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Ghost in the Machine

1100 Views 6 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  H82BSLO
Well, my 2005 Z51 A4 coupe has developed another ailment. Over the past few days, I've noticed that the driver's seat moves by itself for some reason. I'll be driving along and then suddenly, the seat will shift forward about an inch. I'll move it back with the toggle switch, but it'll move again a little bit later at will. It also does it when I brake. I'll step on the brake and the seat will stutter forward. I wonder if its a a short somewhere. Oh well, I' guess I'll drop it off to have it checked out. Anybody heard of or experienced this problem?

So far, my list of shop visits include:

-crank pulley bolt failure...twice
-service active handling
-service traction system
-brake pad replacement due to squeal (actually a good upgrade!)
-roof panel foaming
-power steering hose TSB/ replacement
-re-upholster worn driver's seat bolster
-replace broken thermometer sensor

Despite the above. I still love this car. It would take a lot to get me to get rid of it. The double crank pulley bolt issue got me a 6yr/ 100K warranty from Chevy so at least I'm covered.

:thumbsup:
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
IMO those things sound like just basic maintenance nothing dangerous am i correct?
Well, the crank bolt was pretty serious. The front of the engine basically came off and my car spilled its guts/ oil onto the driveway the first time. Luckily, the second time the bolt came loose, I heard the engine make the tell-tale squealing sound, so I shut her off and had her flatbedded to the dealer. Some folks have had it happen while driving. You can potentially lose your power steering because the belt/ pulleys come unraveled, not to mention that it would make make a mess under the hood.

The "SERVICE TRACTION SYSTEM" problem was a nuisance because the car limits the engine power. It felt like I was driving a 4 cylinder until I could get to the shop.

The "SERVICE ACTIVE HANDLING" problem happened to me twice also. The first time was a faulty ABS sensor. The second time was a faulty steering position sensor.

The brake pad swap was actually a good thing. The old pads kicked off a ton of dust. The replacement pads, hardly any.

The roof panel thingy we've all had to deal with. Luckily. mine never separated. I just took it in for the foam adhesive maintenance.

The power steering hose replacement was a service bulletin issue. The steering would grind if you turned the wheel at idle. The old hose didn't generate enough pressure for the pump so this was replaced with an upgraded hose.

The seat issue was a complete re-upholster. The driver's side bolster had a spot which wore through from getting in and out of the car. The sad part is that the new seat cover is starting to wear in the same spot.

The thermometer sensor broke and the radio thermometer read a constant 35 degrees. It wasn't a big deal but I eventually got tired of seeing a constant "35" on the display.

You need to realize that each one of these issues is a 2 to 7 day shop time for the car. It can become a bit of a nuisance. I'm sure that with this power seat issue, the whole seat is going to have come out. This will probably be at least a 4 day shop visit.
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Best of luck on the repairs i bet you cant wait to get back on the road .
Well, the crank bolt was pretty serious. The front of the engine basically came off and my car spilled its guts/ oil onto the driveway the first time. Luckily, the second time the bolt came loose, I heard the engine make the tell-tale squealing sound, so I shut her off and had her flatbedded to the dealer. Some folks have had it happen while driving. You can potentially lose your power steering because the belt/ pulleys come unraveled, not to mention that it would make make a mess under the hood.

The "SERVICE TRACTION SYSTEM" problem was a nuisance because the car limits the engine power. It felt like I was driving a 4 cylinder until I could get to the shop.

The "SERVICE ACTIVE HANDLING" problem happened to me twice also. The first time was a faulty ABS sensor. The second time was a faulty steering position sensor.

The brake pad swap was actually a good thing. The old pads kicked off a ton of dust. The replacement pads, hardly any.

The roof panel thingy we've all had to deal with. Luckily. mine never separated. I just took it in for the foam adhesive maintenance.

The power steering hose replacement was a service bulletin issue. The steering would grind if you turned the wheel at idle. The old hose didn't generate enough pressure for the pump so this was replaced with an upgraded hose.

The seat issue was a complete re-upholster. The driver's side bolster had a spot which wore through from getting in and out of the car. The sad part is that the new seat cover is starting to wear in the same spot.

The thermometer sensor broke and the radio thermometer read a constant 35 degrees. It wasn't a big deal but I eventually got tired of seeing a constant "35" on the display.

You need to realize that each one of these issues is a 2 to 7 day shop time for the car. It can become a bit of a nuisance. I'm sure that with this power seat issue, the whole seat is going to have come out. This will probably be at least a 4 day shop visit.

I have only had a couple of issues with my car but your seat adjuster sounds like it will require a repair to the seat under carriage. They probably messed it up when they removed your seat to replace the seat cover. I have the seat wear problem. I am modifying the seat frame to eliminate in the future. The anchor bracket for the side air bag is the problem and since I don't have the side air bags, hello Mr, Dremel.

:cheers:
Well, the crank bolt was pretty serious. The front of the engine basically came off and my car spilled its guts/ oil onto the driveway the first time. Luckily, the second time the bolt came loose, I heard the engine make the tell-tale squealing sound, so I shut her off and had her flatbedded to the dealer. Some folks have had it happen while driving. You can potentially lose your power steering because the belt/ pulleys come unraveled, not to mention that it would make make a mess under the hood.

The "SERVICE TRACTION SYSTEM" problem was a nuisance because the car limits the engine power. It felt like I was driving a 4 cylinder until I could get to the shop.

The "SERVICE ACTIVE HANDLING" problem happened to me twice also. The first time was a faulty ABS sensor. The second time was a faulty steering position sensor.

The brake pad swap was actually a good thing. The old pads kicked off a ton of dust. The replacement pads, hardly any.

The roof panel thingy we've all had to deal with. Luckily. mine never separated. I just took it in for the foam adhesive maintenance.

The power steering hose replacement was a service bulletin issue. The steering would grind if you turned the wheel at idle. The old hose didn't generate enough pressure for the pump so this was replaced with an upgraded hose.

The seat issue was a complete re-upholster. The driver's side bolster had a spot which wore through from getting in and out of the car. The sad part is that the new seat cover is starting to wear in the same spot.

The thermometer sensor broke and the radio thermometer read a constant 35 degrees. It wasn't a big deal but I eventually got tired of seeing a constant "35" on the display.

You need to realize that each one of these issues is a 2 to 7 day shop time for the car. It can become a bit of a nuisance. I'm sure that with this power seat issue, the whole seat is going to have come out. This will probably be at least a 4 day shop visit.
Wow, you are really patient. I would be :WTF ! Glad you love the car so much and hope they finally get it sorted. :thumbsup:
Its just so dang fun to drive. I've never, ever, ever owned a car with so many little nuisance issues, but they just don't seem to bother me. As long as the warranty is there to cover things, I'm happy. I was pretty mad with the crank bolt issue, but Chevy stepped up and gave me the extended warranty coverage fro 100K miles. so I don't really worry about things breaking anymore. The only thing that concerns me a little bit is that my Carfax report is going to read like Tom Sizemore's rap sheet if I ever plan to sell/ trade the car.
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