chrismoore5

Hey Guys,

I have a 2010 Audi S4 AT with 73k miles.

On cold startups I sometimes get this rolling rattle noise that lasts for about 1 min and then goes away. Never present any other time. Any ideas on cause?


Thanks,
Chris

chrismoore5

Just had oil changed BTW so that shouldn't be an issue.

Craig Phillips

Bad news, I have same thing and I’m being told it’s timing tensioner. Video online on how to change, not sure if it’s in my wheelhouse or not though. Haven’t got quote from shop yet.

Glisse

It is the timing chain tensioner as Craig noted, quite common with the early production EA837 3.0TFSI supercharged engine. There was a TSB or similar issued for the North American region, but not in any other region, as Audi AG regard the noise as "cosmetic". You don't list your location, but the car is long out of warranty anyway.

I had it with my C7 A7, not with the B8 S5. It is in effect a pre-tensioner just to lower start up noise. There have been a number of threads in a few of the model forums that used this engine, including one with the TSB included. Link below for the TSB in NA, which I posted a few years back. If the noise is aggravating enough to warrant spending money, I would not go to an Audi dealer to have the tensioners replaced on an older car, the labour costs will be very high.

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a7-...-tfsi-2900612/

It is not related to the transmission, although that may have to be removed to replace the tensioners at the rear of the engine. And DSG is an acronym for Direktschaltgetriebe, which fortuitously translates to direct shift gearbox in English, and is the VW description for a sequential transmission. Just as PDK is a an acronym of Doppelkupplungsgetriebe, which translates to dual clutch gearbox, or transmission (DCT), and is the Porsche description for a sequential transmission. Audi don't use any acronym at all for a sequential transmission, and just call it S tronic. Funnily enough, IIRC all 3 VAG brands use Tiptronic as the torque converter description.

I guess VW sell so many cars, and many Audi owners may have come from a Golf or similar, that DSG seems to have become a generic description in many places.

Craig Phillips

i believe this is the fix