A4 BLB EGR delete...?

hey guys,

I've got a 2005 A4 Avant, with the 2.0Tdi BLB engine.

The car has been losing coolant for ages now, about a litre per 100miles, maybe a bit more. I've kept it topped up and it's been ok, but it is getting annoying.

Anyway, I figured it could be the EGR cooler. I get white smoke on start up which stops when the engine is warm. It also struggles to start sometimes and is loses power sometimes when the car is first started. Once the car is warm, it runs perfectly.

I haven't done a pressure test, but last week I unbolted the EGR cooler from the pipe that connects it to the EGR valve, and it gradually dripped water.

So, with the cost of sorting the cooler and possibly the valve, I thought I'd do an EGR delete. I just wanted to ask a couple of things...

What effect will this have on the running of the engine?

Does it affect the warm up time?

What effect does it have on fuel efficiency?

Thanks,

Chris

Yeah given that I've had water drip out of the EGR cooler I'm pretty confident it's that and not the head. I'll bypass the coolant flow through it and see if I still get coolant loss.

100mm hex drive was fitted a couple of years ago after I lost oil pressure.

The car is 12 years old with 176k on the clock so it's worth ****** all, but it's too good to get rid of. I don't really have to run a car so I just want to keep it going if I can. I do all the work on it myself. I just want to know what impact removal of the EGR valve and cooler will have.