Possibly a failed timing chain tensioner? It sounds sort of similar to this video (explanation in the comments):

 

They sure do sound similar. Tensioner and belt is a breeze and not costly

 

Per the video, I think this is the metal timing chain at the rear of the motor, not a belt. Parts should be cheap but it's a difficult area to access I think.

 

Thanks guys. I have a few days (!!!!) of Dieselgate warranty left, so I will probably just flat bed this into the dealer, hoping it has something that is covered still. I'll have to prove my purchase date somehow since I'm slightly past 4 years since the emissions modifications themselves.

Unfortunately, it looks like timing chain issues may not be covered by the warranty. Looking at the AUDI parts list on here, it doesn't mention it, but the VW pamphlet is more vague saying the following:

"Additionally, the engine long block warranty shall cover the engine sub-assembly that consists of the assembled block, crankshaft, cylinder head, camshaft, and valve train."

 

Look at injector deviations at idle.
Look at your chain adjustment value
If neither shows anything of concern, take the accessory belt off and fire it that way to eliminate all ancillary stuff.

 

Thanks Soot. I don't think there is a chain adjustment value on this engine ('09 CATA), but here are the injector deviations:

Deviations for cylinders 1-6 (cold idle): -1.84, -1.79, -1.55, 2.02, 1.60, 1.36

Here are warm idle deviations from a few months ago, before this problem:
0.38, -0.38, 0.14, 0.33, -0.28, -0.33

This does seem to indicate a left/right imbalance, any idea how to interpret it?

 

That doesn't look good, cam timing out on one bank?

 

It's the long block and anything that directly impacts it..or words to that effect. Typically you need an MIL to get their attention but who knows especially w a pronounced metallic sound. Keep in mind belt and tepensioner are probably normal wear and tear so Soots suggestion to remove the belt to eliminate it as a cause, is sound advice.

Note also that your warranty start date is viewable online and that the dealer can easily pull it up AND if your vehicle is a buyback the warranty start date is likely to be later than the actual fix date per the sticker

 

I would suggest you pull warm value deviations since you already have a "baseline" from a few months ago.

Since you say you're not experiencing power loss, I'm skeptical that it's engine related. This is why I'm suggesting eliminating the belt driven stuff.

 

I slipped off the serpentine belt and that didn't stop the noise. The sound seems louder from the drivers side, so I'm strongly leaning towards it being the drivers side cam timing chain tensioner. Although, a search on here suggests a failing throttle valve can cause a similar noise to this also?

I am not sure what the risk of additional damage is from running it, so I am reluctant to warm it up or drive it anywhere. I am just going to flat bed tow it to the dealer, given the warranty coverage still in place... and will see what they think.

 

The value you are looking for is Camshaft adaptation intake bank 1. I'll be interested to know what yours is since aside from that, these symptoms are nearly identical to ours during act one of it's recent demise.

• Noise is the same
• Noise onset was sudden
• Noise present without accessory belt
• Subjectively normal power
• Subjectively normal fuel economy
• Similar injector deviation profile
• Correlated to engine speed but not an even multiple
• No MIL, no fault codes

It hasn't been opened up yet so the diagnosis and extent of damage is unconfirmed but the consensus theory is timing jump due to either significant chain wear or some internal failure (i.e. tensioner).

I am reluctant to warm it up or drive it anywhere.

Probably a wise choice.

 

The value you are looking for is Camshaft adaptation intake bank 1. I'll be interested to know what yours is since aside from that, these symptoms are nearly identical to ours during act one of it's recent demise.

That sounds really bad, sorry that happened to you. I am definitely going to flat tow to the dealership.

I am fairly sure T2 models don't have any camshaft adaptation values, I think it's only a T3 thing and/or the newer engine design. I looked through the entire list carefully in VCDS and there is nothing cam related.

 

Sounds like it could be rod knock but you say no change with varying RPM

I thought May be serpentine belt or pulleys, but removing belt doesn't fix it

Next guess would indeed be tensioner, which can be pulled from vagcom

Also those injector deviations do appear off, but varying RPM should change the noise also

Tensioner?

 

That sounds really bad, sorry that happened to you. I am definitely going to flat tow to the dealership.

Thanks, it's certainly a drag and an outcome that could maybe have been avoided had the dealership been more proactive when we first brought it in. Hopefully you can avoid the same fate and they'll cover it under the warranty.

I am fairly sure T2 models don't have any camshaft adaptation values, I think it's only a T3 thing and/or the newer engine design. I looked through the entire list carefully in VCDS and there is nothing cam related.

Perhaps different firmware then since they are both CATA.

 

The controllers are different... newer controllers\software report way more values, etc.

 

I had it towed to the dealer a week ago. The dealer said they are going to have VW corporate contact me about the situation instead of having the tech report to me... it seems they think the engine needs total replacement and want to try to buy it back from me. I'm still trying to get details on what they think might be the actual problem.

 

Update: they said they don't really know anything, but asked VW for approval to remove the engine and tear it down, to see what is going on. According to the dealer, it can take up to to 14 days for VW to reply to requests like that.

I suspect the video LCtoTouareg posted above is exactly what is going on with mine, because the sound seems to be coming from the rear drivers side of the engine. Interesting that in the comments they said they could access the tensioner without pulling the engine. However, if the dealer wants to pull the engine, and this turns out to be the problem, I will push for having the entire timing chain system replaced, along with the front and rear main seals while the engine is out anyways.

I also wasn't able to get a loaner car, but they said if I rent one on my own, they will reimburse the cost.

 

I suspect the video LCtoTouareg posted above is exactly what is going on with mine, because the sound seems to be coming from the rear drivers side of the engine. Interesting that in the comments they said they could access the tensioner without pulling the engine. However, if the dealer wants to pull the engine, and this turns out to be the problem, I will push for having the entire timing chain system replaced, along with the front and rear main seals while the engine is out anyways.

Bummer man, sorry to hear that. I can see why the dealer would want to pull the engine. Even if it's possible to get to that one tensioner, they probably have to inspect the entire chain system to verify the extent of the damage.

I also wasn't able to get a loaner car, but they said if I rent one on my own, they will reimburse the cost.

I'd push back on paying for your own loaner. If something goes wrong and there is a disagreement or VW decides not to cover whatever the issue is, you'll be SOL. I've gotten to sample a variety of Atlases, Tiguans, and even a GTI once for dieselgate warranty work, but twice VW has sent me to Enterprise. The first time, the dealer had my car for 10 weeks. After 30 days, Enterprise called and said the rental contract needed to be closed and re-issued because it had exceeded the maximum rental period. I called the dealer and the service advisor said they couldn't run it through warranty until the repair was complete and told me to pick up the tab and they would reimburse. I then left a voicemail for the general manager explaining the situation and asked for a meeting. 10 minutes later, the service advisor called back and said they would cover the rental. If the repair or engine replacement takes weeks or months, you'll end up putting thousands $$$ on your credit card before hopefully being reimbursed.

 

Thanks! The reimbursement they were offering isn't enough to cover a bay area rental anyways. They said they will put me in the next loaner that comes back in.

 

Update: VW corporate called yesterday and made a buyback offer of under $7k, which I refused. They told me that they aren't allowed to negotiate, but use a 3rd party value book for buyback offers based on year/mileage. They said it "needs a new engine" and since I refused the buyback, they are going to authorize replacing the whole engine. They still won't give any diagnostic details, but I suspect they don't really have any idea anyways. I do have a free FWD Atlas loaner in the meantime.

I've asked a few times for them to put my Touareg on a battery charger to save the battery, and am not sure if they have done so. However, last I visited, they did have my Touareg stored indoors at the dealership, which I appreciate.

I am hoping that with the new engine, they will let me spend some extra money to have most of the wear items attached to the new engine replaced, rather than moved over. I especially want to have new coolant system components on the new engine. Maybe even get the alternator and starter rebuilt while the engine is out, etc.

Anyone have suggestions for what else I should do with the engine out? I'm not sure what a "new engine" includes... would it be a long block with all attached accessories, or just the bare block and heads? IDK.

 

Sounded like rod knock to me

I think it should be a new long block but not positive!

Alternators don't go bad in these really and neither do starters but I reckon you could throw oem in there and never worry about it again

 

Glad to hear it's getting covered. These buyback offers defy logic. "Here's our offer and we won't negotiate. You don't like it? Fine. We'll spend more than double that to repair your car."

 

These buyback offers defy logic.

In modern business people "follow the rules" and "protocol" without thinking because it protects them from personally getting in trouble. It's not their money so they don't really care about that. It reduces them to basically computer software- faithfully executing instructions without regard to if those instructions make any sense. It's infuriating dealing with people like this... but nearly universal.

They said the new engine is on backorder with no ETA. What I really have here is a free forever lease on an Atlas rather than a warranty on my Touareg 🤣 If VW is smart (but they're not, I think that's been established) they would have kept around a big stock of new CATA engines somewhere in a wearhouse in Germany, knowing they would need them for these warranties.

 

The dealer tells me they have ordered the following parts:

short block, both cylinder heads with all gaskets, bolts, nuts, washers, injection pump, turbo-charger, oil lines, thermostat, water pump , timing chain, all tensioners

I'm very surprised they're doing both the injection pump and the turbo. The turbo is brand new, installed by them just last year.

 

Parts cannon also works at the dealership...... just sayin...

 

If they want to replace everything in the engine bay over a mystery clicking noise it's fine by me. It probably just needs a plastic timing chain guide 🤣

 

SHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!

 

After 4 months of sitting I got to go visit the Gup-T (what my son calls the Touareg, a reference to a kids cartoon) to get some gear for an overlanding trip in a loaner vehicle, and was pleasantly surprised to see they are still storing it indoors, although still no info about getting an engine block. The battery is 100% dead and we had to jump it to lock/unlock it to get my gear out. I had moved this overlanding trip from Feb to April in hopes of doing it in the Gup-T, but it's not going to happen. I also added a dehumidifer to the interior for storage.

At some point I will call VW Customer Care and ask for some info on the engine situation. They should be able to at least say something about the cause for the holdup.

 

All of the parts are in, and the dealership is building my new CATA engine. I ended up ordering some additional parts at the parts counter to replace in the process. I can't wait to get my Touareg back!