I have a 97 a6 avant 2.8L of which i bought last night. Started many times last night as i used it to run errands. I went to work at 2300 and got off at 0730. Now it was down to probably -15 deg F last night so it was pretty cold. When i went to start the car to go home it clicked and didnt even try to start. it sounded like the click came from under the hood. I tried a few more times and still only a click. I put the car in neutral and tried that. I then got a ride home and came back with the subie and tried jumping the car from both the battery and the jump points under the hood. I also left it on to charge for awhile to try that. The lights on the dash and everything works as it should and I took the battery out to charge and test at a parts store. Im wondering if there are other "easy" things that i can check in the meantime. This is my first audi so i appreciate all the help i can get! Thanks!

 

After pulling the battery and having it checked, did you determine it to be the battery not producing enough cold cranking amps?

What was the temperature outside when you were running errands and the car was working fine?

 

To answer a few questions.....First of all the battery out of the audi was determined to be bad after charging for a few hours and having autozone test it. They said that it would only charge 79% and had one or more dead cells. Last night, while running errands, it was probably in the 0-10 deg range. However I called the guy I bought it from and he said he had had the battery on the charger for about 3 days before I came to test drive it last night.

Lastly, and this is what i dont understand, I tried jumping the Audi off of both my Maxima and my subaru and nothing.....just "click". I also tried swapping the brand new battery out of my subaru (which will start on the coldest of mornings no hassle) into the audi and still "click". The battery guage in the audi reads just fine in the 13-14 volt range until attempt to start the car and then it drops to the 9-10 volt range. Everything else on this car works from headlights to stereo, to seat heaters, cigarette lighters. I checked all fuses on the side of the dash and all are good. I would think somewhere from swapping in the new battery to jumping off of two different cars it would at least attempt to crank.

I know some cars when the starter lands on a dead spot you can tap it with a hammer and itll crank over.....is that an option here? Could this be anti theft related? I locked and unlocked the car 20 times both with the fob and key to try and get it to pass the security if in case it is that. I also used my code scanner and only pulled an egr code.....p1408 i believe. Im pretty good with cars usually however ive mostly worked on japanese, as i own a maxima, subie and galant vr4....this seems to be a different animal lol. If not security im beginning to thing starter solenoid.....please any other thoughts are greatly appreciated.

 

Is this a faint clicking noise that you can hear reoccurring over and over again while the key is in the start position? Or is this a distinctive click that happens once per key turn and that's it?

I ask because I had a similar issue when it was really cold out - I would attempt to start my '03 2.7T and get a no crank / no start issue that was actually related to the ignition switch. Through expanding and contracting and countless turns of the key over the years the switch finally begins to break down and the contacts no longer serve their purpose when they are really cold. I'm not sure whether or not your 97 uses the same type of ignition switch. Another member pointed out that after 2003 or 2004 Audi began using a different ignition switch because they realized that this was a wide spread problem.

You need to verify the cold cranking amps are enough from the Subaru's battery to turn the starter of the Audi if you were to simply swap the two. Either way, your Audi is going to need a new battery so I would take the plunge and invest around $140 in a new one and get that out of the way.

So in short, after knowing for sure you can rule out the battery and its connectors, I would then begin following the flow of electricity from the battery to the starter. From the sound of it when you try to jump start it and nothing happens though, it may appear that you have issues with your ignition switch or the starter itself.

 

The click is just one resounding click.

Anyway so today it was in the mid 30s out so i decided to go up to work and see if it would start. So i hooked up the jumpers to the subie and it fired up first try. I drove it home, without a battery mind you, and installed the same "bad" battery that i had had sitting on trickle charge all night. I tried starting the car again and itll start all day now.....smh. Im still going to replace the battery but ill also look into the ignition switch issue as im not fond of being stranded in the cold. Thanks again and ill keep updating this as i find things out.

 

I also recommend changing the ignition switch. The switches from the mid 90's have a limited life. I replaced 3 of them in various cars and in all three, the plastic of the switch housing was cracked, each one displayed different symptoms. When you replace the switch ONLY buy from the dealer. The Audi switches may not be perfect but they last 100,000+ miles. One of the switches I changed was aftermarket and I had to change it again in 6 months. I think the dealer switches are only about $38. Well worth the peace of mind.

 

only $38?? Seems pretty cheap! Is it just the switch or tumbler too? do i need a new key? If its that cheap ill definitely do it.....id imagine it being a couple hundred dollar item lol.

 

It is just a plastic switch on the back of the tumbler. Once you know how to do it you can change it in 10 min

 

Ok so I replaced the switch today. It was only $28 from autozone and took me about 30 min to install....audi actually made this a pretty easy part to get to surprisingly. The car has started consistantly since the new switch was installed so hopefully that was it. I also had the battery checked out by a more reputable battery shop in town and they determined it to be a good battery. So for now I think i will drive the car as is and see how it does especially since come sunday it is supposed to be considerably colder again. I will update as new developments arise and thank you very much for your help thus far!

 

I am glad that fixed your problem, but you did not listen! You did not get the switch at the dealer like I recommended. Now I recommend you go buy another switch from the DEALER this time and put it in your glove box for when this switch fails!