[V8] Audi crankies

[Ed Kellock]

I have an issue right now with the fuel level detection on the 94 v8. I
also gave a pegged oil psi gauge. I think the fuel level issue is a
function of the instrument cluster.

Since you also have an issue with the speedo, I'd suspect that your fuel
sender might actually be an IC issue as well.

Since your misfire seems related to moisture, you might just go thru the
ignition system, take it all apart and clean and dry everything. Unless
you're inclined to spend the money to replace stuff.

Ed
On Apr 13, 2016 4:42 AM, "Acadianlion" <Acadianlion at hotmail.com> wrote:

I'm driving the V8 sixty miles four times a week right now. That's pretty
much a minimum, and the sixty miles are a guestimate because my speedometer
is cranky and doesn't work the entire trip.  The ride is over two-lane,
rural roads with extremely light traffic...sometimes I see only one or two
other cars the entire trip once past the stop light in Brooks Village.
Anyway, yesterday it was rainy and coolish but not cold.  My stumbling
problem appeared to be gone until I got to Route 7.  The left turn onto
Route 7 at the blinker begins a sharp hill that is perhaps a third of a
mile in length so the car is working to accelerate.  Immediately upon
turning onto Route 7 and climbing, the lumpy, cylinder miss reappeared.
CLEARLY the engine was not firing properly on eight cylinders at that
point.  By the time I got to the top of the hill and load was removed from
the engine, it smoothed out, but for the next five or six miles, I could
feel the engine's uneven running through the steering wheel.  This was the
most pronounced it has been in some time.  Ten miles later, I felt
something "give" and the engine was smooth again, all the way to the end of
the drive.

When I came out of the session, it had been raining quite hard, but no
trace of the roughness was present for most of the trip home which was a
complete retrace of the trip out. Hilly, open countryside.  A bit of
stumble but not at all as bad as during the first part of the trip.  The
car had been in the closed garage over night and spends ALL its nights
there.  But I am again wondering about distributor caps or wires.  It seems
strange a plug might be fouled, partially or mostly clear and then foul
again. Once again I am thinking of buying some plugs and changing them out
myself to see what that does.  The car goes to the wrench next month for
its inspection and an oil change.

Oh, and the speedometer.  It continues to be cranky.  Yesterday for the
first few miles it worked fine, then quit.  On the return trip, it worked
fine after the first few miles.  This might be temperature related, but if
that is the case, why does it sometimes work when started cold, then once
fully warmed, quit?  I no longer think it is a ground issue in the
cluster.  Rather I am leaning hard toward the idea that the sender is
faulty as Dave Saad said, and will check that.

Oh, and one more cranky issue.  We went to Sam's Club last week and we
usually take the 100 Quattro Avant for that trip.  We were mostly there,
driving in, in-town Bangor traffic when the car began to steadily lose
power.  And lost power it did to the extent that it would only crawl and
was mostly unresponsive to the accelerator. This was potentially serious as
we were fifty miles from  home.  I was able to get the car to crawl into
Walmart where I dropped my wife.  I knew the fuel was low...perhaps a
quarter of a tank at that point, so I restarted the engine and drove back
onto the road. Surprising that when I restarted the engine after only a
moment or two of sitting, the car came right to live and behaved as though
nothing was wrong. I drove a mile to a station and filled the tank. Later,
I picked up my wife and we drove across the city to Sam's and did our
shopping.  The return trip was uneventful, no loss of power.

My analysis:  In late December there was a new fuel pump installed, but the
fuel filters were not changed.  I may have an occasional sludge/clump of
something that is working its way around a fuel filter or line causing a
momentary blockage or restricting fuel flow.

ALSO:  for years and tens of thousands of miles this car has periodically
thrown a "check engine" light.  It comes and goes.  The wrench has pulled
the codes on this antique car dozens of times. No obvious issue. His
diagnosis is perhaps a distributor or something electronic, but since the
car runs fine, and ALWAYS runs fine and the same way with no outward issues
that seems related to the check engine light, I have not thrown diagnostic
dollars at this phantom. Yet it occurs to me that this might be an
incomplete firing issue that occurs from time to time and gradually the
catalytic converters have become become fouled.  Saying that though brings
the question of how is it that once fouled how do they clear in a matter of
seconds when the engine is stopped.

I suspect this to be a fuel pressure issue.  It has happened three times
prior to last week, always after running for thirty miinutes or so, and
always clearing when the engine was stopped and restarted.

Do you out there in the Audi Brain Trust agree that this likely is a fuel
pressure/filter issue?  (Oh, yeah....I really need to get the fuel sender
replaced in this car.  I didn't buy one when I bought the pump and the
wrench feels the fuel gauge reading wrong is a sender issue.  (I thought we
figured out years ago that that was not the issue, but I'm getting old as
is the car....)).

Roger

Oh, yeah....I'm thinking about life after these two Audis.  The wagon has
207,000 miles on it, and aside from the paint really getting thin on top,
the car works extremely well nearly ALL of the time.  I really like my V8.
Still and all....so I am having a mild fantasy about an Acura ZDX.  I'd
like to see on "in the flesh" someday.  To my knowledge there are none in
the state.  I wonder why I like this odd fish?
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