Just about had it with the A7, metal tinkling noise

[Leebroath]

After having the car in for the window squeal to be fixed (which it hasn't) and will need to be booked in again

With the windows down we hear a sort of pinking/tinkling noise coming from the Engine when increasing the revs, this tinkling noise can only be heard on low increasing revs. It is doing my head in and i feel it should be doing this, I cant even record the sound as I'm driving at the same time and it would be hard to capture on a mobile hanging out the window At the same time the windows were supposed to have been done the car was checked over and they couldn't hear the tinkling noise, they ran a complete 100% health check and said its good to go. Has anyone else heard this tinkling, sort of metal tinkling noise emitting from the engine.

I really don't think its any heat shields

I have just about had it, one minute its the Diff needing to be replaced and now this

Sorry for the rant

 

[Leebroath]

Thinking about trading it in now, and going for the Car my other half always wanted which was a Q5

Some of them look pretty good

 

[holmefield]

You'll take a big hit on trade in values thou bud.

I got my A7 for a really good price from a dealer and a year on i recon i'd easy have to take a 4/5 grand hit if i sold it..

Have u checked under the car and in the engine bay for anything loose? Theres loads of covering plates on the A7s

 

[Leebroath]

I’m taking a hit but I can’t be done with this car anymore mate, it’s def not anything to do with heat shields

Also the car windows are squealing when the open and close which is a known issue

And the Air con is making a funny noise

That and the fact the Diff went a few months ago...I’m done !!

Goodbye A7, you’ve left a bad taste in my mouth

 

[Leighspain1975]

Hi Buddy

You’ve just answered your own question...
Air con ..!!

That’s what’s causing the tinkling sound. You mentioned that the AC is making a strange noise. Would this noise sound like a vacuum cleaner noise when switched on and reviving?.

Try this.......
When your driving the car select “front” on the AC and make sure setting is on low. It will automatically go to 12 max. Reduce it done to 1. Now listen I guarantee the tinkling is gone.

 

[Leebroath]

Hi Leigh,

I’ve actually had the window down fully and accelerated from stop and heard the tinkling noise coming from the engine, it’s a Diesel the A7

It was pretty much a tinkle a second before the gear changed, this happened from 1st, 2nd to third. I don’t hear it all the time which is strange, even the lass has heard it when she had the window down.

I had this issue with an old Unleaded Saxo VTR and after many trips outside with the tech guys and it going in, they said it was a characteristic of the car and to try the higher octane

Are you sure it could be the AC because my Saxo VTR never had AC

 

[Leighspain1975]

Second solution.......

The tinkling sound you are hearing is probably rebounding off walls and cars right ?. If it’s this then it’s your injectors. Not too much you can do about this as I’ve had new injectors and it still tinkles at low rpms.
I didn’t ask if it’s diesel or not ?. But I’m assuming it is?.

If it’s a diesel this noise will disappear when the Dpf is regenerating.
The tinkling is fuel related and all TDIs make this noise.
It can be made quieter by doing a diesel purge and playing with the EGR settings too. It could also be the swirl flaps.

Do you have vcds?.
Thanks

 

[Leebroath]

Second solution.......

The tinkling sound you are hearing is probably rebounding off walls and cars right ?. If it’s this then it’s your injectors. Not too much you can do about this as I’ve had new injectors and it still tinkles at low rpms.
I didn’t ask if it’s diesel or not ?. But I’m assuming it is?.

If it’s a diesel this noise will disappear when the Dpf is regenerating.
The tinkling is fuel related and all TDIs make this noise.
It can be made quieter by doing a diesel purge and playing with the EGR settings too. It could also be the swirl flaps.

Do you have vcds?.
Thanks

No idea mate what VCDS are?

Do you think the change to a higher octane will cure this? This is what I’ve alwas been told

 

[Leighspain1975]

It certainly wouldn’t hurt to try. Audi engines always sound a little rough it’s just the way they are.

But I would certainly try a higher octane fuel. Even better would be to buy cetane booster in pure form from amazon etc. You add this to the fuel and seriously increases the octane rating. You may well see some good results with that. 1 litre will cost you a tenner £10.

 

[Leebroath]

Is buying that cetane a temp fix which will only last for the duration of the full tank, as there isn’t really much point if it’s going to return really

It if I change the fuel to the higher Diesel octane it may help, but why does increasing the octane help with these matters?

I still have the A7, we test drove a Q5 66plate 2.0 today and it just didn’t have enough oooomph

 

[Leighspain1975]

Going from a 3.0tdi to a 2.0tdi you will definitely notice a big difference. Also the 2.0tdi will eventually ping probably worse than your A7.
You should definitely get in the habit of higher octane fuel. It’s more expensive but does help. The higher cetane/octane will allow the combustion to happen quicker and will remove diesel pinging or knocking.

One thing you could do is visit the dealer and ask them to ****** the injector timing slightly. This will definitely reduce the noise your hearing. Mine has been advanced because of the remap so the noise is more pronounced.

 

[Leebroath]

What is the actual determined cause of this tinkling noise, has anyone properly identified what’s causing it, anything in writing?

It honestly sounds like I have a tiny drummer playing a snare but the snare is metal and the drum sticks are metal

Thanks for the help, So I’ll ask them to ****** the injector timing slightly, will try that

Have you had this before?

 

[Leighspain1975]

Any direct injection diesel will make this noise. It’s the high pressures the injectors work at. You won’t hear it on a petrol engine. The dealer may not ****** the timing because they will say it’s normal but worth a try. If not a remap specialist could probably do it.