atlasrising

1996, b5 a4, quattro, 5spd. 207k. im replacing my bearings and race from inside the rear differential. after removing the race i discovered 1mm shims, thins discs, under the race. they have minor damage from removal and i want to replace them. i cannot find them, after 8 garage shops, dealership, and specialists.
i can find shims of all sorts, but i can not find any with the specific dimensions that fit this a4. does anyone have help on this, where to find hard-to-find parts.

MF_Wolf

You might have to find a junk yard or a web site like LKQ to buy a rear differential

Rick.Cook23@yahoo.com

There are several salvage yards in my area (Denver) - where you pull the part. You can get the entire rear differential for $100 or less, and if you car to tear it apart at the salvage yard, you can probably get the parts you needs out of the differential for $10-$20.

The parts will be used - but if you can remove them safely - at least they will not be damaged.

Old_School_Audi

These are available, but must be ordered. I doubt any dealership is going to stock these slow moving items. A search on Jim Ellis's Audi parts site yielded several shim part #'s and prices. The 1.0mm shim is HERE
From past experience working on VW/Audi drivetrains I recommend you buy a selection of the various thickness used during bearing setup. Not having the right shim thickness on hand makes for a very long build. Simply putting the same thickness shim is not a good plan either. Due to "tolerance stackup" and bearing load requirements, those shims are available in a variety thicknesses for a reason. They are there to fine tune the position of the gears and bearing preload. Getting those wrong are going to make you wish you never tried rebuilding in the first place. The factory did it, why aren't you?

atlasrising

thank you. Old_School_Audi, that link is what i needed. but i used the old ones because i have to get the car on the road and get to work. so i just flattened out the old ones as best i could and re installed them. the car is friggen old anyway, and if it breaks after putting in the old parts then it's just a goner anyway.

after installing the differential and exhaust, i pumped up the tires, filled the fluids, jumped started with a cable and then the engine seized. the lights are on, the pumps sounds, the starter clicks, but the flywheel or pistons are locked. click clik click. nothing. HA.