On my Audi A3 3.2 Quattro S-Line (2005 05 registered, roughly at 93k miles now)... Ive recently heard a noise from the driver side rear wheel, most noticeable when entering the estate where I live where I slow down to about 15mph to navigate speed humps. Upon further inspection, Ive noticed what is best described as some sort of solid ring of carbon/concrete-appearing substance. The noise I hear occurs when I go over any sort of roadbump/sleeping policeman etc (as this part moves up and down the shock shaft).
My questions on this are;
It is important to note that the car still drives fine, and the balance of the car still appears fine (given the age of the car). Im just concerned this is not meant to happen, and may cause further damage down the line...
Some folks comment on this when I posted this in a forum I frequent far more often than here (a AV forum BTW), and they came up with the following points (hope they don't mind me copying wholesale here)
As a FYI, the other side rear shock looks like this
Has anyone with a 2005/2006 A3 8P had this issue before, and did you go through dealer to get modified shocks, or would this be resolved by adding a bump stop, or go another way?
Thoughts?
My questions on this are;
- is this dangerous ?
- is this expected over a lifetime of a shock ?
- will this have reduced the effectiveness of the shock/suspension ?
- should I get this immediately addressed ?
- if above is true, do i need to replace both rear shocks ?
It is important to note that the car still drives fine, and the balance of the car still appears fine (given the age of the car). Im just concerned this is not meant to happen, and may cause further damage down the line...
Some folks comment on this when I posted this in a forum I frequent far more often than here (a AV forum BTW), and they came up with the following points (hope they don't mind me copying wholesale here)
- Noisy rear shocks were very common on early A3s and modified shocks were made available for anyone complaining. The noise was best described as sounding like a rubber ball inside a plastic bottle. Perhaps yours missed the modified shocks, maybe it's just down to mileage. Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about replacing shocks in pairs if money is tight and only one is faulty.
It's unlikely you'd notice any difference outside a race track. But if money isn't a problem, go for a pair. I also wouldn't necessarily bother with Audi shocks, I'd go for good quality aftermarket brands. No point paying Audi mark-up for something they've outsourced themselves! - Looks like part of the bump stop.
As a FYI, the other side rear shock looks like this
Has anyone with a 2005/2006 A3 8P had this issue before, and did you go through dealer to get modified shocks, or would this be resolved by adding a bump stop, or go another way?
Thoughts?
