I recently had my A4 1.8T engine rebuilt (on Audi's dime, by the dealership), because it overheated and was destroyed due to the oil sludge problem with these engines.
Couple days after I got it back, the coolant warning light came on at start-up, then went off. I took it into the dealership, service mgr. said it was 'nothing serious', and they simply topped off the coolant and tightened the hose clamps.
10 days later .. I was driving at 60 mph on a bridge/freeway (no shoulder) when the coolant warning light came on, at the same time, the engine was rattling. I slowed and stopped as quickly as I could. Bottom line, they say a coolant hose burst, resulting in engine overheating and now I need a new cylinder head for $4800! I said - but you just not only rebuilt the engine, but re-inspected the coolant system - why didn't you catch it? They said they could not have visually detected that the hose was defective when they checked the coolant system.
I think they obviously overlooked something, and missed the defective hose and are therefore responsible for this damage. Does anyone know if it's true that you can't tell - visually, or by touch/inspection - if a coolant hose is bad to the point of being about to burst?