A4 - clutch gone in 13k miles??
Discussion
As above really, im absolutely stunned... our Audi A4 cabrio 1.8T has gone back to the dealers for what the RAC believe to be a dead clutch?? (I wasnt around, mums car - only just been made aware of it.)
Granted, its had a couple of niggling faults with the electrics, but otherwise - its an audi ffs?! surely 13k is nothing. Mum isnt at all hard on clutches, mums never had a clutch go in her driving career and has owned cars for 50k+ miles! Dad regularily sprints a TVR Cerbera that manages without such failures in 25k miles despite several full blown starts almost every weekend and in fairness, it probably has atleast 340lb torque to deal with?
Im just waiting for them to claim this is wear and tear, so please - can someone confirm that this is pathetic and unnacceptable for such a car?
Thanks in advance,
Ben CA
Granted, its had a couple of niggling faults with the electrics, but otherwise - its an audi ffs?! surely 13k is nothing. Mum isnt at all hard on clutches, mums never had a clutch go in her driving career and has owned cars for 50k+ miles! Dad regularily sprints a TVR Cerbera that manages without such failures in 25k miles despite several full blown starts almost every weekend and in fairness, it probably has atleast 340lb torque to deal with?
Im just waiting for them to claim this is wear and tear, so please - can someone confirm that this is pathetic and unnacceptable for such a car?
Thanks in advance,
Ben CA
Its the master cylinder apparently, still seems a bit premature... but they're handling it well and have given us a 3.2 A4 cabrio courtesy car. 
nice one Audi!
Never going to remap it as we only have it whilst under warrantee, but out of interest - what kind of figures does that bring it to?
nice one Audi! Never going to remap it as we only have it whilst under warrantee, but out of interest - what kind of figures does that bring it to?
BCA said:
Its the master cylinder apparently, still seems a bit premature... but they're handling it well and have given us a 3.2 A4 cabrio courtesy car. nice one Audi!
Never going to remap it as we only have it whilst under warrantee, but out of interest - what kind of figures does that bring it to?
nice one Audi! Never going to remap it as we only have it whilst under warrantee, but out of interest - what kind of figures does that bring it to?
Depends on which particular 1.8T you have.
Mine's a 180 currently pushing out between 180 & 225 depending on where i set the boost controller. 210's and 225's generally come out around 250-260 give or take a few horses.
As for the master cylinder, it's another of those little VAG "issues" we all know & love.
If the clutch disc has worn out, generally that's considered a wear item. Clutch life is almost entirely up to operator skill and how the car is driven. People operating in hilly urban environments that are deathly afraid to stall the car tend to be hell on a clutch. This sort of driving simply wears the clutch, which is a wear part, faster than the opposite and the manufacturer has no fault here, the same as you won't generally get another pint free if you drink your first one fast.
Anyone who holds a car even briefly on a hill by slipping the clutch is IMHO "hell on clutches". With proper driving a clutch will last over 100K miles on most newer cars, but that's a generalization, I doubt I could get 100K driving in Seattle or San Fransisco, just due to the hills and traffic.
This problem manifests by the clutch starting to slip, at first only in high gear and at higher engine loads. The same people noted above seldom look at tach and speedo together to see if the RPM is consistent with MPH. If you note the problem soon enough you can easily plan the replacement and wont' need a tow. The final act here is you can put the car in gear but if you let out the clutch, the car does not go.
Now if the master cylinder went out, you would note a lighter than normal clutch pedal, and the car would be hard to engage a gear, particularly when the engine is running and the car stationary. Sort of the opposite of the above problem. The master cyl should not fail this early in the car's life. You may possibly want to get the slave cylinder changed as well, depending on if the system is dirty or not. There in UK you have a wet climate and should change brake/clutch fluid I would think annually.
Now it's rare, but occasionally the hydraulic hose on the system will fail such that it retains some pressure on the slave cylinder, this has the same effect as riding the clutch, and probably should be considered the maker's fault. This can wear the throwout bearing and in extreme cases cause clutch slip, which really the owner should notice before it wears the disc out completely.
Anyone who holds a car even briefly on a hill by slipping the clutch is IMHO "hell on clutches". With proper driving a clutch will last over 100K miles on most newer cars, but that's a generalization, I doubt I could get 100K driving in Seattle or San Fransisco, just due to the hills and traffic.
This problem manifests by the clutch starting to slip, at first only in high gear and at higher engine loads. The same people noted above seldom look at tach and speedo together to see if the RPM is consistent with MPH. If you note the problem soon enough you can easily plan the replacement and wont' need a tow. The final act here is you can put the car in gear but if you let out the clutch, the car does not go.
Now if the master cylinder went out, you would note a lighter than normal clutch pedal, and the car would be hard to engage a gear, particularly when the engine is running and the car stationary. Sort of the opposite of the above problem. The master cyl should not fail this early in the car's life. You may possibly want to get the slave cylinder changed as well, depending on if the system is dirty or not. There in UK you have a wet climate and should change brake/clutch fluid I would think annually.
Now it's rare, but occasionally the hydraulic hose on the system will fail such that it retains some pressure on the slave cylinder, this has the same effect as riding the clutch, and probably should be considered the maker's fault. This can wear the throwout bearing and in extreme cases cause clutch slip, which really the owner should notice before it wears the disc out completely.
Just an update - Audi quickly resolved the whole problem by replacing pretty much everything to do with the clutch (inc flywheel? - odd, apparently it felt notchy when first put back together, so they replaced everything) - hats off to them, the car was sorted quickly and the courtesy car was more than acceptable (3.2 version of ours, sounded ace - apparently felt quite heavy and less alive than our 1.8, but I liked it all the same, Mum prefers her one *shrug*)
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