AGR Connector Wear: Leaky Charge Air Cooler

Hello everyone,

I recently discovered a leak in the intercooler system on my car. It's particularly noticeable at the EGR inlet, specifically on the 90-degree angled flexible hose. There's a significant amount of oil mist visible there. Upon closer inspection, it's clear why: the hose clamp is so worn that the entire hose section, from the intercooler outlet to the EGR, is causing the connection piece of the pressure hose at the EGR inlet to tilt downwards due to its weight and leverage. There's already considerable play, causing the connector to noticeably tilt downwards. This prevents the O-ring in the EGR flange from sealing properly. Due to the relative movement of the engine, there's already noticeable material wear on the hose clamp and even on the EGR flange itself. On the outer collar of the hose clamp, where the hose begins, almost all of the "centering bumps" in the soft material have been worn away.

I will therefore replace the pressure hose sometime this week; there's already an improved version available, and it seems VW has also realized what a piece of junk the original one is. Hopefully, the new, larger sealing rings (part number 3C0...) will compensate for the tolerances, otherwise, I might also need a new AGR valve in the end.

As a temporary solution, I twisted the pressure hose to the right on the plastic pipe leading to the cooling system, so that it puts some tension on the EGR clamp and prevents the connector from tilting downwards. After the drive this morning, everything still looked good.

Has anyone else noticed this, or am I the only one experiencing this with my ASZ?

P.S.:
Who on earth came up with the idea of installing the hose clamp on the plastic pipe with its attachment point for the pliers pointing directly downwards? You inevitably have to painstakingly thread the entire section of pipe, all the way to the connection point, using your fingers to get the hose off.

Hi Roger,

"It looks similar for me too; we briefly discussed it once. I noticed it when I felt something was about to come loose, and suddenly I had this gray-black liquid on my hand. In my case, the clamp, or rather its retaining tabs, had worn down slightly, which caused the leak. Since that incident bothered me and the hose isn't cheap, I decided to try a makeshift solution with a second, slit gasket and some Teflon tape. It's not a proper fix, but it's been perfectly leak-proof for several thousand kilometers."
Another problem at that location was that the hose was always pushed slightly towards the fender as soon as there was boost pressure, and that also led to aluminum wear in my case. The design is absolutely weak, you're right, and it's certainly not an isolated case... unfortunately.

"If you get the new part and think it's good, would you please post the part number, the price, and anything else that might be of interest to me and others? I'm planning to replace the timing belt soon anyway, so I can take care of it then."

Hi,

I can tell you the price now: it was 31.xx € for the hose plus 3.xx € for the seal.
It didn't just rub off the nose, but also the centering and more. Now everything is completely loose in the coupling, it's really a disgrace.

If there were just a simple clamp there instead, this problem certainly wouldn't exist.
I'm hoping for a better performance from the modified hose, and I'll report back on the results.

Okay, thanks for the price. I'll stick with my current workaround for now. I'm glad I discovered this issue early enough to find a solution. Let me know what's changed when you get the new version; I'd be interested to hear about it.

'This problem isn't just limited to the ASZ; my AXR also has a new hose, and it's exhibiting the exact same symptoms.'
However, the O-ring was already installed when I purchased it.
The new hose looked identical. It probably hasn't undergone any significant improvements or changes. It's possible that the material has become slightly harder.

Hello,

Today I received the hose and installed it right away. It has a clearly visible fabric reinforcement in the rubber, and the seat of the sealing ring seems to have a slightly larger diameter to ensure a better fit. The ring itself is black instead of green.

The rear collar of the flange looks exactly the same; it doesn't appear to have been modified. By the way, if the hose can't bend as much, the quick-connect coupling will also wear down less. So, during assembly, make sure the hose has a slight pre-tension by twisting it slightly to the right on the plastic pipe.

Meanwhile, I change the hose without removing the engine cover .

Is there any way to fix the nose without having to go straight to a hobby shop?

I'm not really into repairs of this kind (my motto is more "buy new and be done with it"), but when it comes to spending around 100€ on a few intercooler hose parts, you start to think about it...

Hi,
If you don't want to separate them often / at all anymore:
Sealant, permanently elastic, and the LL section is actually sealed. I did it myself, Fred has information about it: /viewtopic.php?t=12772&highlight=llk, and I had to separate it once. It worked, but it was very annoying.
Typically, you rarely or never need to access that part.
haithamina

michiglaser wrote:

Is there any wayto repair the nose, without having to go directly to a craft store? . . . I'm not really into repairs of this kind (my motto is more like "buy new and be done with it"), but when it comes to a few intercooler piping parts costing around €100, you start to think...

How do you get something broken working again without tinkering, if the ET prices are too high??

As far as I know, there isn't any fertilizer available yet that can help aluminum parts regrow.

I would insert short sheet metal screws through the hose and the inner part of the aluminum fitting, tighten them securely, and then only modify the screw heads so that they just fit snugly into the recesses.

Thank you for the tips about the reinforced hose connections.
I can definitely use that tip now.
Yesterday, while driving on the highway, I heard that familiar "pop" sound, and then everything stopped working.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance because there was an accident at the bottom of the LLK.
It's great that organizations like the ADAC and towing services exist.
I'm not going to repair it. I'm going to have a new part installed.
Exactly because you can get there so easily.

Best regards,
Jörg

Also, you should buy new straps as well, not just the hose.

Okay, then it probably won't matter anymore. Thanks for the tip.
Why actually?
The braces seem sturdy.

Best regards,
Jörg

The splints wear down at the points where the retaining tabs are located; when they are new, they have sharp edges.

Oh, I ordered the clips at the same time. They should cost around €1 to €1.50 each.
The parts will arrive tomorrow morning.
However, the parts specialist at Seat couldn't tell me whether those were improved hoses.
He just meant that they would always receive the latest versions under the part numbers.
Well, I'm hoping for the best.

Best regards,
Jörg

Roger wrote:

If the hose can no longer bend as much, the quick-connect coupling will also wear less. Therefore, during assembly, make sure that the hose has minimal pre-tension by slightly rotating it clockwise on the plastic pipe.

To prevent the hose flanges from wobbling in the clip mounts, I wrap the aluminum parts on the hose side, behind the locking tabs, with enough fabric tape so that the last section can only be inserted with some effort.
It has been working for several years on Polo and Ibiza models (even on the hot compressor outlet) and has not caused any problems so far .

Just take two cable ties and then attach them in a criss-cross fashion. 1 minute - and you're done .