Not been on for a while car has been fine but all out a sudden....thump

S3MMA

S3MMA

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Hi Guys,

Not been on for a while car has been running fine for months no problems...

A couple of months ago the oil light came on, I checked the oil it was quite low so topped back up... was fine for a month, then it came back on again was low topped up again. The last week it happened again I took it to the garage and they checked the oil and said it was fine...cleared the codes because the engine management light had come on and said if it happened again it could be a lamba sensor.

However last week the major red oil light starting flashing on my dash, I parked up and took it straight back to the garage, they rev'd the engine and at about 4000 revs you can here a horrible chewing noise...he just said your engine is knackered!! Not much help and said the car was worthless.

I took it somewhere today for a second opinion and to see if the damage can be fixed...on view and driving the car it seams fine, however once they turned the engine on and rev'd the engine they said its the crankshaft.

They want the car for a couple of days to see if the crank is ok or something and to check if the bearings can just be replaced or if the whole engine has been damaged...

Anyone have any thoughts any similar experiences?


Is it worth re-building the engine?

S3 2003 Reg 109,000 miles bought in June for 4500

No other issues with the car since bought...no other problems

Love the car so very sad.

What sort of prices will I be looking at?
 
Sounds like the usual sludge issue and oil starvation.

I baught my own A4 in that state off ebay and rebuilt the engine. Your likely talking a few grand if you get a garage to do it though.

Cheapest way forward is most likely to buy a cheap AGU engine and swap it over.
 
how much would I be looking if I swapped it, will it still not be a hefty garage bill?
 
yeh, though much less, i'd guess a day or two in labour, some assorted gaskets and whatnot to swap all the manifolds and things across.

I'd imagine somewhere around 1k by the time your done, depending ofcourse on your garages labour charges, and how much you find a replacement engine for.
 
audi upgrades
Go through some of my recent threads. I had same issue. And loads of others. Had an engine rebuild consisting of Liston rings, valve stem seals and new turbo because car was burning oil. Problem sorted. Day after the oil pressure light came on and sounded like a bag of nails.

Big end bearing had gone, so had new bearing fitted. And today I've just picked up new rods. And crank will be sent of with these to be re grounded.

Good luck matey!!
 
S3featesV9 said:
Go through some of my recent threads. I had same issue. And loads of others. Had an engine rebuild consisting of Liston rings, valve stem seals and new turbo because car was burning oil. Problem sorted. Day after the oil pressure light came on and sounded like a bag of nails.

Big end bearing had gone, so had new bearing fitted. And today I've just picked up new rods. And crank will be sent of with these to be re grounded.

Good luck matey!!
Click to expand...

I will do thanks and how much has all that cost you if you don't mind me asking?
 
1700 for rebuild, all parts and brand new turbo. Which was 890 quid. Which you don't need, so about a grand for rebuild is guess. But I had new water pump, valve stem seals and piston rings too. Which if it is crank then you won't be replacing these. But you can do for piece of mind.

Crank is head off gearbox off sump off. A days work.

New rods from bill just cost me 470. Bargain!

I'd say you are looking at £800 with new head set and gasket. Then what ever it costs to fix issue. crank and bearings at the least.

But same as every story with these cars, could be anything.
 
See what the garage say then...

But do people think its worth doing?
 
Depends how much you love ur car and how much it's worth to you. My car is my pride and joy. So whatever the cost is, I'll have it fixed.

Won't get much for it as a non perfect runner.
 
I love my car cost me £4600 in June and prob spent £1500 on it...so guess its worth it just don't want more problems after I fork out for a hefty engine replacement bill
 
I no exactly what you mean there. When my rod went I could set fire to the car.

Life's full of suprises.
 
Get it fixed and enjoy driving it, I will have spent almost 7k in mods and seemingly never ending repairs in under a year by the time mine gets back on the road and for me I had too much money sunk into the car to sell it for peanuts and start again and at least I know that it will be sound after the work is done so should be a good runner for years to come.

As has been said you will lose way too much selling it with a fault and as you like the car is it worth taking the loss and buying something else?
 
I had the same issues and it was the oil pump and oil pickup that was the fault. The engine's in S3's are quite resilient. Mine got away unscathed.
 
I'd personally get it looked at and rebuilt if you can. If you've already spent £6k, then you've made a significant outlay that will only be wasted if you sell it as a non-runner now. Presumably the rest of the car is in good condition so will last a lot longer yet?

Do you know of any reputable VAG independent specialists near you? Sounds like the first place didn't really know what they were on about to me if they just said "your engine's knackered".
 
It is in with a specialist engine repair place, they said they wanted it for a couple of days to have a proper look should hear the verdict today or tomorrow.
 
S3MMA said:
It is in with a specialist engine repair place, they said they wanted it for a couple of days to have a proper look should hear the verdict today or tomorrow.
Click to expand...

Fingers crossed for you that it's not major bad news
 
Just has the call needs an engine rebuild they said £1800
 
What's actually at fault though?

That's pretty steep tbh. I payed less than that including the price of a brand new turbo.
 
seen this one on ebay this morning

[h=1]AUDI TT A3 BAM 1.8 20 VALVE TURBO ENGINE FULLY REBUILT[/h]
The engine is stripped to bare component and put into a high pressure cylindrical wash at high temperature with cleansing chemicals,
this removes all carbon deposits and debris from previous failures. From this stage the Cylinder Block is re-honed.
Some may need re-bored & some may need resleeving this would be at an extra cost.
The Pistons and or Rings are then changed, Connecting Rods are then checked & re-honed & the Crankshaft is then checked.
After this the main and big end bearing shells are replaced and the Oil pump reconditioned.
Cylinder Head is stripped down and checked for wear, cracks and for trueness then pressure tested and the face machined.
Valve guides are then checked for wear and replaced as necessary After this valve seats are machined and valve guides are then checked for wear and replaced as necessary.
New/Refaced valves are re cut & the head then vacuum tested. From there we reface the valves and followers as necessary.
The Camshaft is then checked for wear and replaced as necessary. The engine is then reassembled with new gaskets and seals.
link >>>>>AUDI TT A3 BAM 1.8 20 VALVE TURBO ENGINE FULLY REBUILT | eBay

dont know if its what you looking for but its also buy it now and offers
 
You getting it done? What's up with pistons?

If £1800 is including all work, crank work and parts if say it isn't too bad. Although if work my bill out and take away the price for rods and turbo it's more like 1200.
 
not got much choice...this is what my boyfriend emailed what they said at the garage...

You got 4 pistons I believe, 1 in each cylinder, each piston has a “big end” and a shelf which should hold tight. The big ends in cylinders 2 and 3 have gone, the shells should hold tight on the sides of the pistons but are turning which is resulting in the oil pressure and loss of oil and why sometimes you don’t have a problem at all.

The head has been changed, all probably linked to the engine being too powerful. This probably caused the last head to crack and had already started to damage everything else including the crank. This has completely knackered the crank now though.

They can rebuild it in situ though which isn’t as bad, means head off then changing everything on the inside, and then sump off and crank shaft changing. Think they want to put a BAM head on it as well.

The guy thinks it’s better to rebuild rather than replace once it’s done it’s a keeper then so better to rebuild. It’s just a hefty amount to spend.
 
I had cylinder 2 with same issue as you. Happened the day after engine rebuild. Propper **** take.

I feel for you, it is a hefty bill. Cranks are repairable though. And just have bigger shells (big end bearings) to accommodate the 'extra room' as such. I can't see there being anything wrong with the piston itself. Put it is probably worth having new rings put on whilst there out.
 
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