Audi Gods Relent!

["Al Powell" <APOWELL@agcom.tamu.edu>]

I don't know how, but I must have hit the Audi gods on a day of 
kindness and benevolence.  I had a GREAT day in the shop today!

I mnaged four things - and a success on EVERY one!

1)  Replaced the broken lock link on the Audi's driver door; a 3 
hour job requiring removal of the interior frame of the door....and 
figuring out how to transfer the tumblers from one cylinder, complete 
with LEETLE TIIIIINY springs which go with each tumbler.  AND IT 
WORKED!  My thanks to the Hon. J. Goggin (aka: AudiDudi) for steering 
me to the frame removal.  It was a bit more complex than advertised, 
but manageable.  (If you need any hints on transferring the tumbler 
links from one lock cylinder to another, email....there's an updat to 
the lock cylinders in the '90 200 which eplaces those weak lock links 
with a stamped steel part - but which requires changing the lock 
cylinder as well.  If you don't have circlip pliers, don't even try 
it!)

2)  Replaced the "bomb".  I've had problems with this DAMN thing for 
18 months!  And the replacement works SUPER!  Now I'm fairly sure 
that we've never had a good bomb in the 200 for the three years we've 
owned it!  We've never had so much brake pedal travel before it 
bottomed out, and NO brake light warning, even with 10 fast 
brake pedal pumps at idle!!  WOWSERS!!

3)  I had a CLUNK under the car - and FOUND IT.  There were two loose 
bolts on the front sway bar (One bolt per side was about one to two 
turns loose) and the bottom suspension link on the RF side had 
one loose bolt where it mounts to the sub-frame, about two turns 
loose.  These take a 19mm socket and open end wrench, and they're not 
that easy to reach...but NO MORE CLUNK!!

4)  Finally, I've had a loose bumper fascia on the Audi, and I found 
out that by pulling the RF parking light (2 screws) I had immediate 
access to the area where the fascia sticks thru the bumper, allowing 
me to apply the retaining clip needed to hold it in place.

Also - in the process of finding out how to get the bumper fascia 
back in place, I removed the rectangular plastic duct which goes 
form the bumper fascia to the oil cooler in the RF corner - and found 
a few leaves in there which could partially block it.  Cleaned them 
out and probably improved the oil cooling.

Four successful operations (and one nice discovery) in 5 hours!  Ain't 
that a GREAT day in the shop??  Especially when there's cold Red Dawg 
in da 'fridge??

Have a super weekend!  Yoicks!!...da brewskis!!!!




Al Powell                           Voice:  409/845-2807
107 Reed McDonald Bldg.             Fax:    409/862-1202
College Station, TX 77843           Email:  a-powell1@tamu.edu 
W3 page - http://agcomwww.tamu.edu/agcom/satellit/rpe/alpage.htm
"Baseball is 90 percent mental.  The other half is physical"...
...Yogi Berra.