Audi A3 - Rear shock absorber - knocking noise

[GavTNewbie]

On my Audi A3 3.2 Quattro S-Line (2005 05 registered, roughly at 93k miles now)... Ive recently heard a noise from the driver side rear wheel. Upon further inspection, Ive noticed what is best described as some sort of solid ring of carbon/concrete-appearing substance. The noise I hear occurs when I go over any sort of roadbump/sleeping policeman etc (as this part moves up and down the shock shaft).

Image of it:

My questions on this are;

1. is this dangerous ?
2. is this expected over a lifetime of a shock ?
3. will this have reduced the effectiveness of the shock/suspension ?
4. should I get this immediately addressed ?
5. if above is true, do i need to replace both rear shocks ?

It is important to note that the car still drives fine, and the balance of the car still appears fine (given the age of the car). Im just concerned this is not meant to happen, and may cause further damage down the line...

 

[Sandman]

Does the A3 quattro have the same set up as a mk1 TT quattro? If so a knocking noise from the rear shocks is a common problem. Replacement it easy. Jack the car up, remove wheel, remove wheel arch cover (about 10 screws) then remove the two bolts that hold the shock in place. Should only take half an hour and yes they should be replaced in pairs. Check your springs while you are there, they are prone to snapping.

 

[FZR400RRSP]

Noisy rear shocks were very common on early A3s and modified shocks were made available for anyone complaining.
The noise was best described as sounding like a rubber ball inside a plastic bottle.
Perhaps yours missed the modified shocks, maybe it's just down to mileage.
Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about replacing shocks in pairs if money is tight and only one is faulty.
It's unlikely you'd notice any difference outside a race track.
But if money isn't a problem, go for a pair.
I also wouldn't necessarily bother with Audi shocks, I'd go for good quality aftermarket brands.
No point paying Audi mark-up for something they've outsourced themselves!

 

[GavTNewbie]

Thanks FZR. Wasnt aware of the shocks issue/recall hence no complaining hence no replacement. But the dealer's getting a call tomorrow You dont ask etc...

If no joy there Ill try a local place who did the work on my engine last year.

 

[GavTNewbie]

Does the A3 quattro have the same set up as a mk1 TT quattro? If so a knocking noise from the rear shocks is a common problem. Replacement it easy. Jack the car up, remove wheel, remove wheel arch cover (about 10 screws) then remove the two bolts that hold the shock in place. Should only take half an hour and yes they should be replaced in pairs. Check your springs while you are there, they are prone to snapping.

Dont think its the same as Mk1 TT although not 100% certain. Ill speak to the father-in-law but will see what quotes I get from the stealer and a local place.

 

[FZR400RRSP]

Thanks FZR. Wasnt aware of the shocks issue/recall hence no complaining hence no replacement. But the dealer's getting a call tomorrow You dont ask etc...

If no joy there Ill try a local place who did the work on my engine last year.

If you were to do some rooting around on www.audi-sport.net, I'm sure you'd find posts about the noisy shocks from around 2005/2006.
Not sure it will do you any good in 2012, but no harm trying!

 

[GavTNewbie]

Used to read/post on audi-sport quite a bit when i got the car... not been on it for a while, but will have a shifty at lunchtime.

Last thing - does anyone know what the thing is in the picture that I am holding, and where it came from ?

 

[jasonf01]

What does the one on the other side look like? You might get an idea of what it is, where it sits etc, providing its still there on the other side.

Jas.

 

[GavTNewbie]

The other side seems to be intact, with the same item intact around the gator and a red circular 'plug' if you like...

On a separate note, just found a site where you can check for recalls on each car... didnt see anything regarding shocks for the A3 mind you - VOSA

 

[ukdan]

Looks like part of the bump stop.

 

[FZR400RRSP]

On a separate note, just found a site where you can check for recalls on each car... didnt see anything regarding shocks for the A3 mind you - VOSA

Perhaps I wasn't clear earlier, it wasn't subject to a full blown recall.
But modified shocks were made available to those who had a problem.
And even then you had to be prepared to fight a bit and let them know you knew modified shocks were available.
This was where being a member of a maker-specific website came in handy, there was a lot of knowledge there.
They'd often publish Audi service/parts bulletins the Audi dealer claimed not to know about at all, or hadn't heard of yet.

 

[leeoliver86]

Did you sort the problem??

 

[GavTNewbie]

Not replaced the shock, but Im living with the issue right now.

Got quotes from an indy garage of ~£130 to replace the shock, and almost £250 from the audi garage. Double that for both rear shocks (which is recommended) - didn't have the money this month to do so.

 

[leeoliver86]

Mines doing the same thing the piece that's come off the bump stop I've managed to get back on for now

 

[leeoliver86]

May sound like a daft question but have you been under the car and checked the dirt covers under the suspension / brakes I did this morning and that's what the problem was sounded like a ball in a plastic bottle when it rattled there held on by 2 plastic lugs 1 had snapped after all the messing around it was the smallest thing. I thought it was my shocks saved myself some money

 

[diggerbucket]

If this was the only thing to go wrong with my 3.2 V6, I would be a happy man. That part is called a "support ring", part number 1K0513167, and looks to be part of the bump stop. It also looks like your black plastic shrouds have dropped down, they are meant to be attached at the top to protect the shiny bit, if that makes sense.