RS3 left exhaust valve rattle DIY fix

[Micronaught]

Audi service is incapable of fixing an exhaust rattle in a car , with this painfully apparent after three trips there I decided to poke my head under and see myself what is impossible for them to diagnose and repair. It took me 5 seconds to locate the rattle (the flapper valve shaft ) and another 2 min to walk to my misc hardware drawer and slide a copper washer in between the top of the valve and the sprung loop that attaches to the electric actuator , one week in and no rattle at all.

This is most likely a temporary fix I’m sure till Audi pulls their collective heads out of their square asses and issues a corrective order , I’m sure that will be any day now.

[javbomb]

Audi service is incapable of fixing an exhaust rattle in a car , with this painfully apparent after three trips there I decided to poke my head under and see myself what is impossible for them to diagnose and repair. It took me 5 seconds to locate the rattle (the flapper valve shaft ) and another 2 min to walk to my misc hardware drawer and slide a copper washer in between the top of the valve and the sprung loop that attaches to the electric actuator , one week in and no rattle at all.

This is most likely a temporary fix I’m sure till Audi pulls their collective heads out of their square asses and issues a corrective order , I’m sure that will be any day now.

Step by step please!

Which bolts on the top do we need to remove to get that valve off?

I will do this. I was thinking a spring but a washer is just too good and easy to not try.

[Micronaught]

It’s three 10 mm bolts holding down the actuator , but I found the easy way is cutting a v in the copper washer and pushing up on the bottom flapper shaft , it lifts a couple mm enough to tap the washer around the top shaft ... job done.

[keninblaine]

Ironically, I just had the rear exhaust section replaced in my car to address this issue. When I drew my dealer's attention to the cold start buzzing while my car was in for the 10k mile servicing, they acknowledged it (I had to take car in the night before so they could witness the issue during cold start the next morning) and said that they couldn't order just the valve actuator separately and had to order the whole rear exhaust assembly. It came in a few weeks later and I had it installed 2 days ago. Problem seems to have gone away, at least for now. Will consider the above fix if it returns. Thanks to op for posting.

[Potatohead_RS3]

It puzzles me why they left so much play to begin with. Either to allow for (a lot of) thermal expansion or maybe for soot build up. Kind of weird.

[shivaswrath]

So you just shove a what size washer on there? Sorry I need a little more to help. This is awesome if it works!! I sound like an idiot in comfort mode.


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[saxon]

passenger side or drivers side?

[comingabriel]

If you cannot figure out the side, based on the pic alone, you don't know much about cars.

I do not have any noise in the rear. But, sometimes, I get a valve like tapping in the front (other vw cars have had a similar noise, wastegate actuator clip rattle), it goes away pretty quickly though.

Have yet looked into it, but never long enough to get a chance to open the hood and locate where it comes from.

Heard it in two other new RS3's prior to purchase, and R8 Tech says it is normal, so I never bothered. May look into it though.

[javbomb]

Rear left side...

I might have a look at this today.

Ive actually unplugged my valves and am really enjoying the added bass and sound.

[Micronaught]

Drivers side valve seems to be the only noisy one for what ever reason. I had a few washers in my junk drawer, the one that worked was aprox 5 mm inside diameter and 1.5cm outside , cut and bent slightly . copper seemed reasonable because it has a low unlubricated coefficient of friction , that and that’s what I had on hand 🙃

All this seems overly complicated for what effectively is. “Jam anything in it” I just watched a video from a BMW guy who has an even cooler idea that will work for us too ... haven’t tried it yet but seems like an option

https://youtu.be/fnDEnKAkdwU

[andru1313]

Drivers side valve seems to be the only noisy one for what ever reason. I had a few washers in my junk drawer, the one that worked was aprox 5 mm inside diameter and 1.5cm outside , cut and bent slightly . copper seemed reasonable because it has a low unlubricated coefficient of friction , that and that’s what I had on hand 🙃

All this seems overly complicated for what effectively is. “Jam anything in it” I just watched a video from a BMW guy who has an even cooler idea that will work for us too ... haven’t tried it yet but seems like an option

https://youtu.be/fnDEnKAkdwU

Interesting video. Would be curious if adding a lot more tension puts to much stress on the motor that opens and closes the valves.

[javbomb]

I just did this to my car, its a little fiddly to get the spring back in, but I managed to do the whole lot in about 15 minutes. Completely worth it to be rid of this issue.

I jacked the car up on that one side, and used a jack stand just to help. But the video outlines what you actually need to do very clearly and I can confirm our valve system is identical...

Here is after about 2 mins...



Here is the stretched spring. I actually had too much trouble getting this amount of stretch back in, so I pushed it back about 50% of the way between the pic above and where it is here, so as the video says aim for about 4mm, but personally I would do closer to 6 or 8 just to make sure you solve the problem...



Here is the video from last year of the dreaded full blown rattle just for a reminder:



And today, excuse the curious kid :)



I can assure you the issue is 100% fixed. there is ZERO noise coming from the valves. Any noise that is there now is coming from upstream, probably wastegate, I couldnt care less, this is DRASTICALLY fixed by my book.

Valve operates just as it did before, its instant and you can hear the valve opening and closing with zero difficulty, so I am not really worried about the little valve motor.

I actually have my valves disconnected anyway in the past week or so because I prefer the added sound. But I really wanted to fix this issue anyway, and I am really glad I did.

The small amount of raspiness you hear in the new video when I rev between modes is coming from the whole exhaust pipe upstream, so that's completely normal, and I confirmed the sound was coming out of both pipes, so that's definitely zero valve rattle.

[silvino]

Very nice! Thank you for documenting this fix.

[Skunkwerx]

Yes... thank you for the effort and explanation by both the OP Micronaught and Javbomb.

[shivaswrath]

I just did this to my car, its a little fiddly to get the spring back in, but I managed to do the whole lot in about 15 minutes. Completely worth it to be rid of this issue.

I jacked the car up on that one side, and used a jack stand just to help. But the video outlines what you actually need to do very clearly and I can confirm our valve system is identical...

Here is after about 2 mins...



Here is the stretched spring. I actually had too much trouble getting this amount of stretch back in, so I pushed it back about 50% of the way between the pic above and where it is here, so as the video says aim for about 4mm, but personally I would do closer to 6 or 8 just to make sure you solve the problem...



Here is the video from last year of the dreaded full blown rattle just for a reminder:



And today, excuse the curious kid :)



I can assure you the issue is 100% fixed. there is ZERO noise coming from the valves. Any noise that is there now is coming from upstream, probably wastegate, I couldnt care less, this is DRASTICALLY fixed by my book.

Valve operates just as it did before, its instant and you can hear the valve opening and closing with zero difficulty, so I am not really worried about the little valve motor.

I actually have my valves disconnected anyway in the past week or so because I prefer the added sound. But I really wanted to fix this issue anyway, and I am really glad I did.

The small amount of raspiness you hear in the new video when I rev between modes is coming from the whole exhaust pipe upstream, so that's completely normal, and I confirmed the sound was coming out of both pipes, so that's definitely zero valve rattle.

Brilliant thanks!!!!!


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[Micronaught]

OCD owners rejoice in this DIY! 😂 big fuckoff rattle. Now let’s see who gets the first TD1 for unauthorized modifications .lol

[comingabriel]

Wow, that noise woulda drove me nuts!!! No noise from my exhaust almost 1500 miles now, thank God.

Ive actually unplugged my valves and am really enjoying the added bass and sound.

Any dash light(s) come on unplugged?

[javbomb]

Wow, that noise woulda drove me nuts!!! No noise from my exhaust almost 1500 miles now, thank God.



Any dash light(s) come on unplugged?

Nope. All good here. There are error codes when scanned though.

I havent actually noticed any power drop if there is any, this is the second time Ive done this, the first time I thought I did notice a power drop, but now im not so sure, it feels the same, but the theatre of the exhaust is now a zillion times better and it makes MUCH better pops and bangs because the flaps are fully open when it does it between 2-3k rpm.

All you gotta do to do it properly is order the valve termination plugs and then no error codes.

[comingabriel]

I am curious, I put in an AWE DP with the 200cell cat, on the stock Golf R and tune, and there was power, even with flaps fulltime open...
How do I know? Because, when I took it off, it was slow as .... after.
Slower in feeling than when I removed my JB4, and had the AWE turboback on a stock tune.
Side note: JB4 is all I want with a quality DP, but not this crap stage 1+ tune.

Wonder, how much more power would be had if a stock RS3 with a quality 200 cell cat DP would yeild, or how would it respond with flaps open always.

[saxon]

Nope. All good here. There are error codes when scanned though.

I havent actually noticed any power drop if there is any, this is the second time Ive done this, the first time I thought I did notice a power drop, but now im not so sure, it feels the same, but the theatre of the exhaust is now a zillion times better and it makes MUCH better pops and bangs because the flaps are fully open when it does it between 2-3k rpm.

All you gotta do to do it properly is order the valve termination plugs and then no error codes.

stock tune does drop power when unplugged FYI

[javbomb]

stock tune does drop power when unplugged FYI

Due to error codes pulling timing?

Or due to no flaps itself?

If we are referencing that german youtube video, I don't think they tested with valve termination plugs.

[Micronaught]

I noticed the flaps closed on their own when I unplugged them today , and I Made sure they were open as I disconnected the . Would be easy to wire them open I guess , but I wasn’t feeling the unregulated drone that active valves mitigate .

[javbomb]

I noticed the flaps closed on their own when I unplugged them today , and I Made sure they were open as I disconnected the . Would be easy to wire them open I guess , but I wasn’t feeling the unregulated drone that active valves mitigate .

Mine have definitely stayed open since I did it.

I noticed a good time to unplug them to ensure they are both open, put the car in Dynamic mode but in P.

When you go to D or S the flaps will close. I confirmed tghis by looking at the actuators themselves and they both were open, so we can also put to bed any theory that one of the valves is shut and the other is open until X amount of RPM. At least if you do it this way they are both fully open when you disconnect the plugs.

Before that, I used to unplug them really quickly on a cold start, no need. Also if the car is in dynamic in P then I also noticed if you just turn off the engine, the flaps will stay open, so that probably works too.

[seanix9]

Due to error codes pulling timing?

Or due to no flaps itself?

If we are referencing that german youtube video, I don't think they tested with valve termination plugs.

Hi,
I disconnected the exhaust plugs on my PFL rs3 and noticed a loss in power. A few others have reported the same so I wasn’t alone .. lol
There is a fair bit of drone as well when doing this. But I must admit it sounded a lot better.

You are probably just used to how ur car drives now, try reconnecting the plugs and see if u notice the difference.

[javbomb]

Hi,
I disconnected the exhaust plugs on my PFL rs3 and noticed a loss in power. A few others have reported the same so I wasn’t alone .. lol
There is a fair bit of drone as well when doing this. But I must admit it sounded a lot better.

You are probably just used to how ur car drives now, try reconnecting the plugs and see if u notice the difference.

Yeah that's why I don't think it was affecting my car, precisely because I immediately took it for a test drive and did launches. When I first did the mod I had thought I lost power but it was summer then and I'm now convinced I was experiencing heat soak. Now that it's colder my car feels just the same as before but now it sounds better.

I like the noise.

In any case, the termination plugs will probably solve any issue of the car pulling timing, which is possible due to logged error codes relating to the valves.

[seanix9]

Yeah that's why I don't think it was affecting my car, precisely because I immediately took it for a test drive and did launches. When I first did the mod I had thought I lost power but it was summer then and I'm now convinced I was experiencing heat soak. Now that it's colder my car feels just the same as before but now it sounds better.

I like the noise.

In any case, the termination plugs will probably solve any issue of the car pulling timing, which is possible due to logged error codes relating to the valves.

Did u get the termination plugs? The ones from the UK?
The supplier wasn’t sure if they were compatible with the Au cars. They definitely don’t work on the US cars I was advised.
I did some resistance checks on the plugs but couldn’t get any consistent read outs. Therefore the supplier couldn’t confirm compatibility.
Let me know if you are using them as I think I know the ones u are referring to.
Cheers

[javbomb]

Did u get the termination plugs? The ones from the UK?
The supplier wasn’t sure if they were compatible with the Au cars. They definitely don’t work on the US cars I was advised.
I did some resistance checks on the plugs but couldn’t get any consistent read outs. Therefore the supplier couldn’t confirm compatibility.
Let me know if you are using them as I think I know the ones u are referring to.
Cheers

Haven't ordered yet, now I'm hesitant to ha

[saxon]

Do not listen to that.... about losing power.
He vomits what others tell him.
He could bot decipher which side that valve was on, from the 1st pic, tells you enough.

I've asked you before and I'll ask again

Don't talk about me, quote me or even mention me in any if your posts. BIPOLAR medicine works wonders

[saxon]

Due to error codes pulling timing?

Or due to no flaps itself?

If we are referencing that german youtube video, I don't think they tested with valve termination plugs.

The car will have a soft code, I forget if it's timing or boost but I do know it will reduce power on the stock file .

I'm unsure if tuners are removing this with their tunes

[XMetal]

Thanks for the detailed DIY.

Do you know if the valve (flap) itself is "free floating" when left disconnected from the actuator? Or is it forced open or closed when left unattached to the actuator? The reason I'm asking is that if the valve is forced open when left unattached, then I can just take out that "spring attachment" and keep the actuator connected to the car so it thinks the valves are still functioning as intended while the actual valves are always open - a poor man's way of having the valves always open without throwing out any codes?

I just did this to my car, its a little fiddly to get the spring back in, but I managed to do the whole lot in about 15 minutes. Completely worth it to be rid of this issue.

I jacked the car up on that one side, and used a jack stand just to help. But the video outlines what you actually need to do very clearly and I can confirm our valve system is identical...

Here is after about 2 mins...



Here is the stretched spring. I actually had too much trouble getting this amount of stretch back in, so I pushed it back about 50% of the way between the pic above and where it is here, so as the video says aim for about 4mm, but personally I would do closer to 6 or 8 just to make sure you solve the problem...



Here is the video from last year of the dreaded full blown rattle just for a reminder:



And today, excuse the curious kid :)



I can assure you the issue is 100% fixed. there is ZERO noise coming from the valves. Any noise that is there now is coming from upstream, probably wastegate, I couldnt care less, this is DRASTICALLY fixed by my book.

Valve operates just as it did before, its instant and you can hear the valve opening and closing with zero difficulty, so I am not really worried about the little valve motor.

I actually have my valves disconnected anyway in the past week or so because I prefer the added sound. But I really wanted to fix this issue anyway, and I am really glad I did.

The small amount of raspiness you hear in the new video when I rev between modes is coming from the whole exhaust pipe upstream, so that's completely normal, and I confirmed the sound was coming out of both pipes, so that's definitely zero valve rattle.

[javbomb]

Thanks for the detailed DIY.

Do you know if the valve (flap) itself is "free floating" when left disconnected from the actuator? Or is it forced open or closed when left unattached to the actuator? The reason I'm asking is that if the valve is forced open when left unattached, then I can just take out that "spring attachment" and keep the actuator connected to the car so it thinks the valves are still functioning as intended while the actual valves are always open - a poor man's way of having the valves always open without throwing out any codes?

It's very loose and free floating. You need the spring in there connected to the actuator.

[saxon]

It's very loose and free floating. You need the spring in there connected to the actuator.

you could always remove the spring and use safety wire to "tie" the valve open. this would allow the actuators to still be bolted in and connected for power etc

[javbomb]

you could always remove the spring and use safety wire to "tie" the valve open. this would allow the actuators to still be bolted in and connected for power etc

I feel like that will not put enough pressure on the valve and cause rattling in on itself.

The reason my rattling is gone is because the pressure is far higher on the valve pushing downwards, when its not connected to the actuator its very light and there is a lot of play and movement.

[XMetal]

you could always remove the spring and use safety wire to "tie" the valve open. this would allow the actuators to still be bolted in and connected for power etc

This is actually a great idea. I may have to see if I can come up with something to "tie" it open.

[saxon]

This is actually a great idea. I may have to see if I can come up with something to "tie" it open.

Use safety wire and lock it in correctly and I don't think the valve will move at all

https://youtu.be/oXS8uv1QZQo

[WAF]

I've asked you before and I'll ask again

Don't talk about me, quote me or even mention me in any if your posts. BIPOLAR medicine works wonders

No kidding sure has a good stock of i know everything medicine though. It's a known fact that there is a power loss when valves are unplugged.

[VR6Nikopol]

New guy here...he he he,

Last summer, when I took delivery of my RS3, I immediately notice the exhaust valve/flapper noise coming from the driver's side. Brought the car back to the dealer and they located the noise and informed me they would replace the exhaust under warranty - which as done a few months later in September. This solved the problem. With warmer temperatures in May (windows open) I could hear the rattle had come back (different side). This week I was due for my first service therefore asked them to look at it again. Told the service guy that if they wanted to replace my exhaust again I would make sure it has been modified since I had no confidence it would solve the problem on the long run. Guess what? What warrantied a full replacement last year is considered "normal" now. Service said: "we checked the Demo and it does the same thing so this is normal". Really?!? That's your scientific approach? Told the service guy if this is RS normal, I will go aftermarket as soon as I can. Someone was talking about Bipolar: the RS3 exhaust IS bipolar! Raspy Civic Rice on startup and in Comfort and glorious RS in Dynamic and fully warm exhaust.... Oh well....

[saxon]

New guy here...he he he,

Last summer, when I took delivery of my RS3, I immediately notice the exhaust valve/flapper noise coming from the driver's side. Brought the car back to the dealer and they located the noise and informed me they would replace the exhaust under warranty - which as done a few months later in September. This solved the problem. With warmer temperatures in May (windows open) I could hear the rattle had come back (different side). This week I was due for my first service therefore asked them to look at it again. Told the service guy that if they wanted to replace my exhaust again I would make sure it has been modified since I had no confidence it would solve the problem on the long run. Guess what? What warrantied a full replacement last year is considered "normal" now. Service said: "we checked the Demo and it does the same thing so this is normal". Really?!? That's your scientific approach? Told the service guy if this is RS normal, I will go aftermarket as soon as I can. Someone was talking about Bipolar: the RS3 exhaust IS bipolar! Raspy Civic Rice on startup and in Comfort and glorious RS in Dynamic and fully warm exhaust.... Oh well....

Do the mod shown above to the spring, that seems to be fixing the issue or at least making it better

[brotherssavage]

Use safety wire and lock it in correctly and I don't think the valve will move at all

https://youtu.be/oXS8uv1QZQo

Thanks for this. Now I've just watched over 2 hours of youtube videos on lockwire and want to use it on anything and everything. I find it mesmerizing.

[woax]

Hi

is there a fix for the "rattle". I mean the first 30 sec cold start rattle, which seems that nobody knows why and where the rattle comes from.

Why is not in D or S to hear? Does anybody now, where the "2nd rattle" comes from exactly?

Does anybody have an RS FL which does not rattle at cold start?

regards