I have to hold the key in the start position for a few seconds for the starter to engage. Not sure if it is a clutch switch, starter relay or the ignition switch. Is this common for the B7? One thing I did not check is the starter itself, possibly loose and not getting a good ground. I had it out a few months back when I changed my clutch.
Only happens when cold? How often do you drive (i drive twice a week)? Mine does this but only in the winter. I forget the actual reasoning but from i read it seemed normal.
The starter solinoid goes bad and in cold weather it creates a delay between when you turn the key and when the starter will actually start to work. If its a pause between when you turn the key and when the starter takes off its the solinoid if the starter itself is not catching on the flywheel and your hearing a scrapeing noise that can be a loose starter.
If its the delay issue your going to need a new starter as sooner or later it will leave you stranded and not start.
Having the same issues since the weather turned cold with my B6. Thought maybe the starter was going bad, but I will check that solenoid first.
Just to confirm, your saying if you turn the key and nothing happens for a second or two and then the car starts right up im going to need a new starter soon? Just checking because its something ill consider purchasing soon then. This has happened to me now for two winters in a row. So far its only on cold start after not driving it a day or two. No issues other than that. Once its been started once that day i dont have any issues at all starting it again. No pausing or anything until the next week after it says for a few days on the first cold start of the day. Then once again just a slight delay.
Yes the delay just gets worse and worse but there is no liner curve to it. Some people have had the delay where it stays at about 1 to 2 seconds for years others and more likely is that once the delay starts it just gets to the point where the delay is longer and longer sometimes it just wont start at all. Come back later in the day when its a little warmer out and the car will fire right up.
Generally if you have your car in a garage you dont see much of an issue. But leave the car parked outside in cold cold weather and it can really show itself.
exactly
It gets worse and worse over time.
Mine was a couple seconds delay 2 winters ago but not every day (I park in a garage so it rarely gets below freezing in there)
Then last winter it was a 10-30 second delay a few times anytime it was really cold out
Then this winter it has turned into a 4-5 minute delay and it can be 10-15 if the car is parked outside. I keep meaning to get it replaced but keep forgetting to do so.
You might be fooled by a starter relay code thinking it’s a cheap fix but everything requires removal of the 8-10 year old Valeo starter anyway, so you may as well just buck up and replace it.
Never gave any thought about extreme cold conditions and the affect it could have have on the car :o With our mild winters life in the day of an RS4 is the same as summer just with cooler temps! Something else I noticed, everyone mentioning turning the key to start the car, did the North American cars not came with the start button?
no they didn’t…however the push button start on the RS4 was pretty dumb as it still required the key being put in the ignition…so we don’t miss it!
And we like our cup holders
I found a youtube video on the A4 replacement - is this a fairly easy DIY on the RS4?
I think it’s a huge pain in the ass from memory of discussing this with others. The A4 has enough room for a sofa under the hood. The RS4 has none, and has multiple auxillary radiators etc.
THis is why we say, on the S4/RS4 just replace the whole starter.
That is very true. The A4 has tons of room the RS4 has not any room.
When it comes to even replacement of the starter solinoid you need to remove the starter for that its best to remove the starter and just replace the entire starter. As for the DIY the rS4 is 100x harder to replace then the A4. So while the A4 video might gve you the general idea on where wires go and the electronic side of the swap the RS4 is much harder to get to