dreamhope

Hi,

I wonder if anyone has changed the thermostat on an ABZ without flushing the coolant. Just flushed it a couple of months ago. (Was warm; the thermostat problem wasn't obvious.)

Would two bottles of 1.5 L (3 litres in total, plus 2-3 litres of distilled water) be enough?

Alternatively, should I flush the system? 6 litres?

twentysevenlitres

The radiator has a drain on the bottom left (right as you face it).
Accessed behind the left spoiler grill cover.
It has a small nozzle you can attach a hose to to divert the coolant into a (clean) container.

So, if your coolant is that fresh, why don't you just recover it and put it back in afterwards?
You'd only need a small amount (say one 1.5l bottle) of G12 and maybe some distilled water to top up any losses on the refill.

You don't have to be concerned about the coolant level that way either, just dump the lot!

dreamhope

Thanks, but the liquid is cheap, probably not really more than a, say 15 L, container. I'll get 6 L and a bottle of distilled water, just replace without flushing.

dreamhope

Changed the thermostat and the fuel filter. For neither it is necessary to jack up the car. I used 3 bottles of G13.

The belly pan is a pain to install. Took me maybe 4 hours rolling on the ground, because the Zeus clips love to jump. At last, I realized it's a good idea to use a torch to peek inside and a flat screwdriver to push the clips little by little until they reach the hole (why can they slide?) I managed to put back 9 of the 10 screws. I couldn't put back the metal one at the front on the driver side. The metal clip has unbent a little and the screw won't hold. When I realized this I already had 7 screws on, so I decided to leave it at that.

Anyone know where to find a longer screw of this type?

dreamhope

would bolts like these (front row) work?

dreamhope

managed to put on the last screw by depressing the nut from above (under the hood) with a thin metal bar with one hand

S8ilver

I hate reinstalling the belly pan...the front screws seem to go in alright. The back ones are a different story. I ended up just zip tying a couple holes and it's held up so far.

dreamhope

clever idea. I found out this afternoon that one of the rear bolt was gone. Since I was planning on going to the dealer (for power steering fluid) I got one bolt. This time I depressed the upper spring on clip-on nut when screwing. Should be solid. (I also made a plastic washer/bolt securer so that I wouldn't lose the bolt again.

The power steering fluid I sucked out is red, probably burnt. The new one is G040000M2 (supposedly CHF 202).

dreamhope

btw, found this document that may be useful for others:

http://www.autodiagnos.com/sites/def..._tables_ad.pdf

seems like the labeling in VCDS for my ABZ engine is not fully correct.

twentysevenlitres

When reinstating my belly pan, I only use the 4 quick release screws ("Dowel Pins"). You can slide the front of the belly pan up under (or above if you like) the spoiler/valence section of the front bumper, then screw the dowels in loose, then do the rears, then tighten all (really need the car jacked up for this in order to reach).
http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-D2_S8-...Pan/ES1597681/

They get held in the belly pan by retaining washers so they don't fall out - similar to (Though the factory ones are plastic):
http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-D2_S8-..._Pan/ES362329/

Both these parts are cheaper from Audi too BTW... (Got mine via JimEllis)