Hi all,

A few weeks ago I reported a grating sound behind the steering wheel of the car, I sent it the shop and they lubricated the clock spring and that made the noise go away. However today it has beenwarm and the noise has returned.I assume that it is just the lubrication drying out and its scraping again.

My questions is if I am getting the sound from the clock spring is that an indication of a faulty/warn clock spring that needs replacing? sodo I need to replace the clock spring or if I keep lubricating it will it be ok?

Also is the noise just an annoyanceand notthat there isanythingactually wrong with the car, theturn signals cancel fine and now I have had the alignment set straight the car tracks straight and true the only thing to my knowledge is the noise from the column.Can anyone tell me whatthe clock spring does and how it would affect the performance of the car ifit were faulty (note: my car is not equipt with ESP)

I gather from some research that the clock spring contains a wheel positioning sensor and I assume that if I were to have to clock spring replaced then the sensor will be replaced along with it and therefore need recalibrating.

I have been having some issues with pulling I sent the car to the steelership today and got it aligned properly and they adjusted the clocking on the wheeldo you think they could have damaged the clock springwhen they adjusted the clocking on the wheel. I know that they did not have to take the steering column apart or take the steering wheel off to adjust the clocking, I was not in the shop long enough and they never asked me todo anythingtherethan a 4 wheel alignment.

Thanks for the advice
James

 

I've owned a lot of cars, some with some weird problems, and I never heard of a clock spring (other than the ones on my grandfather clock). Maybe one of the master techs can weigh in on this one. It's something new to learn about.

 

I don’t know if this is going to help but the clock spring is also know as the self canceling ring and as I said contains a wheel positioning sensor. If one of the techs could weight in on this that would be great

 

The spiral clock spring is directly behind the air bag and has a direct connection from the air bag to the ABS/ECM units.
If it were electrically bad, you have hundreds of faults, loss of ABS, loss of power steering (on 05+ models) air bag lights ect. Just bad things. The A6 clock spring is a piece of crap though, if someone ever removed it a long time ago its very possible that they broke it.
I broke about 4 of them when i was a noob at the dealer. So i would say just deal with the noise until you want to replace it. Thats not a part you can replace yourself either, lots of coding has to be done, as well as an alignment (sometimes)

 

I would agree that if the clockspring (a/k/a self-canceling ring) is broken, youd likely get a number of warning lights (ESP for example), but I am not aware of situations in which the self-canceling ring would make noise like you decribe. Regardless, it is NOT an easy part to get at and replace, although not impossible if you are cautious in what you are doing.

It does require a couple of special tools, including the M-12 triple-square bit to remove the steering wheel bolt. You would also need access to a VAG COM to recalibrate the ESP, which also requires the login and ESP coding from the Beltley Manual.

I've removed a few clocksprings in the past, installing and removing the RS6 paddleshift steering wheel in my previous 2.7T, replacing a faulty turn signal stalk in a friend's A6, etc. etc. They are not inexpensive to replace...even if you could save on labor, the part itself is a few hundred bucks.

If you are local to Boston, I'd be happy to help you out. Shoot me a PM if you have any other questions.

Here is a writeup I did on the turn signal stalk replacement that has some pics for reference: http://www.audiworld.com/tech/elec162.shtml

 

Hi guys
Thanks for getting back to me so fast and forthetips,well the mystery continues as to what is causing the noise behind my steering wheel.Thetimes when you will hear it arewhen the 3 and 9 spokes pass the center horizontal line on the steering wheel so to my mindthe stalks and the clock spring are the most likely candidates, but theturn signals still self cancel properly and there is not other indication of any faults with the car. The other thing is that something could have got behind the steering wheel but that would be a constant scraping and not in a specific place on the steering wheel rotationlike it is.

Boston when you replaced the stalk on your friends A6 what was it that gave away the fact that it needed to be replaced? I have found that article on Audi world and read the bits that could help me. (PS thanks for all that you do for the forums people like me really appreciate it). I am contemplating taking the top half of the steering column cover off andseeing ifthere is anything obvious thereI am contemplating taking the top half of the steering column cover off andseeing ifthere is anything obvious thereI am not sure whatI would have to remove to do that but I was looking towards the write-up for pointers

Sadly I am not in the Boston area (I am in Lancaster PA [aka Amish hell]) or I would be asking for your help

Thanks once again
James

PS while I have your attention do you know wereI can get information about replacing the prop shaft seal (located near the exhaust cats)? dealer wants $480to do it.

 

You need to take off the steering wheel to get the column trim cover off, that requires that large triple square socket to remove the steering wheel.

As for the prop shaft seal, thats a pretty easy job that most mechanics try and "up-sell" customers on because it pays well and its not hard to do.
The book says you have to lower down the trans to change it out which is a load of BS. Just take out the shield, then remove the prop shaft allan bolts (those have to be replaced) and let it hang down out of your way. The last bolt you have to remove is a Torx bolt in the center carrier (can't remember which size) and pull it out. This will have a little fluid come out with it, pry out the seal and hammer in the new one until its flush with the end. Put it all back together, pull out the square fill plug and top it off. Should take you about 3 hours to do yourself.