Re: Budding home mechanic...

James

You may find useful information at

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The Yanks have only VW diesels but they are very passionate about their TDIs. Go to FAQ first.

Regards

Ernest

I have just got a 1998 A4 1.9 TDI which I plan to hang on to for as > long as I can. With this in mind I've decided that I am going to try > to do a lot of the minor and major servicing myself. > > I don't have too much mechanical knowledge as yet, but I am perfectly > capable of getting my hands dirty. I'll start off with the simple > things - I'm pretty confident I can do a 10k mile service without > needing anything special. > > I eventually plan to work my way up the difficulty ladder, and > hopefully end up being confident enough to change the cam belt when > it's due in about a year's time. > > Here's what I have so far: > > * Haynes manual > * VAG-COM and cable > * Standard tools, torque wrench, socket set etc > > I'm looking for some helpful people in the group to suggest any > special tools, or manuals, or guides that I would find especially > useful. I would also like to hear from people based in UK who are > doing this, and where they get their parts from. > > Knowing me, I'll probably end up spending more money on tools and > parts than I would on servicing, but I really want to be able to spend > time on the car to make sure it's done properly. Not too impressed > with the garage so far! > > Anyway - if you're doing this I'd love to hear from you. I'm based in > Bristol, UK by the way. > > James
Reply to
Ernest
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Hi

Thanks - I've already been looking there, but wanted a slightly more "Audi" perspective... are the engines really exactly the same?

I saw the TDIFAQ was referring to A4,B3,B4 engines etc - this was confusing me. Is this the same as the chassis type? I think I have a B5... or is completely different? :)

Cheers

James

Reply to
James P

A4 is the shape, B5 is the chassis type, all A4's from 96-2000+ old shape are B5 the new shape Audi's are B6

Ron

Reply to
Ron

H1K, Martyn is now at

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Colin M

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Reply to
Colin M

Thanks, Colin.

H1K

Reply to
Hairy One Kenobi

Thank you, oh hairy one. I think the order of the day will be "slowly, slowly" when I eventually get on to major tasks. Thanks for the tip about cheaper parts, I was hoping someone would give me a source like that.

Now all I have to do is wait until my 12 month warranty is up - I somehow don't think I would fall into the category of "reputable garage" at the moment. :)

James

Reply to
James P

That's what I thought - needless to say it was all rather confusing reading the TDI faqs - I assumed A4 meant A4! Quite an unfortunate naming convention isn't it!

Cheers

James

Reply to
James P

Nor do half of the main dealers up and down the country that charge £60 + VAT per hour to service their customers' cars.

Peter

Reply to
AstraVanMan

Well, they have the dealer stamps, so they are pretty much in control. I've had my A4 for 2 weeks - it's been back to the dealer twice for simple fixes, and both times I've had to go in and fix things myself afterwards... god how I hate the motor industry. :)

James

Reply to
James P

Hi

Following on from my first post - do you think it's worth getting the "Bentley" repair manual CDs that I keep hearing about? Or are there any cheaper alternatives that would offer more than a haynes manual?

Cheers

James

Reply to
James P

Yeah - I know what you mean! And of course the haynes book doesn't know anything about the ECU. One thing that worries me is that is says the if you disconnect the ECU, it has to be "reset to initial values" by a VAG dealer. Would I be able to do this with VAG-COM?

Cheers

James

Reply to
James P

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