Tinny rattle coming from exhaust area
 

For the past few weeks on cold starts in the mornings I've been hearing a metallic rattle coming from the back of the car. It only seems to happen on cold starts and if I pull away slowly. Once the engine and exhaust is warmed up, I don't seem to hear it. It doesn't get faster or louder as the car accelerates, so it's nothing rotational, just maybe something loose and vibrating.

I assume it's the exhaust because I put the suspension in 'lift' mode, started the car then shot round to the back and stuck my head underneath to try and hear where the rattle is coming from but didn't have much luck! :-( It sounds like it might be coming from just before the rear silencers but I can't be sure.

Anybody have any ideas? :Confused:

could possibly be the silencer starting to fail and break up internally?

If that's the case then it's a good excuse to take them out :cool:

check all your pulleys for movement sometimes they can do that for a short period if they have any play also have you checked all brackets for clearance and brake disc backing plates etc? might be something thats loose until things warm up

I had one of the tinfoil style ally exhaust heat-shields partially break loose on another Audi I had and this give the exact same symptoms... tinny rattling at tick over rpm and then vanished at anything over 1200rpm... I think the local independent I used at the time said it was unrepairable as it had sheared the securing screw off in the bodywork due to corrosion, so they added a ty-wrap or self tapper and it didn't rattle again..... could be something along those lines anyway. :Confused:

Problem solved

After having straight pipes fitted yesterday, the whole exhaust system obviously has to be dropped down to be worked on. When it all put back in place everything must have been tightened up.

If the rattle was coming from the broken up silencers, they are now completely gone, and I got under the car and checked the thin pressed metal heat shields that surrounds the exhaust at the back, and there is absolutely no play anywhere in it.