I'm actually working on an Audi but I assume the general tools and concepts are very similar if not the same. I just need some advice on how to go about trouble shooting A/C and what tools are good. I think I need at least the following:

1. A/C pressure gauge.
2. Black light.
3. Refrigerant and parts.
4. A means to vacuum the system. (do they make fittings that you can use a regular air compressor to do this? Not sure how you would create a vacuum but that would be sweet.)
5. I'd also like to make a little apparatus to evacuate the current Freon from the system into an old propane tank or something like that.

Here's the scoop. I've been doing all the mechanic work for my friends. I looked at my friends Audi when the A/C went out. Immediately I knew something was up with the pressure because the compressor did not kick in. However, I didn't have a pressure gauge. So I went to the shop with her to have them look at it.

Should have been more specific with them but wasn't. Turns out all they did was add a die to the line and small amount of Freon. Took them about 2 minutes but they had the car for several hours and charged her 100$.

I was like ... I would have done the same thing myself for like $10 but figured they could at least fix it for good if they're going to charge that. So I told her screw going to the mechanic for anything I'll buy the tools and we'll fix it. Even with the best tools it will still be cheaper than JUST their labor.

So here I am. I've done very little A/C work. Just topped a few cars off and that's about it. So how do I go about it? I know there's a leak in the system and have to get a black light the find where the die is coming out. Anybody know where to get a good little black light flashlight?

It's a newer (2005) Audi A4 Quattro... and it's knuckle bleeding tight in the engine compartment... and I thought the vette was tight! Shame is 99% of the tightness is for ridiculously pointless plastic covers and crap like that.

 

If you think that's Freon in there ...... A/C repair may not be something you should take on ....

Here's a good write-up on working on an A/C system.

http://trans5.com/docs/C5%20AC%20Com...eplacement.pdf

You will need to find out the capacity for refrigerant, and if used, PAG oil (or other lubricant) used in the Audi system. Audi sems to use all kinds of Audi specific fluids (power steering fluid is a good example) so check carefully on this.

As the write-up points out, you can get many shops to take the refrigerant out of the system for you at no charge.

good luck with it,

 

My bad it doesn't use Freon... I'm not sure what it does though. Thanks for pointing that out.

I've been doing a fair amount of work for her. And she will need a new timing belt soon as well. So I'm thinking I should have her invest in a shop manual for me. Do you have any clue where I could find one? Chilton and Haynes don't have anything so it looks like I'd have to find one from Audi.

It's a 2005 (B6 model I believe) A4 Quattro 1.8L Turbo.

Thanks!

 

Audi Service Manuals ...

http://www.bimmerzone.com/audimanuals.htm

A/C systems use R134a refrigerant. You can purchase it from most auto supply shops such as Napa Auto Parts .... but check on capacities and lubricants needed for an Audi .... my daughter has an A4 and I hate working on the thing .... parts are a fortune and NOTHING is easy to get to. Recently had to have the fuel tank replaced ... a moron stereo installer put a hole in it with a drill ... the stereo shop's insurance ... THANK GOD .... paid for it ... the tank (just the part) was over $2,000.00 and took a week to get ... with labor and other parts the insurance company ended up paying over $5,000.00 for the damage .... the entire rear of the vehicle had to be torn down to get to the tank.

 

Have you guys had many other troubles with the A4 Audi? My friend keeps saying she wants to sell it. But it's relatively new a really cool car and I think it should do her well.

Only cons are just as you said.... UBER tight design and hard to work on as a result (I can still get er done though and parts are damn expensive. New brace for the windshield wiper transmission was $220 and it was just that a metal brace with bearings and ball joint at each end. I had figured maybe $20. I rebuilt the whole passenger side of my Chrysler's supsension for like $40 and that was 220!

 

Don't even start me on what I think of service work on the car .....

Couple of years ago my daughter is driving on the highway on her way to Lake Tahoe .... all of a sudden ..... BANG ...... and engine dies .... long story short .... after spendng a fortune having it towed back to our local service guy ... the engine is history ..... with no warning the timing belt/chain tensioner bearing failed, and jammed it ... which at 2,000+ RPM destroyed the engine. $10,000 and 3 weeks later we have new engine in car ... and 2 weeks later the turbo goes because it inhaled debris when the engine blew ...... I'm betting the car has cost (with the fuel tank, engine, turbo, and all the other maintenance and work) as much again as it cost new.

Constant electrical gremlins .... the fact you need a special "tool" just to reset the oil monitor ..... you need a $400.00 special tool to replace a wheel bearing ... you need a special tool to "rotate" the brake pistons back into the calipers ..... (everything requires a "special" tool)... and parts prices (because you have to buy just about everythng from Audi) are a complete rip-off .....

If you're ever gonna get a German car .... lease it .... and turn it in when the lease/warranty expire. I know several people who do this with their Audi/BMW/Mercedes ..... it is the only way to go. Once the car is out of warranty maintenance/repair costs on them are too high .... never again will I own/lease a German car outside of its warranty period.

Oh ... and here's the site if you want to look up and order the offiial "uber" Service Manual from Audi .....

http://www.audi.ddsltd.com/cgi-bin/d...C&COMPANY=AUDI

 

Yeah I noticed to remove the wiper assembly I had to move the ECU out of the way. It was wired up HORRIBLY. The ECU on all the other cars I've worked on just sat in the engine bay with really tight nice weather sealed connectors. You pop them off an the ecu is completely out of the way.

Not here it was individual wires going to a clunky connector that I could not get off for the life of me. So I had to leave the ecu in place and practically break my hands to get the wiper assembly out.

Not to mention if I had got the ecu out of the way I still would have had to contend with the pointless plastic container that held it in place. You cannot remove the container though because they have it connected to the driver compartment. On all other cars they just run the wires through the firewall and do a rubber seal to keep the passenger compartment sealed off from the engine bay. Not here though.

Man Germans engineer stuff like crap.... It's 10x more complex than it ever needs to be. However, I figured the car would keep her going.

I'm aware of the timing belt issue. It needs replaced asap. And for that I'm sure a person would have to nearly pull the engine and or completely dismantle the whole front end of the car to replace it.

 

The #4 on your list is something that's been manufactured for many years. It's a vacuum "pump" that actually uses the venturi method to create a vacuum. It's lightweight, has no internal moving mechanical parts and fairly cheap as compared to a more conventional vacuum pump. It uses compressed air which then passes through an internal venturi to create the vacuum needed for evacuating an A/C system. For those that don't want to invest in a larger, faster and more complex ($$) system and just need occasional use, it could merit a look.

HTH

 

Yeah, I do stuff like the brake pads, oil changes, etc., but for most other "major" work the Audi goes to a local shop that specializes in them. I know they've made a lot of money off of us, as the owner of the shop lights his cigar with a burning $100 bill when he sees us drive into his shop .... if the car comes in under tow he pours himself a snifter of Napoleon cognac .....

And yes, the timing belt is a major PITA to get too ..... the really crazy part with my daughter's engine failure was we'd had the belt changed EARLY on the engine, and the failure occured at about 40 to 50 percent of the new belts life ... it was a bearing failure in the tensioner (which had been replaced at the same time) ..... the shop said "hey, s**t happens" ... easy for them to say ....

If she's thinking of selling the car, I wouldn't discourage her.

 

OK... thanks for your help guys. I just want to double check. I haven't looked under the hood but the germans don't bother printing too much info under there anyways.

R134A refrigerant
And if needed oil from the Audi dealer.

I'm going to post on the Audizine forum as well. But hate to say it. The forum in not as good as this one Hardly anybody ever responds to my posts.

I talked for quite a while with the guy at the parts store. He has done tons of A/C systems. He told me that the oil shouldn't leak out if I just replace a couple O-rings up top.

I'm also going to try and buy a vacuum system. Does anybody know where I can purchase a reasonable vacuum pump?

 

I like Napa ... they have an excellent parts distribution system, and carry professional level parts and tools.

Go to their website ....

http://www.napaonline.com/

And then on the left select PartsPro SE Catalog ....

When that page opens you can drill down looking at the catalog .... select "Tools and Equipment" and then when that page opens you can select A/C tools from the menu on the left.

If it helps, in the part number search look at the following ....

If you have "shop air" (a compressor and storage tank) this is a pretty inexpensive solution for a vacuum .....

783905

but if you need a true pump then look at ....

781900

Also you should consider a gauge set with hoses ... look at

783417

Napa also carries pressurized cans of R134A ... and cans of R134A with dye already in it to help locate the leaks.

It appears that Audi uses a 46 viscosity PAG oil ... which is what GM uses also. You can get this through Napa or your Audi dealer ( $$$$ ) or your GM dealer (part # 88901445 )

This may help you ....

http://www.acdelcotechconnect.com/pi/ac/lubrication.htm

Hopefully you will get some useful responses on the Audi forums .... but I doubt you will ....

The fact is that when you're creating forums for cars that cost (new) $50k and more .... 98 percent of the owners aren't interested in getting their hands dirty working on the car. The Corvette is an exception because there are a larger percentage of Corvette owners who in their youth labored on their cars (whether an Austin Healey Sprite, a BMW 2002, or a Datsun 510) and still love to work on the car.

I remember working with a couple of other friends on a Camaro in the late 1960s ... we installed some "performance parts" and after the install ... took the car for a test ride. Shortly after leaving the driveway the driver/owner says "s**t I'm almost outta gas" ..... so scrounging in our pockets for quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies, we came up with enough cash to put about 3 gallons in the car ... plenty for a test drive .... and we had enough left over for a pack of cigarettes.

Different world today.