Hey All,

I haven't posted much here, but I bought an 01 A6 2.7T in January. It has 112K on it and is in good condition.

However recently I noticed it was using coolant... oh no. First thought was a head gasket and major repairs, but after constantly checking the oil and seeing no signs of coolant in the oil, I happened to notice a puddle in the garage... so initially I'm thinking, WOOHOO, maybe it's an easy fix... hose or something... ya right. So I ran it up on ramps for the first time today and after removing the skid pad I see that it's coming from somewhere up in the VERY COMPACT engine compartment approximately forward of the drivers side front corner of the oil pan and directly in from the forward most lugs on the drivers side wheel... to give you the "coordinates". Does that location make sense? And then from there it's seems to be approximately 8-10" up. I see what might be the flywheel directly ahead of the front side of the Oil pan (?), it may be coming from above there as I think as it may be running down both sides of that area. Sorry if that makes no sense, I just don't know the engine bay of this car well enough yet.

I cannot see ANY form of leak or residue from the top down. I removed the coolant reservoir and looked around as much as I could down the drivers side of the engine and could see no leaks whatsoever. However from the underside, there is coolant everywhere. And this coolant they use apparently gets crusty upon leaking cuz it's crusted up everywhere, making it even more difficult to ascertain where the leak is. Regardless it appears to be coming from somewhere "up in there" that I cannot see anyway.

I'm on an limited budget and always prefer to fix whatever I can on my own (I know, why'd I buy an Audi then, right?), so ANY wisdom as to what/where this issue may be and it's even remotely fixable in my garage with some ramps and jacks, PLEASE speak now.

I've gotten A LOT of help before from forums like these and once I've become knowledgeable and an active member, I usually have some to contribute myself. Thanks in advance to anyone that can tell me anything useful.

Best regards, JR

 

Please anyone?

 

I'm sorry that nobody stepped in to give you pointers. Personally, I have a 2.8 engine and, from what I observed in photos, the 2.7 engine is a bit different so I wouldn't know exactly what to tell you.
However, if the leak comes from the top of the engine, then there aren't too many spots where you can look for or locate it:
- Thermostat housing - maybe the o-ring gasket is worn out
- Water pump gasket (pretty sure you'll have to take the TB covers off for that one)
- Back side of the Thermostat + Water pump housings - It only has o-rings there between the coolant pipe and housing wall's opening

All of these would be more or less in the area or adjacent to the coordinates you mentioned (as I said, I don't know much about the 2.7 engine bay).

a sincere good luck.

 

Thanks much for the response. I'm quite at a loss when it comes to this car. I can usually figure out anything non-internal, but with the engine bay SO compact, I can't even see where it's coming from. The "run-off" appears to be most prevalent on the drivers side, with a little coming down the passenger of what appears to be the timing belt assembly. What I can see is that there is a black solenoid on the driver side of this area that is blocking me seeing further up into the engine, but the crusted coolant appears to be most thick on this solenoid (which probably isn't good for it I imagine). Bottomline is after seeing the steering rack and such other major components under this area I don't see any way I can do this myself. I still however always like to have as much of a positive ID as possible before taking in for repair. To call bluffs so to speak.

Thanks again for helping and any other comments are certainly still welcome.

Thanks, JR

 

First, I'll assume with 112k the timing belt was changed sometime in the past 25k miles. That should have included the water pump and thermostat. If for some reason it was not changed, you are way past due and these items plus belts and tensioners should all be changed at the same time.

Secondly, I have not seen anything about leaks from the front of the engine. My experience was with the secondary coolant pump which sits on the back of the engine near the bell housing. Mine was leaking and leaving a pair of crusty "boiled off" antifreeze tracks down the rear of the engine and bell housing. Before I found it I was losing antifreeze, so I added some radiator sealer and that reduced the leak considerably. The root cause problem was found about 20k later when I replaced my clutch.

The only other guess I have for a front-of-engine leak is hoses -- either a pinhole or a weak or torn clamp. One question is that after the car heats up from driving, do you smell any coolant? Maybe leaving the belly pan off and parking it on some newspaper after a drive may help you confirm the location of the leak.

Just don't add regular antifreeze -- it takes a special blend. Do a search in the forum and it should pop up.

Good luck and let us know what you find.

 

All good points. I just purchased it in January and with it I received a very thick file folder of all the regular service records. As far as I know all regular services were done on a timely basis. I'll have to look through them for sure. I remember the former owner talking about it and mentioning things like water pumps, timing belts, control arms, etc.

As for your mentioning of the "pair of crusty boiled off antifreeze tracks"... thats exactly what I'm looking at. And it only seems to happen when the engine gets hot. And then yesterday on the way home when the antifreeze apparently ran very low and the temperature started to rise it really started pushing it out. Good thing I was so close to home.

So was your problem the auxiliary water pump then? Was is a bad pump or the seal of the pump to the engine (pardon my ignorance)? What radiator sealer did you use? I've heard that some of them cause more trouble them good, but your experience would be greatly appreciated.

As for the right antifreeze, thanks to a local NAPA guy, I was alerted to this. When the coolant first ran low, I stopped by the first parts shop I saw and asked for coolant. When I went to pay for it, he immediately asked if I was going to put it in the Audi I just pulled up in. Thanks to his alertness, he saved me from what I understand is a cardinal sin... putting green in with the pink. So since then, I've been getting the $25 a jug pink stuff from Audi... I'm just sick of adding it once a week. Just found out about the 50/50 blend too so now I'm, trying to lean it back out...

 

MOst coolant loss on our cars are due to 2 causes though there can be others..
1- Cracked expansion tank
2- Auxiliary water pump are notorious to go bad, mine went before 80k. THe part used to be $115-130 I think and labor was right under 4 hours. It is located under the intake manifold which must be removed. If it is the issue, then take advantage of the labor to install the NewSouth Power Gasklets that cost $75.

Do make sure that the Timinf Belt/Water Pump service was done and the thermostat was changed then too

 

Awesome. Thanks again for the responses guys (and potential gals). And sorry for being a bit impatient, I was freakin out a bit last night after staring at the underside of the engine bay for like 2 hours and not being able to determine a thing.... not a familiar feeling.

The more I hear people talk, it sounds a lot like the auxiliary water pump. What both of you have described is very similar. It doesn't seem to be a consistent amount of leakage which is weird. It goes from none, to a pretty decent flow, so I feel the "stop leak" stuff if probably not the way to go.

I'll review the service records I have and make sure all those other items were taken care of and then take her in for servicing of this leak... armed with some knowledge thanks to you all.

Thanks again, JR

PS - if anyone else has anything more to add, please feel free. I like to learn as much as possible when it come to these things. I can rebuild my Mustang from scratch if I had to, but this A6 perplexes me.

 

Well I just had a very respectable shop in town quote the repair of the auxiliary water pump and they came up with $700, thats $115 for the part and 6 hours labor at $90/hr. plus gaskets and shop supplies. Does that sound reasonable? I was surprised to hear 6 hours, but I guess from the engine bay "compaction" i saw, it's entirely possible. Does anyone know what the "book" repair time is?

They also quoted me $448 for replacement of the heater blower that is making a racket. Any ideas where that is and if I can replace it?

 

I know others who were quotted 6 hrs but my guy did mine and one that same week on a S4 with the same motor and both were between 3 1/2 and 4 hrs. His rate is only 70$ too though at the time he worked for a shop who charged $80. $90/hr is still competitive compared to the dealer. But I'd negociate the time. $115 for the pump is right.
FYI there is a kit sold by Audi only that relocates the pump to the front so it no longer sits under the intAake and is accessible