Hi, i was wondering what you guys thought of this, its pretty cold outside but not that cold so i drove the car about 5 miles then back and the temperature gauge is not in the middle where it is supposed to be between the C and H it is one dash to the left towards the cold side, what would you say this can be from ?

Thanks

 

Thats about how long it takes my car

 

im pretty sure thats normal i dont think ive ever seen mine get to half way its always been a little below

 

I drove about 5 miles today before my gauge warmed up today. Once had a camaro that leaked oil in the coolant but not vice versa and the temp gauge was showing it on the cooler side, sold it to a friend of mine cheap and he drove it for 2 years before he sold it for twice what I sold it to him for(bad karma for him). Oil in the cooling system will make the car run cooler side. I'm sure you're OK not trying to freak you out but may want to check your coolant and see if any brown sludge is present. Also, I'm pretty new to Audis so I'm sure there are other scenarios, not trying to compare an Audi to a Camaro also.

 

thanks, i'll have to check on that, the thing is that my coolant is like little low its almost at the min level so i need to refill soon i wanted to get the g12 stuff for it since that what it calls for, i went to dealership to get some and they said its like $22 or so but they told me to just add some distilled water on top and that should do it, i wonder if that low coolant level plays any roll.?

 

Should not matter that your coolant is a little low. Also good you are sticking with the correct coolant, never switch to green. Drive your car and after it is warm post exactly where the needle is on the temp gauge. Also when was the last time you did a coolant flush and when was your timing belt done? Seems that you may have a leak in the cooling system as well. I had a slow leak and had to replace the radiator when I first got my car.

 

It depends how much water you added. I believe water cools better then the Antifreeze but well obviously it can freeze so thats why we add antifreeze. The gauge is supposed to be dead center. If its too much water to antifreeze I would be a little worried on the nights that it drops below freezing. If its not that then your thermostat could possibly not be closing all the way.

 

Its interesting that you mentioned the timing belt because i purchased the car with like 54k on it and its at 67k now and I personally havent done the timing belt on it so i am not sure if it has been done on it before that since people dont really touch it till around 70k or so. do you guys think there is a way for me to check that stuff myself? because i am planning on having the t-belt done on it soon so thats where the replacing whole coolant would come in along with the other stuff stuch as the water pump.. ect. what you think?

 

You may have a thermostat that is starting to stick open - if so, it'll slow down your warmup time.

 

yeah my 2.8 has never actually gotten to the middle, its always a lil in the cold side.
and I've also noticed that it takes way longer to warm up when the heater is on, (it makes sense but i didnt think it'd make that much of a diff) and when its really cold out and my heater is on it'll sit even more towards the cold side. im sure it not bad as long as its in operating temp...