RE: New Audi for ME!

[Aleksander Mierzwa <alex@matrix.com.pl>]

Dave wrote:

	>Just bought myself my first Audi---quite the car.  86 5kCS
turbo with 
	>all the fixin's.  It drives awesome, but I've got a couple of
questions 
	>that I'll have to resolve in the near future.  

Congratulations - a great car

	>1) Sunroof- I've read a lot of archived mail on it, but still
haven't 
	>found an answer.  It's an electric, of course, but is there a
manual 
	>overide or some such?  The thing doesn't work at all right now,
I 
	>don't even hear a motor trying to work when I press the switch.

	>Any ideas?  Best solutions or experiences?

There's no other solution than to perform normal electric
troubleshooting, cause it seems that there's no voltage at the motor (or
the motor is shot itself). Of course, check the fuse first - but I
assume you've done it already ;-)

	>2) When I accelerate, it veers to the right pretty bad--is this
just 
	>alignment or could it be a worse problem?

Lot of things could cause it - check the suspension for worn components
- replace what needs replacing then have the car aligned. Don't overlook
the obvious - are the tyres equally inflated?

	>3) Stereo-I definitely wanna put something else in it.
Removal-how 
	>do I do it?  I've tried to get that stupid thing out using the
ol' 
	>two pieces of hanger mix, but it's stuck on something.  I'm
thinking 
	>I might use Crutchfield, since they have a few specials on a
Pioneer 
	>deck and speakers.  Any suggestions?  

It's bolted from behind - and believe me, it's an excellent idea (A
thief broke into my car - pulled the radio half way out, he was using so
much force that he bend the metal bar the radio is bolted to from
behind, but could remove the radio though). My personal choice is to
remove the A/C control unit to gain access.

	>4) The Tach (RPM gauge) every now and then dies...how can I get
to the connection 
	>to maybe resolder it or something?  After a few minutes, it
will just 
	>suddenly start working again.

Yeah, looks like loose connection somewhere - possibly the connector at
the back of the instrument cluster.

	>5) It's got 211,000 miles on it (mostly highway) and the
tune-up 
	>light is on.  Should I have an Audi dealership do a tune-up, a
normal 
	>old mechanic, or do the stuff myself?  If me-what catalogs
should I 
	>look at or who should I call for parts, etc.  What problems
should I 
	>be concerned about?

I'm not quite sure what you are referring as a "tune-up light" to. It's
either the oxygen sensor light, which is supposed to turn on every 60k
or something miles and doesn't say if the sensor really needs replacing,
or it is the ignition fault light (orange one with the picture of an
engine and spark on it) which says the ignition computer has registered
a fault in it's operation. Regardless of that, since you've just bought
the car and you (as I understand) don't know how the previous owner
treated it - it needs not only a tune-up but solid inspection. I've
always been convicted that to get best out of your car you should work
on it yourself - but the 5KCST is  complicated high-tech beast, so you
won't be able to do much without proper repair manual. There are two I
know of - one is published by Bentley and is a reprint of an official
Audi repair manual - it's pricey (over $100 if memory serves me right),
but is the best. The second one is published by Haynes, although not as
good as Bentley it has helped me many, many times. I would definitely
recommend getting a repair manual - it will save you both $$$ and
frustration.

Aleksander Mierzwa
Warsaw, Poland
mailto:alex@matrix.com.pl
87 Audi 5000CS turbo (mine)
88 Renault Medallion wagon (mom's)
91 mountain bike (just in case both cars broke at the same time :-)