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Audi A3: Error in the control unit
A seven-year-old Audi A3 refuses to work as the cold season approaches. At first the diesel particulate filter is suspected, but the real culprit is actually hiding in an unexpected place.
Audi A3: Error in the control unit
A young mother from Vienna uses her Audi A3 1.9 TDi, built in 2009, mainly for short trips - shopping, taking the children to school, etc. When the cold season begins, the faithful everyday companion suddenly becomes reluctant and one day after several unsuccessful attempts to start it completely refuses to work. Conclusion: The car is towed away and ends up in the workshop of Georg Ringseis, a specialist in repairing damage to the vehicle's electrical system.
The expert's first guess: Since the Audi already has 108,000 kilometers on the clock and has hardly been driven on the motorway or country road, the diesel particulate filter has not had the opportunity to regenerate. The message stored in the error memory also indicates that the DPF has already reached the limit of its capacity and is therefore clogged. In this case, the manufacturer recommends replacing the particle filter, as it cannot be saved even with a regeneration drive. A diagnostic crime thriller begins.
▶ Georg Ringseis wants to save the customer the high costs of replacing the particle filter and first recharges the battery that has been drained by the starting attempts.
▶ He also replaces the differential pressure sensor including the supply line, which has proven to be a source of error in similar cases. In fact, the error can be deleted from the memory and the turbo diesel engine starts without any problems.
▶ To be on the safe side, Ringseis takes another regeneration drive on the motorway to burn off any residue in the diesel particulate filter and finally returns the functional Audi to the customer.
▶ The next day she knocks on the workshop door again - the Audi won't start again. Ringseis suspects that the defect could be related to the ambient temperature. After spending the night in the heated workshop, the Audi started without any problems the next morning.
▶ An unusual test provides certainty: Ringseis points a hot air gun at the engine control unit, and lo and behold, the engine suddenly starts right away. In order to save the customer the expensive replacement of the engine control unit, Ringseis sends it to the Grüpol company in Vienna-Währing, which specializes in repairing vehicle electronics.
▶ In fact, the MSG can be repaired and works perfectly after installation - even in winter temperatures. Conclusion: To the customer's delight, the case was solved cost-effectively - replacing the possibly defective components would have been much more expensive.