A4 as well as maintain traction. Once a sidewall is puctured... that tire isn't good for anything but<br>a rolling time bomb. Reparing a sidewall leak only keeps the air in... but air pressure is only one part of how a tire supports itself. <p>A tread puncture will immediately drop the speed rating of a tire. From Z to T, for example. It's pretty drastic because, once again, the belts are damaged all the way through, causing a major weak spot. Using a plug only makes this problem a WHOLE lot worse and may not completely repair the leak.<p>Only use an INSIDE PATCH to repair tires, and only repair a tire once. Two punctures is too many. A small staple puncture can be repaired with an inside patch and still salvage a decent speed rating from the tire. Don't repair tires for the racetrack!!!!<p>Sorry for the rambling. I make tires for a living.<p>Mark

Any tech. who doesn't use a torque wrench on your ~$400. alloys, and/or does't put anti-seize on you lugs should be bustin' clamps down at the corner Midas shop. I'm in the dealer business, and am occasionally accused of being an "apologist" for dealer business, but no reputable Audi tech doesn't follow these procedures.

BTW, ditto on the plug thing...you plug tires on a rambler...not on a sports car.<p>Steve S.<br>97 2.8QM

Plugs can be brutal and do more damage to the tire. More often than not the installer pokes a new path in the tire and can even damage the belt. Sidewalls should never be done. Plugs can leak and work themselves out. Remove the tire and apply a quality patch and be done with it.<br>

Yeah, I didn't like Fred Lavery at all. The people I talked to were jerks. I guess that bec. I didn't drive up in an expedition I didn't have enough money for them. Also, they wouldn't order any A4's that weren't black or silver (without a deposit). I guess noone in Birmingham, etc wants an A4 in other colors.<p>The dealership in Farmington Hills seemed a lot better, and they had quite a bit more stock. <p>I hope you get good service at Levery otherwise, Cathleen.<p>Darryl <br>98.5 1.8T qms<br>

since I was looking for a new 4000Q in 1986. The salesman hardly gave me the time of day. Went to Cook instead - they let me test drive by myself and I bought off their lot. Took it to Lavery for service though as it was more convenient.

Good advice whioh I always follow. However, it usually is contradictory to recommendations in a lot of factory shop manuals. One for my Porsche, for example, says NOT to use any anti-seize; I can't remember what was said in my old Audi Coupe Quattro shop manual (haven't bought one yet for the A4, though I intend to). As I said above, have ALWAYS used it on any car I've owned (since 1970); haven't had a lug nut/bolt seize or strip yet.

now that's one I haven't seen or heard in a long time.

You're telling me that if you run over a nail then the tire is done. I'm having a hard time believing that the design of a high performance tire dosen't compensate for a little nail puncture. This is just a tiny nail. The design is by very large companies with very advanced R&D depts. These companies take time when developing their products, they put their tires through riggerous testing. You mean to tell me that they don't test for nails. I'll bet they do. Then why would they test for nails if they didn't have within their designs some kind of compensation for a tiny nail hole. <p>Now, you did mention that a puncture in the sidewall shouldn't be repaired. I can agree with that. I don't think I would choose to repair a sidewall puncture no matter how small the hole. But, I don't think a nail hole to the tread has that drastic of a reaction on the tire as you described. Muiliple ones, yes, a tiny nail hole, no. There is definately a whole lot more to the make up of the tire then the belts. The tire compound is probaly the factor with the most weight. A nail hole does nothing to disturb the strenght of the rubber compound. It only disturbs the belts, which are not a major fator in the rating of the tire. Therefor, not a drastic change in the rating of the tire.<p>Plugging a tiny nail hole, once, should be fine for the street. We speak of some of the best tires available, on this forum. Pirelli, Dunlop, Goodyear, are excellant tires. One tiny nail hole isn't going to hurt them. If the puncture is bigger than a nail hole, then you have a decision to make. You can patch it, but only if you feel that the puncture is still small enough where it didn't change the rating of the tire. To me it's worth trying to repair it, a nail hole anyway, before I decide to replace the tire completely. What if you have 30k miles, all your tires have some ware. If you change one, you going to have to change another, if not all four. Cha Ching!!! A couple of thousand for a damn nail...

You're right, a tiny nail isn't a big deal. Patch it from the inside and you'll be fine<br>in everyday driving on the street. However, it is true that you're speed rating will be affected. <p>To contrast your comments, a tire's tread compound has about nothing to do with the speed rating. Belt construction has everything to do with it, by keeping the tire running cool at speed. Heat dissipation is one of the major factors in determining a tire's speed rating ... heat generated by the constant flexing of the tire against the road, and the rotational forces as speed increases. Belts keep the tire together and more uniform, keeping it cool. <p>Piercing the belts will affect the speed rating - however, I'm sure that 90mph on the interstate isn't a big deal, or hard driving. We're talking about a 149mph+ tire, that will still do close to that - but not for as long a time. <p>You're correct, certainly the tire manufacturers compensate for such damage ... they know the tire will be okay because the vast majority will not get close to the tire's possible limits. Also, Uniroyal has release a tire called the Nailguard the claims to reseal itself after puctures. If this can continue down the road at 70mph, so can your patched tire.

On sales, I had a young guy about my age sell me the car, who is no longer there. I'm in the leasing industry and do financial calculations all the time so when I went in there with my HP12c and a list of residuals, rates, etc., I think he got a little intimidated. I could figure out the #s faster than him. So he was actually quite nice and I put a cash deposit down so they were pleased. I drove up in a clean, lightly modified Honda, but didn't get any sneers about it (not being a rich car). Maybe because I was dressed in a suit?<br>I've heard and personally had some not-so-good experiences there with service over the warranty period, though. Wrong diagnosis, wrong part fixed, not fixed, damage caused by tech, so on. On the good side, they've also been helpful at times and worked to get me the car within the same day. Only twice did I wait more than a day. <br>I haven't taken it back there since I ran out of warranty. *We* can do most of the work ourselves and I'm in to doing the work anyway.<br>Perhaps I am paranoid but I don't like dealerships of any MFG., no matter what. They charge too much and the labor is not always superior. I know they don't always respect your property either. Under warranty it's fine use their service, it's free. After that's over, have someone or some place you trust do the work. <br>-C.

(nt)

are you from in metro-Detroit? Which A4 did you buy from 'Bill Cook' (I assume).<br>-C.<br>

I see I didn't read your post well enough to see the car you listed.<br>BTW, you wrote (nt) in your header which means 'no text'. So I didn't know you had written anything more until I opened it up to post a reply under your post.<br>-Cathleen

It was my understanding that the tire compound had mostly to do with speed ratings. So, heat is actually the main factor? The role of the belts are to keep the tire from flexing. Therefor, generating less heat...<p> I'm still missing something. I want my tires hot. I want them sticky, to grip the road. I also want them somewhat flexible, where more tire is in contact with the road during a high-speed turn. I seems to me, with the role of the belts as you explained, are defeating the pourpose of what I want my sport tires to do???

By the way, I think Bill Cook is worse than Lavery...

It's on Delmear st. Where the house of plastic optical is. The owner, Gerald Diduck (I think), is an okay guy. He picks up used Audi's and VW's at auctions and re-sells them. He is mostly service, though. I've never dealt with him, and just wondering if you have or know someone who has?

Our (actually it's my wife's, but I just can't let her have it all to herself!) '98 A4 2.8Q will be two years old this summer. We now have 22,000+mi and have just had the following group of problems fixed:<p>-New EGR valve (check engine light)<p>-New rear wheel bearing (squealing noise in rear)<p>-Resealed rear differential (I found the leak when looking for the cause of squealing noise)<p>Add to this a prior emission control air blower motor replacement and I'm starting to feel very uncomfortable about the end of my warranty period.<p>When we bought the car, the dealer pushed for a 10 year 100,000 b-t-b warranty for $2,200. I figured, no-way, that's too expensive. <p>Now I'm feeling compelled to pay for the extended warranty and I'm not happy to feel this way. It irks me to think that someone may make some money selling me the policy that I feel I have to buy because the product is not as reliable as it should be.<p>Sorry for crying in my beer - just a bit disappointed. We really do love the car and how it handles and looks. <p>Thanks for listening.<p>Tohr

just about every car that my family has ever owned has had A LOT more problems than that during its first two years. German cars don't have Japanese car reliability, but I think they're damn close and they look a lot better and drive nicer :)<p>Mike

Everyone has a different perspective on this stuff...and of course, you have yours. To you the number and severity of issues has been excessive...to others it may not have been. I am in that second group. Here are the things that have gone wrong with my car in the past 19 months (29K miles)..and since it is under warranty...and leased...I do not find them alarming:<p>1) valve cover gasket leak (maybe due to me using synthetic oil - who knows?)<br>2) defective right rear shock<br>3) CD changer replaced - intermittant ERR message in display (did I turn it on and off correctly? - maybe not)<br>4) arm rest hinge defective (probably caused by me - just to be honest)<br>5) squealing brakes (not really a problem but I tried to get Audi to remedy....they tried.... I ended up replacing front brake pads out of warranty with non-dust Rofren pads)<br>6) seat belt buckle assembly in rear (female end) is broken (needs to be replaced at 30K service)<p>Other than that...all other issues have been caused by me tinkering with the suspension (shocks, springs, sway bars, wheels, and tires).<p>I do not care about the mirror wind noise, the fact that the car has weird creaks when it is really cold outside, the slight clicking noise that the electric drivers seat exhibits on fast acceleration or deceleration, the slight windowshield distortion (very minor in my case...in fact I would not have noticed it if it were not for this forum).<p>I have had other non-A4 cars...new ones...that blew the entire electrical system within one month of ownership (85 VW GTI), that blew a head gasket (89 Ford Bronco XLT and Toyota Supra), that blew a timing belt (87 Mitsubishi Mighty Max pick-up). Again, the majority of the issues posted here are not significant in my eyes. Yes, there is an occasional turbo hose blowing...or a engine replacement (Sharon Levy). but by in large, the majority of us just have slight issues...<p>Anyway, just enjoy the car..and occasionally get warranty work done and understand that German cars are sophisticated and on occasion do need slight repairs.<p>BTW, I grew up around Jaquars...so don't even get me started about those babies...and the two transmissions I replaced in my Triumph TR6...and the brake and clutch slave cylinder in my MGB GT.<p>Ok...enough ranting for me...<p>Steve S.<br>97 2.8QM<br>

nt<br>

I had a '91 Mighty Max I bought to haul some things, and talk about a piece of crap! ;-( It had terminal brake problems which ended taking about a months worth of repairs out of the year I had it. After a year, it still wasn't fixed (worse, actually), and I finally got rid of it, after getting rid of my motorcycle project. SHould have looked into the lemon law, but I just wanted to get rid of it. I bought a Honda Civic Coupe EX to replace it (I drove a lot at that time, so I wanted something with good gas mileage), that was another car from hell. The Honda was in for unscheduled visits atleast once every two months for the two years I owned it. I might add that Mitsubishi service is the worst I've ever seen, and Honda wasn't exactly stellar either! :-(<p>Charles<br>

...didn't go in atleast once every two or three months until I went the way of Audi. Here are my four previous cars, and current offerings.<p>1. '81 VW Rabbit Diesel (about once every four months for things like CV boots, etc. Nothing severe) Sold at 88K<p>2. '87 Mazda 626 (Once a month or so for vibrations, leaking tranny, holy exhaust) Sold at 60K.<p>3. '91 Mitsubishi Mighty Max (Chronic brake problems and lifter noise made bi-monthly to two months for loose windows, bad seals, bad monthly visits necessary: Mitsu service is the worst) Sold at 25K.<p>4. '93 Honda Civic Coupe EX (about once every month for window motor, loose window, bad seals, bad heater motor, severe clutch chatter, rattles, squeaks, etc) Sold at 28K<p>Current:<p>1. '89 Audi 90 quattro (once every 6 months or so for clutch master cylinder, and mostly other small things) Car is at 99K now.<p>2. '98 A4 2.8 Q-Tip business use (once since bought in July of '97 for sunroof switch and noisy windows)Currently at 14.5K<p>So, it seems my luck is with Audi! :-)<p>Charles<p><br>

I got a new Black 5.0L Mustang GT and she got that...fair huh?<p>Steve