Hey all,
Had an eventful few weeks with the S3. So, here's what happened..
- Had a breakdown while driving a few weeks ago. Was driving back from Awesome GTI picking up parts for my H&R spring upgrade ironically when the car started cutting out. Broke down and wouldn't start. Ended up getting Towed by RAC (more on this later).
- Got it towed to German Specialists in Stockport, a great garage - used these guys previously and they are excellent. The initial scan showed the following:
# 01 - Engine Management Code Scan Results:
01089 EVAP Emission Control Sys Incorrect Flow P0441 Lower Limit Reached - Intermittent
05634 Power Supply Terminal 30 Voltage too Low P1602 Lower Limit Reached - Intermittent
08567 Bank 1 System Too Lean off Idle, P2177 Upper Limit Reached
- The garage did also identify a failed Haldex Pump, specifically this code:
# 22 - 4WD Electronic Code Scan Results:
00448 Haldex Clutch Pump (V181) Open Circuit
- After a few hours of diagnostics where they checked everything on the engine, the issue was eventually identified to be the MAF sensor. I had replaced this when I fitted the Racingline Induction Kit about 2 months prior. Must be faulty, so we swapped it out with my original one from stock and the issue was resolved. I didn't get the Haldex Pump replaced straight away as I wanted to look into it.
- After the MAF sensor was replaced I drove about 15-20 miles in it over the next few days and it didn't feel right at all. Spoke to German Specialists and also Matt at Haldex Repair in Crewe - a real expert on Haldex Systems - and it felt like the rear wheels were somehow dragging, like the car was sluggish and not responding like it used to. When coasting, it feels like the car slows down quicker than it would normally as opposed to free wheeling and cruising slowly to a stop.. It's hard to describe, it's like the handbrake is partially on or something and doesn't feel as smooth to drive as it used to.
- After doing some research, I found out that the way RAC had towed the car which was with the front wheels only off the ground was wrong. I did question this when they towed me and the technician even spoke to head office and they advised "It can be towed on the rear wheels only if kept under 30mph and for less than 20miles" which it was, and was on the move for about 45 mins. Turns out this is correct and Haldex vehicles should never be towed on 2 wheels - it should be all 4 for limited periods, or on a flatbed, even says so in my handbook, as it can cause damage to the Haldex rear wheel drive system components.
- Spoke to a guy called Matt at Haldex Repair said what may have happened is the rear Haldex coupling (the bit between the prop shaft and the diff itself, which the pump keeps filled with oil) may have been damaged as it may have overheated while being towed. He said that's the only part that would fail, the diff itself and transfer box, ECU would never be damaged by such activity and he's seen damaged couplings before due to being incorrectly towed.
- To be certain, and for the peace of mind, I got German Specialists to completely strip the rear coupling - they even drove it down to Matt at Haldex Repair and they checked it and it's fine, I've even got photos of it inside and it looks fine.
- Got the Haldex pump replaced with new oil and filter and the rear wheel drive is most definitely working, with no more wheelspin or traction issues, no codes or any failed components and all is clear.
But.. the car still feels sluggish. I can't put my finger on it. German Specialists checked all the wheels and brakes and can't find any problems. The car had a full service about 2 weeks prior to the breakdown, and other than a rear coil spring needing replacing (I'm getting all new H&R springs instead), it was otherwise fine between the service and the breakdown. Now I don't know for sure if RAC towing it caused the pump to fail - it's plausible this failed prior as I had been getting a bit of traction control under heavy acceleration for a few weeks but I figured it was the tyres starting to drop off. That isn't happening any more but it still does not feel quite right. I don't know what to do. I'm tempted to get it over to Unicorn Developments and get it on their 4WD Dyno to see if that shows any loss of power or any reason why it wouldn't feel right. German Specialists drove it several times before and after the pump replacement and they thinks it feels fine, but.. you know you car, and I've owned it for over a year and it feels different to be, it can't just be in my head.
I've got some major upgrades in the pipeline to get the car to Stage 2+ and just want to get the confidence back that's it's fine before anything else gets changed.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated.
Cheers guys. Adam.
Had an eventful few weeks with the S3. So, here's what happened..
- Had a breakdown while driving a few weeks ago. Was driving back from Awesome GTI picking up parts for my H&R spring upgrade ironically when the car started cutting out. Broke down and wouldn't start. Ended up getting Towed by RAC (more on this later).
- Got it towed to German Specialists in Stockport, a great garage - used these guys previously and they are excellent. The initial scan showed the following:
# 01 - Engine Management Code Scan Results:
01089 EVAP Emission Control Sys Incorrect Flow P0441 Lower Limit Reached - Intermittent
05634 Power Supply Terminal 30 Voltage too Low P1602 Lower Limit Reached - Intermittent
08567 Bank 1 System Too Lean off Idle, P2177 Upper Limit Reached
- The garage did also identify a failed Haldex Pump, specifically this code:
# 22 - 4WD Electronic Code Scan Results:
00448 Haldex Clutch Pump (V181) Open Circuit
- After a few hours of diagnostics where they checked everything on the engine, the issue was eventually identified to be the MAF sensor. I had replaced this when I fitted the Racingline Induction Kit about 2 months prior. Must be faulty, so we swapped it out with my original one from stock and the issue was resolved. I didn't get the Haldex Pump replaced straight away as I wanted to look into it.
- After the MAF sensor was replaced I drove about 15-20 miles in it over the next few days and it didn't feel right at all. Spoke to German Specialists and also Matt at Haldex Repair in Crewe - a real expert on Haldex Systems - and it felt like the rear wheels were somehow dragging, like the car was sluggish and not responding like it used to. When coasting, it feels like the car slows down quicker than it would normally as opposed to free wheeling and cruising slowly to a stop.. It's hard to describe, it's like the handbrake is partially on or something and doesn't feel as smooth to drive as it used to.
- After doing some research, I found out that the way RAC had towed the car which was with the front wheels only off the ground was wrong. I did question this when they towed me and the technician even spoke to head office and they advised "It can be towed on the rear wheels only if kept under 30mph and for less than 20miles" which it was, and was on the move for about 45 mins. Turns out this is correct and Haldex vehicles should never be towed on 2 wheels - it should be all 4 for limited periods, or on a flatbed, even says so in my handbook, as it can cause damage to the Haldex rear wheel drive system components.
- Spoke to a guy called Matt at Haldex Repair said what may have happened is the rear Haldex coupling (the bit between the prop shaft and the diff itself, which the pump keeps filled with oil) may have been damaged as it may have overheated while being towed. He said that's the only part that would fail, the diff itself and transfer box, ECU would never be damaged by such activity and he's seen damaged couplings before due to being incorrectly towed.
- To be certain, and for the peace of mind, I got German Specialists to completely strip the rear coupling - they even drove it down to Matt at Haldex Repair and they checked it and it's fine, I've even got photos of it inside and it looks fine.
- Got the Haldex pump replaced with new oil and filter and the rear wheel drive is most definitely working, with no more wheelspin or traction issues, no codes or any failed components and all is clear.
But.. the car still feels sluggish. I can't put my finger on it. German Specialists checked all the wheels and brakes and can't find any problems. The car had a full service about 2 weeks prior to the breakdown, and other than a rear coil spring needing replacing (I'm getting all new H&R springs instead), it was otherwise fine between the service and the breakdown. Now I don't know for sure if RAC towing it caused the pump to fail - it's plausible this failed prior as I had been getting a bit of traction control under heavy acceleration for a few weeks but I figured it was the tyres starting to drop off. That isn't happening any more but it still does not feel quite right. I don't know what to do. I'm tempted to get it over to Unicorn Developments and get it on their 4WD Dyno to see if that shows any loss of power or any reason why it wouldn't feel right. German Specialists drove it several times before and after the pump replacement and they thinks it feels fine, but.. you know you car, and I've owned it for over a year and it feels different to be, it can't just be in my head.
I've got some major upgrades in the pipeline to get the car to Stage 2+ and just want to get the confidence back that's it's fine before anything else gets changed.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated.
Cheers guys. Adam.
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