I took my A6 to the dealer this week to get the timing belt service, and they found that my "Auxillary Water Pump" has a slow leak. They said that it would be a good idea to fix soon, but was not necesaary STAT. So, my question is why does this car have two water pumps, and is this an easy or at least somewhat easy fix, for a guy with some mechanical ability. Also, where is this pump located? I was also told that I have a bad tie rod, because the boot is torn and the grease has come out. I was wondering if anyone can explain to me what a tie rod is, and if this is something that should require immediate attention? And the last thing that they found was leaky cam shaft tensioner seals. Ok, so what is this, and is $646.00 parts and labor a reasonable price to replace them?

Thanks,

 

All answers can be found in Stoney's Links (http://sonolithics.com/files/a6_links.html ) or the AudiWorld Tech Articles section(http://www.audiworld.com/tech/):

Cam adjuster seal replacement:
http://forums.audiworld.com/a6/msgs/517769.phtml

Tie rod end replacement:
http://forums.audiworld.com/a6/msgs/559074.phtml

Aux coolant pump replacement:
http://www.audiworld.com/tech/eng69.shtml

 

I have a 2000 2.7 and I had to have that Auxillary Water Pump replace at about 75,000 miles. The dealership did it for about $900. I thought it was high but I only had to pay $100 because of an aftermarket warranty. I caught the grease on my wheel pretty close to when the boot busted. I paid an independent shop $215 to replace the boot. The dealer wanted $350. Good luck with the car. I've hadover $6000 worth of work done in the last 5 months.
Torque convertor $2550
Auxillary water pump $900
Master window switch $170
Overflow reservoir $90
Transmission filter, fluid, gaskets $300
Transmission Cooler lines $130
Coolant lines to the engine $1032
Electronic Control Module $500
CV Boot $215
Coolant Flush $110
Brake Fluid Flush$100
Full Brake Job $950
Control Arm $200
Nice Car, but I will probably never buy another Audi again. I'm sure I won't.

 

When I brought mine in for a clutch/flywheel at 89k miles, the shop found the auxiliary pump was leaking. The part was $114 plus 3 hours labor.

I consider a lot of the work I've done to be routine maintenance. Yeah - the auxiliary pump and an alternator should not have failed. The clutch/flywheel was due to the original owner hauling a small trailer and my chipping the engine. But the car runs and rides great and I plan on keeping it a long, long time.