>I had a bad accumulator replaced 3 years ago. My experience was
>after you shut off the engine and turn the key all the way over
>to the right without starting the engine and after about anywhere
>from 2 to 6 mins the red triangle brake warning light would come
>on and acompany by 3 beeps ( I kind discover it by accident :) ).
>
>After the accumulator was replaced the warning light never appeared
>again. I wouldn't call it a test procedure but it's kind of a tell
>tale sign of a bad accumulator.
>
>One more observation is the steering also feel different i.e. 1)
>you can feel alot more bump steer 2) it rattle and clunk a little
>bit 3) there is slack in steering. The steering feel returned to
>normal after the accumulator was replaced.
>
>Sometime I kind of wish earlier Audi had vacumn assisted brake but
>then again last time when my fuel pump failed on the freeway I
>probably wouldn't have been able to stop it before hitting something if
>it wasn't for the hydraulic bomb! :)
>
>Anthony Chan
>Adminstrative System
>Information Services
>Seattle University
My brake light has also been coming on intermittently and I have been told
by the dealer that my accumulator needs to be changed. There are no
hydraulic leaks, and every once in a while when that light comes on, the
brake pedal will get hard - the power assist goes totally. All I have to
do is really jam the pedal and I get my assist and pressure back and the
light turns off. Weird, eh?
In fact, I can get the light to come on like clockwork if I really jab the
brakes hard, i.e somebody pulls out in front of me like a jerk. After a
few minutes of acceleration, the light goes off.
I really don't mind the light coming on, in fact I am not even gonna worry
about the pressure accumulator until the symptoms become much worse. Right
now, when the light is off, when I release my brake pedal, the pedal makes
kind of a "thunk" and springs back up. When the light is on, there is no
"thunk" and it doesn't spring up, it just moves up very slowly. I also
tried that test of pushing the pedal numerous times with the car off. I
was able to push the pedal about 25-30 times before it got hard, but the
funny thing is, after I did this, my brake light didn't make a peep for
over a month. It was as if I had flushed something outta there
temporarily.
Your mention of the steering feel being affected by the accumulator is what
interests me, though. My car ('88 5kCST) seems to have the exact problems
you mention. The wheel shakes and "rattles and clunks" a lot if hit a hard
bump or if I really take a corner aggressively. I thought maybe this had
something to do with my suspension or there was some type of bushing that
had given out on the steering rack that kept things solid and tight.
Maybe I should just replace my ticking time "bomb"...
---
Chris King ===================================================
cking@txdirect.net '94 Corrado SLC (Sherry Red/Beige Leather)
San Antonio, TX '88 5000 CS Turbo (Metallic Black/Grey Leather)
===================================================
"Look out Mr. Highway Patrol, here I come!"