2000 A6 4.2L ART engine.

I owned this car for a year now and could never figure out the road noise. I never driven a quiet Audi. I owned a 1987 Audi, a 2001 A4 2.6L and now a 2000 A6. They all drive noisy.

Are Audi's suppose to ride smooth like a caddy? or is it normal to hear and feel the road loudly inside while all the windows are up and ac is cranked. I changed the tires around, and nothing changed (Kumo 25540r17 on factory rims). I pumped new grease and rebooted my cv joints They don't look bad or make clicking sounds when turning, and still noisy. I will describe the noise shortly. I put brand spanking new front wheel berings and same crap is still happening. I installed four shock absorbers KYB in the front, and Monroe in the rear. When I take the car for a ride same problem. starts fine and idles silently. very quiet in the car with the windows up. I put it on drive and go for a spin and as soon as I go over 15 miles an hour or more I start hearing a woo,woo, woo,woo, woo,woo and I am perplexed. I can't figure it out and it's annoying to have all these new parts and it doesn't ride quiet. The a4 did the same noises. Feels like I'm driving with bad snow tires. seems to be coming from the front driver side. when I open the window wile driving, I can't hear the tires. So I ruled out tires. I switched tires around and it didn't make a difference. I tried driving on diffrent roads. smooth roads, rough roads, running over those centerline reflectors are loud and hard! are they suppose to feel like that? A darn ford escort is super smooth compared to this once $50,000 dollar car. Should I change the cv axles? car has 115K miles. Are those kumo tires noisy? If I lift the car in the air and spin tires, they spin fine with no sound while turning. They have no wiggle or looseness at all. Very solid. You can really feel the road and this annoying vibrations while crusing at a constant speed. I tried putting it on neutral to let it coast and same rough ride woo-woo-woo-woo-woo-woo. I feel angry and broke. Any idea why this happens? or is this normal? I never drove anyone elses Audi, so I can't compare.

 

Audis do not ride like Caddys. They are designed to provide feedback to the driver. However, you are describing problems greater than road feedback. Because you say the condition exists on both rough and smooth roads, and even after the tires have been moved around, it is probably not the suspension. From your post it also seems the problem existed with both old and new wheel bearings, and with both old and new shocks. The fact that the problem arises at 15 mph makes me wonder if the problem is related to the trannsmission/differentials. If you are driving above 15 mph and put the car in neutral does the noise contniue?

 

yes, when I put the car on neutral and let it coast at 30 mph (or any constant speed above lets say 15 mph....the noise exists. the faster the wheel spins the faster the woo-woo-woo-wo-woo vibrations.

 

if I slow down to approx under 15 mph, car wheels are spining too slow and sound is no longer heard. I open the window and stick my head out like Ace Ventura Pet Detective trying to hear something and I can't detect outside noise. I went on highway and drove 55 mph alongside a concrete divider wall and open window to see if the sounds bounce back into my ear, sounds normal. when I roll up window is when you can feel the woo woo woo woo woo sound/vibration. I don't know how to best describe. No better description I could come up with than what I said earlier. Sound exactly like a noisy tire with weight on it or like a big red neck 4x4 monster truck passing you buy on the highway. You ever hear the way those big tires sound with alot of thread? Exacly like that but on the inside with the windows up and it's kind of loud. I hate it

 

Is this the transmission you rebuilt?

 

I agree that Audis are not luxo-boats that quietly float down the highway.

But excessive road noise is probably due to tires. The front driver's tire always seems to make the most noise because it is the closest to you. You switched tires around but did not change the brand.

I change between Michelin Exalto 205-55-16 and Goodrich T/A 205-60-15's and see, feel, hear a big difference. The T/S are quieter, smoother, and slightly less responsive.

But there are a few things for you to consider.

1. Air pressure - It can make a difference. Higher usually means rougher more noisy ride.

2. This is a long shot - I once had a Camero with a bad universal joint. After i changed it there was a slight vibration that drove me crazy (see the Audi is not to blame for my current mental state) After weeks of searching I found that I assembled the drive shaft with the two universals out of phase and they fought each other. I don't know if it possible on an Audi but I'd check the CV joints.

 

Have you had the tires road forced balanced??

 

NH USA, I was scared when Kevin mentioned the transmission or differential. Gave me a little diarreah to go into maybe the transmission. But I did a perfect job rebuilding it and everything was to factory specs. Bearings are in brand new condition and Torsen differential was properly marked and reinstalled in the correct pattern like it was. So I did what you said about switching tires all together.

Guess what my friends (as John Mcain would say). I think this was the noise culprit. If you were to look at my tires you would think they are brand new looking, meaty and all. But I went to a local tire shop just a few minutes ago and had them give me two used front tires. They found a mismatch pair same size but diffrent name brands. They balanced and mounted them on my front rims only. One tire passenger side front is a Pirrelli 255/40zr17 N3..... the driver side front is a Bridgestone 255/40zr17 94v. the back tires I left alone (the car originally had all four tires new KUHMO Ecsta Supra 255/40zr17).

I paid $40 bucks each for these freakin used tires just to try this experiment. Well, after I left the shop with two dirty *** greasy rims and used tires, my ride immediately felt way more quiet and smoother. A dramatic difference. I can go up to 60 Mph and hear a slight faint woo woo woo from the rear now. But the front end seems quiet in my opinion. I can hear the engine accelarate and all. The patern on my used tires are like this llll ....as where my original Kumho tires that were on when I bought this Audi are a V shape tread with a groove right in the center when looking at it from top to bottom.

Anyway I believe that these Kumho tires are noisy as hell. makes the car vibrate and sounds like a bad bering.

Thank you all so much for your input. I just have a couple questions. Is it normal to feel the road in these cars? I mean when I move over the center line reflectors to pass a car....those little plastic road reflectors feel harsh....like if I'm runing over a 3 inch thick flat square metal bracket laying on the road or something. When I drive over those rumble strips to slow down at a toll booth, Jesus... it feels like you are running over a bunch of 2X4's (wood). Very stiff ride. Is this normal? If it is....do they sell softer springs for Audis? Also please tell me or suggest quiet tires. I like the low profile look, just wish the car would sound quiet inside so I can talk low and hear the clear sounds and details of my radio while coasting down a highway at 60 mph.

 

I am glad to hear that it may just be the tires.

 

For the month I drove the car after purchasing it, I thought the "luxury" description may refer to anything else but the suspension.
I have a similar stiff ride, I mean STIFF.
I can feel all the patched potholes, craks, and little raises or deeps in the asphalt. Maybe my struts are bad, but the ole Taurus I drove previously could have passed as a luxury car compared to this A6. Everything feels tight on it (control arms, tie rod ends) but the ride is crappy as hell on city streets.