THE Timing Chain Tensioner Failure Thread

[peterjedi]

I change oil regularly at 3k intervals on my Ducati, new filter and oil after track days. On the Audi, I change oil and filter at 5k. I am getting ready to crack her open, so we will see what my methodology has done on this E888 engine after 83k.

It will be very interesting for sure. Might be proven completely wrong once again.

I would be very interested in what you find. Also would be interested to see an engine with 10k changes.

I know Audi & BMW engineers have been pushed to get better gas mileage. I am just wondering if these marks are causing more engine failures.

[A4 Centaur]

I will take some measurements of the chain lengths and the wear on the guides as well. I really want to look at the tensioner as well.

[richberry01]

Just out of curiosity...why isn't this thread a sticky?

[A4 Centaur]

Looking at picking this manual up to help: https://www.factory-manuals.com/expa...anual-226.html

Anyone have a better manual?

[kskevin]

What years are impacted / have this design?

[JeriQo]

would a failed TCT be covered by warranty?

[A4x]

would a failed TCT be covered by warranty?

Why wouldn't it be? Your engine would be kaputt with a failed TCT.

Unless you're tuned.


Or FWD.

[JeriQo]

Why wouldn't it be? Your engine would be kaputt with a failed TCT.

Unless you're tuned.


Or FWD.

man am i the only person here who owns a FWD audi?

[Shimmy]

man am i the only person here who owns a FWD audi?

yes. no one buys this brand known for it's amazing awd system without that option

it's like going to the hottest strip club in the world just to order drinks! wtf?!

[JeriQo]

yes. no one buys this brand known for it's amazing awd system without that option

it's like going to the hottest strip club in the world just to order drinks! wtf?!

you shoulda sold me your car then.

[mortimersnerd]

Hey, I like watered down drinks...but I still got the see mmm

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[Polo2.0T]

Hello to everyone.

Should I change just the top left tensioner, or both tensioners and the chains?

One of the local places told me that since I am at it, I should go ahead and change both tensioners and the chains. The price they quoted me is just a little more then replacing just the faulty top left one.

Has anyone done this service in the Salt Lake City area? if so where?

Any comments are appreciated.

[JBAeroEngineer]

man am i the only person here who owns a FWD audi?

you do you, man. you do you

[A4x]

I'm trying to figure out a DIY to replace only the tensioner (2011 2.0T with 80k miles).

From the DIY thread, it says to remove all these components. But in this DIY, the guy is replacing more components like the chain, guide rails, etc.

I am looking to simplify and do it myself, only replace the tensioner. Can someone please help me determine which parts I have to remove to get to just the tensioner? I have heard it can be a pretty simple DIY and I've worked on this car enough to know my way around.

Thanks for any help!

Remove front bumper
Remove rubber air dams
Remove crash bar and head lights
Remove crash bar supports (16mm bolts)
Remove Intercooler
Swing AC Condenser aside
Drain coolant by twisting valve many turns.
Unhook tranny oil line ( if so equipped)
Unplug fans and remove rad.
Unscrew lower rack carrier braces
Remove lock carrier (rad support)
If you don't feel comfortable getting to this point, perhaps this shouldn't be attempted.

Next is the engine:
Unhook turbo coolant hose and swing aside.
Remove serpentine belt, tensioner and idler.
Remove crank pulley and install T10368 spacer.
Remove cam actuator.
Remove exh cam bolt.
Remove LH THREAD valve with T10352/1
Set cover aside.
Remove lower cover (try not to destroy it! It's on there solid!)
Remove oil pump tensioner and unhook chain.
Remove upper chain guide rails.
Remove chain and shit yourself when intake cam slams forward!
Remove old tenisoner and top guide.

Link to DIY:
http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...ensioner-Study

[MLA4]

My car is still under CPO warranty so I dropped her off to get my water pump replaced. I also told them to go through the whole car since the warranty will be up soon. I am at 65k miles and they said the tensioner was "making noise" so they are replacing it. Just figured I would share this here to notify other 2012 a4 owners that this is def still an issue even with newer B8s

[A4 Centaur]

Going to order the following from ECS Tuning to fix mine in a week:


Ultimate Timing Chain Kit
Brand: Genuine Volkswagen Audi
ES#: 2592689
Mfg#: 06K109158AKT2


Timing Service Tool Set
Brand: Schwaben
ES#: 3145737
Mfg#: 020946SCH01A

[nycaudi]

man am i the only person here who owns a FWD audi?

Apparently

[BeerBrent]

This thread scares me.

[nycaudi]

This thread scares me.

That's exactly what a ticking time bomb is though. Pure fear. Get the work done. it's a matter of spending 1k before it blows or spending 5k + after the bomb goes off

[WokkerK]

man am i the only person here who owns a FWD audi?

We have one in our household as well. My wife drives it. Its the 2009 Ibis white one in my signature. Its a no frills poverty spec. b8 with zero options and 80k on it. Stage 1 was done on it by the PO and it had its 35k service shortly after and apparently didnt need stage 2, so when it gets closer to 100k I will do the TCT on it.

On the other hand my 2009 Quattro Avant just turned 100k and had Stage 2 done by my local dealership at the request of the PO. I called them today and they pulled the work order and it appears the TCT was NOT done when that was done back in 2014.....I will be tackling just the tensioner here shortly as I really dont want to do the whole chain and guides because I havent seen much evidence of failure.

[JeriQo]

We have one in our household as well. My wife drives it. Its the 2009 Ibis white one in my signature. Its a no frills poverty spec. b8 with zero options and 80k on it. Stage 1 was done on it by the PO and it had its 35k service shortly after and apparently didnt need stage 2, so when it gets closer to 100k I will do the TCT on it.

On the other hand my 2009 Quattro Avant just turned 100k and had Stage 2 done by my local dealership at the request of the PO. I called them today and they pulled the work order and it appears the TCT was NOT done when that was done back in 2014.....I will be tackling just the tensioner here shortly as I really dont want to do the whole chain and guides because I havent seen much evidence of failure.

i have 0 problems with the car, some people here just act like theyre in 7th grade. im over them flaming what i have, straight to ignore list of those individuals do not have anything positive to say.

[WokkerK]

i have 0 problems with the car, some people here just act like theyre in 7th grade. im over them flaming what i have.

Hey Im with you....my wife is not an enthusiast but still loves Audis so she is perfectly happy with it. People talk epic amounts of shit about the CVT but we have had zero problem with it. I find it entertaining to drive because you can step into it and it just goes.....torque steer for days! I enjoy the car quite a bit and it makes my wife happy. If it makes you happy that is all that matters!

[JeriQo]

Hey Im with you....my wife is not an enthusiast but still loves Audis so she is perfectly happy with it. People talk epic amounts of shit about the CVT but we have had zero problem with it. I find it entertaining to drive because you can step into it and it just goes.....torque steer for days! I enjoy the car quite a bit and it makes my wife happy. If it makes you happy that is all that matters!

lmao torque steer
ive become an audi enthusiast thats why i lurk here everyday and acquire a good amount of information. mods, maintenance, its all here.

[Jon_90]

man am i the only person here who owns a FWD audi?

You're not alone , I have fwd too and I'm fine with it . Next car will most likely be an s4 though


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[nycaudi]

i have 0 problems with the car, some people here just act like theyre in 7th grade. im over them flaming what i have, straight to ignore list of those individuals do not have anything positive to say.

I apologize. I didn't mean to upset you or make you feel like I was degrading you in any way shape or form ✌👍

[hyperunion]

i have 0 problems with the car, some people here just act like theyre in 7th grade. im over them flaming what i have, straight to ignore list of those individuals do not have anything positive to say.

#fwdlivesmatter

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[hanyoung]

Repost due to multiple threads about timing chain tensioner and to inform community

I brought the car to the dealer for an intermittent low rpm (1.5-2.5K) ticking sound under load. My car is a 2012 Avant that was special ordered, and delivered in Nov 2011. They looked at the timing tensioner and it was the old model, which they replaced to the new model for preventative maintenance. I hope that this will make the intermittent ticking sound go away, but I thought after reading these timing tensioner threads that it would be good prevention. They charged me $600 total for labor and parts.

[djapeA4]

Well, you beat me to this 'thread'. I've been meaning to get it going.

From my theread, my post #6 and post #17 have more details and more examples of people that have had failures.

After talking to many shops and 2 dealers as well, this issue is starting to become much more known and for sure, poor maintenance intervals and/or not providing enough oil to the engine if you have oil consumption issues can bring this issue to light earlier than expected. Regardless, this issue doesn't occur because of either of those situations, it's going to happen, within time, because the timing tensioner is poorly designed.


This is, possibly, the smartest post I've seen in regards to this topic. Bravo; I'm being serious. Yes there is a counter and it's something we should track. I'll get mine so it can be added to this thread.

This video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAdSyBRHOPs Shows how you can check if you have the 'old', will eventually fail, tensioner.

Is this problem solved for 2013 B8.5 (April 2013 in-service date), or do I need to be worried too?

[mmaggi]

Well I got pinched as well. After weeks of dealing with an on again, off again engine light, I went to Autozone to get the code and sure enough I got the dreaded news that it was the timing chain tensioner (2009 Audi A4 2.0L turbo, 91k miles).

I called Audi and they quoted $158/hour for labor. I visited my local mechanic b/c he charges $105. We spoke about the work involved and what I wanted done since at this point we might as well replace everything we can. This includes 2 tensioners, 3 chains & the oil pump. All genuine Audi parts. It will come to about $2k total w/the labor (10 hours). The oil pump wasn't in stock and it won't be delivered until Tuesday (6/27).

Very disappointed w/Audi. Hopefully we can get something back through the class action suit. But I'm not holding my breath on this. On the bright side I'm basically getting back a car where 100k more miles won't be out of the question.

[B8_Dude97]

Well I got pinched as well. After weeks of dealing with an on again, off again engine light, I went to Autozone to get the code and sure enough I got the dreaded news that it was the timing chain tensioner (2009 Audi A4 2.0L turbo, 91k miles).

I called Audi and they quoted $158/hour for labor. I visited my local mechanic b/c he charges $105. We spoke about the work involved and what I wanted done since at this point we might as well replace everything we can. This includes 2 tensioners, 3 chains & the oil pump. All genuine Audi parts. It will come to about $2k total w/the labor (10 hours). The oil pump wasn't in stock and it won't be delivered until Tuesday (6/27).

Very disappointed w/Audi. Hopefully we can get something back through the class action suit. But I'm not holding my breath on this. On the bright side I'm basically getting back a car where 100k more miles won't be out of the question.

Seems like too much since 500 more gets u a low mile b8.5 motor


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[mortimersnerd]

.....but not the labor to install it.

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[A4 Centaur]

Finished mine up yesterday, and found only one guide worn severely, but the tensioner was almost at full extension. 84,677 miles.




Back of the cover was starting to get chewed up:



Old chain top and new chain bottom:



Lower crank guide was the only real worn piece:

[98A4TQ]

Could anyone tell which tensioner this is?

[audrobotic]

That's an old (bad) version. That black band comes loose and wreaks the havoc.

You can find several youtube videos about the differences - here's one: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=G82iA4n3LBM

[B8_Dude97]

.....but not the labor to install it.

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Many go the path of diy on that one since the swap isn't too difficult especially if you've done swaps before


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[A4 Centaur]

Pulling the front off is really the hardest part, or tedious part really. If you get the tools to do this, it makes it real simple.

[98A4TQ]

That's an old (bad) version. That black band comes loose and wreaks the havoc.

You can find several youtube videos about the differences - here's one: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=G82iA4n3LBM

The messed up part about this is when the car was in to replace the pistons and rings 10k ago I told the SA to replace the tensioner if it wasn't the latest revision. When I picked up the car and I asked about it he said all my other parts were in perfect condition.

[A4 Centaur]

Yea, I would say that you need to do this if you have the miles on the car, or you beat on her hard. Also, I would bet your 2010 has the older timing chain too.

[mmaggi]

Seems like too much since 500 more gets u a low mile b8.5 motor


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Really dude? I brought it in b/c I don't have the tools (let alone the know how) to take on a job of this magnitude. Quite frankly I think I'm getting ahead of the game. No reason why I can't get 100k miles out of this provided I continue with all the scheduled maintenance.

[King Luis]

so which years get the newest chain tensioner? version K i believe it is. 2013+?