[s-cars] Coolant leak from under the intake manifold

[Tom Green]

Radek,
Once you have done a thorough investigation of the leak, if you are  
certain it is coming from  the coolant pipe as you have surmised,  the  
repair is indeed an involved process that will require removing the  
intake manifold.  The 6MM (IIRC) allen socket bolts require a long 8"  
wrench and some careful work to remove them.  Then, there are fuel  
lines and emission hoses, boost control vacuum lines, etc to deal  
with, so hope this is not the case.  There is helpful information on  
the Quattroworld UrS forum in the FAQ.

I have made an assumption that this new car is a UrS4 or 6 because you  
did not say.  If not, disregard all this.

If it is the turbo coolant return line ( the 10MM, 160MM long piece of  
rubber hose below the coolant pipe and well hidden under the intake  
manifold, this will be infinitely easier, despite the warnings of  
difficulty.  I will say that it is extremely difficult to change this  
hose on the side of the road when the engine has just emptied the  
coolant system through a break in this hose, because it won't cool off  
very quickly even in the current -2ºF evening.  You will also have to  
use a temporary fix since you don' t have the hose, meaning you get to  
do it again soon-real soon.
So, if this is it, get the proper hose and do the repair. I have  
assumed you caught the coolant loss before you overheated and warped  
the head, which occurs surprisingly fast in these things.

There are several electrical connectors and emission hoses under the  
intake manifold that are in the way, so you need to be very careful.   
Some monkey boy handiwork under there can result in a very large  
repair bill for these parts.

Dave, and for Radek also if needed,

This hose is sold in 1 meter lengths-still enough for 6 repairs.  The  
hose is available as Audi part # N 020 262 1 from genuineaudiparts.com  
(San Diego Audi online parts sales) for $17.48 plus shipping ($7.50  
base IIRC) which is a real bargain compared to more than double a few  
years ago.

I can come up with one piece I bought 2 years ago from a lister for  
$10.00. A small priority mail box would add $6 so balance that against  
the whole part that probably can be shared and trim the outlay.  If  
you have additional parts to order, the shipping costs can be spread  
out over more parts.  If the math is difficult here, let me suggest  
something.  If there were 2 individuals needing hose (and there are  
likely more) each might want 2 sections so he had a spare to use 10  
years from now, or for an unseen problem, or to play good samaritan  
for another needy lister who is perhaps new and didn't realize the  
importance of having  this part handy.  That uses up $16+ of the hose,  
leaving only $8+ excess, or $4 each if you split costs and hose equally.

Let me know if I can help.

Tom '95 S6
          '95.5 S6 avant
Knoxville, TN

On Wednesday January 29, 2014, at 3:53 PM,  Dave C  
<dconner at gmail.com>wrote:

> Radek,
>
> Detailed info on this is here, scroll down to 4. Coolant Return  
> Line ...
> http://forums.quattroworld.com/s4s6/msgs/200702.phtml
>
> It warns that this hose is a real mofo to replace due to difficult  
> access,
> and echoes Wylie's warning re: the importance of getting the correct  
> hose
> ... p/n N0202621
>
> This is the QW sticky "Things that will fail on your AAN and strand  
> you on
> the side of the road".
>
> Replacement of this hose is on my "to do" list but I haven't bought  
> it yet.
> If my interpretation of ETKA is correct, it's sold in 5 meter  
> lengths and I
> need a 16 cm piece.  Does anyone have a left over section to sell?
>
> Dave C.