'09's Any Major Reason to Stay Away

[A4Driver]

I was driving behind a new S4 today that had LED tail lamps and I noticed that the LEDs on the trunk lid did not line up with the LEDs on the fender. It was slightly off, about a half an inch. It looked really shoddy. . . .

[2012A4Q5Owner]

Originally Posted by A4Driver

I was driving behind a new S4 today that had LED tail lamps and I noticed that the LEDs on the trunk lid did not line up with the LEDs on the fender. It was slightly off, about a half an inch. It looked really shoddy.
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Maybe it was wrecked and then had a shoddy repair? I'd love to have an S4, but the seats were just too uncomfortable to get in and out of. I'm a heavy dude. I'd prefer to get the supercharged A6.

[JonSVID]

Not sure if this issue has been answered or even addressed. I purchased a 09' A$ Quattro 2.0T 9 days ago. Already broke down, the cuase was a fuel injector stuck open, thus flooding the cylinder.

Probably a fluke occurence, and thankfully covered under warranty. New? Old news? Advice?

[ocean48]

Originally Posted by JonSVID

Not sure if this issue has been answered or even addressed. I purchased a 09' A$ Quattro 2.0T 9 days ago. Already broke down, the cuase was a fuel injector stuck open, thus flooding the cylinder.

Probably a fluke occurence, and thankfully covered under warranty. New? Old news? Advice?

Glad your car was cover under warranty.

Oil wise, the OP who live in florida, You could also use 0w-40. You florida folks dont even have a winter, why use 5w? just in case that once in a great while blizzard?

Dang 600 bucks tranny and differential fliud change ?? holy money batman !!!!, ill do it for 300, and change all your fliuds, tranny, oil, and differential.

[Reuhssurance]

Great thread! Glad I came across this.. I just sold a 350Z and my uncle is the GM of an Audi dealership. He said he'll keep an eye out for an A4 or A5 2.0t for me in manual. Any downsides to the manual? I am a little concerned about this oil consumption issue, but if that can be solved with a certain type of oil then I guess I should be fine. Being in Utah should be interesting with it any recommendations on what weight oil I put in then?

[2012A4Q5Owner]

Originally Posted by Reuhssurance

Great thread! Glad I came across this.. I just sold a 350Z and my uncle is the GM of an Audi dealership. He said he'll keep an eye out for an A4 or A5 2.0t for me in manual. Any downsides to the manual? I am a little concerned about this oil consumption issue, but if that can be solved with a certain type of oil then I guess I should be fine. Being in Utah should be interesting with it any recommendations on what weight oil I put in then?

A manual transmission is normally much more reliable. It's just that driving skill can affect the wearing of the clutch. As long as you don't ride the clutch, you can easily get 150,000+ miles out of one before having to change it.

I was getting oil consumption in both of my 2.0T's and I switched to Amsoil European 5W40 and the problem went away. So yet, the oil brand makes a difference. I told my car dealer that they should be an Amsoil dealer but they said they are only allowed to carry certain oil brands based on the volume and discounts they are currently getting. Amsoil doesn't carry an oil filter for the TFSI engines, so I get mine at either the Audi or Volkswagen dealer. From my testing, Amsoil is less likely to evaporate from heat over Mobil 1, Castrol and other synthetics. A friend of mine was having oil consumption issues in his 2001 Camry. He only did oil changes at the Toyota dealer the whole time. He ended up switching at around 80,000+ miles. He was down over a quart between oil changes from the dealer's oil. After he started using Amsoil, he went for 6 months and checked the dip stick and it was completely full.

I have a ScanGuage and I always check my gas mileage religiously. Last night I did a long trip on the highway at 30 miles and noticed I was getting almost 39 MPG when driving between 60-65 MPH. I never got that kind of gas mileage until switching to Amsoil. I took my car to a shop and they changed the both differentials over to Amsoil MTG. Their oils reduce a lot of friction. Every single car I've switched to this oil I've experienced a nice increase in gas mileage.

When I bought these Audi's, I was really set on getting a V6. Now I'm so glad I stuck with 4 cylinder cars after paying $4.29/gallon during my last fill-up. These cars are plenty fast for my needs and having the econobox gas mileage is a real bonus. The best MPG I've been able to obtain in mostly stop and go traffic is 24 MPG. Where I live the speed limits are so low that the car car hardly ever make it to 8th gear. The car won't shift to 8th gear until I am well over 50 MPH. The speed limits around here are mostly 45 MPH on the surface streets until you get on the highway. So I have to do at least 5 MPH over so I can manually switch it to 8th gear. As soon as I hit 8th gear, I can watch the gas mileage shoot on up the ScanGuage.

[ETech9]

Originally Posted by snagitseven

I've had the control arms, roof deflector and power steering hose all replaced. I would point out that any oil issues that may exist are related to the 2.0 engine. My 3.2 V6 has had zero issues whatsoever, including no oil consumption problems. Also, the power steering hose you mentioned was not really defective per se, just improperly designed. The replacement has reinforced, braided dual lines with increased diameter to eliminate the pulsing, "judder" issue.

In regards to the low speed Power steering Shudder. Can anyone be more specific as to what hose was replaced to fix the problem. I have an 09 with 42K. It does not appear to have a leak, however I did notice the fluid was a little low and the power steering was making noise. After I topped off the Fluid (using Audi Fluid) The problem got better but did not go away. I check and it does not appear to be air in the system. Now that I added to S-Line 19" wheels it is even more apparent/annoying. The car is under warranty but I never trust dealerships unless I know the tech. If someone has some more info on this I would appreciate it as I will be having them address the issue at my 45K "tune up" AKA oil change...lol

[Reuhssurance]

Originally Posted by 2012A4Q5Owner

A manual transmission is normally much more reliable. It's just that driving skill can affect the wearing of the clutch. As long as you don't ride the clutch, you can easily get 150,000+ miles out of one before having to change it.

I was getting oil consumption in both of my 2.0T's and I switched to Amsoil European 5W40 and the problem went away. So yet, the oil brand makes a difference. I told my car dealer that they should be an Amsoil dealer but they said they are only allowed to carry certain oil brands based on the volume and discounts they are currently getting. Amsoil doesn't carry an oil filter for the TFSI engines, so I get mine at either the Audi or Volkswagen dealer. From my testing, Amsoil is less likely to evaporate from heat over Mobil 1, Castrol and other synthetics. A friend of mine was having oil consumption issues in his 2001 Camry. He only did oil changes at the Toyota dealer the whole time. He ended up switching at around 80,000+ miles. He was down over a quart between oil changes from the dealer's oil. After he started using Amsoil, he went for 6 months and checked the dip stick and it was completely full.

I have a ScanGuage and I always check my gas mileage religiously. Last night I did a long trip on the highway at 30 miles and noticed I was getting almost 39 MPG when driving between 60-65 MPH. I never got that kind of gas mileage until switching to Amsoil. I took my car to a shop and they changed the both differentials over to Amsoil MTG. Their oils reduce a lot of friction. Every single car I've switched to this oil I've experienced a nice increase in gas mileage.

When I bought these Audi's, I was really set on getting a V6. Now I'm so glad I stuck with 4 cylinder cars after paying $4.29/gallon during my last fill-up. These cars are plenty fast for my needs and having the econobox gas mileage is a real bonus. The best MPG I've been able to obtain in mostly stop and go traffic is 24 MPG. Where I live the speed limits are so low that the car car hardly ever make it to 8th gear. The car won't shift to 8th gear until I am well over 50 MPH. The speed limits around here are mostly 45 MPH on the surface streets until you get on the highway. So I have to do at least 5 MPH over so I can manually switch it to 8th gear. As soon as I hit 8th gear, I can watch the gas mileage shoot on up the ScanGuage.

Thanks for the response, good to hear it shouldn't be that difficult of a fix. When you say they changed your differentials to Amsoil, how difficult was that and how much did it cost? Somethig like that doesn't sacrifice power does it?

[2012A4Q5Owner]

Originally Posted by Reuhssurance

Thanks for the response, good to hear it shouldn't be that difficult of a fix. When you say they changed your differentials to Amsoil, how difficult was that and how much did it cost? Somethig like that doesn't sacrifice power does it?

I would never do anything to sacrifice power. If it does anything, it increases it by reducing drag. I think I paid about $85 or so to have both differentials done. This shop only worked on Audi's and Volkswagens and no other cars. We also had a family member's Audi S4 converted to Amsoil by the same guy. We got the rear differential changed over, but the front differential had its plug stripped. The technician had to use a pump to get the fluid out as there wasn't a drain plug on the front differential. So I'm glad I brought it to a shop to do it. Doing this in the driveway would be a real pain. It was so much better being up on the lift.

I took these pictures when the Audi tech did the work.

I think it was well worth it. On the highway I get amazing gas mileage between 55-60 MPH. The drain interval on this fluid is supposed to be changed at the Audi factory drain interval. When I checked with a service technician at the Audi dealership, he told me that this fluid should be a lifetime fluid. He checked the service for this in the computer and he said he saw that it should have never been changed before 100,000 miles. That's was pretty cool. So you only have to do this once for a very long time. I personally wouldn't leave it in there past 100,000 miles. I would rather change it every 100,000 miles to be safe. I know the transmission fluid is supposed to be changed at every 100,000 miles or so. I'm not even going to wait that long. I'm going to bring it to this Audi shop and have them to a flush at 50,000 miles. It's just a major buzz kill that a tranny flush on this car is almost $600. And Amsoil doesn't make a fluid for it, so I will be at the mercy at whatever Audi fluid they have for it is. If you're ever going to put anything from Amsoil in your car, you only want to use what's listed as being available on their filter guide. I read some place where somebody put in Amsoil 0W30 in their Audi and messed up the engine. That's one of the best oils they make, but the 0W30 doesn't meet the Audi spec. Only the European versions do and they have to be changed at the Audi recommended interval. So don't just wing it and pick an oil at random otherwise you could void a warranty. That's one thing that scares me to death to take specialty cars to quick lubes. The quick lubes buy bulk oils and it's not always compatible for every car. Oil consumption is still nill since putting in Amsoil. I'm a happy camper! Woo hoo! That's one less headache I have to worry about now.

[snagitseven]

Originally Posted by ETech9

In regards to the low speed Power steering Shudder. Can anyone be more specific as to what hose was replaced to fix the problem. I have an 09 with 42K. It does not appear to have a leak, however I did notice the fluid was a little low and the power steering was making noise. After I topped off the Fluid (using Audi Fluid) The problem got better but did not go away. I check and it does not appear to be air in the system. Now that I added to S-Line 19" wheels it is even more apparent/annoying. The car is under warranty but I never trust dealerships unless I know the tech. If someone has some more info on this I would appreciate it as I will be having them address the issue at my 45K "tune up" AKA oil change...lol

The "shudder" refers specifically to occasional "stuttering" vibrations felt in the steering wheel when making a tight turn only at under 5 mph. The original 2009 hose was designed too small and on certain surfaces only, would produce this effect (often noticeable with fresh, smooth asphalt, gloss painted concrete, gravel). The replacement hose (actually dual hoses, I believe) provided a larger diameter flow of the power steering fluid which alleviated the problem. Your Audi dealer should have a record if your car ever had the hose replaced but it sounds like your problem may have a different cause.