Have an '07 A3 with original P6 with 18000 miles and they sound like an 18 wheeler. Took it to Audi service, which by the way is terrible, and they told me get use to it. Cupping at 10K and nothing can be done.

What tire will work? More concerned with less noise than performance, but still want to stick a bit. Suggestions?

About ready to get rid of the car. . . .

Thanks in advance.

Steve

 

Come on, no one has anything to add to this request? I've searched the forum and did not find much on this. Would really like to hear some other's point of views.

Thanks -- Steve

 

http://www.tirerack.com

Enter your info & requirements...read the specs & reviews...buy the tires you want.

If you're not having a good experience @ your local dealership, find a reputable shop that is capable(& willing) to mount & balance a set of 'Tire Rack' tires for you. And it sounds like you might need a 4-wheel alignment as well with your newly installed rubber.

Who knows?...if all is done properly and to your satisfaction, you might wanna keep your A3 after all.

UberTeile

 

A suggestion from an Audi tech. At my dealership, we modify the rear toe specs on A3's to those of a VW Golf to resolve the cupping/chopping issue with these cars. The stock spec calls for quite a bit of rear toe, which is good for handling but terrible for tire wear. At the stock specs, the tires will start to chop by 10,000 miles, even if they've been rotated once already. Our machine measures in degrees, minutes and seconds vs inches, calling for total (stock spec) toe of 25 minutes vs the Golf's 10 minutes. In fractions that's roughly 1/4" stock and 1/16" modified or there abouts. Reducing the rear toe to a setting that's just slightly toed out has, so far, seemed to take care of the problem. Since starting to do this a couple years ago, none of the A3's we've done have had any repeat tire wear/noise complaints.

On tires, only can say to avoid Fusion, Cooper Zeon, or any other similar tire with "chunky" tread. Those seem to cup, chop and wear uneven on ANY car no matter what the alignment.

Also, not all dealerships are created equal. We routinely install tire/wheel pkgs, usually winter tires/wheels and mount and balance summer and winter tires that our customers have shipped directly to us from Tire Rack. No problem. Of course, parts likes it better if the tires are bought from us but our main goal is to keep our customers happy and satisfied no matter what it takes. Unfortunatley, there's some dealerships who don't seem to comprehend that idea (and as an Audi Tech, it pisses me off). In other words, please don't let one bad dealer ruin the reputation of all Audi dealers. Thanks.

 

aspen79,

Thanks, this is very good to hear. Would you please give me all the alignment specs, front and rear, for the A3? I do like the car, but obviously, cannot handle the noise. Looked at a Honda SI coupe yesterday to replace my Audi.

Thanks for your reply, any additional help would be greatly appreciated.

Steve

 

The STOCK rear specs are: Camber -1* 20' (* means degrees and ' is minutes) and Toe 25' (total)
The rear camber spec is fine but set the rear toe to 10' total (5' each side). That's STANDARD suspension Golf/Rabbit specs.

Front is: Camber -46' (not adjustable) and total toe of 10' (stock front specs are fine).

As I mentioned, it's the stock rear toe specs that wear the tires. Just tell your alignment guy to ignore the Audi specs and set it up this way. The tires should wear a whole lot better and I've never noticed even a tiny bit of difference in handling, especially the way 95% of the customers drive their cars. Yes, I know a Golf is FWD only but the "fix" applys to both FWD and Quattro A3's.

BTW, we have the same concern on Golf GTI and Sport suspension as the stock VW spec for those is also 25' rear total toe. You still need to rotate your tires at least every 10,000 miles (5,000 is better) or the rear tires will eventually start to chop no matter what the alignment is at. This applies to about any independent rear suspension vehicle no matter what the make or model. To be honest, I was the one that told the tech's I work with to change the toe specs. I was a Ford tech for 21 years (up until fall 2007) and the Focus had the exact same problem of tire chopping. They also had a rear toe spec of 25', but Ford revised it to 10' eventually and that solved the problem. Little secret........I like working on Audi's and VW's about 1000% better than Fords. For one, you don't need a torch to get fasteners loose 99% of the time, no matter what the age. Ford's needed the smoke wrench before they were a year old..........

About the Honda........don't do it man! Honda's rot faster than Ford's do, seriously.

 

aspen79,

Thanks for the info. BTW, my A3 is FWD; I don't think Audi offered the A3 in Quattro with the 2.0T in '07.

Also, we are on our second Honda CRV, an '02 with 135,000 miles we bought new. Also had an '01 Integra Type R, still wish I had that, but both have/had been extremely reliable requiring only standard servicing.

Thanks again for your help, not sure what I am going to do at this point.

Steve

 

One last question, what tire do you recommend for a FWD A3?

 

I have an '06 A3 (2.0T) and started getting the road noise after 10,000 miles. I wrote a letter to Audi Corporate (and cc'ed the State Atty General office) and they reimbursed me for the new tires ($600+), claiming it was a bad batch of Pirelli tires. Now, after 19,000 miles on the second set (Continental ContiPro Contact, which Audi recommended), the road noise/tire wear is back. I wrote another letter and of course they blew me off.

I felt I was left with no recourse but to expect to buy new tires every few years (and maybe do some loud complaining about Audi at every opportunity). So I was so excited to see the technician's response to your entry. That's some real, concrete, helpful information ... for a change!

I'm going to print out the info and put it in front of the Audi service dept. and see what I get. At least it's something else I can try.

I love my A3 otherwise, but this tire business is rediculous. I'm pretty sure it will be the last Audi I ever own. I'm looking forward to the electric cars and will probably get a Nissan Leaf at the first opportunity.

 

How long ago did you write the letter and how long did they take to reply? I went to my local Audi dealer and they said they "might" buy one if I buy three, but never heard from them again. My '07 A3 has 19K and it sounds like a truck.

Not to dispute the poster who claims to be an Audi tech, but I sought out a high performance alignment shop in Southwest Ohio. "Performance Alignment," a specialty suspension shop in the Cincinnati area that is owned by Bill Braucksick.

Bill has extensive racing history working on everything from F1 to Indy to Le Mans, serving as a suspension specialist on winning Audi R8's through the R10. He worked for Chapman during the early '70s with Lotus in F1 and crewed for Tom Senva when he won Indy in 1983. Now he works on high-line autos in about all departments, but his specialty is suspension.

Sorry for the long history, but the stories he tells are fantastic, especially to a F1, Indy and sports car racing nut like myself.

I showed him the post and his recommendation was not to reset the rear toe, but to remove almost all the camber in the rear and leave the rear toe to 25'. His claim is the "speced" camber will eat the inside rears and cup them in very few, less than 10,000 miles. He said the Golf GTI has the same suspension and he performs the same alignment on them as he does A3 with great success. Also, rotate front to back every 5,000 miles.

I can only hope, because in late February, early March I am changing to Conti DWS, which was their recommendation. If I can get Audi to pay, all the better.

The A3 is a great car, but as everyone knows the tire situation might require a class action suit to bring justice to Audi's otherwise disregard for paying customers.

Steve