Prepping for long Road Trip

[dreadlocks]

So ive been catching up on all my maintenance before I leave friday for a 2k mile road trip in the beast.. (from denver to a week in oregon and back)

After putting in fresh oil I thought to my self, since I took the under engine cover off I am wondering if I should just leave it sitting in my garage for the trip.. Its not leaving paved roads and I have to cross Utah in the heat of the summer so I am thinking it might help heatsoak if I leave it behind. I dont see putting it on helping disperse heat... does it function any way other than just keeping the engine closed off and clean?

So what do you think?
Leave the under-engine cover behind; clean off the grime and put it back on when I get back from my trip?
or put it back on wtf am I thinking?

Cheers,
-R

[MaxRS6]

Personally- I would put it back on to keep the potential grime and other potential hazards hitting into the engine bay. It can also help keep the lower intercooler hoses from being damaged from slight scrapes...;0. My less than .03 worth..

[lswing]

It's there for a lot of reasons, protection and airflow. Put it on. You get a small rock up in the engine belts and you'll really wish you had....

[QuattroRS]

While you have it off...cut the Sportec vent in the cover. Then put it back on asap. .04c

BTW, are you taking the scenic route to Oregon from CO? The back roads up thru SE Oregon are amazing. Im jealous if your taking those roads.

[dreadlocks]

Its back on, I dont have the time/energy to do the vent mod before the trip.. I needa make it a higher priority, I'll get it moded before its next long trip thats for sure

Cant blame me for being stressed bout heat with a 24h drive across a giant desert in August.. Gonna try to get most of it done before the sun comes up

I'll carry a few gallons of water and simply hope she dont go Fukushima on me

Thx,
-R

[4everRS]

My opinion is that they did plenty of testing with heat (and cold) on this beast. I think keep it on. Also, we in the US have the added cooling capacity of the aux rads behind the side mount IC's. You can watch your gauge to see if it's too hot, but my guess is that you'll be just fine.

The cooling mod is a good idea though.

[ben916]

Ah, well, considering that I ran over a surfboard, fins up, while changing lanes and it hit nothing; Then a ramp off of a trailer came off last Friday and that would have been a disaster...

Even though I have that lovely Sportec cooling mod to the under tray, I would still leave it on:
focused air on the transmission
focused air on the bottom of the intercoolers - kinda

[Aronis]

put it back on.

(also, the car is quite a bit noisier with it off, so you would not be happy with the road noise for such a long trip.)

Mike

[kismetcapitan]

you ought to be fine - just don't cane it constantly under 100 degree midday sun and of course mind the temp gauges.

Air temp is all relative; even if it's a hundred degrees out, as long as you're moving, that air is mighty cool and refreshing to engine bay temps that are more than twice that. You'll still get effective cooling so long as you're on the move. Maybe not so good in a traffic jam, but I've never been stuck in one with an RS6 yet (knock on wood). You'll lose power though as higher intake air temps effectively reduces octane and the intercoolers won't be as effective compared with (obviously) the dead of winter. But for a long distance cruise, well, if this car can't do it, I bought the wrong damned car!

[dreadlocks]

Thanks guys, just go by the redline (350) on the oil temp gauge? Spirited driving in Mountains on a hot day (90's is very hot up there) I can get it past 250 degrees pretty quick and it feels like I can fry an omelet on my hood.. if I see that thing creeping past 300 at highway speed I dont think I'll feel very good..

Ive taken it on long trips before and its done fine, but I havent owned it long enough to have done a 24h straight drive through a heat-wave in a desert.. Everything else is good to go, its got fresh tires, belts, brakes, fluids, wipers, brake lights & battery within the last few months... the only thing I am worried about is the heat getting to me, but alas.. you guys are right, there well proven.. I shouldn't worry, but g'damn this v8 runs hot..
I spent considerable effort & money making my big turbo VR6 run cool in comparison.. when it ran this hot I always felt uneasy so I threw in dual oil coolers, bigger heat exchangers & fans, evans coolant, lower temp thermostat, ceramic coating under header wrap and turbo blanket.. just to keep it from breaking 300 degrees after a through beating.

so onto another question, other then the vent mod whats the next best thing to address concerning heat-soak? Methanol & Intercoolers I presume, anything cheaper I am overlooking? Any hacks to get rad fans to run sooner/longer perhaps?

Cheers,
-R

[4everRS]

250 seems high to me - even for 90' temps. I have to work my beast pretty hard to get it to 250. You sure it is the 250 mark that it hits? If so, I would consider taking a look at the oil/atf cooler through the front lower grill. Maybe try to clean it out with some all purpose cleaner and water hose. I still think you should leave the cover on.

For heatsoak I think you hit it pretty well. Make sure your IC's are good and clean, and water/meth works good.

[dreadlocks]

The cover is back on already and wont be left behind, thats been settled long ago
I guess it might be altitude, climbing to 12,000ft and having a bunch of fun on a summer day is torture for any cooling system.. Guess thats why Audi has a test facility outside town...
sometimes I forget im a mile high, ooh.. cant wait to see how the throttle in this beast feels breathing in fresh ocean air... yay!

Ive only got it to 250 once in town, intake temp was reading 120+ tho... was a really hot fucking day in bad traffic, and just by chance a STSV & a M5 find me at the same time, we ran off for some epic fun... Since that day I have had this "crossing the desert" worry in the back of my mind... What are the odds I'll find a bunch of monster 4doors in the middle of nowhere huh?

I cleaned out the rad and intercoolers really good when I did timing belt & ps pump, good thought tho.. I'll check it b4 I leave make sure my wife didn't suck in a grocery bag..