2010 Q5 3.2 rattle on start
 

Hey everyone. First time Audi owner here and loving the vehicle so far. This is my first post - please take it easy on me :)

Recently purchased a 2010 Q5 3.2 with 110k km (68k miles). Vehicle had been serviced regularly at the dealer and one owner.

Last night I noticed for the first time a slight rate for a second or two on startup. The vehicle had only been sitting for a few hours. I started searching online and have been seeing many threads about the timing chain tensioner issue.

I realize I have provided minimal information, but is this something that could be possible at this point? Is it difficult for an indy to do the work? How costly is it if I take it to the dealer to replace the timing chain tensioner and guides to prevent failure?

Appreciate your help and guidance

Welcome. While the rattle on start up for the 3.2 is annoying, if the maintenance and mileage are true you should be fine for a while.
Timing chain/tensioners failing causing catastrophic damage on the 3.2’s are pretty rare. Dealer prices for a full timing chain tensioner service on a 3.2 varies but $3K is not unheard of. With an independent shop being closer to $2K. If it was me I would monitor the situation and either enjoy as is or sell/trade. I wouldn’t put that kind of money into what is now an 11 year old car with 2021’s now out. If you can do a repair like this yourself that changes things but not an easy job and requires special tools and experience.

Thank you for the information. Definitely appreciated and helps calm my nerves a little. Are there any tell tale signs I should keep in mind for a worsening tensioner? I only use the vehicle for mostly driving in town and only put about 7,500km (4,600 miles) a year. Hopefully I can get 4-5 years (or more) of use out of this vehicle before the tensioner gets worse.

The vehicle just had an oil change at the dealership by the previous owner, but I plan to get the oil changes completed more frequently than the 1 year recommended in the vehicle MMI - the MMI has 14k km and 360 days for the next recommended oil change. I'd like to use Amsoil oil (I currently use it in our main family vehicle), and was wondering if there are any issues with this brand and the Audi engines?

Apologies for asking so much in this reply - just new and hoping to enjoy the vehicle for as long as possible :) Thanks.

Be mindful of the rattle getting louder and/or lasting longer at startup when cold or doing when warm etc.
Amsoil is a good choice. I would use the Euro 5-40 Full SAPS. Works fine and is cheaper than their mid SAPS oil.
Been using for years. Seems to run quieter than the Audicare Castrol and less oil consumption as well. Lower volatility.
I wouldn’t be concerned about the one year interval. I would be concerned about the 10K mile interval. Limit to 5K miles. Your timing chain and tensioners will appreciate it.

Thanks again for the feedback. I went to try and reproduce the sound this morning and it started fine with no noise at all. It had been sitting overnight for over 12 hours. I’m hoping it’s just an intermittent thing but will pay attention with the colder weather and for any change in longevity of the sound.

Similar issue on the 3.0T supercharged motor and hopefully not on the 3.0T turbocharged motor since I have one.

yesterday when leaving work (vehicle parked for 8 hours) it made a rate sound almost like a loose heat shield for about 5 seconds. It came and went a few times but eventually went away after 10 seconds. That was the first time I heard a rattle in a few days.

I took a video of my engine running after a ten minute drive. It sounds like a diesel and not sure if this is normal for an Audi (I’ve been a Honda owner all my life).

This video is of the Q5 parked and idling after a 15 minute drive. I’m still getting used to the vehicle and hoping that the engine sounds like a normal Audi engine.

I’ve only had the vehicle for a week but now worried that I got myself a big headache with the engine :(

Thank you again for all your feedback.

Having difficulties posting the video :(

Here's the attachment. I think it was a size issue.

Let me try again with this attachment. Apologies for so many attempts.

I have a 2.0T and admittedly am not very familiar with the 3.2. However just like on the 2.0T, if you are suspecting an issue with the timing chain/tensioner you should be able to use a scan tool like VCDS to check the phasing. This "technique" is not specific to Audi as, for example, the same concept applies to the Porsche 911 and, I suspect, any modern engine that uses variable timing since they all pretty much work the same (the phasing in the Audi is really no different than, say, a Toyota using a solenoid and phasing to advance/retard the timing dynamically using oil flow).

Is the noise coming from the top of the engine or the rear of the engine?

It sounds like it’s coming from the front near the radiator. But in general the top. Not sure that answers the question.

Timing chain and tensioners on the rear of the motor next to the firewall.

Hooking up a scan tool like VCDS may allow you to see what's going on right away. With this information at your disposal, why guess?

Sometimes it’s tough to pin down where a sound is coming from. But if the sound is coming from the front it’s not the timing chain or tensioner on this motor.

Are there base line VCDS readings and readings for wear for cam phase adjustment available for the Audi V6 motors? I have only seen the 2.0t’s documented on the forums.
I need to see and record what my reading is with my 3.0T is with 1500 miles on it.

And while many mechanics do use this reading to get an idea, unless something has changed recently factory manuals and settlements do not use this reading to be allowed to perform any work under warranty or class action suit extended warranty.

Like I said, the concept of variable timing and dynamically advancing/retarding is not 2.0T-specific or even Audi-specific. The phasing measurement in VCDS will tell you the difference between where the timing is and where it should be in degrees. For several Audi and Porsche 911 engines, +/-6 degrees is the trigger to get a CEL. But honestly if you're 3 or 4 degrees I would start to be concerned just from the perspective that your timing is off. 3 to 4 degrees isn't that much as far as you won't notice the engine running differently but you should not be getting more than a degree or two if the timing chain and tensioners are healthy.

I also want to note that the 2.0T is not the only car you need to worry about timing chain and tensioners with. It's just much more common on the 2.0T. But again, going back to the Porsche 911, you also have to measure the same value (obviously using a Porsche-specific scan tool, not VCDS) and monitor it to see if your tensioners are doing ok. The thing about that engine though is the tensioners are the hydraulic piston type that are serviceable outside of the engine (they just screw in from outside the engine) so if you know they need to be swapped out it's really no big deal.

Is the car throwing any check engine lights? Having a mechanic w/ VCDS check for codes would be best place to start. Without VCDS I'd check the items below.

-The serpentine belt drives quite a few engine accessories on the front of the engine block. I'd start by checking those items. My first guess would be your water pump bearing is squealing; premature water pump failure seems to be common in 3.2 engines. Low on coolant?- This may be your problem.

-My second guess would be a defective secondary air injection pump. Its located down low, passenger side, near radiator. This pump is typically active during the first 20 to 120 seconds of engine operation. Helps reduce green house emissions.

no engine light

and no low coolant.

but I’ll look into buying a cable to use with vcds. It’ll be a good investment to have the cable in the event something comes up.

Lots of great information and so much to still learn. Thank you again for the info.

My 2015 3.0T does this and its definitely the heat shield.

Had the same start up rattle with my 08 A4 3.2 when I first got it. Intermittent as well. Switched to 5K (km) oil change frequency for a couple of changes one of which was a shell rotella T6 high detergent diesel oil (check out A4 forums) problem never came back in the 3 years i kept it.

were you able to iron the issue? as i have the same problem with my 2012 Q5 3.2 FSI, on cold start-up the engine sound like a diesel motor.

If the noise is coming from the back of the engine you might have a bad timing chain tensioner. This is a pretty common problem for these engines. That EdgeMotors video posted above is for the older generation of 3.2 engines, not for the Q5 which is equipped with a secondary air injection system. The only way of gaining access to the bottom of covers is by removing the secondary air injection valves. The official service procedure requires the removal of the engine from the car but there are guys out there, including myself, who managed to gain access to that area by removing the downpipes / catalytic converters and various heat shields. The removal of the upper nuts of the catalytic converters is very difficult and risky. If one of those three studs gets damaged in the process the engine will have to be removed from the car.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.aud...29f114627a.jpg

I found this video on YouTube. He seems to have solved the issue without pulling the engine.