right so my mates just called me and said he was driving home from work and he could feel the back end dragging - he then sent me these pics now some history - back in nov 12 we took his car to the dyno for a power run to see what it was putting out and the car was fine no issues atall... when they went to dyno it they went to remove the haldex (4wd system) fuse as these need to be dynod in fwd however the fuse could not be locted as the panel was slightly different. the dyno guy removed a fuse which we beleived was the right one but it wasnt and instead caused a nasty clutch burning smell.. the car was strapped down while being driven and the back wheels were unable to turn even though they were trying to when accelerating.. now we then soon realised that the car was stuck in permamnent 4wd, so they backed the rear wheels onto the rollers to dyno it using all 4 wheels.. when we left the location his back wheels would lock up on tight turns, much like driving with a welded diff - now he got used to this and has been driving ike it daily until tonight he explaned what ive put above... saying the back wheels are like there dragging so i presumed the haldex system has failed and locked up completely but then when he sent me these images it looks like an arm could have snapped or something.... any audi experts know of a haldex to cause this or are we looking at another issue here unrelated?? my mate is not mechanicly minded in the slightest and im stuck at work until 7am so looking for someone in the know plz
looks like a camber arm has snapped. sounds a bit dumb to be driving it round with the problems youve described
tbh being stuck in permanent 4wd was not so bad, we spoke to several people in the know, more tyre wear and more fuel used.. nothing dangerous was the advice he hasnt hit anything so confused why an arm could just snap
The welded diff (or 2way tbh in my experience) is the Haldex rear diff failing. I've had that, tbh I quite liked having a proper rear diff for once lol. BUT its gonna have zero to do with the above, something else unrelated has caused that.
well i dont think your going to diagnose or fix it over the internet, especially if your mate doesnt have mechanical knowledge. jack it up, have a look
well yes but i was looking for someone whos experienced with audis (& possibly this) to give a better answer than the obvious with all due respect mate useful thank you
That's really not good is it! I wonder if it was anyway related to when I found it loose when you brought it to me??
ehhhhhhh?? you told me it was loose?? i dont remember... ollies just told me now (on phone to him) that he remembers now lol hes a dick!!
That's not a standard arm, stock one's dont have any threaded parts to adjust them. They've probably been put on to reset the toe after it's had the lowering springs put on, so you're probably gonna have to replace them as a pair for ease of getting them set up and equal and because if that one's failed then the other one might go too.
well i would have thought the handiest thing would have been to get down on the ground at the road side and look in for obvious problems, before texting pictures to my mate and creating a thread on the internet to get an expert opinion!
why? i got my question answered by doing this exact thing... in fact i found out the exactly what part i needed, identified to being aftermarket and where to get it - alex_200sx - your right they are kw items and replacment has been sourced.
well when a wheel was lying in like that it was kind of obvious what it was. Also the threaded bar also suggested it was adjustable..... no?
ill presume you didnt read the title 1999 Audi S3 Wheel Collapse.... **AUDI EXPERTS PLZ** ie meaning i dont have much knowledge on these cars
so you knew these were kw arms just by looking at one then yeh.. plus you clearly havent read the posts ive posted.... go back and read in sequence
oh you do get mixed up.... 1) problem occurs 2) get down look under the bloody car 3) tie bar issue 4) end of!!