CrancaseVent HoseReport

["Doyt W. Echelberger" <Doyt@NWOhio.com>]

I had a faulty crankcase ventilation hose on my 87 5kcstq, and didn't want
to pay big bucks for the molded rubber replacement. Several of you told me
how you cobbled together radiator hoses, one inside the other, to solve
this problem. That was helpful, because some of you said it was clumsy
looking and you were less than happy with the appearance.

I found salvation (and potential Audi parts)at my nearest Ace Hardware!

5 inches of heater hose, half of an old upper radiator hose from a parts
car, and a copper plumbing part called a reducer, nicely fitted together to
replace the expensive Audi-designed part. $1.50 instead of somewhere
between $20 and $35.

Even more valuable was the serendipitous discovery of a _huge_ leak in the
vacuum hose between the wastegate and the intake manifold. Just happened to
squeeze this hose as I was replacing parts of the crankcase ventilation
system, and I felt about 3 inches of woven hose cover with nothing
underneath. A section of the actual rubber hose had been sucked away by the
vacuum, leaving an empty shell of woven material, which looked almost new.

I replaced said hose with a length of heavy-walled fuel line, and fired up
the engine. It ran  smooth and quiet, with a totally different
sound....very healthy. I tried it on the highway and it had much more low
speed torque, and it really pulled through the gears with the turbo
behaving as if new.  Totally different car with those two vacuum leaks fixed.

So I am grateful to the seven listers who shared their Audi smarts with me.
Thanks, and I'll be looking for more support again, I'm sure. Thanks Adam,
and Aleksander Mierzwa. And the Daves:Boyd (clean the crud),Conner, Head.
Thank you again Al Swackhammer, and Wallace White.

Doyt Echelberger
86 4kq
87 5kcstq