quattro digest, Vol 1 #3958 - t44 Breakdown frequency

[Larry C Leung]

Since '93 (9 years of ownership) I've had four:

1) Turbo coolant hose (from head flange to turbo) burst. Lesson, replace
coolant
lines every 4 years or less, also learned the same from my GTi (well,
didn't learn
THAT well, although I honestly didn't even see the line until after it
blew)
2) Clutch slave cylinder failure right after my best friend's wedding.
Made it home without
the clutch, but it did mean running a few lights and not stopping
ANYWHERE on
a two hour trip. Low fuel light came on just as I pulled into my
mechanics shop.
150K miles. Moral, change brake fluid every 2 years.
3) Altenator failure. Oh well. That was at 165 K miles. No complaints
4) Clutch failed at 177K miles. TO bearing was toast. Was forewarned by
whirring
TO bearing. No morals here, after all 177K miles isn't too bad for a
clutch AND
how many cars never make it that far.....

LL - NY


> Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 08:08:33 -0700
> From: Wallace White <wallace at stanfordalumni.org>
> To: Quattro List <quattro at audifans.com>
> Subject: Survey: type 44 break down frequency
>
> How many times have you wound up stuck on the side of the road in
> your
> type 44 (5k, 100/200, V8)?
>
> As you might surmise, I just chalked up another one. In my four
> years of
> 5k ownership, I've had four (hurray for towing coverage):
>
> (1) Clutch throw-out bearing, June '98.
> Some of you will remember this one--I'm still thankful for the
> quick
> help from the list! One day into a cross-country road trip. Took
> five
> days to get the clutch replaced in Albuquerque. Lesson learned:
> don't
> buy a car and drive it on a 7000-mile trip the next week. (One
> might
> think I would've known that... ;) And don't be surprised if the
> clutch
> pedal breaks a week later!
>
> (2) Ignition switch, Jan. '99.
> Luckily this happened at home. Relatively painless, since I was
> biking
> and taking the train to work at the time. Lesson learned: replace
> the
> switch now if you have to turn the key hard before the starter
> engages.
>
> (3) Heater control valve, June '99.
> Created a nice big steam cloud but no apparent lasting problems.
> Happened with four people in the car. Lesson learned: use metal
> heater
> valves or replace regularly, and carry a Prestone flush-and-fill kit
> for
> emergency fixes.
>
> (4) Fuel pump, three days ago.
> Once again, four people in the car (family this time). Lost power
> while
> on the freeway, made it to the shoulder. Frustratingly, I
> pre-emptively
> replaced the pump two years ago with a noisy Bosch unit, probably
> Czech
> built... Embarassment compounded when our second car had problems
> the
> next day. Lesson learned: TBD.
>
> Looking back, I've done pretty well after the initial sorting-out.
> But
> with both of our cars breaking down over the weekend with family in
> town, and the 5k's recent A/C troubles when 300 miles away, it
> didn't
> take long to wonder if we need at least one car we can really count
> on... we're planning to go from here (SF area) to Utah in a few
> months
> and my confidence in the 5k is shaky. Even if I had a mechanic go
> over
> the car thoroughly, I doubt we'd catch things like this fuel pump.
>
> That said, I still enjoy driving and working on the car and being
> part
> of this list, and even with the recent bills for A/C, it's a cheap
> total
> cost of ownership compared to a new car. I spend less on parts than
> I'd
> pay just on insurance on a new WRX.
>
> I'm curious to hear how other folks' experiences and decisions have
> been
> in this regard.
>
> Thanks,
> Wallace
> '87 5kcstq 190k
>