Okay, what engine, 1.8l t? VAG-COM it, clear codes and see which ones show up again and fix the critical stuff first. DOH!

Change the oil and filter. Put in new plugs and an air filter.

Make sure the coolant is pink and at the proper level.

Don't worry about the trans.

Don't worry about the suspension.

Run a can or 2 of Tecron or Seafoam through the gas tank and Seafoam the engine. Don't leave it in the engine for more than a few hundred miles and then drain and change the oil and filter again.

Look for obvious sludge on the oil filler cap and for more information send a sample of the oil change, sans additives, to Blackstone Labs and they will tell you lots about what's going on inside.

Make sure it blows HOT air with the eater on high to check for water circulation.

VAG-COM again and clear codes.

Good luck.

 

Thank you! Much appreciated and yes 1.8t

What VAG-COM works with b5's? the 409.1?

 

If you can use a NAPA Big Kahuna oil filter, part # 1333. It holds a tad more than the regular and it will help with cooling. You have to lift the coolant recovery tank to get at the filter or at least that's the easiest way. No need to drain it just lift it up. Remember to connect the sending unit wire when you put it back.

Learn how to go to service position. Lots of videos on that here and at google. This makes working on the front of the engine possible. You might want to take a look there anyway. All sorts of turning things and belts up there.

My 1.8 is solid and fun to drive. No need to get jiggy with the turbo or the computer. Stock is good enough especially for a winter driver.

 

It may hold more oil but the best filters for these car's are Mannfilter or Bosch.

 

so what exactly are you asking? and please define "knocking".

these engines are as good as you treat them, like anything else. apparently, yours wasn't treated the best by the previous owner. what specific issues are you experiencing?

 

knocking is when there are pockets of air inside the cylinder walls that combust out of sequence with relativity to firing order. It creates unequivocal forces on the crankshaft and produces a distinct sound. Pretty much all cars have engine knock sensors these days, it will cause a check engine light if the sequence gets too far out of timed order or out of sequence with the valve train.

Are you messing with me about that? I'm pretty sure you are ha

There's honestly too many problems to list and I haven't even diagnosed anything truly by tearing it apart. I drove it home that day (roughly 30 min drive) and its sat in the driveway ever since. The acceleration was terrible, the engine knocked, the speedo doesn't work and the dash has just about every light on possible. Idk if you missed the earlier post but that's about it. Because of acceleration being so sluggish the shifts weren't bad but idk what it will do with a normal engine platform


and I'm a mechanical engineer by profession; this isn't a job I can't figure out--just frustration over the fact that its going to take a while to sort out

 

yes, I know what knocking is. what I was getting at is what type of knocking. you could be experiencing rod knock, or perhaps you have mistakenly identified another sound as a knock. first and foremost, what type of fuel are you putting in the car? 87 will not suffice, 89 is better, but 91 is required

i'm sure you're an excellent mechanical engineer, but that doesn't mean i'd trust a guy who designs robots to work on my car.

 

haha, that's a good analogy.

I put a full tank of 93 in for the ride home. ten minutes down the road I put a quart of oil in because light dinged for no oil pressure. checked dipstick and it was overfilled. smoked a lot out of the tail pipe and light was still dinging no oil pressure. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe the rings are shot? I've owned/built turbo cars for the past 6 years but never an audi, so trying to learn the motor and the habits of the motor before I take the top end off.

the only way to tell if something isn't working properly, is to know how it is suppose to work correctly.

 

from the symptoms you describes I can say with about 75% accuracy that you engine has gone the way of many, many 1.8t's. The problem is owners neglect the engines. They run inferior oil, and for too long. High quality, full synthetic with 5000 mile intervals is REQUIRED to keep your engine happy.

The issue is that people run crap oil with 7500 mile changes. The turbo uses oil to both cool and lubricates itself. As you can imagine, the oil degrades more rapidly in in a 1.8t than many other engines. This leads to coking of the oil, which leads to sludge deposits in the head (look for yourself) and oil pan. The sludge will get caught in oil galleys, causing lost pressure to critical parts. More commonly, the sludge will get caught in the oil pickup screen and clog that, causing lost pressure to the entire engine. Usually, the first thing to go is the cam chain tensioner. The pistons rings usually stay OK because the pistons squirters keep them lubricated.

However, anything in the cylinder head is starved under these circumstances. This means lifters and cam bearings as well (no, there technically aren't cam bearings in these engines. if they are scored, new cams and a new head are necessary). This is why I asked what you meant by knock. Odds are, you are not experiencing actual engine knock, but more likely accelerated wear on moving parts, like the cam chain tensioner which makes a lot of noise when it goes.

if you're up to it, take off the oil pan and assess the situation. if you find a lot of sludge and a clogged oil pickup, your best bet is to replace the entire cylinder head with a used, known good one.

 

If you think your piston rings may be shot do a compression test.

If your tensioner is shot that's a hefty investment, at least with the 2.8 motor.

If you decide to start taking things apart.. and end up taking the head off... I would go ahead and do a top overhaul while your at it.

I have a 2.8 and have CEL P1423 Secondary Airflow Too low Bank 1.

That code refers to what redline is speaking of. Poor fuel grade mixed with long engine oil change intervals resulting in clogged head ports and lots of sludge deposits. In this particular case, my passenger side EGR port located on the back of the head is clogged. I still drive her though. The previous owner didn't care as much as we do.

My guy wants to charge me 400 to take the head off and send it to get it machined. 200 for him. 200 for them.

I could spend that 400 on the necessary tools, remove the head myself and just send it in to get machined.