OT: Audi A4, was Re: Turbo Scirocco

[jdbubb at verizon.net (Dan Bubb)]

I don't know how it got stuck open.
All I know is the car had a crack in the exhaust flex joint. 4 days to get that off due to rusted bolts and inaccessible flanges and reinstall the stock exhaust while waiting for a new downpipe from Borla.
Immediately after fixing that the front pipe of the cat cracked and pulled out of it's flange. Another day to remove, weld and reinstall.
Immediately after fixing that the turbo would overboost and the engine management would cut fuel killing the engine.
It seemed to be the wastegate after some trouble shooting. Remove the entire front end of the car to get access and indeed the wastegate won't open with compressed air applied. I guess somehow the wastegate got locked by driving the car 40 miles with essentially an open exhaust.
Carefully tap the wastegate lever and it frees up. Wastegate actuates with compressed air. Reassemble the entire front end of the car, test drive and NO boost.
Remove turbo. 2 hours of work despite already having practiced most of the steps required several times! ;^)
Wastegate valve is stuck open. It's not like I hammered on it! At this point I think the wastegate diaphragm is fubared but have no clue why.
I don't see much cause and effect amongst all the failures. I think the car is just pissy since it hasn't had any attention for a couple months.
Bigmac was kind enough to give me his spare K03 turbo so I'm hoping I'll have it reassembled tonight after yet one more trip to the dealer to replace gaskets, busted bolts and loose self locking nuts. Big thumbup to Brian!
Anybody that bitches about working on a Scirocco hasn't worked on an Audi A4! 
Whew! Thanks for letting me get that off my chest!

Dan


From: "Joe Mair" <jmair@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Dan Bubb" <jdbubb@xxxxxxxxxxx>; "John S. Lagnese" <jlagnese@xxxxxxxxxx>; <scirocco-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 10:31 AM
Subject: RE: Turbo Scirocco


How the hell did you waste gate get stuck open?  Didja fix it yet?
Curious as to what the problem was.

I suppose if Corrados are a pain to move around with an NA 1.8, that A4
must've been no fun whatsoever.  If a Corrado is overweight, an A4
Quattro is flat out obese!

Joe


-----Original Message-----
From: Dan Bubb [mailto:jdbubb@xxxxxxxxxxx] 
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 10:22 AM
To: John S. Lagnese; scirocco-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: Turbo Scirocco

Yes, they are and apparently the G60 supercharger is both unreliable and
expensive from what I hear.
So, companies do make turbo conversion kits for the Corrado so you can
still haul around its mass tonnage with a 1.8L 8V.

BTW, drove my Audi A4 1.8T yesterday with the wastegate stuck open. With
no boost that car is slower than Dan Snow's diesel Scirocco.
And 5 times harder to work on!

From: "John S. Lagnese" <jlagnese@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Dan Bubb" <jdbubb@xxxxxxxxxxx>; "Josh Holtgrewe"
<noodles44x2@xxxxxxxxx>; <scirocco-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 9:39 AM
Subject: Re: Turbo Scirocco


> Corrrados are supercharged anyway!

> From: "Dan Bubb" <jdbubb@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 8:54 AM
> Subject: Re: Turbo Scirocco
> 



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