Hi, Im new to this forum..
got a 96 audi 2.8
The repair costs are killing me on this, and i need to start working on this myself.
If you can help, it would be greatly appreciated...

1- air bag light is on.. How can i get this off?
2- power steering fluid is leaking.. i read up on this today, and found out i need mineral oil fluid to put in there.. My error. I will try to flush and put different oil in rite? Where is the cheapest place to get the oil?
3- My antifreeze is disapearing.. as if someone is stealing it. It is not leaking, as in a puddle when i pull away.. I dont see it, but a week after filling it up, I will get the warning light saying it is low.. what is deal with that?

4- where can I get a "vag-com"? to diagnose problems? I want to start working on my car and treat it much better than it has been treated...

Thank you guys in advance for any help on the matter.

 

4) http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/pricing.html

Welcome to the forum pliddy!!!

This is a great site. We keep the dialogue friendly and the attitude positive. The info is well received by all and we are here to help anyone with the need. I hope you find it to your liking as well.

If you're not familiar with this forum, please click the START HERE!link. There you will find a forum vocab list, an Audi forum terminology list and an Audi lexicon list. They should be very helpful to you if you're not familiar with the jargon.

Please feel free to ask any question, but double check the archives first. Many questions have been archived and, quite often, the answers are comprehensive.

 

Hi Pliddy...welcome

1. Air bag light means you have a defective airbag. Turning off this light will not make it effective. You can clear the code, but the light will not stay off until you fix the problem.
2. If you have regular PS fluid in there, get it out as fast as possible. it is not meant for our cars, and the seals of the system will react badly to it. You should be able to get mineral based PS fluid at any euro specialist garage. You can also get 'Pentosin Hydraulic/Power Steering Fluid-CHF 11S' for your car at www.ecstuning.com for about $15.
3. You have aleak definitely. It probably only leaks when the system is hot while driving and the pressure is up. A common culprit is the o-ring seal on the coolant temp sensor. Also sometimes the reservoir forms small cracks and slowly leaks.
4. Vag-Com can be found here. http://www.ross-tech.com

 

An airbag light does not always indicate a bad airbag. Check under your seat to make sure the airbag connectors are not loose.

 

Wow,.. thanks guys for the advice on the problems... then besides the airbags, (if it isnt a connector prob), do you think the power steering, and the coolant problem can be done by myself? I am getting the shop manual now, and getting some better tools. I have done some work on my motorcycle before.. what do you think?
Thanks

 

Also if you dont have a laptop but have a PALM os pocket PC or PDA try www.shadetreesoftware.com as an alternative to ross-techs vag-com

 

Jack your car up and check for power steering fluid leaks. I had the same problem and it turned out to just be a loose hose clamp. If you want to flush out your power steering fluid do this. Under the power steering resevour there should be two finger sized hoses. Unclamp one of them and let all the fluid drain out. Refill the tank and drive for a day or two. Then repeat the same process to make sure you have gotten all the bad fluid out of the system.

 

dayum... we are some helpfull bizzatches...

 

jestnomen: what should i look for when checking the connections. my airbag light is also on but it was like that ever since i bought my car.. thanks in advance

 

It could also very well be that people are bumping your car. Like in tight parking spaces. The audi i bought off my sister had this problem and we took it to the dealer and he cleared the code and it came back on like 2 weeks later. So they thought about it and where her husband goes to school the parking is very tight and he saw many times people bump other cars. Nothing to cause scratches but enought to MAYBE set the airbag light on.