A3 3.2 2005 - loss of tickover

Morning all - I've been looking for info on a fault my A3 3.2 Quattro has developed, and the couple of threads I've found (Engine cut out, ECS and ESP light on) don't really give a definitive answer - alltogh I suspect there is no definitive answer!
So, after driving about 15 miles my ESP light came on and the car wouldn't tick over - which was a real pain as its a dsg, so would stall or jump if I gave it some gas..... I put it into my local specialist who replaced the MAF which seemed to fix it, but a week later the same thing happened. The engine light also came on in both occurrences, but a bit later after I'd been driving (or lurching) around for a bit.
Now the threads seem to point to the crankshaft sensor, timing chains/cam position sensors, or fuel pump relay, and the cure appear to be an ECU update, clean out of the throttle body and / or a factory reset of the sensors. So has anyone had this and has got a definitive answer?

Hi Taroni Thanks for the swift reply - Initially (at the first garage visit) the codes said it was the MAF; its been replaced and same fault re-occurred so I don't trust the codes! I've got a lot of faith in the guy doing the work, but wondered if there were any pointers on the board. Another thing I've just noticed is the LED display in the dash dims as the engine dies; could this indicate the battery is on the way out, giving a low voltage and throwing up random errors?

Maf was replaced with a new one last week........

Cheers screechmr - I'll give it a try....

As far as I know the MAF is genuine - my mechanic only uses OEM parts - the cars back in the garage for another look......

Hi all
Looks like the problem is now sorted (touch wood). I was directed by my garage to the Phirm in Hartley Wintney. They did a software update; my software looked to be original, and I believe the updated software is more tolerant of 'out of range' problems. The main error code was pointing towards the bank 1 camshaft sensor being out of range, which could have been worn timing chains.....
However Tim at the Phirm took one look at the oil and asked if the car had been on the 18,000 mile 'long life' service cycle - looking at the service book it had. The engine was really quite dirty with chunks of carbon in the oil and filter; when h checked the cam sensors they were both heavily coated in carbon. So I've had the engine oil flushed twice in the last month and will have another flush in January. The engine is starting get cleaner and the carbon deposits we could see/feel are getting softer and a lot less. The fault code has only reoccurred once, just after the first flush, so that's good, and my timing chain is quiet so hopefully its OK.
So if you've got a V6 then I'd advise you to check the oil and cleanliness of the engine under the oil filler and if it is grubby then drop the oil, and change the filter. I want to run mine for at least another couple of years so I'll be keeping a close eye on the engine oil from now on; and I'd be very suspicious of buying another second hand Audi or any other make which has 18,000 service intervals.

Update on the A3; I've had the third oil change/flush. On this last change there was still carbon deposits in the oil filter, and the oil was grubby but not as bad as the last change. Looking in the oil filler car you could see the carbon deposits were beginning to flake off the various surfaces and the cap was a lot cleaner than before. Engine is not a lot quieter as well.