Leaking rear shock?

[c3nturi0n]

My left rear shock is leaking badly and i will order a new one next week.

Before i do so I have couple things i'd like to get some input on pls,

1) i was wondering should i replace it with OEM or opt for one of aftermarket ones (assuming KONI or Bilstein does them for RS6)?

2) is it a straight fwd replacement or it requires some adjustment to DRC on completion (e.g. calibration, oil refill etc)?

3) one other thing i noticed few days ago is that i get some very strange clunking mechanical noise from front right. Garage spent almost half day today inspecting to no avail. They confirmed that everything is super tight and as stiff as it should be. Coincidence or not, a noise came at the same time the rear right shock was diagnosed as faulty so i wonder if it has anything to do with it?


Thx and any advice is welcomed.

[Jim Haseltine]

The DRC will need the oil recharging to the correct pressure. Shocks are cross connected through the valve block, front right to rear left and front left to rear right. If you've lost a lot of oil you could get some knocking from the valve block.

[Stiggles]

DRC knock is a major issue associated with the B7 RS4, if the height drops in one corner or as you've experienced yourself, the cross related noise, back left leak with front right knock is connected.

The DRC is an expensive system to replace piece by piece as each time you do something to it, it will require re charged at quite a substantial cost.

So maybe factor in the possibility of one or more shocks going in the future and the added cost of iirc £200 to recharge the system at Audi, if you replace one shock and charge the system only to be greeted by another going in a month and then again a few months later the bill gets to be quite absurd.

Coilovers would be my personal choice if my DRC goes, but I think a few may have been already replaced.

[c3nturi0n]

Thx for the feedback, that’s great.

Do you have any recoomendations where to source rear shock/s? Oem or aftermarket?

And re DRC charge, is it exclusively done at maindealers or specialists like MRC have access to complete that piece of work?

Msny thanks again.

[Doug_RS6]

If keeping DRC oem is the only option for parts. Check Ebay. Sometimes new clearance parts on there. Specialists will often have the equipment to recharge DRC.

[c3nturi0n]

Cheers Doug... car is going to a specialist on Wed to inspect first. It won’t be cheap i Know but super cars had never been cost effective to run .

[C6Dia]

Are you definitely sure it’s the shock? They are pretty reliable usually.

Mine had leaked fluid from the near side rear and I assumed it was the shock too, however my rear pipe burst. This caused the front to knock quite badly.
Took to unit20,new pipe ordered and DRC recharged and it’s running perfect once again.

Bhav

[c3nturi0n]

Considering it happened suddenly and that left rear is soaked with oil it may well turn to be cost effective ‘fix’.

Not hoping for the worst but you never know until it’s diagnosed on Wed.

I’ll keep you posted and thx for your feedback.

[Doug_RS6]

I'm trying to see if the shocks can be stripped and rebuilt at a cost effective price. But it's not looking too likely.