No tech but...I have had the same problem with my A4 180T, The heater core is very low in the heating system, thus rust and other stuff settle there. There are different ways to flush the system. The cooling system (motor) and an flush of the Heating system. After the cooling system was flushed there was no change. Weeks later we flushed the heating system, with a special solvent, We got almost 2 pounds of rust out of the system. Now I flush the system every fall.
Problem is gone.

Tom