Re: 4000 Quattro Question

[bbell@csn.org (Bruce Bell)]

>
>I have two questions that I am hoping other Quattro owners may be able to
>address.  First, a few years back while I was in Germany a friend of mine
>who owned a Quattro coupe, would routinely lock the center differential
>when driving at moderately high speeds (approx. 120-140 km/h) on a WET
>autobahn.  This, he claimed, settled the car down and improved braking at
>higher speeds in the wet.  Is doing the same thing a good idea on an '84
>4000 Quattro (I am a relatively new owner, still waiting for the first
>snowfall to try out the 4wd advantage). 

The car has 4 wheel brakes whether or not the center differential is locked.
4 Wheel drive, Audi's nor anyone elses, does not help braking. Driving at
that speed on a wet highway puts the car in danger of hydroplaning. If the
car hydroplanes at that speed no brake is going to stop you. The Audi owners
manual has a warning about quattro drive and hydroplaning. Seems the 4 wheel
drive makes you think all is well until the last wheel floats. 

I do use the center diff when ever the roads start getting slick. I have
found the Quattro drive really helps to stabilise the car at speed on a
slick surface but as above I use it with the knowledge it won't help me brake. 

>Second question:  Today the odometer in my Audi stopped working (both odo
>and trip meter are kaput, I assume they are connected).  The speedometer
>works OK, although it has for some time "wavered" erratically at the low
>speed (10-20mph) range, but is fine over 20 mph.  Any ideas as to what
>could be wrong with the odometer?  thanks.  
>

We just had a thread on this. I paid a shop in Colo. Springs about $60 for
the fix. It is a small gear that either breaks or gets mis-aligned as some
have reported. Conventional wisdom has the gear breaking when reseting the
trip odometer while the car is moving and/or the mechanism which operates
the oxygen sensor warning light causes it to break.  Fairly common problem.




Bruce

bbell@csn.org (Bruce Bell)