SnyperBob

Hi everyone, looking for a little help.

I picked up a 2002 S4 last week, and it needs some work to get the heat working. The car was a one owner car and I have all the service records. The past two years (2013 and 2012), he had the heater core flushed, which fixed the heat for 6 months or so....

I flushed it twice in the past week and the heat would work for a day or two. I'm approaching winter in Chicago, and need to get this sorted out ASAP.

Regardless, I think it's time to replace the heater core, with the age of the car. I really don't want to wait and have it start leaking.....

I'm new to Audi's so I'm looking for a little help. I came across a time lapse video on YouTube that the guy commented it took him 23 hours to do. I've run across comments on here that say anywhere from 6 hours to 11 hours to do it on a B5.....That's a huge difference.

I really want to pick up a repair manual, and wanted to tackle this project this weekend. Is the Bentley any good? I came across something that said to just subscribe to alldatadiy.com because it's cheaper and contains the same info as Bentley? I also heard that the Bentley cd is junk, as you can only install their reader in Win XP??

Basically, I'm looking for some manuals that will help me rip my dash apart.

I'm planning on using Kris Hanson's article to assist with replacing the heater core:
Audi area: Audi A4 (B5). Heater Core Swap

This was the thread that enlightened me to Kris' write up:
https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a4-...epair-2812638/

Will I really have to purge my AC lines to swap out the heater core?

I've never pulled a steering wheel before, will I need a special tool to do that?

I'm going to pick up some G12 coolant so I have that on hand too.

So my burning questions so I can potentially start this SOON, are what's the best source for a manual? A pdf version might be best, so I could get it soon, rather than have to wait for something to be shipped to me. I'm thinking that online subscription may be best, so I have instant access.

Any other tips for doing this, or special tools needed that I should grab ahead of time? Anything else buried in the dash that I should replace while I'm in there?

I may also try to play with the onboard diagnostics to see if there's any more clues. Via this article here:
AudiWorld Tech Articles

What should I look for via the diagnostics? Just trouble codes?

SnyperBob

Also, will I need metal keys to remove my stereo? I came across this video....


$15 for four keys, but I didn't see slots in my Symphony stereo like shown in the video.

SnyperBob

ok, I ordered some of the keys just to have for the future.

I called the local Audi dealer and they said $256 for a heater core, and $1,500 for labor. They have this listed as a 10 hour job to complete.

Looks like I will go ahead and attempt to do this myself.

I signed up for alldatadiy.com, and subscribed. It's a little hard to find the spot for info I'm looking for, but probably just as hard via Bentley, so whatever.

I also picked up a couple of jugs of G-12 from the local dealer at $24 a gallon.

So my next question is this......do I have to purge my AC lines to complete this? This was mentioned at the beginning of Kris' article.

Trying to track down a replacement heater core locally. I hit up Autozone and they had two listed. One was $40, the other $130. I'm not sure what the difference between the two is....but they were out of stock. I'll hit up another after work and try to get one in my hands.....

SnyperBob

ok, I started last night. Looks like I will need a couple tools.

I don't have any radio removal keys. I ordered some yesterday and I'm waiting for them to come in. Maybe I'll hit up Best Buy or Walmart just so I can make more progress on this....

Also, what do I need to remove the 12 groove bolt on the steering wheel?

Oh, this is saying it's just a T55 bolt....
AudiEnthusiasts Steering Wheel Swap

SnyperBob

I picked up some keys from the local dealer. Twice the price of the ones I ordered online, but I wanted to make progress this weekend.

This is quite the project. I have more hours to put into it, but it's coming along slowly.....

I still need to figure out how to remove the wood trim. Looks like I need to pop the clips off from behind the dash, and then it just comes out?

SnyperBob

ok, quick update. I finished replacing the heater core. This job wasn't as complicated as I thought, I think I had more trouble putting everything back together. I chalk that up due to me not having time to do it all over the course of one or two days....

I now have heat. Here's some 'issues' I have now...

I can't figure out how to reinstall my tiptronic shifter ****. When I removed it, I pulled the chrome button completely out....which I'm thinking now I should not have done. I'm going to check out the video about repairing those shifter ***** and see if that helps. Otherwise, I'll look into the Tiptronic shifter adapter thing and replace it with a nicer shifter ****.

I have an ABS and ESP light on. From quick search, it appears the electronic stability stuff works via the ABS system. With the ABS deactivated, my guess is the ESP automatically deactivates. Any clue how to fix my ABS issue? It worked fine before doing the heater core swap.......do you think I missed a connector or something? Only thing left to install are the lower dash panels and the center console trim with the cupholders/armrest. I don't think there are any ABS related connectors on those trim pieces, but who knows....

Lessons learned:
I spent about 16-18 hours total on this. Having said that, I had to install and reinstall many things because I had absolutely no clue what I was doing. Case in point was the aluminum dash support. I had it reinstalled, when I realized that I ran the wiring harness for the radio and center console electronics incorrectly. I ran it on the outside of the center bracket. When I installed the dash pad, there's a single nut that goes into the HVAC box. Under that nut is an electrical connector.....because I ran the wiring harness incorrectly, the wires would not reach the connector. Boo....
I had to pull the aluminum dash support and center bracket back off to fix this....

Oh, and to answer my own freaking question, YES. YES YOU DO HAVE TO PURGE THE AC LINES. The HVAC is held in by a couple key things, along with a few bolts. One would be the hoses that connect to the heater core. The other is the freaking AC lines. Grrr....show's how much I've worked on modern cars. Oh well.....

Oh, here's a hint, there's a freaking bolt for the aluminum dash support accessed under the hood. Yes, you have to pull the wipers, the wiper trim piece just to get to it. lol....

The passenger airbag was a little hard to get back in. Had to remove the mounting brackets in a way that allowed enough room for it to slip in.

I did break a piece of trim that is next to the steering column. I had no clue how to access a couple of hidden bolts and forced it. I figured out the right way to do it on reinstall. I'll post up some pics when I get a chance.....

I'll update this post as I think of more stuff.

So that's where I'm at. I just have to push my stereo the rest of the way in, along with my HVAC controls. I need to reinstall both lower dash pads (left off so I could check for leaks), and the rest of the center console. I need to fix my ABS alert, and top off my coolant. And find a solution for my shifter ****.
I will also need to have my A/C system charged up. I'm not doing this myself....

When all was said and done, I spent less than $250.
Heater core was $130
2 gallons of coolant $50 (I don't even need one gallon to top off my system)
T55 socket for steering wheel $5
2 tanks of propane to heat my garage <$50
I may pick up a cheap torque wrench just to torque my steering wheel to spec. $40
Keys to remove the stereo $42 (bought two sets, one from dealer)

SnyperBob

In regards to the ABS light, I came across this article:
AudiWorld Tech Articles

At the end he states:
"it may be necessary clear DTCs with a VAG scanner to clear the ABS light. "

I picked up a Vag scanner, but have yet to play with it. I wonder if that will give me more information on the problem. I didn't get anything when I scanned the normal OBD port for faults....

SnyperBob

I haven't had much time to play with the ABS error code. I did hook up my laptop to the car and it's showing a steering angle sensor code.

I found this link here:
VWVortex.com - ESP Steering Angle Sensor Calibration

So basically I shouldn't have played around with that ring sensor thing under the steering wheel

I'll have to pull the steering wheel and see if I can rotate that back to 0 degrees or whatever. I should have time this weekend. This car is smarter than I thought

SnyperBob

Fixed! I finally had some time to track down what I needed to do, to fix this problem. I'll post a new thread explaining the process that worked for me.

I was able to clear my flashing brake and ABS and ESP alerts from my dash. No more annoying beeping when I start the car up!

wilson94t

Wow, no contributions during your thread?! Thanks for posting this. As our cars age, i think more of us will need to refer back to your thread when replacing our heater cores.