My car is eating alternator belts!!

[ASC]

Actually I don't have an undertray. I did think about that but I don't think I've actually had the car out in the wet yet. It's not a daily so it's only fine weather it gets out.
Saying that though it's not being protected by stones and other road debris.
Question - Exactly what parts are involved with the belt? Alternator, crank pulley, tensioner? Is that it? The Indy reckons there is another smaller pulley that is fitted to certain engines but not fitted to some others. Apparently there is a bolt hole for this pulley but the pulley is not there?

[moondog01]

Theres also an idler pulley above the tensioner on the drive. Uses same type bearing. Idler pulley also same size/part number as tensioner pulley. All RS4 BNS code engines should have the idler pulley on them.

[ASC]

Thanks Moondog. Excuse my ignorance.. Is that the only engine code for RS4's? Were there any engine other codes that didn't have this pulley?

[moondog01]

As far as im aware there was only the one engine version fitted to RS4s - the BNS. Possibly different for the American market? Someone else may know. The BAR version with lower output fitted to the Q7. Unsure of version used for the first R8s. BAR and BNS versions both have identical idler pulley design.

[audi_do_dat_den]

As moondog says, im certain there is only one engine type from 2006 to 2008.
The pic shows the pulley setup on these engines.
If there was an idler missing, the belt may be running too loose and eventually glaze up and fail.

[Ellis]

Yup looks like pulley arrangement is the same on both variants...

[ASC]

Thanks lads, great info as usual!

Pulley and bracket on order, hopefully back up and running next week. Currently looking for an engine under tray, £180 from steelers!

Thanks

[PetrolDave]

Currently looking for an engine under tray, £180 from steelers!

Make sure you get an RS4 one with the brake cooling ducts, some sellers try to pass off the A4 version (which doesn't have them) as suitable for the RS4.

[ASC]

Currently looking for an engine under tray, £180 from steelers!

Make sure you get an RS4 one with the brake cooling ducts, some sellers try to pass off the A4 version (which doesn't have them) as suitable for the RS4.

Noted thanks.

That's the car now fitted with the idler pulley, Christ knows how this wasn't spotted months and hundreds of pounds ago.. Never mind.. Hopefully no more vanishing belts.

[MikeFish]

Was this ever fixed or are you still suffering?

[ASC]

Was this ever fixed or are you still suffering?

Fingers crossed, touch wood, hope I'm not jinxing this etc.. but since having the "other" pulley fitted It seems to be sorted! I'm not really surprised as it now has an additional pulley which was never there before!
This is what I think has happened - The engine was replaced 30k ago, all the original bolt on parts were re-fitted to the new short block and somehow, amazingly this pulley was missed. I now know the previous owner had belts go missing but that information was never passed on to me until recently. I then went through several belts, tentioner pulley's, tensioner pulley brackets and hundreds of pounds needlessly until it was eventually noticed that this pulley was missing!