Re: lights / wastegate

[Robert Houk - SMCC Bos Desktop Hardware <rdh@UrQ.East.Sun.COM>]

   I have subscribed for a while, enjoyed reading all the hints / advice. I am 
   the proud owner of an '83 urQ, silver. Can anyone let me know where to find 
   the euro headlights and the wastegate and possible chip mods. I heard a 
   company in Washington was modifying the wastegate. Finally, does anyone have 
   any advise for hot start problems? Car starts first time when cold and when 
   hot, as in driven up to 15 minutes ago, after that it refuses to start for at 
   least 5 to 10 trys. Is there a trick? Give it no throttle when starting a hot 
   engine?

Two classic problems. One is the starter just doesn't engage at all (turn
the key, nothing happens). Replace the starter. (Be creative, tear it apart
and try to replace the "solenoid").

Second (and not limited to UrQs by any means) is "heat stroke" -- aka
"vapor lock" in the injectors. Audi tried two ways to fix this problem.
One "fix" was the injector cooling fan. I never saw mine come on, and
eventually just removed it (yes, I swapped sensors; yes I can manually
"trip" the fan and it works; it just never comes on, even in 100's (F)
California summer heat), with no observable effects on the engine. The
other "fix" is the "Hot Start Pulse Relay" which is supposed to goose
the cold start injector every three seconds whilst cranking. You should
be able to hear the relay clacking away every three seconds or so while
you are turning it over. (Note: leaky/dirty/worn/etc. injectors will
aggravate this problem by leaking down fuel system pressure; ditto any-
thing else in the fuel system that fails to maintain system pressure.)
Quickie test -- if quick spritz of WonderFluid ("ether"/starting fluid)
fires off the engine, and it stumbles for a second or two then settles
down to normal running/idle behavior, this is your fundamental problem.
However, bear in mind that a vacuum leak, weird control pressure regu-
lator, and even the phase of the moon can all cause Audis (UrQs es-
pecially) to misbehave!

Odds are 98% it's the fuel system "at fault", but the fuel system in-
cludes a painful amount of Audi'Lectrics, so you have a *lot* of "points"
of potential faults.

(In my UrQ, I ultimately found a dangling ground wire disconnected; the
ground enabled the HotStartPulseRelay [amoung others; it was the "others"
failure that led me to the problem -- it's all in the archives somewhere,
filed under swear words, probably...])

					-RDH