Jimmy TDI
Pro Tinkerer
Mines due it's cam belt on its next service, which is probably the only job I won't be doing my self.
Saving a white 3.0 quattro build thread.
- Thread starter Super Ron
- Start date
I have been chasing a little tapping noise the last week or so and its turned out to be a little more serious... 
the noise stopped when taking the auxiliary belt off so thought it must be on that aux circuit, swapped the PAS pump i had on the shelf, bought a new tensioner, still no change, then i noticed the bottom pulley wasnt running true and was making the aux belt touch the tensioner bracket, hence the tapping.
So today i investigated further. The silver donor car had had the cambelt done not long before i bought it so i never touched that side of things before fitting the engine. its only done about 35k miles since then but was in 2009 so officially it needs changing. got all the bits and got it in
and started stripping
stripped the front end down and pulled the front panel forward
but as i'm gonna need to get my impact gun in i disconnected the coolant pipes and dropped it right down.
i tried looking around for a second hand locking kit but no luck anywhere. seems its different to all the other V6s as the 3.0's have VVT you cant lock the cams pulleys like all the others. i bit the bullet and bought a new kit and hopefully I'll be able to move it on
locked the cams
whilst turning the crank pulley to get the cam locks to slot in...... horror overcame me! it turns out the crank pulley is moving independently to the crank!! rocks backwards and forwards.
with the pulley staying still the crank can move this much!
well over a tooth's worth it can rock
next to get the crank locking pin in to get the pulley off. finding the blank on the block was a bit of a mission on its own. once again its different to all the other V6s. its right at the back flywheel end
right above the subframe with no access at all. untill i noticed you can get straight on with a super long extension between the ARB mount and chassis leg. you can just see the socket on the left
and could get the pin in nicely
then i could get the pulley off and found all the key ways mullered! and they are two piece and the inner came unattached from the outer. god knows how the engine stayed in time!
id ordered a new pulley and bolts from TPS as i had a feeling id need them. not too bad was only £22 for the cog. the two piece cog was superceeded by this one piece one. Maybe they knew there was a problem...?
lack of keyway
the noise stopped when taking the auxiliary belt off so thought it must be on that aux circuit, swapped the PAS pump i had on the shelf, bought a new tensioner, still no change, then i noticed the bottom pulley wasnt running true and was making the aux belt touch the tensioner bracket, hence the tapping.
So today i investigated further. The silver donor car had had the cambelt done not long before i bought it so i never touched that side of things before fitting the engine. its only done about 35k miles since then but was in 2009 so officially it needs changing. got all the bits and got it in
and started stripping
stripped the front end down and pulled the front panel forward
but as i'm gonna need to get my impact gun in i disconnected the coolant pipes and dropped it right down.
i tried looking around for a second hand locking kit but no luck anywhere. seems its different to all the other V6s as the 3.0's have VVT you cant lock the cams pulleys like all the others. i bit the bullet and bought a new kit and hopefully I'll be able to move it on
locked the cams
whilst turning the crank pulley to get the cam locks to slot in...... horror overcame me!
it turns out the crank pulley is moving independently to the crank!! rocks backwards and forwards. with the pulley staying still the crank can move this much!
well over a tooth's worth it can rock
next to get the crank locking pin in to get the pulley off. finding the blank on the block was a bit of a mission on its own. once again its different to all the other V6s. its right at the back flywheel end
right above the subframe with no access at all. untill i noticed you can get straight on with a super long extension between the ARB mount and chassis leg. you can just see the socket on the left
and could get the pin in nicely
then i could get the pulley off and found all the key ways mullered! and they are two piece and the inner came unattached from the outer. god knows how the engine stayed in time!
id ordered a new pulley and bolts from TPS as i had a feeling id need them. not too bad was only £22 for the cog. the two piece cog was superceeded by this one piece one. Maybe they knew there was a problem...?
lack of keyway
new pulley on. 200NM + 180degrees
also got a new waterpump so went to work on that next. you can get to all the bolts in situe apart from one hidden behind the pas pump,
and new on and pas pump back in place covering the pesky bolt
then i noticed some of the bolts had come loose on the VVT pulley, one captive nut missing all together bolt was just ratteling in there
so took one off my old engine and swapped it over
checked the others and they were fine so went on and fitted the new belt
used the special socket to advance the cams
torqued up the cams and it was done
that was it for today so just got to put it back together tomorrow
very lucky escape on the pulley front. could of been a very different story if id left it another week!
also got a new waterpump so went to work on that next. you can get to all the bolts in situe apart from one hidden behind the pas pump,
and new on and pas pump back in place covering the pesky bolt
then i noticed some of the bolts had come loose on the VVT pulley, one captive nut missing all together
bolt was just ratteling in there
so took one off my old engine and swapped it over
checked the others and they were fine so went on and fitted the new belt
used the special socket to advance the cams
torqued up the cams and it was done
that was it for today so just got to put it back together tomorrow
very lucky escape on the pulley front. could of been a very different story if id left it another week!
You got away with that one! A lot of people wouldnt have bothered investigating that noise. - buy yourself a pint!
Only takes one little thing to destroy a good engine, I was in a similar boat over the summer when my waterpump seized - if I had carried on for another few miles the belt would have let go.
Only takes one little thing to destroy a good engine, I was in a similar boat over the summer when my waterpump seized - if I had carried on for another few miles the belt would have let go.
and all that was left today was to put it back together
front end on
and back on the ground. finally got round to fitting the 19s and pzeros on, had been cruising around on the 16s
and all fininshed with a nice straight pulley
front end on
and back on the ground. finally got round to fitting the 19s and pzeros on, had been cruising around on the 16s
and all fininshed
with a nice straight pulley 
Jimmy TDI
Pro Tinkerer
audiandy81
Registered User
Always love reading your updates, Job well done sir
Doubt it would of lasted much longer if you hadnt investigated
Doubt it would of lasted much longer if you hadnt investigated
Pleased to report after fitting all the new belts, rollers and tensioners its been running great
something else i read on a thread the other day is vibrations under hard acceleration being down to front driveshafts, its fine normal driving or at speed, but when you stick all 300nm of torque down you get the vibration. so gave mine a quick check and the inner CVs have got a bit of play and the outer boot had started to leak so thought id stick a shaft on it and see.
so out it comes
mega torque
and in
everything else looking very grubby in there now
but a definite improvement on the vibration so will get another one ordered for the drivers side.
the other thing ive noticed as the weathers got colder is cranking is getting slower and slower and had a few near misses, so before i get stranded somewhere i thought I'd get a new one. its got a mercedes benz battery that came with it so I've no idea on the age or history
and a nice new one turned up today
As iys been so good i treated it to a was as its been quite a while (months) looking grey
it even survived the journey home clean
something else i read on a thread the other day is vibrations under hard acceleration being down to front driveshafts, its fine normal driving or at speed, but when you stick all 300nm of torque down you get the vibration. so gave mine a quick check and the inner CVs have got a bit of play and the outer boot had started to leak so thought id stick a shaft on it and see.
so out it comes
mega torque
and in
everything else looking very grubby in there now
but a definite improvement on the vibration so will get another one ordered for the drivers side.
the other thing ive noticed as the weathers got colder is cranking is getting slower and slower and had a few near misses, so before i get stranded somewhere i thought I'd get a new one. its got a mercedes benz battery that came with it so I've no idea on the age or history
and a nice new one turned up today
As iys been so good i treated it to a was as its been quite a while (months) looking grey
it even survived the journey home clean
Last edited:
right, got another driveshaft for the drivers side to combat the vibration on acceleration as pretty sure my inner cvs are the problem, looks suspicious
pretty grotty
all cleaned
new one out of the box
then spent the next hour trying to fit the ****** thing. i got the old one out just by releasing the rear lower ball joint but the new one wouldnt quite go in, so spent ages trying to get the front lowet out to swing it right out, i just thought the new shaft was a bit stiffer. still couldnt get it in, now on the above pic the difference is obvious, but sitting down the unit it wasn't!
the new one is a darn sight longer!
:doh: :doh:
phoned them up and they have listed that mine should have two same size shafts, and what they sent me was the same part number as the passenger side i had the other week, which did fit the passenger side. but the drivers side is certainly an inch shorter.
had a measure up while they were on the phone and they're sending the correct size straight out. but this did mean i had to put it all back together with the old shaft for now
at least i know everything is free when the new shaft comes
pretty grotty
all cleaned
new one out of the box
then spent the next hour trying to fit the ****** thing. i got the old one out just by releasing the rear lower ball joint but the new one wouldnt quite go in, so spent ages trying to get the front lowet out to swing it right out, i just thought the new shaft was a bit stiffer. still couldnt get it in, now on the above pic the difference is obvious, but sitting down the unit it wasn't!
the new one is a darn sight longer!
:doh: :doh:
phoned them up and they have listed that mine should have two same size shafts, and what they sent me was the same part number as the passenger side i had the other week, which did fit the passenger side. but the drivers side is certainly an inch shorter.
had a measure up while they were on the phone and they're sending the correct size straight out. but this did mean i had to put it all back together with the old shaft for now
at least i know everything is free when the new shaft comes
Ah, front driveshafts - a topic I know well.
Since lowering the car it eats them for breakfast.
I have always been dubious about the quality of aftermarket shafts - I had a few go on me when I had my Ibiza Cupra, instead I have bought good used items.
Been through at least 6 in the past two years! - I managed to find some replacement inner joints (mine tend to fail on the inner joints) which I have fitted on the last set of shafts I swapped - havent needed to fit them yet as the boots/joints seem to be holding up ok on the ones I have now.
Will be interesting to see how you get along with the new ones - if they last then I will more than likely go for new (aftermarket) in the future.
Since lowering the car it eats them for breakfast.
I have always been dubious about the quality of aftermarket shafts - I had a few go on me when I had my Ibiza Cupra, instead I have bought good used items.
Been through at least 6 in the past two years! - I managed to find some replacement inner joints (mine tend to fail on the inner joints) which I have fitted on the last set of shafts I swapped - havent needed to fit them yet as the boots/joints seem to be holding up ok on the ones I have now.
Will be interesting to see how you get along with the new ones - if they last then I will more than likely go for new (aftermarket) in the future.
I think there are good and bad aftermarket ones. A few years ago i bought a complete shaft from unipart for my vectra gsi and looked after 9months later and both boots were completely perished. took it back and they weren't interested 'wear and tear'.
I bought a pair from this company for my wifes 307 over a year ago and they still look good as new. They have a 2 year warranty which covers the boots too so they're definatly worth a go at £50 delivered each.
I bought a pair from this company for my wifes 307 over a year ago and they still look good as new. They have a 2 year warranty which covers the boots too so they're definatly worth a go at £50 delivered each.
Jimmy TDI
Pro Tinkerer
To be fair at £50 a pop, even if they only last 18 months it's still less mither than changing just the cv joints. Probably about the same price too.
Do you have a link to the seller please, as it would be good to have for future preference.
Do you have a link to the seller please, as it would be good to have for future preference.
this is where they came from
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=130895082458&alt=web
good quality, and for the price of a cv joint i don't think you can loose.
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=130895082458&alt=web
good quality, and for the price of a cv joint i don't think you can loose.
Jimmy TDI
Pro Tinkerer
got the new shaft end of last week so set about getting it on today
much better.
and on
also last week got this pop up
low pads. so popped to tps yesterday
pleased with the wear. nice and even, no cracking or crumbling
and on
gave them a quick lick of hammetite while i was there
much better.
and on
also last week got this pop up
low pads. so popped to tps yesterday
pleased with the wear. nice and even, no cracking or crumbling
and on
gave them a quick lick of hammetite while i was there
It's defiantly improved but can still feel it a bit. I think I'm just being to fussy 
as when you google audi a4/a6 acceleration vibration it comes up with hundreds of threads 
as when you google audi a4/a6 acceleration vibration it comes up with hundreds of threads I love this build thread, been so helpful with my new 3.0.
Eagerly awaiting more updates.
Eagerly awaiting more updates.
More on the servicing front today. something i've been meaning to do for ages is gearbox oil change as ive got no record of it being done, and i only topped it up when i did the engine swap. Had all the stuff for a while:
got it in to meet its big brother
up in the air and gave it a leak
had some trouble with the gay little torx bits that hold the gearbox sump on, 27 of the little buggers and only 25 would undo. had to get the drill out on two
and re tap it up
got the sump off and it was spotless in there (this is how it was, i haven't cleaned it!)
fitted the new filter
and all back together and had the ball ache job of re filling it, from underneith. ****** gravity!
not only that you have to do it when the fluid is between 35 and 40 degrees, so out came the vagcom too
but all done and back together. i didnt think there was anything wrong with it before, i was just doing it as a matter of servicing, but it is noticeably smoother now. when you go from drive to reverse to back up the driveway you can barely feel it change now where there was a little jolt before. seems smoother changing gear on the road too. money well spent
got it in to meet its big brother
up in the air and gave it a leak
had some trouble with the gay little torx bits that hold the gearbox sump on, 27 of the little buggers and only 25 would undo. had to get the drill out on two
and re tap it up
got the sump off and it was spotless in there (this is how it was, i haven't cleaned it!)
fitted the new filter
and all back together and had the ball ache job of re filling it, from underneith. ****** gravity!
not only that you have to do it when the fluid is between 35 and 40 degrees, so out came the vagcom too
but all done and back together. i didnt think there was anything wrong with it before, i was just doing it as a matter of servicing, but it is noticeably smoother now. when you go from drive to reverse to back up the driveway you can barely feel it change now where there was a little jolt before. seems smoother changing gear on the road too. money well spent
Jimmy TDI
Pro Tinkerer
Can't believe how clean it is in there.
This is something you really need to do on those boxes to keep them running sweet.
This is something you really need to do on those boxes to keep them running sweet.
i know, it was like brand new. as far as i know its the origional box and was still a genuine filter on it so may be the origional filter too.
gave it a wash after and blinged it all up, looked fantastic, going to be a sad day putting it up for sale soon
gave it a wash after and blinged it all up, looked fantastic, going to be a sad day putting it up for sale soon
How are you finding the new driveshafts?
My 2nd hand standard ones have finally developed a vibration on accelleration after having them on around 30,000 miles.
I have a spare set ready to go on which I fitted new (aftermarket) inner joints to;
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AUDI-A4-1...904?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1e7373ec80
I was dubious about the quality of a part at this price - I guess the only way to check is to try them!
My 2nd hand standard ones have finally developed a vibration on accelleration after having them on around 30,000 miles.
I have a spare set ready to go on which I fitted new (aftermarket) inner joints to;
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AUDI-A4-1...904?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1e7373ec80
I was dubious about the quality of a part at this price - I guess the only way to check is to try them!
i did try just getting an aftermarket cv before (from somewhere else) but i found that they didn't mate to the genuine shaft very nicely. and the shaft had a groove for the genuine boot to locate to but the aftermarket boot didn't so it didn't locate and leaked grease.
Thats why i went for the full shaft from them, and so far so good
One of the most comprehensive build threads Ive ever read. Amazing work.
Thanks, soon be up for sale as i've bought this and the comprehensive build threads will be sure to continue here
http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/my-new-c5-s6-avant-v8-family-car.241135/
i did try just getting an aftermarket cv before (from somewhere else) but i found that they didn't mate to the genuine shaft very nicely. and the shaft had a groove for the genuine boot to locate to but the aftermarket boot didn't so it didn't locate and leaked grease.
Thats why i went for the full shaft from them, and so far so good
Cheers - Yeah I found the same too, I had to "persuade" the new joint onto the old driveshaft. No issues with the boot though.
Will fit this weekend and see how things get along.
Thanks, soon be up for sale as i've bought this and the comprehensive build threads will be sure to continue here
http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/my-new-c5-s6-avant-v8-family-car.241135/
The new car is lovely! So clean. I bet it sounds incredible. If the family wont mind..i'd de-resonate the exhaust
Its a shame the white Avant is going. I think wherever you choose to sell it, you should accompany it with your build thread link just to show how much effort you've put into it. Better than any 'full service' history
with the possibility of someone coming to look at it this weekend it was time for a clean up. I always keep the outside in immaculate condition, but i must admit I'm not one for cleaning interiors, maybe gets two hoovers a year
so it was time to give the inside a clean
it spends its life as a kiddy cart rather than a show car
and i must admit i hop in and out from the unit ****** filthy
so got to work with the gliptone
and about 4 hours later and was like a new car again
the pics dont do the transformation justice, it was like night and day. i'd forgotten what colour the seats actually were :lol:
so it was time to give the inside a clean
it spends its life as a kiddy cart rather than a show car
and i must admit i hop in and out from the unit ****** filthy
so got to work with the gliptone
and about 4 hours later and was like a new car again
the pics dont do the transformation justice, it was like night and day. i'd forgotten what colour the seats actually were :lol:
i haven't done a for sale ad yet, if this guy doesn't take it then i will officially put it up for sale next week.
