New toy, 2002 S6 Avant
10-16-2014, 09:31 PM
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New toy, 2002 S6 Avant
I'm picking up a new (to me) car tomorrow, and I wanted to get some insight from this group as to what I should start focusing on, specifically long term maintenance and common improvements that don't impact the vehicle too much. Thanks in advance.
100k miles, single owner, dealer service records, and a friend who's a car dealer picked it up at auction and called me up (I'd asked him to watch for the right one).
100k miles, single owner, dealer service records, and a friend who's a car dealer picked it up at auction and called me up (I'd asked him to watch for the right one).
10-17-2014, 12:58 AM
#2
AudiWorld Super User
Typical Audi stuff..coolant leaks, suspension (front), minor electrical to major expense, and the elephant in the room, the transmission.
It's probably due for a tb service and certainly a transmission service.
Consider replacing expansion tank, and tube from it to upper radiator hose.
Check engine mounts.
Change out front rear and middle diff lube.
Consider shock upgrade
Brittle wiring...be careful in engine compartment...typical with old cars.
Watch for cam chain tensioner rattle, probably just worn shoes/pads, but expensive to fix unless you can do it yourself. Typical 4.2 issue.
Get vcds...you'll need it or pay someone big bux.
Audi scheduled maintenance is insufficient for long term ownership.
It's probably due for a tb service and certainly a transmission service.
Consider replacing expansion tank, and tube from it to upper radiator hose.
Check engine mounts.
Change out front rear and middle diff lube.
Consider shock upgrade
Brittle wiring...be careful in engine compartment...typical with old cars.
Watch for cam chain tensioner rattle, probably just worn shoes/pads, but expensive to fix unless you can do it yourself. Typical 4.2 issue.
Get vcds...you'll need it or pay someone big bux.
Audi scheduled maintenance is insufficient for long term ownership.
Last edited by SloopJohnB@mac.com; 10-17-2014 at 01:01 AM.
10-17-2014, 09:02 PM
#3
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Typical Audi stuff..coolant leaks, suspension (front), minor electrical to major expense, and the elephant in the room, the transmission.
It's probably due for a tb service and certainly a transmission service.
Consider replacing expansion tank, and tube from it to upper radiator hose.
Check engine mounts.
Change out front rear and middle diff lube.
Consider shock upgrade
Brittle wiring...be careful in engine compartment...typical with old cars.
Watch for cam chain tensioner rattle, probably just worn shoes/pads, but expensive to fix unless you can do it yourself. Typical 4.2 issue.
Get vcds...you'll need it or pay someone big bux.
Audi scheduled maintenance is insufficient for long term ownership.
It's probably due for a tb service and certainly a transmission service.
Consider replacing expansion tank, and tube from it to upper radiator hose.
Check engine mounts.
Change out front rear and middle diff lube.
Consider shock upgrade
Brittle wiring...be careful in engine compartment...typical with old cars.
Watch for cam chain tensioner rattle, probably just worn shoes/pads, but expensive to fix unless you can do it yourself. Typical 4.2 issue.
Get vcds...you'll need it or pay someone big bux.
Audi scheduled maintenance is insufficient for long term ownership.
The car has 103k, single owner (documented), and is in between good to excellent condition. Paid what my buddy payed for it (13k) at auction, plus the tax tag & title fees, so 14k out the door. A bit more than average (11k is the national avg right now) but super clean compared to the others I've looked at the past 2 years since I started my hunt.
I'm sure of this after having the car since this afternoon;
- Tires are in 'ok' shape (can wait until after winter) but are out of balance, I have an appointment Monday with a performance shop that does on-vehicle balancing.
- Shocks are worn
- Bushings are worn
- Transmission or Quattro system is causing hard and rough shift points. Taking it in this coming Friday (10/24) to the Audi dealer we bought my wife's '08 A6 from to have a full workup and trans diagnostic.
I was forewarned about the tires & shocks situation before purchase, and the dealer (who's a friend of mine) also mentioned the rough shift points. I didn't see the shifting issue as too big a deal, the A6 we have has them as well. But, this is a bit rougher (not horrible though) than expected.
Visually, its in really decent shape. One wheel has a big scuff mark on it, and there is the expected scratches and fade that comes with a 12yr old car. The scratches and faded areas though can be easily resolved. The headlights are 60% fogged, and didn't respond well to the treatment system I had already suggesting that they'll need a replacement.
I'm taking it to two shops this coming week; a well respected independent German/Italian tuner for the on-vehicle wheel balancing plus whatever findings they discover, and a true Audi technical inspection. Once both of those are complete I can prioritize my maintenance and/or repair projects.
I do feel lucky in that if I need parts (especially the expensive stuff), the guy who sold the car to me also works for a big parts distributor and does me right by pointing me to shops that he's done a favor for and has them pass on the favor by giving big cuts on parts prices to me.
Overall I'm very happy. When the suspension is refreshed as needed plus new tires, and the trans is either serviced as needed or rebuilt this car will be ready for another 100k. After the mechanicals are all set, I'll get the drivers seat leather repaired (some torn seams and excessive creasing) and restuffed. I'm also looking into stereo options, the factor headunit isn't fully functional anymore so I'll update it with a dual-din unit that has DVD, USB and Bluetooth function plus GPS.
I'll probably go ahead and do the timing belt as well, Blau Parts has a good kit that I can install myself. I'm curious if there is a kit to convert the belt fan to electric as it'd be a good time to do that when I have the front end apart for the timing belt work.
10-18-2014, 05:41 AM
#4
AudiWorld Super User
Thanks for the info SloopJohn. A lot of what you mentioned aligns with info several Audi enthusiast friends of mine mentioned, so good to see their data backed up.
The car has 103k, single owner (documented), and is in between good to excellent condition. Paid what my buddy payed for it (13k) at auction, plus the tax tag & title fees, so 14k out the door. A bit more than average (11k is the national avg right now) but super clean compared to the others I've looked at the past 2 years since I started my hunt.
I'm sure of this after having the car since this afternoon;
- Tires are in 'ok' shape (can wait until after winter) but are out of balance, I have an appointment Monday with a performance shop that does on-vehicle balancing.
- Shocks are worn
- Bushings are worn
- Transmission or Quattro system is causing hard and rough shift points. Taking it in this coming Friday (10/24) to the Audi dealer we bought my wife's '08 A6 from to have a full workup and trans diagnostic.
I was forewarned about the tires & shocks situation before purchase, and the dealer (who's a friend of mine) also mentioned the rough shift points. I didn't see the shifting issue as too big a deal, the A6 we have has them as well. But, this is a bit rougher (not horrible though) than expected.
Visually, its in really decent shape. One wheel has a big scuff mark on it, and there is the expected scratches and fade that comes with a 12yr old car. The scratches and faded areas though can be easily resolved. The headlights are 60% fogged, and didn't respond well to the treatment system I had already suggesting that they'll need a replacement.
I'm taking it to two shops this coming week; a well respected independent German/Italian tuner for the on-vehicle wheel balancing plus whatever findings they discover, and a true Audi technical inspection. Once both of those are complete I can prioritize my maintenance and/or repair projects.
I do feel lucky in that if I need parts (especially the expensive stuff), the guy who sold the car to me also works for a big parts distributor and does me right by pointing me to shops that he's done a favor for and has them pass on the favor by giving big cuts on parts prices to me.
Overall I'm very happy. When the suspension is refreshed as needed plus new tires, and the trans is either serviced as needed or rebuilt this car will be ready for another 100k. After the mechanicals are all set, I'll get the drivers seat leather repaired (some torn seams and excessive creasing) and restuffed. I'm also looking into stereo options, the factor headunit isn't fully functional anymore so I'll update it with a dual-din unit that has DVD, USB and Bluetooth function plus GPS.
I'll probably go ahead and do the timing belt as well, Blau Parts has a good kit that I can install myself. I'm curious if there is a kit to convert the belt fan to electric as it'd be a good time to do that when I have the front end apart for the timing belt work.
The car has 103k, single owner (documented), and is in between good to excellent condition. Paid what my buddy payed for it (13k) at auction, plus the tax tag & title fees, so 14k out the door. A bit more than average (11k is the national avg right now) but super clean compared to the others I've looked at the past 2 years since I started my hunt.
I'm sure of this after having the car since this afternoon;
- Tires are in 'ok' shape (can wait until after winter) but are out of balance, I have an appointment Monday with a performance shop that does on-vehicle balancing.
- Shocks are worn
- Bushings are worn
- Transmission or Quattro system is causing hard and rough shift points. Taking it in this coming Friday (10/24) to the Audi dealer we bought my wife's '08 A6 from to have a full workup and trans diagnostic.
I was forewarned about the tires & shocks situation before purchase, and the dealer (who's a friend of mine) also mentioned the rough shift points. I didn't see the shifting issue as too big a deal, the A6 we have has them as well. But, this is a bit rougher (not horrible though) than expected.
Visually, its in really decent shape. One wheel has a big scuff mark on it, and there is the expected scratches and fade that comes with a 12yr old car. The scratches and faded areas though can be easily resolved. The headlights are 60% fogged, and didn't respond well to the treatment system I had already suggesting that they'll need a replacement.
I'm taking it to two shops this coming week; a well respected independent German/Italian tuner for the on-vehicle wheel balancing plus whatever findings they discover, and a true Audi technical inspection. Once both of those are complete I can prioritize my maintenance and/or repair projects.
I do feel lucky in that if I need parts (especially the expensive stuff), the guy who sold the car to me also works for a big parts distributor and does me right by pointing me to shops that he's done a favor for and has them pass on the favor by giving big cuts on parts prices to me.
Overall I'm very happy. When the suspension is refreshed as needed plus new tires, and the trans is either serviced as needed or rebuilt this car will be ready for another 100k. After the mechanicals are all set, I'll get the drivers seat leather repaired (some torn seams and excessive creasing) and restuffed. I'm also looking into stereo options, the factor headunit isn't fully functional anymore so I'll update it with a dual-din unit that has DVD, USB and Bluetooth function plus GPS.
I'll probably go ahead and do the timing belt as well, Blau Parts has a good kit that I can install myself. I'm curious if there is a kit to convert the belt fan to electric as it'd be a good time to do that when I have the front end apart for the timing belt work.
One other thing i missed is that the speakers in the front and rear doors might have to be replaced…they didn't bother me (I'm partially deaf from noise induced high freq hearing loss) but my wife was aggravated by them in both the 2K4.2A6 and the 02S6.
I got some relatively inexpensive 6030cs speakers from Infinity that were essentially bolt on. Including the tweeters. I think they were about $120 apiece but right now they're $95 a pair on Amazon (Prime, free shipping). I didn't use the crossovers because of the bose system. I didn't' replace the rear speakers although I can hear the difference when fading the system to rear speakers only. I'll get around to it one day.
10-18-2014, 10:39 PM
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One other thing i missed is that the speakers in the front and rear doors might have to be replaced…they didn't bother me (I'm partially deaf from noise induced high freq hearing loss) but my wife was aggravated by them in both the 2K4.2A6 and the 02S6.
I got some relatively inexpensive 6030cs speakers from Infinity that were essentially bolt on. Including the tweeters. I think they were about $120 apiece but right now they're $95 a pair on Amazon (Prime, free shipping). I didn't use the crossovers because of the bose system. I didn't' replace the rear speakers although I can hear the difference when fading the system to rear speakers only. I'll get around to it one day.
I got some relatively inexpensive 6030cs speakers from Infinity that were essentially bolt on. Including the tweeters. I think they were about $120 apiece but right now they're $95 a pair on Amazon (Prime, free shipping). I didn't use the crossovers because of the bose system. I didn't' replace the rear speakers although I can hear the difference when fading the system to rear speakers only. I'll get around to it one day.
I'm taking it in to an independent Audi shop and a trusted Audi dealer (where we bought my wife's A6 from) to get a full inspection work-up done. I'll compare the outcomes of both and make decisions from there. My primary concern is the trans, followed by the shocks and brakes. Then we'll get to the engine which seems (so far) really strong.
10-19-2014, 05:41 AM
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Congrats on the purchase. The car looks great man, glad you found what you were looking for. I looked around a little bit to see what was offered for the mechanical fan to electric swap but there isn't much, if anything out there. I know that JHM offers an electric fan conversion for the 2.7t but I don't think things would swap over. They do have some instructions + a diy that you could look at though...
JHM Fan Conversion
Toward the bottom of the page they have install instructions in a .zip file. Good luck with everything and enjoy it!
JHM Fan Conversion
Toward the bottom of the page they have install instructions in a .zip file. Good luck with everything and enjoy it!
10-19-2014, 07:11 AM
#7
AudiWorld Super User
Congrats on the purchase. The car looks great man, glad you found what you were looking for. I looked around a little bit to see what was offered for the mechanical fan to electric swap but there isn't much, if anything out there. I know that JHM offers an electric fan conversion for the 2.7t but I don't think things would swap over. They do have some instructions + a diy that you could look at though...
JHM Fan Conversion
Toward the bottom of the page they have install instructions in a .zip file. Good luck with everything and enjoy it!
JHM Fan Conversion
Toward the bottom of the page they have install instructions in a .zip file. Good luck with everything and enjoy it!
But the point is that the mechanical fan was put there by Audi for a reason..they could have installed a pure electrical system (they already had an electrical auxiliary fan, why not make it all electric?) but didn't. Perhaps for cost or maybe for engineering reasons…the mechanical fan more or less freewheels when radiator temp is low enough…parasitic drag is negligible and the mechanical fan probably pulls more CFM than the JHM electrical. Plus the JHM fan is another 10amp load on the alternator when it least needs it…at low speed in the city.
I'd stay with the mechanical fan if it came with the car and repair/replace the viscous clutch as needed…which will be seldom.
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12-08-2014, 06:06 PM
#8
Tranny
Calib,
Do yourself a favor and look into the manual swap before you sink a bunch of money into the Tiptronic, I've got a 2003 that I just had converted to 6 speed and love it. Good luck!
Do yourself a favor and look into the manual swap before you sink a bunch of money into the Tiptronic, I've got a 2003 that I just had converted to 6 speed and love it. Good luck!
12-09-2014, 09:14 AM
#9
AudiWorld Super User
OBE
12-10-2014, 08:57 PM
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Like the idea of a manual swap