Hello!

I have a question on my 1989 Audi 100 sedan. It's an automatic and I've owned it for about 1 year now. I took it in for a state inspection and the dealer is telling me to replace the rotors and also the entire exhaust system because of a "pin hole" that will make it "not pass" state inspection. Of course, this whole thing will cost me about $600-700 if they do it. The car only has about 57,000 miles on it and it hasn't been roughly driven...just trips to the store, some high way driving, but not a lot of sudden stops and starts...certainly not any racing. ) Anyway, is it normal to have to replace the rotors at this mileage? Or, is the dealer looking to replace things early? I'm not sure if the rotors are the original ones or not. And, as for my exhaust system....can I take it to a midas dealer? Sorry, I don't do any self fix it things on the car....I'm just not in that league of Audi owners. Any advice or opinions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Nancy )

 

Did he fail the car??

 

Yes, he did. I'm having a friend look at the rotors because last year the same dealer said the rotors were in "great condition" and the car hasn't been driven very far. I guess I'll probably have to replace them since it didn't pass inspection, but it just seems odd to me.
Nancy )

 

Rust can do a fair amount of damage to both tailpipes and rotors. Rotor life is not always measured in miles or years.

I can not offer any advice on the exhaust except to say that I would put a good quality pipe on the car if you plan to drive it for a bunch of years. I have not had a lot of experience with midas.

 

can you go to a different dealer and retry inspection? Sounds like they want to make some money off you...regardless...

Also if you do need an exhaust...do not go to a generic muffler place...they will butcher your car...the previous owner of my car had gotten one of those discount exhaust jobs and it was a nightmare. Complete crap. They used crappy piping and actually bolted parts of the exhaust into the cars underbody! Do yourself a favor and go to a good reputable non dealer shop that does Audi work and check for exhaust there...good luck.

Steve Ankney

 

Hi Again,

Thanks everyone for your responses. I'm going to check around and talk to some people and see if there is a good non dealer muffler shop around that can "do an Audi exhaust system". As for the rotors....I'm not sure. I may try and get another inspection somewhere else to see if what they say "matches". Wish me luck.
Too bad the car "runs" and looks great though! I just hate dishing out a lot of $$$ for something that may not need to be done, you know?

Nancy )

 

Solid advice!

 

There was an earlier post by me about this topic. I put on new Audi rotors that I bought from my dealer and put on at 60k and I too am being questioned about them during my state inspection due to the rotors being too close. I'm above the spec by .1mm so they cannot fail me for it, but I too am curious why they've run down so quickly. I have 94k now, but since I have a 5 speed, I don't brake as soon as one would with an automatice b/c I downshift. Most of my 34k since replacing has been commuting and PA Turnpike/NJ Turnpike/LIE/etc. driving. If I were you, I'd go to a couple of brake specialist who will show the measurements and perform the test in front of you. Ask to see them do it - go out into the garage bay with them. Some places will allow you, but some places won't b/c of insurance liability reasons.

Could anyone suggest reputable replacement rotors? any aftermarket ones that will out perform and out last Audi dealer parts? what's been your experience with them?

As for the exhuast, if you're new to this forum, I've had some cat. converter failures. Thus, I have searched around for aftermarket exhaust systems for Audi. You can check www.discountconverter.com (featured in the parts section of this website), but I think they only sell converters. There's also www.a-1performance.com & www.tap1.org for systems. There are other web sites and aftermarket places you can buy exhaust systems for an Audi that are as good or better than Audi parts which are much less $$ than Audi dealer parts. DO NOT use parts from Midas or Mieneke (sp?) type places!! The parts they sell are not usually direct fit parts and are not good enough for the Audi performance. You'll probably end up replacing their parts much sooner and their parts will completely change the sound of your exhaust system. It won't run as quietly as it should. If you want the websites that I researched, please email me and I'll send you a list. If you cannot find a good shop in your area to do the work, your dealer should put the aftermarket parts on for you and charge you the normal per hour rate, thus saving $$ in parts. If they don't, go to another Audi dealer. I wouldn't never suggest using Midas or Mieneke - you won't get a lot for your money.

Good Luck!!! Keep us posted.

 

several in PA. I bought the car in Harrisburg and went to Autohuas for awhile, then I moved to Pittsburgh and went to all three out there (Imports by Day, Swickly & 3 Rivers). Now I'm in Philly, so I've been to a couple out here (Holberts & Don Rosen). They've all had their pluses and minuses. I'm curious to hear where you're car failed its inspection and what you've thought about them. Feel free to email personally if you don't want to post your opinions on this forum.

just curious...

 

Hi All,

Well, I took the car into a different inspection place and it's amazing what has happened to my Audi state inspection!

I really lucked out because the mechanic at this place has worked on Audi's before with success and understands how I don't want to butcher up my car, yet don't want to spend the big bucks unnecessarily.

The rotors were good still, he said, and the muffler has a tiny hole in it so I do have to replace the muffler, but that's it! Done deal. He is right now putting on a Audi compatible (I guess it's a different brand, but still used a lot on Audis) muffler and will not bolt it or do a butchering job (I told him if he felt like it wasn't working, to just stop and call me!) to my car.

All said and done, saved me about $400 off of what the dealer wanted to do. I'm feeling okay and the car is fit to drive until the next inspection. Thanks everyone for all your helpful advice; especially about not using a discount muffler place to do the job!

Nancy )
1989 Audi 100 sedan