Ltooz
Building, Fixing and Improving Stuff...
My Favorite Audi Links
In case we ran out of bandwidth and pictures don't show up, please go to the back up website for pictures.
The place I get parts for all my cars is http://www.autohausaz.com/ Good prices, prompt delivery, easy return policy.
1. AC CHARGING (POOR MAN's WAY).
2. Tune Up The A8.
3. Fix The Head Rest Motor & Cables.
4. External GPS Antenna for Warm Weather Package A8.
5. Airbag Light ON.
6. Lower Curve Control Arm Replacement.
7. Straight Control Arm Replacement.
8. Tie Rod End Replacement.
9. Upper Control Arm Replacement.
10. Front Brake Replacement.
11. A8 Water pump Replacement without special tools.
12. A8 Oil Cooler Plastic Coolant Pipe Replacement.
www.quattroworld.com Lots of active posts on Audi's, almost the same as audiworld but it doesn't list the newest replied posts first, you have to search for old posts even people reply today.
www.audiworld.com/forum/a8.html Used to be active, but for some reasons, active participants moved. Still a good website for information on Audi's.
http://www.audipages.com/index.html
Questions or comments
Ltooz_audis@yahoo.com
Cheers,
FIX OIL COOLER LEAKS
When the car is over 100k miles, running hot or low oil for a while, the oil cooler plastic coolant pipe would break and leaks slowly under pressure (when the car turned of after reaching operating temperature). The leaks appear to be from the water pump but it's not, it's dripping from behind the alternator which is directly below the oil cooler pipe and water pump. Before we assumed that the water pump is leaking, remove the driver side fan (disconnect the electrical wiring), remove the timing belt cover and run the engine to see if the water pump squirting out coolant.
The leaks could be from this black plastic pipe here.
The part is less than $13.00 at the dealer, but the removing and installing the oil cooler is tedious and required some patient and skills.
We removed the timing belt covers to do this. The best is to replace this when changing the timing belt or water pump.
Remove the alternator (www.audipages.com) has good information for this replacement. Drain the oil, remove the oil filter, filter cover, air filter housing, alternator.
The oil cooler has 5 hex bolts. The hardest bolt is the top far left one looking from the passenger side of the car. Audipage.com recommended to raise the engine up, but we didn't have to. The bolt is here. The best way to access this bolt is to lie under the car, put the arm around the bumper shock tube with extension and put the hex key in the bolt. When this one is out, the other 4 bolts are easy.
This is the best connection for the hex key to access the bolt and re-insert the bolt in time of installation.
From under the car.
To remove the oil cooler after all 5 bolts had been removed. We have to wiggle it out (top) to clear the plastic pipe (which is broken)
Then slide forward (front of the engine) to clear this black metal pipe going into the side of the oil cooler.
This is the view of the oil cooler with new plastic pipe
Broken plastic pipe
Parts cost.
Replacement bolt from OSH (we actually lost a bolt inside the hardest bolt area, it didn't fall out anywhere)
It's time to reinstall the oil cooler.
Remove all the broken parts inside the engine and the oil cooler (using dental pick or small screw driver).
Replace the O ring on the black metal pipe.
Place 2 O rings onto the plastic pipe and place plastic pipe in the oil cooler (be careful not to drop or hit it anywhere while it's in).
Place the dual O rings onto the Oil cooler.
lightly put some engine oil onto these O rings.
Carefully mount the oil cooler back, with bottom first, align the side hole with the black metal pipe, slide that in first, slowly and watch the plastic pipe not hitting anything or break it while wiggling the oil cooler. When the metal pipe is in, then align the plastic pipe (top) to the hole and push it in lightly not to bend or break it.
When the oil cooler is in place, install the top middle bolt and 2 bottom bolts by hand to hold the oil cooler and the plastic pipe in place then the other 2 bolts, we did the hardest bolt last. When all 5 are threaded securely, start to tighten them all. We always tighten all by hands then middle to the outside bolts and cross with socket.
The job is not hard, just things need to be removed to get there are plenty. But just think how much money you can save for a day of work, especially on the weekend... The feelings of your doing it right and fix it====> Priceless.
Cheers,
Louis
June 09
The leaks could be from this black plastic pipe here.
The part is less than $13.00 at the dealer, but the removing and installing the oil cooler is tedious and required some patient and skills.
We removed the timing belt covers to do this. The best is to replace this when changing the timing belt or water pump.
Remove the alternator (www.audipages.com) has good information for this replacement. Drain the oil, remove the oil filter, filter cover, air filter housing, alternator.
The oil cooler has 5 hex bolts. The hardest bolt is the top far left one looking from the passenger side of the car. Audipage.com recommended to raise the engine up, but we didn't have to. The bolt is here. The best way to access this bolt is to lie under the car, put the arm around the bumper shock tube with extension and put the hex key in the bolt. When this one is out, the other 4 bolts are easy.
This is the best connection for the hex key to access the bolt and re-insert the bolt in time of installation.
From under the car.
To remove the oil cooler after all 5 bolts had been removed. We have to wiggle it out (top) to clear the plastic pipe (which is broken)
Then slide forward (front of the engine) to clear this black metal pipe going into the side of the oil cooler.
This is the view of the oil cooler with new plastic pipe
Broken plastic pipe
Parts cost.
Replacement bolt from OSH (we actually lost a bolt inside the hardest bolt area, it didn't fall out anywhere)
It's time to reinstall the oil cooler.
Remove all the broken parts inside the engine and the oil cooler (using dental pick or small screw driver).
Replace the O ring on the black metal pipe.
Place 2 O rings onto the plastic pipe and place plastic pipe in the oil cooler (be careful not to drop or hit it anywhere while it's in).
Place the dual O rings onto the Oil cooler.
lightly put some engine oil onto these O rings.
Carefully mount the oil cooler back, with bottom first, align the side hole with the black metal pipe, slide that in first, slowly and watch the plastic pipe not hitting anything or break it while wiggling the oil cooler. When the metal pipe is in, then align the plastic pipe (top) to the hole and push it in lightly not to bend or break it.
When the oil cooler is in place, install the top middle bolt and 2 bottom bolts by hand to hold the oil cooler and the plastic pipe in place then the other 2 bolts, we did the hardest bolt last. When all 5 are threaded securely, start to tighten them all. We always tighten all by hands then middle to the outside bolts and cross with socket.
The job is not hard, just things need to be removed to get there are plenty. But just think how much money you can save for a day of work, especially on the weekend... The feelings of your doing it right and fix it====> Priceless.
Cheers,
Louis
June 09
REPLACING A8 WATER PUMP WITHOUT SPECIAL TOOLS
The water pump leaks and the timing belt is still in good shape. The car was running fine, the ex-owner had the timing belt changed @70k miles but the water pump wasn't. Now the car has 155k miles and the original water pump starts to leak. Before we assumed that the water pump leaks like in my case, we should check the oil cooler plastic pipe which breaks often in the A8. Since I assumed the water pump was bad due to its age, I replaced it by mistake but at least we got a new water pump now. The best is always replace the water pump with the timing belt. I was going to replace the timing belt also, but I didn't have the tool to remove the big harmonic balancer center bolt. This procedure is called 'improvised procedure' because after everything is opened on the weekend and without proper tools to do it correctly. Replacing the timing belt or water pump is not hard, just looks like it's a lot of work. The shop would charge at least $800. for labor to do this.
**** The bumper should come out for the radiator to move out to have room to access the front of the engine. It took me less than 1 hour to remove the bumper and the radiator support. Follow the procedure from Audipages.com, it's very clear. Also read the timing belt procedure. Read carefully because it took me half of a day to remove the passenger side timing belt cover because of a hidden bolt and stripped a water pump bolt due to over tightened the bolt (the procedure was 89lb-in ~7-8lb-ft which my torque wrench was in, I try to torque it to 20lb-ft and after 17ft-lb ~ 204lb-in, the bolt was gone and leave me with headless bolt stuck in the block) and this set me back another 4 hours.Here is the video for the whole replacement which including the removal of the oil cooler to replace the $23 part plastic coolant pipe (which was the cause of the coolant leak).
Remove the windshield washer hose to the bumper
Remove 2 10mm Hex bolt securing the bumper to the frame shock absorber (read the procedure on audipages.com)
Go to the front of the tire and remove the screw and pull the wheel inner cover clear off the bumper for bumper removal.
Pull the bumper straight out like a drawer.
This should only take less than 10 minutes. Now outline the 2 frame shock absorber mountings for later installation and remove the A/C plug.
Drain the radiator using a big screw driver slowly until the water come out, open the reservoir cap to vent.
To remove the water hoses, we need to remove all the engine covers, the hood release cable. Slide the driver side out first, then the passenger side and move it to the back somewhere so it doesn't get in the way later.
Remove the air cleaner intake vents 2 @ the radiator.
Remove the water hoses to the radiator top & bottom.
Remove the electrical plug on top of the bottom radiator, wiggle while pulling it out..
Removing the driver side headlight. We removed the passenger side because we need to replace with an non-cracked one. According to Audipages procedure, we don't have to remove the passenger side headlight.
Top 2 screws Bottom 2 screws
Remove the headlight electrical plug and the side marker bulb. Remove the Radiator support bolt.
Remove 3 bolts securing the bumper shock absorber/radiator support frame and remove the shock.
Put a wagon under the radiator for support. Lift the radiator out from the passenger side. Watch out not to yank the AC and power steering hoses.
Now we have some room to work with. It does look bad in pictures but it's very simple.
My wife thought we could never put it back together.
Removing the radiator fan. We remove the fan by removing 3 hex bolts securing it to the base. Now we can see the big center bolt and 3 10mm bolts of the pulley. We need to remove the center bolt and it's left handed thread which means CLOCKWISE is to OPEN, if we use the 10mm bolt as anchor to remove the center bolt, the 10mm bolt will turn open (counterclockwise), the only way to anchor this is to use a long 10mm box wrench, put it on one of the 10mm bolt at the same time resting wrench on the center shaft, hold it tight and hammer the crescent wrench attached to the center bolt, after 2 strong hits, the bolt start to turn.
Now we're going to remove the serpentine belt, 13mm deep socket needed (the bolt is black and on top the black plastic roller), counterclockwise is the release the tension. We're going to change a new belt, we don't need to mark the rotation. Read audipages procedure.
Remove the fan pulley. Remove the driver side timing belt cover by removing the 2 hex bolts securing it, just pull it out, very easy. The passenger side is the one that needs more work. (read audipages.com procedure if it not clear).
So, the timing belt cover includes the engine damper with the big cushy rubber piece here. Remove the bolt.
**** The bumper should come out for the radiator to move out to have room to access the front of the engine. It took me less than 1 hour to remove the bumper and the radiator support. Follow the procedure from Audipages.com, it's very clear. Also read the timing belt procedure. Read carefully because it took me half of a day to remove the passenger side timing belt cover because of a hidden bolt and stripped a water pump bolt due to over tightened the bolt (the procedure was 89lb-in ~7-8lb-ft which my torque wrench was in, I try to torque it to 20lb-ft and after 17ft-lb ~ 204lb-in, the bolt was gone and leave me with headless bolt stuck in the block) and this set me back another 4 hours.Here is the video for the whole replacement which including the removal of the oil cooler to replace the $23 part plastic coolant pipe (which was the cause of the coolant leak).
Remove the windshield washer hose to the bumper
Remove 2 10mm Hex bolt securing the bumper to the frame shock absorber (read the procedure on audipages.com)
Go to the front of the tire and remove the screw and pull the wheel inner cover clear off the bumper for bumper removal.
Pull the bumper straight out like a drawer.
This should only take less than 10 minutes. Now outline the 2 frame shock absorber mountings for later installation and remove the A/C plug.
Drain the radiator using a big screw driver slowly until the water come out, open the reservoir cap to vent.
To remove the water hoses, we need to remove all the engine covers, the hood release cable. Slide the driver side out first, then the passenger side and move it to the back somewhere so it doesn't get in the way later.
Remove the air cleaner intake vents 2 @ the radiator.
Remove the water hoses to the radiator top & bottom.
Remove the electrical plug on top of the bottom radiator, wiggle while pulling it out..
Removing the driver side headlight. We removed the passenger side because we need to replace with an non-cracked one. According to Audipages procedure, we don't have to remove the passenger side headlight.
Top 2 screws Bottom 2 screws
Remove the headlight electrical plug and the side marker bulb. Remove the Radiator support bolt.
Remove 3 bolts securing the bumper shock absorber/radiator support frame and remove the shock.
Put a wagon under the radiator for support. Lift the radiator out from the passenger side. Watch out not to yank the AC and power steering hoses.
Now we have some room to work with. It does look bad in pictures but it's very simple.
My wife thought we could never put it back together. Removing the radiator fan. We remove the fan by removing 3 hex bolts securing it to the base. Now we can see the big center bolt and 3 10mm bolts of the pulley. We need to remove the center bolt and it's left handed thread which means CLOCKWISE is to OPEN, if we use the 10mm bolt as anchor to remove the center bolt, the 10mm bolt will turn open (counterclockwise), the only way to anchor this is to use a long 10mm box wrench, put it on one of the 10mm bolt at the same time resting wrench on the center shaft, hold it tight and hammer the crescent wrench attached to the center bolt, after 2 strong hits, the bolt start to turn.
Now we're going to remove the serpentine belt, 13mm deep socket needed (the bolt is black and on top the black plastic roller), counterclockwise is the release the tension. We're going to change a new belt, we don't need to mark the rotation. Read audipages procedure.
Remove the fan pulley. Remove the driver side timing belt cover by removing the 2 hex bolts securing it, just pull it out, very easy. The passenger side is the one that needs more work. (read audipages.com procedure if it not clear).
So, the timing belt cover includes the engine damper with the big cushy rubber piece here. Remove the bolt.
1 of 2 hidden bolts that cost me a few hours trying to knock the cover out. Read the audipage.com and look at the pictures.
To get to these 2 bolts, we need to turn the tensioner counterclockwise to access these 2 bolts. 2 people needed for this removal.
Total we should have is 4 long bolts and 1 short bolt (bottom). Remove 2 hex bolts and the shock absorber of the tensioner and the cover should come out right away, if not, there must be a bolt still exist. (check audipages.com).
Now rotate the Harmonic Balancer to top dead center mark.
Mark the first revolution TDC camshaft position on both cams.
Turn the Harmonic balancer 1 complete turn (2nd revolution) and mark both again.
So, every 2 revolutions, the camshafts marks will be back to the same positions.
We decided to choose the TDC that corresponds to the little dots on the cam sprockets at top. We use the tie wrap to lock the cam sprockets in place (since we don't have the cams locator tools and we assumed that the current position is correct).Mark the timing belt with marker also.
Now we're ready to remove the timing belt off the water pump pulley. First we need to loosen the belt tension, look at the eccentric roller, mark all the original position for later re-tensioning.
Counterclockwise to loosen, notice the position of the eccentric roller.
Now we can slide the belt off the water pump roller. Next we need to remove the belt tension shock absorber that's in the way.
Remove all 9 screws (star) and push the tension lever down to remove the water pump, knock it lightly at the pulley, it should come out, if not, there must be a screw still in place. Now remove the thermostat housing by 2 little screws. Test the new thermostat to make sure it works by placing the old and new in the boiling water. They should open, the old should open faster and close slower (in our case at least).
Verify the marking on the new thermostat (87c), put the seal ring on and place it back in place with the vent (dot) on TOP.
Put back the housing and tighten the screws snugged tight, don't strip them. Now put some gasket sealer on the water pump gasket and install the water pump. We used the high temp gasket maker. Evenly apply it through out the front and back of the gasket.
Put the water pump back in place, yes, we need to push the tensioner down again to clear the water pump.
Install 9 screws and tighten them snugged tight like audipages.com and here we went wrong by mis-reading the specs. 20lb-in and max 89lb-in, we tighten with ft-lb torque wrench and @ 17ft-lb, the #1 (per audipages.com) stripped because 17ft-lbx12 = 204lb-in. Darn it.
So we went to autozone to get one off those $2.99 bolt extractor 1/8-1/4 size and it didn't do squat. Went to Harbor Freight and get a real set for $7.99 and it came out. Drilling is a pain, it must be straight and slowly and carefully. This set us back 4 hours.But at least we could get it out.
Now we start all over again with the water pump gasket and torque, now it's 8ft-lb, but we did 10ft-lb and it's fine.
While the belt tension is off, check all the sprockets and rollers for looseness (in/out) and spins, if they're totally loose, then replace them. Ours are OK, not much free play and they all spinning nicely.
In order to put the timing belt back under the new water pump roller (pulley), we need to slightly rotate the Harmonic Balancer (the big pulley) counterclockwise just a tad, make sure the belt is in the left roller (the roller above the eccentric one) first then water pump's.
Check the cams sprockets marks and belts to make sure all teeth fit as before.
Everything should line up as it was originally. After everything is verified, put back the tensioner shock absorber, push it down completely on the right side should help.
After the shock installed, we need to cut the tie wraps for cams sprockets to be free. Next is to set the belt tension at the eccentric tension roller. Rotate it back close the original as possible, tighten the nut enough for the eccentric not to move, make sure the eccentric doesn't move with it. The best is to use long needle nose pliers. Adjust the eccentric roller until the tension is good and the mark of the TB and the cam matched as before.
Rotate a few revolutions clockwise to see the tension of the belt at all turns to make sure it's not to tight, check the audipages.com for specs. When ours is almost at the same position and when the belt at the tightest, we tighten our eccentric roller nut full specs, at this position, we don't have to use the 2 hex wrench because the belt tension prevents it from moving.
Again, rotate a few more times, look at the belt and rollers and sprockets to make sure no debris are in between, use the compressed air hose or brushes to clean the belt teeth and rollers, inspect to make sure no belt's teeth are missing or cracked and important thing, the belt is never too tight, it may break. Remember, after 2 revolutions, the marks on the cams sprocket should come back as before although the marking on the belt we may never see them match again. So don't look for the belt mark, just the sprockets and the reference pins.
Put back the passenger timing belt cover. Make sure the sleeves for the hex bolts are there when we took them off for tie wraps.
Put back the driver timing belt cover. Make sure the sleeves for the hex bolts are there.
Put back the radiator fan with the reversed thread bolt, using the rubber strap is best since the serpentine belt is not on.
Put the new serpentine belt, and make sure it runs through pulleys and rollers correctly, the drawing in audipages is not clear, look at the picture of the engine.
Put back the radiator frame and watch for the position, but in our case, when we tighten the 2 hex bolts at the fenders, everything seem to be in place, the same marking as before.
Put back the A/C electrical connector.
Put back the engine damper bolt at the passenger side cover.
Put back the water hoses and make sure the radiator drain is closed (the blue screw), we never drain the engine coolant.
Add coolant, unscrew two bleeder valves at the heater core, if the screw slot is broken, use 15mm box wrench. Read Audipages.com procedure. The amount we add should be the same as the amount we drained out.
Put back the engine covers and intake ducts.
Make sure everything is done and no tools are in the ways of rollers and belt and fans.
Connect the battery, start the engine and we should hear it purrs like before we open it up because all our marks were there.
If we have the tool to get the Harmonic balancer (the big pulley) out, we would replace our timing belt, but we didn't prepare for it. Next time (20K miles later), we will replace everything. After doing this, timing belt and water pump is not as mysterious and hard as we thought, yes, it looks messy with all the bumper and radiators and hoses out, but it's doable. We can do this one again in less than a day instead of 2 days.
Cheers,
Louis
6/01/09
To get to these 2 bolts, we need to turn the tensioner counterclockwise to access these 2 bolts. 2 people needed for this removal.
Total we should have is 4 long bolts and 1 short bolt (bottom). Remove 2 hex bolts and the shock absorber of the tensioner and the cover should come out right away, if not, there must be a bolt still exist. (check audipages.com).
Now rotate the Harmonic Balancer to top dead center mark.
Mark the first revolution TDC camshaft position on both cams.
Turn the Harmonic balancer 1 complete turn (2nd revolution) and mark both again.
So, every 2 revolutions, the camshafts marks will be back to the same positions.
We decided to choose the TDC that corresponds to the little dots on the cam sprockets at top. We use the tie wrap to lock the cam sprockets in place (since we don't have the cams locator tools and we assumed that the current position is correct).Mark the timing belt with marker also.
Now we're ready to remove the timing belt off the water pump pulley. First we need to loosen the belt tension, look at the eccentric roller, mark all the original position for later re-tensioning.
Counterclockwise to loosen, notice the position of the eccentric roller.
Now we can slide the belt off the water pump roller. Next we need to remove the belt tension shock absorber that's in the way.
Remove all 9 screws (star) and push the tension lever down to remove the water pump, knock it lightly at the pulley, it should come out, if not, there must be a screw still in place. Now remove the thermostat housing by 2 little screws. Test the new thermostat to make sure it works by placing the old and new in the boiling water. They should open, the old should open faster and close slower (in our case at least).
Verify the marking on the new thermostat (87c), put the seal ring on and place it back in place with the vent (dot) on TOP.
Put back the housing and tighten the screws snugged tight, don't strip them. Now put some gasket sealer on the water pump gasket and install the water pump. We used the high temp gasket maker. Evenly apply it through out the front and back of the gasket.
Put the water pump back in place, yes, we need to push the tensioner down again to clear the water pump.
Install 9 screws and tighten them snugged tight like audipages.com and here we went wrong by mis-reading the specs. 20lb-in and max 89lb-in, we tighten with ft-lb torque wrench and @ 17ft-lb, the #1 (per audipages.com) stripped because 17ft-lbx12 = 204lb-in. Darn it.
So we went to autozone to get one off those $2.99 bolt extractor 1/8-1/4 size and it didn't do squat. Went to Harbor Freight and get a real set for $7.99 and it came out. Drilling is a pain, it must be straight and slowly and carefully. This set us back 4 hours.But at least we could get it out.
Now we start all over again with the water pump gasket and torque, now it's 8ft-lb, but we did 10ft-lb and it's fine.
While the belt tension is off, check all the sprockets and rollers for looseness (in/out) and spins, if they're totally loose, then replace them. Ours are OK, not much free play and they all spinning nicely.
In order to put the timing belt back under the new water pump roller (pulley), we need to slightly rotate the Harmonic Balancer (the big pulley) counterclockwise just a tad, make sure the belt is in the left roller (the roller above the eccentric one) first then water pump's.
Check the cams sprockets marks and belts to make sure all teeth fit as before.
Everything should line up as it was originally. After everything is verified, put back the tensioner shock absorber, push it down completely on the right side should help.
After the shock installed, we need to cut the tie wraps for cams sprockets to be free. Next is to set the belt tension at the eccentric tension roller. Rotate it back close the original as possible, tighten the nut enough for the eccentric not to move, make sure the eccentric doesn't move with it. The best is to use long needle nose pliers. Adjust the eccentric roller until the tension is good and the mark of the TB and the cam matched as before.
Rotate a few revolutions clockwise to see the tension of the belt at all turns to make sure it's not to tight, check the audipages.com for specs. When ours is almost at the same position and when the belt at the tightest, we tighten our eccentric roller nut full specs, at this position, we don't have to use the 2 hex wrench because the belt tension prevents it from moving.
Again, rotate a few more times, look at the belt and rollers and sprockets to make sure no debris are in between, use the compressed air hose or brushes to clean the belt teeth and rollers, inspect to make sure no belt's teeth are missing or cracked and important thing, the belt is never too tight, it may break. Remember, after 2 revolutions, the marks on the cams sprocket should come back as before although the marking on the belt we may never see them match again. So don't look for the belt mark, just the sprockets and the reference pins.
Put back the passenger timing belt cover. Make sure the sleeves for the hex bolts are there when we took them off for tie wraps.
Put back the driver timing belt cover. Make sure the sleeves for the hex bolts are there.
Put back the radiator fan with the reversed thread bolt, using the rubber strap is best since the serpentine belt is not on.
Put the new serpentine belt, and make sure it runs through pulleys and rollers correctly, the drawing in audipages is not clear, look at the picture of the engine.
Put back the radiator frame and watch for the position, but in our case, when we tighten the 2 hex bolts at the fenders, everything seem to be in place, the same marking as before.
Put back the A/C electrical connector.
Put back the engine damper bolt at the passenger side cover.
Put back the water hoses and make sure the radiator drain is closed (the blue screw), we never drain the engine coolant.
Add coolant, unscrew two bleeder valves at the heater core, if the screw slot is broken, use 15mm box wrench. Read Audipages.com procedure. The amount we add should be the same as the amount we drained out.
Put back the engine covers and intake ducts.
Make sure everything is done and no tools are in the ways of rollers and belt and fans.
Connect the battery, start the engine and we should hear it purrs like before we open it up because all our marks were there.
If we have the tool to get the Harmonic balancer (the big pulley) out, we would replace our timing belt, but we didn't prepare for it. Next time (20K miles later), we will replace everything. After doing this, timing belt and water pump is not as mysterious and hard as we thought, yes, it looks messy with all the bumper and radiators and hoses out, but it's doable. We can do this one again in less than a day instead of 2 days.
Cheers,
Louis
6/01/09
AC Charging For 98 A8
The only way that you can charge Freon to any car is from the LOW port. You can do this with any car, but for the Audis, they covered the low port with some types of sensors. On my A8, the sensor wasn't there, but the connector is. The location is next to the brake master cylinder and in front of the auxiliary fuse/relay box. Audipages.com will have the pictures.
For Audi A8, you need the adapter like this FJC6016
I also bought a few 12oz cans from them.
The best thing is this device fits perfectly to the threads of the connector and all you need is to connect the can + hose like this
When everything is hooked up, screw the pin in the can, then unscrew it for the freon to come out through the hose, TURN ON the engine with AC and you can feel the can getting really cold. If it's not cold (freezing) then the connection or AC is not working. Wait until the can is empty, check the vents, you should feel the cold air coming out. Use 1 12 oz can only.
My AC is leaking somewhere, I don't want to pay $80 for the shop every few months to get it charged up. This way, whenever it needs AC, I would charge 1 can.
Again, the whole procedure is here
Good luck and please do it with your own risks,
4/11/08
For Audi A8, you need the adapter like this FJC6016
I also bought a few 12oz cans from them.
The best thing is this device fits perfectly to the threads of the connector and all you need is to connect the can + hose like this
When everything is hooked up, screw the pin in the can, then unscrew it for the freon to come out through the hose, TURN ON the engine with AC and you can feel the can getting really cold. If it's not cold (freezing) then the connection or AC is not working. Wait until the can is empty, check the vents, you should feel the cold air coming out. Use 1 12 oz can only.
My AC is leaking somewhere, I don't want to pay $80 for the shop every few months to get it charged up. This way, whenever it needs AC, I would charge 1 can.
Again, the whole procedure is here
Good luck and please do it with your own risks,
4/11/08
How I Tune Up My A8
We've had the A8 for almost 4 years and added 40k miles, it's been the most comfortable & reliable car we've ever had (and we have never taken it to the dealers or shops for anything except alignment & new tires). According to the ex-owner records, the spark plugs are over 60k miles old. With the gas prices is hitting close to ~$4 /gallon, it's time for us to tune up my A8, although it's still running solidly. We ordered 8 copper spark plugs from Autohausaz a few months back, we didn't want to get the platinum although it's only a few cents difference. On Saturday 3/8/08 with odo @ 144xxx miles, it's the first time we've touched the engine compartment.
The mighty 4.2 Liter 300hp V8
Everything is sealed and covered so nicely. In order to get to the 8 spark plugs, we needed to remove 2 covers using 5mm hex key, we can see the 2 hex bolts on each side next to the 4 Audi rings. The one on the left, need the air cleaner hose removed to lift the cover out.
After the cover is removed, we was amazed at the spark plug wires & coils positions, so beautifully placed.
10 mm socket is needed to remove the spark plug cover and remove it slowly and carefully.
Since the socket is deep, we used 6" extension (I didn't want to use 9" because it's a little long and we don't want to wiggle too much) and a little force over 22ft/lb by specs to remove the spark plug. WE DID ONE AT A TIME.
This is how a 60k copper spark plug in a good V8 look like, still nice looking, it's dark because we didn't warm up the car when moving it out of the garage.
Before we install the new spark plug, we inspected all the 4 electrodes and gaps to make sure they're not damaged from the factory and we always put some new engine oil around the thread to make sure it goes in smoothly thread by thread.
It's aluminum head, so we have to hand twist all spark plugs in thread by thread slowly but surely until they go in all the way. The torque wrench is only used for the last thread and tighten only. Don't over tighten the spark plug if you don't have the torque wrench, don't strip or break anything. FINISH ONE and MOVE TO THE NEXT SLOWLY and CAREFULLY!!!!
While the Air cleaner hose is out, we also bought an air filter to replace it with. We used the high pressure hose to blow out all the dirt, since there is no Oil, there's no grimes on the air filter.
To remove the old air filter, we need to unscrew 4 screws securing the cover, it's very easy to remove when the screws are done. We vacuumed the bottom part to be cleaned from sands and bugs before placing the new air filter in.
While the Air cleaner is out, we can see the throttle body was so dirty, remove the rubber connector and use a clean rag sprayed with carburetor cleaner and let the fingers do the wiggling and wiping, clean the butterflies and body as much as you can. I don't spray anything into the throttle body.
Put everything back and ready to start the car to see if it runs. It did like it should... The idle and acceleration is much smoother and the engine is quieter during acceleration. It did make some difference or may be it's just my feelings? Anyhow, time will tell, my wife will give me a full report on the gas mileage. She did say the engine seems to operate better.
While every covers were removed, I took my time to inspect all the rubber hoses, and they're all good. Believe it or not, these vacuum hoses could cause your car to idle and run so bad that you may have to get a tune up for 1000s of dollars and still wouldn't fix it. This is an example of what a tune up can do, NOT MUCH, with 60k miles old spark plugs, our car still runs great, so next time if your car doesn't start, idles bad, or sluggish in acceleration, check something else, like electrical connection or VACUUM HOSES
I heard people also change fuel pump, fuel filter. In all my life driving older cars, I never had to replace one fuel pump or fuel filter... or another one, clogged air cleaner... look at my air filter please, how bad did it look and it didn't stop my car from running fine.
Cheers and hope your cars run well,
March 8, 2008
The mighty 4.2 Liter 300hp V8
Everything is sealed and covered so nicely. In order to get to the 8 spark plugs, we needed to remove 2 covers using 5mm hex key, we can see the 2 hex bolts on each side next to the 4 Audi rings. The one on the left, need the air cleaner hose removed to lift the cover out.
After the cover is removed, we was amazed at the spark plug wires & coils positions, so beautifully placed.
10 mm socket is needed to remove the spark plug cover and remove it slowly and carefully.
Since the socket is deep, we used 6" extension (I didn't want to use 9" because it's a little long and we don't want to wiggle too much) and a little force over 22ft/lb by specs to remove the spark plug. WE DID ONE AT A TIME.
This is how a 60k copper spark plug in a good V8 look like, still nice looking, it's dark because we didn't warm up the car when moving it out of the garage.
Before we install the new spark plug, we inspected all the 4 electrodes and gaps to make sure they're not damaged from the factory and we always put some new engine oil around the thread to make sure it goes in smoothly thread by thread.
It's aluminum head, so we have to hand twist all spark plugs in thread by thread slowly but surely until they go in all the way. The torque wrench is only used for the last thread and tighten only. Don't over tighten the spark plug if you don't have the torque wrench, don't strip or break anything. FINISH ONE and MOVE TO THE NEXT SLOWLY and CAREFULLY!!!!
While the Air cleaner hose is out, we also bought an air filter to replace it with. We used the high pressure hose to blow out all the dirt, since there is no Oil, there's no grimes on the air filter.
To remove the old air filter, we need to unscrew 4 screws securing the cover, it's very easy to remove when the screws are done. We vacuumed the bottom part to be cleaned from sands and bugs before placing the new air filter in.
While the Air cleaner is out, we can see the throttle body was so dirty, remove the rubber connector and use a clean rag sprayed with carburetor cleaner and let the fingers do the wiggling and wiping, clean the butterflies and body as much as you can. I don't spray anything into the throttle body.
Put everything back and ready to start the car to see if it runs. It did like it should... The idle and acceleration is much smoother and the engine is quieter during acceleration. It did make some difference or may be it's just my feelings? Anyhow, time will tell, my wife will give me a full report on the gas mileage. She did say the engine seems to operate better.
While every covers were removed, I took my time to inspect all the rubber hoses, and they're all good. Believe it or not, these vacuum hoses could cause your car to idle and run so bad that you may have to get a tune up for 1000s of dollars and still wouldn't fix it. This is an example of what a tune up can do, NOT MUCH, with 60k miles old spark plugs, our car still runs great, so next time if your car doesn't start, idles bad, or sluggish in acceleration, check something else, like electrical connection or VACUUM HOSES
I heard people also change fuel pump, fuel filter. In all my life driving older cars, I never had to replace one fuel pump or fuel filter... or another one, clogged air cleaner... look at my air filter please, how bad did it look and it didn't stop my car from running fine.Cheers and hope your cars run well,
March 8, 2008
Ique3600 External GPS Antenna for A8
If you have an A8 with warm weather package which has dual glass windows, your portable gps device may not work at all. This is my way of getting the gps signals by installing an external GPS antenna.
gps_antenna.pdf
gps_antenna.pdf
Airbag light on with faulty sensors
My A8 airbag light is on due to code 0215 & G177 rear driver side resistance is too high. After reset it with the VAG-COM it still comes back, it's must be fixed permanently.
-Need to remove 2 philips head screws in front of the bench seat and lift the seat up. There are 2 cables and connectors on each side of the bench. My driver side is the problem one.
Use a DVM to measure the resistance between the terminals of the connectors. Both sides measured 10.9k ohms but somehow the computer measures wrong on the driver side. I got a 2.2k ohm resistor and try to connect parallel with the sensor and the airbag light is gone away for good.
Tape the resistor in place and put back the seat, the airbag faulty sensor is now bypassed. I don't know if the rear airbag will deploy in case of crashing, but the airbag light is still on when you turn on the ignition, and off when the engine starts. Do this with your own risks.
Cheers,
12/23/07
-Need to remove 2 philips head screws in front of the bench seat and lift the seat up. There are 2 cables and connectors on each side of the bench. My driver side is the problem one.
Use a DVM to measure the resistance between the terminals of the connectors. Both sides measured 10.9k ohms but somehow the computer measures wrong on the driver side. I got a 2.2k ohm resistor and try to connect parallel with the sensor and the airbag light is gone away for good.
Tape the resistor in place and put back the seat, the airbag faulty sensor is now bypassed. I don't know if the rear airbag will deploy in case of crashing, but the airbag light is still on when you turn on the ignition, and off when the engine starts. Do this with your own risks.
Cheers,
12/23/07
Lower Curve Control Arm procedure for 98 A8
If your A8 has ~ 100k miles and you start to hear the clunking while going over little bumps or turning into a drive way. There are about 8 reasons that may cause the clunking, this is one of them. Normally you should replace all the pieces under the car because within 6 months time, all of mine was replaced one by one. The best is to buy the whole set on EBAY for about $500.00. Each piece should cost over $100. easy.
curve_arm.pdf
curve_arm.pdf
Straight Arm Replacement
Second reason for clunking suspension.
straight_arm_200.pdf
straight_arm_200.pdf
A8 Front Brake Replacement
The Mintex Red box pads that we replaced 2 years ago squeaked really badly; although the pads are still have 1/2 life left, we decided to replace with new Zimmerman rotors and Meyle semi-metallic brake pads. The write up is there for reference if you want to use it, but please use it with your own risks.
Front brake replacement
Cheers,
Ltooz
10/29/07
Front brake replacement
Cheers,
Ltooz
10/29/07
