Aghh so mad. Car won't start. The engine turns but it just wont run. I have the haynes manual so I have ideas of what it could be. Im leaning towards a bad coolant temp sensor and/or MAF sensor. I'll have it towed to a shop tomorrow and have them fix it.

Now I love Audi's, but can anyone recommend a good reliable second car. I can't see myself disposing of this car. I'd rather leave this in the garage and use it as back up.

 

A honda..... really if your gonna keep the audi its going to see down time as they break often. A honda is a fine dd as it will most likely never break and even if it does a blind one eye guy can repair it with 20 bucks and a trip to the parts store.

 

Any specific year/model? How about an SUV type?

I've been looking around at some honda's and man they are so ugly inside.

Before giving up last night, I unplugged the MAF sensor and it still wouldn't start. It probably is a cheap fix and an easy DIY, but I can't wait for parts to arrive to only find out that isn't the problem and then the car will be down for longer period. This car is great, if you have a second car in handy.

I've been eyeing out on an Infinity FX35 (2003-2005).

 

Infinitis are nice, sounds like your more about the luxury aspect. You gotta have the Audi for nice things, and have a turd to transport you. CRV are nice because they have a k24 in them, swap a k20 head and add some hondata and you'll be owning people left and right, not to mention they can be turboed and just increase the win. Who gonna argue with a 500 hp CRV eating stis and evos

 

I dont know if you remember my feud with my car when I did the control arms this past summer lol. That had an affect on my love with Audi's. I'd like to get another Audi, but after my experience with this, I don't think I would ever own 2 audi's cuz I fear of having 2 dead audi's at once.

Which year would be a good year for CRV's? I don't care too much about speed now and I will most likely dont plan to do any mods on any future car just for the sake of resale value vs all the money I dump into a modding a car.

I really do like the infiniti fx35. It's got good safety rating but I'm more concerned of the engine and transmission reliability.

 

Sup guys. So the mechanic replaced the spark plugs cuz they were in rough shape. I had a quick glance at them and it almost seem like they were covered in oil sludge.

Also my oil temp guage never seems to reach operating temp.

Replacing the spark plugs temporarily fixed the no start issue. But now I'm having rough idle and I can sometimes feel the engine shaking when driving, probably cuz its misfiring.

I probably have another 15,000km(not miles) left on the timing belt. Should I just get that done along with the valve cover, coolant temp sensor(my guage has been fluctuating for sometime now), cam seal. I read on audizine that with a leaking valve cover, it could get oil on the spark plugs.

Sometimes I also smell a strange odour in the cabin from the vent. I'm wondering if it could be because of my oil cooler leaking coolant, and with my valve cover leaking oil mixed with coolant is probably what I'm smelling?

 

Best place to start with all of this IMO is with the valve cover gaskets. Replacing them could solve some, if not all of these issues, and minimally is a good place to start in the process-of-elimination.

Generally the ECU detects misfires and will let you know of misfiring via a blinking CEL. Does your ECU have any codes stored?

Can you define "operating temp" for the oil? There isn't really one, but if the needle moves past the min. mark then you're probably in good shape.

 

When the mechanic replaced the plugs, he said there were codes of misfire and minimal air flow, but they went away after the plugs replacement.

I feel like an idiot. I checked my K&N air filter and it was freaking clogged up. The CEL light went away too after a few km of driving. The rough idling/engine shaking has disappeared for now. I freaking cleaned the filter this past summer so I'm shocked that it was considerably dirty.

I still think there's an underlying problem, cuz I had those spark plugs replace 2yrs ago and they came out pretty fouled. Or am I wrong to think plugs to last that long. I know they wear out, and cause mpg issues, but to wear out so much in that timeframe to prevent from my car starting is questionable.

Anyway, I think I may have bought me some time to organize a little diy. Starting with the valve cover gasket and I'll research on doing the cam shaft seals.

Lesson learned. Never drift away from your audi. I'll admit I have been holding up on maintenance just due to budget, thinking that my V6 is strong and a real trooper it will take care of itself.

 

Much appreciated for all your input guys. Have a great new year!