ap453

Hello all, I recently got 2017 A4 premium serviced at the dealer. I was told my engine mounts are leaking and the front upper control arm bushings are torn. I am quite surprised as the car hasn't hit 60k yet, especially on the engine mounts. Does the attached quote seem reasonable at the dealer, seems high especially given the quote for the bushings are just a few screws/nuts and the rubber bushing parts. Is it recommended to replace the control arms themselves if the bushings are being replaced anyways?



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a2oc

sounds about right, do it all if you want to keep the car for the long run. Either pay them now or later.

superswiss

The front bushings are a common ailment of Audis. Just too much weight hanging out in front of the front axle. All my Audis had torn front bushings eventually and at lower mileage than yours, but admittedly mine had big V8 engines hanging out in front. Don't remember what it cost to replace them, but if I remember correctly at least on one of them they failed already during the warranty. Never had issues with engine mounts, but leaking engine mounts is not uncommon. Sooner or later they have to be replaced. Even with the heaver V8 engines, mine held up past 80k miles, but given they were S and RS models the mounts were likely sturdier than what's in the A models.

Blakard

In my 2017 6spd my engine mount failed at 60Km (I'm in Canada) lucky I had CPO.
the upper control mount rubber failed @ 130Km on the right side but I just replaced them both. Had a hard time finding the right size too...crazy.. Wish there was an upgrade for them

Sjorge3442

034 makes control arms that have upgraded bushings and hardware. You can get just the uppers if you don't want to mess with doing the lowers at this time.

In regards to the control arms and motor mounts failing - I've seen this plenty of times with cars with <100k miles although most cars can make it close to 100k on the stock control arms. Really depends on driving style + environment it seems.

Windows95

A little secret the repair folks don't tell you - the upper bushings are always torn on these Audi's. It's not an instant failure, it's a slow decline. Check out post #3 here for more info. https://rennlist.com/forums/macan/13...trol-arms.html

At 60k miles about 7 years, I'd guess you'd be fine for few more years. If you're not seeing or hearing any issues (loud suspension noises, unusually tire wear issues) I wouldn't sweat it. What a respectable shop tells you is where you're at on a scale, instead of seeing some minor tearing and say they need to be replaced. A year or two ago, my shop said my upper bushings (2013 B8 with about 85k miles at the time) were 3/10 on severity scale, with photos.

You should get a second opinion on those and the engine mounts. I'd be more concerned about engine mounts, but strange if you don't notice any symptoms (engine vibration, etc) Definitely don't pay dealer rates.

ap453

Thanks this is the most sensible reply to my issues! Do you think I should just replace the upper control arms since the bushings are being replaced anyways? I imagine it's not really any extra labor and just the parts?

142 guy

SHORT ANSWER
Chances are you don't need to do this immediately and an independent shop using aftermarket parts will likely provide a much lower cost solution if you want to carry out the work.

LONG ANSWER
The design of the A4 suspension puts a fair amount of stress on the upper control arms so they are usually the first bushings to go. However, Windows95's observations are relevant. If the cracks in the bushing rubber are surface cracks that is pretty much a non-issue. Those bushings (just about all suspension bushings) will develop surface cracks long before they have a performance failure. If the cracks are deep then replacement is prudent. The inner upper control arm bushings are captured. You can have complete bushing failure and the wheel will not fall off; but, your alignment will go to hell, steering will be affected and there will be a hell of a lot of banging. You will probably get a fair amount of 'advance notice of failure' before it gets that bad because of suspension noise. If you go with aftermarket upper control arms, the cost of the complete arm is low enough that the cost / time / effort associated with removing the control arm and taking it to a machine shop to have the old bushing pressed out and the new one installed is not worth the $. In fact, depending on the machine shop minimum rates you might pay more.

If the engine mounts are leaking they are on the way out; however, that may take a while before they are really a problem. Replace them now or wait until you get more movement and they start banging - your choice.

Your cost quotes are probably in the correct range for work done by a dealership using OEM parts at OEM list price. Some observations:
- find an independent shop that specializes in VW - Audi and get them to provide you with a quote. I expect their labour rates will be much much lower.
- there are Audi affiliated vendors and independents (Pelican, FCP Groton and others) who sell Audi OEM parts at a significant discount
- Pelican, FCP Groton, RockAuto and others sell aftermarket (non Audi branded) parts at even lower prices

If you are semi skilled, with aftermarket parts you can probably do everything yourself for less than $500 using aftermarket parts. The upper control arms are fussy; but, doable and there are threads on Audiworld showing replacement. Engine mounts are less fun and at the very least would require an engine bay cradle to support the engine while you remove the mounts.


Cradles are not expensive; but, without one you really need to farm out the work. I have done mount replacements (not on my A4) and it was about three hours. If you want to try it, get a service manual because there are a few things you need to remove / disconnect first. The whole procedure is only about 4 pages long with big pictures so not technically complicated.

LightningTruck

I replaced the motor mounts at home in my garage.
Genuine Audi parts. $300
Harbor freight engine support bar. $80
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LightningTruck

Updated motor mounts.
Old motor mount VS new.
No need to buy all new bolts!
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