audi a4 1996 cant find replacement head gasket

hi all..very new to this so please be patient if i muck
up..lol..anyway i'm trying to help the hubby..his timing belt went in
the car and he left it to get fixed..was about to get it back when the
mechanic noticed oil and water mixing..turned out the head gasket he
purchased didnt fit right..so went to an audi dealer and he typed in
all details and the picture showed up the right gasket..ordered it but
it was the same gasket as had been sent before..now audi is as baffled
with this as we are..for some reason the gasket is not fitting
properly..the holes arent matching..the old gasket was an original
audi gasket..cant do anything until after easter but we have been
without the car nearly a month now trying to get the right gasket..has
anyone come across this problem and if so any info is greatly
appreciated...Tracey

> wrote in message
ps.com...
> hi all..very new to this so please be patient if i muck
> up..lol..anyway i'm trying to help the hubby..his timing belt went in
> the car and he left it to get fixed..was about to get it back when the
> mechanic noticed oil and water mixing..turned out the head gasket he
> purchased didnt fit right..so went to an audi dealer and he typed in
> all details and the picture showed up the right gasket..ordered it but
> it was the same gasket as had been sent before..now audi is as baffled
> with this as we are..for some reason the gasket is not fitting
> properly..the holes arent matching..the old gasket was an original
> audi gasket..cant do anything until after easter but we have been
> without the car nearly a month now trying to get the right gasket..has
> anyone come across this problem and if so any info is greatly
> appreciated...Tracey
>
Did you purchase the car new? Any chance the engine was replaced with a
different spec engine? I know that isn't likely but it could happen. Parts
such as gaskets are sometimes supplied from a variety of manufacturers,
could be that an incorrect one was mislabled. I'd expect Audi to have a
pretty well-documented supply chain, perhaps the engine was part of an
in-model specification change. That's sure happened before. Find a parts
person willing to do some research on the issue. Lots of times I've
purchased parts from an authorized dealer and they swear it's the right
part, though it obviously isn't what came with the car from the factory.
When they look into it they usually find that it was an in-line change they
were unaware of. Engine ID number should lead them in the right direction.

Alan

I THINK YOU SHOULD PROBABLY CHECK WITH A MECHANIC ON THAT ONE

> wrote in message
ps.com...
> hi all..very new to this so please be patient if i muck
> up..lol..anyway i'm trying to help the hubby..his timing belt went in
> the car and he left it to get fixed..was about to get it back when the
> mechanic noticed oil and water mixing..turned out the head gasket he
> purchased didnt fit right..so went to an audi dealer and he typed in
> all details and the picture showed up the right gasket..ordered it but
> it was the same gasket as had been sent before..now audi is as baffled
> with this as we are..for some reason the gasket is not fitting
> properly..the holes arent matching..the old gasket was an original
> audi gasket..cant do anything until after easter but we have been
> without the car nearly a month now trying to get the right gasket..has
> anyone come across this problem and if so any info is greatly
> appreciated...Tracey
>



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On 7 Apr, 17:10, "wtrplnet" > wrote:
> > wrote in message
>
> ps.com...> hi all..very new to this so please be patient if i muck
> > up..lol..anyway i'm trying to help the hubby..his timing belt went in
> > the car and he left it to get fixed..was about to get it back when the
> > mechanic noticed oil and water mixing..turned out the head gasket he
> > purchased didnt fit right..so went to an audi dealer and he typed in
> > all details and the picture showed up the right gasket..ordered it but
> > it was the same gasket as had been sent before..now audi is as baffled
> > with this as we are..for some reason the gasket is not fitting
> > properly..the holes arent matching..the old gasket was an original
> > audi gasket..cant do anything until after easter but we have been
> > without the car nearly a month now trying to get the right gasket..has
> > anyone come across this problem and if so any info is greatly
> > appreciated...Tracey
>
> Did you purchase the car new? Any chance the engine was replaced with a
> different spec engine? I know that isn't likely but it could happen. Parts
> such as gaskets are sometimes supplied from a variety of manufacturers,
> could be that an incorrect one was mislabled. I'd expect Audi to have a
> pretty well-documented supply chain, perhaps the engine was part of an
> in-model specification change. That's sure happened before. Find a parts
> person willing to do some research on the issue. Lots of times I've
> purchased parts from an authorized dealer and they swear it's the right
> part, though it obviously isn't what came with the car from the factory.
> When they look into it they usually find that it was an in-line change they
> were unaware of. Engine ID number should lead them in the right direction.
>
> Alan

hi alan..no it was second hand but the guy who owned it worked for
audi...we have actually managed to track down the gasket we need but
its in america so we are going to print out the details and website
and see if audi can check into it for us..its just nice to know the
part actually exists now..lol..we were going demented trying to figure
it out...audi actually said a digit had been changed thats why the
wrong gasket was being sent..but even they are baffled after putting
in the new digit code the wrong part still comes through..but fingers
crossed we can get it sorted...cheers for all the help