This last week (Wednesday) I bought my first Audi. I got a 2002 A6 2.7t Quattro with 95k miles on it for $7k. Seemed like a good deal and it ran great on the test drives. Two days later it is in the shop. It started idling rough and had very little power on Friday afternoon. The check engine light also came on. I took it in and the mechanic determined that two cylinders were not firing. After a little more diagnosis, I was told that it looks to be electrical but they need another hour on Monday to be totally sure. Does this sound like a precursor of more bad things to come?

I started reading some of these forums last night and it seems that people say these can be pretty high maintenance. Sounds like having the car in the shop could be a regular occurrence.

So, I'm wondering if I should get an aftermarket warranty or sell the car or cross my fingers and hope for the best.

I'm a software programmer and know very little about cars. I might be able to figure stuff out but am not really mechanically inclined.

 

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sounds like a torn throttle body boot. thats what my car did when it broke, there was a small tear on the bottom of it. some people say that you can feel the tear with your fingers, but I couldn't, I took it out anyway and saw the tear... check that first. I had no power, misfires, etc... Cheap fix compared to what your mechanic is telling you, if it really is what he says it is... ohh and get a vag-com cable and check the codes, it might even be an egt sensor, I also had those symptoms when one of mine went bad...

 

Sounds more like the ignition modules that are mounted on the air box. They normally fail. Replace both. This is considered normal maintenance for an Audi.

If you do not work on the car yourself, by all means, get an extended warranty or get rid of the car. Audis are very nice cars but, like all German cars, are expensive to maintain.

And, since you are into computers, get a VAG-COM cable and the Ross Tech software and enjoy!

Good luck,

Bob

 

i dunno about the ignition modules, I had 2 audi c5s (00 A6 2.7T and now a 01 A6 2.7T) and none of those ever failed me. I know the car wont start or will run horribly with them disconnected. and I know that those symptoms are exactly like a bad throttle body boot and a bad egt sensor... I've been driving the C5 since 2006... Ohh, I also know that I washed and sprayed plenty of water on those ignition sensors, I even cleaned the airbox with them on, and got water on the connections and everything, and they never ever went bad, on both cars.

 

Both of mine failed, one right after the other, of course, and, you are right, it drove like sh**, since it was running on only three cylinders. Not running on two cylinders precludes your explanation, or, at least, points in a different direction. It might be two coils have gone bad as that has been known to happen, or, worse, that one of the injector driver's on the ECU has died and he needs a new ECU.

But, in any case, his mechanic said Monday, it is now Tuesday, so let's see if this guy ever comes back.

Bob

 

Thanks for the replies. I was told today that it was an ignition module. They are going to replace it and give me a call in the morning (it is still Monday where I live). They said one looked newer and the one that needed replaced was the factory original.

Is there a good place to get a VAG-COM cable? I can easily do a search on google for one but figured I would ask if there is a good company that you would recommend buying things from. I'd be interested in getting one and maybe trying to diagnose a little bit myself next time around.

 

Got the car back and it is running great. They gave me the codes they got when I dropped the car off last week. They are:

P0300, P0302 and P0305

They ended up replacing the Ignition Control Unit

 

I hope there was about 3 grand in the trunk when you bought that car

If your not mechanically inclined i would sell that thing .. but just my 2cents

 

Thanks for the replies. I wish there was 3 grand in the trunk! I really like this car and am considering a warranty. I just posted another thread with a couple warranty quotes that I received: Warranty Quotes - AudiForums.com

I was looking for some feedback on how they compare versus the general things that need fixed on cars like mine.