[A4] coolant temp gauge broken

[Nancy Tubbs]

A week ago I had the timing belt/water pump/thermostat replaced on
my 2000 2.8Q at a Audi/VW service place (DM in Santa Clara, CA).
They also replaced the coolant bottle.  I took a weekend trip, 300
miles each way. Coming home, after one stop of 5 minutes, the
coolant gauge took maybe 10 minutes (normally 2) to get from Cold
to the midpoint, and after the second stop, it stayed on Cold the
last 100 miles home. The outside temperature was in the 80's, I
had the AC on a bit but usually just the Econ setting.

I'm going to call the service shop to see what they say, as it
seems to me they didn't finish the job right.  But I'd really
appreciate any information or suggestions anyone has.

Also, the LED display just started losing rows, intermittenly.
Could that be related to the fix they made, or just happenstance?
I have read on this list that it happens and either you find a
person who can micro-solder the connections or replace the unit.

Thanks very much,
Nancy

PS: The service place told me there was a recall on this car (2000
A4Q 2.8), the vacuum tubes for the secondary air supply (or
something like that), when they diagnosed the Check Engine light.
So far there has been no problem getting the dealer to replace
them, although I go in tomorrow for that.