ksalno

My wife took our 2005 A4 2.0TQ in for service. I had noticed a couple of times (not always), the car had a small pool of coolant under the engine in the middle between the front wheels.

They initially said it was a seal (she didn't know which one) and it would cost $400 to repair. When she went to pick up the car, they told her it wasn't the seal, it is the head gasket and that will cost $2500 to repair.

I'm very skeptical about the head gasket. I've blown head gaskets on other cars and you know when they go, they don't just periodically drip some fluid. I changed the oil and there is no sign of water in the oil and the coolant leak is sporadic. My wife does a lot of short trips, so it could be the engine isn't cooling down properly and overflowing.

Anyone else had this problem?

I think I will at least take it to another dealer for diagnosis or maybe to an independent.

Reggie

I like you think the odds are it is some other issue, but clearly something is wrong and the wifes driving habits are not going to cause this.

OneEyedJack

This may or may not be your problem. Many, including myself, have had this flange leak. Dealer replaced under warranty, but the part is less than $20 and fairly easy to replace.

Have a look at the backside of the cylinder head and look for any pinkish chaulky residue near the plastic coolant flange. It is easier to see from underneath but topside should do.

Also, do a search for coolant flange. This is a known weak-link and is not just isolated to the 2.0T. Many 1.8Ts suffer the same problem.

lowdef

same here.

RichAA

same here