Boost-Crzy

Is this issue restricted to the Audi Q7 3.0 tdi ........does this vehicle get a lot of weather / water in the front of the engine area that other models do not get ?

ScottishAudiQ7

In the end I contacted an Audi main dealer in the South of England and the part was here within a week. A piece of cake to fit.

ScottishAudiQ7

No, I don't think it has anything to do with weather/water getting in there, it's more like the part is constantly heated up, then cools down and in winter probably the metal is getting damp from the air/condensation and over time it corrodes and causes the rubber to separate from the metal. I think a lot of 3.0 Audi engines use this part or at least very similar. It's an easy part to check, I used my phone to take a photo (use your phone camera flash!) and I could clearly see the corrosion and rubber separating. I checked this without having to remove the part for inspection, on a Q7 there's enough space between the serpentine belt and the radiator to get your camera in there.

'10Q7TDI_Prestige'

The original part fitted has a known corrosion problem on the TDIs...it is not the same part fitted to the gas/petrol engine cars, as it is designed to have a little bit of 'give' in it due to the high torque output of the TDI 3.0 engines. Audi/VW has replaced the original part and the current offering is a new part number.

Corteco is the OEM (original equipment manufacturer) and sells it under their own name. I bought the Corteco part from FCP Euro (based in USA), and they are still the least expensive on this continent at roughly $182 (USA) for this part.

If you have the TDI engine, your crankshaft pulley/harmonic balancer is going to fail either from eventual fatigue of the rubber damper itself, or the corrosion problems noted, which leads to the outer section separating from the inner section that is bolted onto the car. You should consider this a long-term ownership maintenance item that should be checked regularly for signs of corrosion or the rubber damper separating from the central carrier ring it is bonded to.

JackInOhio

Glad I saw this post. My '12 TDI w/108K mi and diesel-gate warranty until 127K or Feb2024 looks like it's imminently prone to failure. I'm wondering what's considered "visibly observable by a service tech as wobbling about its' axis"? Seems they may not have a published measurable specification. I can see some run-out in the vertical axis, but not horizontal (side to side). I would consider wobble in either axis sufficient, especially with the visible corrosion of the inner hub. Opinions on the rubber outer hub?

Thanks,
Jack in Ohio


Inner hub -

better angle

close-up

ScottishAudiQ7

That looks like it could shear off at any time. Mine was nowhere near as rusty as that, but the rubber had come away from the metal. Your rubber looks to have done the same, you can see a gap between the rubber and the metal. Get it replaced, under warranty or pay for it. See the bottom of the last photo? You can see the rubber gap there.

'10Q7TDI_Prestige'

Corteco is the OEM; they manufacture the part for VW/Audi. FCP Euro sells the Corteco part for around $180 currently, with a lifetime warranty, but FCP is based in USA 🇺🇸…just gives you some price reference for what’s reasonable anyways.

'10Q7TDI_Prestige'

@JackInOhio
IMHO, if you can see the crank pulley moving off mounting axis, up/down, sideways, or otherwise, all on its own, then it should the Audi ‘observed wobble’ test.

FWIW, the pulley on our ‘15 looks way worse in terms of corrosion (it’s flaky and expanded, like a rusty biscuit), and the rubber separating is very obvious, but that darn thing still runs true. Bottom line is it has to be visibly moving around indicating close to point of failure or already failed for Audi to honor their extended warranty commitment.

'10Q7TDI_Prestige'

There are a naysayer or two on this thread in regards to the extended TDI ‘emissions’ warranty not covering anything but emissions related items.

If you actually read the entire warranty document, it does call out the long block as well as multiple, specific, other sub assembly items and entire systems that have zero to do with emissions on this car

Please be a reader, or you won’t know what’s covered by your extended TDI warranty. Audi North America reviewed my warranty claim and said “YES, the crank pulley is covered, but yours has not failed yet, nor can it be observed to wobble about it’s axis by the technician.

Clearly they were looking at the clause on the crankshaft subassembly warranty coverage when they made their decision. Audi knows this crank pulley is a problem item; that’s why they replaced it with a new part #.

ScottishAudiQ7

I'm in the UK, and my car was we'll out of any warranty, my part hadn't failed, and I replaced mine as a precaution because I knew the consequences if the part did fail while driving. Try and get it fixed for free if you can, and if you can't, just pay to have it fixed.