Technical Service Bulletin
51 Water sloshing sound is heard while driving
51 24 30 2061754/5 June 28, 2024. Supersedes Technical Service Bulletin Group 51 number 24-28 dated
February 15, 2024 for reasons listed below.
Model(s)

Year

A5, and S5
Sportback

2018 - 2023

RS 5 Sportback

2019

VIN Range

Vehicle-Specific Equipment

All

Not Applicable

2021 - 2023

Condition
REVISION HISTORY
Revision

Date

Purpose

5

-

Revised Service (Additional inspection added)
Revised Warranty (Corrected Labor Operations)
Revised Required Parts and Tools (Additional parts required)

4

02/15/2024

Revised header (Added Model Year)
Revised Warranty (Corrected SRT)

3

01/07/2022

Revised header (Added Models and Model Years)

Customer states:
• They hear a sound like water ‘sloshing’ when the vehicle is driving, cornering, or braking.
• The origin of the noise is described as coming from the floor area.
Workshop findings:
• Water is found to have accumulated in the cavities contained in the side sills.

Technical Background
It is possible over time for water to accumulate in the side members and sills, but the water is not able to drain as
needed. The accumulated water is unable to reach the normal drainage because the sill cavity sound absorber
blocks its flow. This accumulated water creates a ‘sloshing’ noise when the vehicle moves.

Production Solution
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intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
Improvements to the body structure components have been implemented in production to prevent water
accumulation and allow for normal drainage.

Service
1.

Carefully inspect all mounting points of the sill trim on both sides of the vehicle for any contact
inconsistency that would allow water to enter the sill trim. The sill trim must be watertight and be fitted
correctly to the body. Also check the drainage of the sill trim. Ensure that water drains away from the
sill trim freely.

2.

Should collected water be discovered between the sound absorber partitions in the side members,
proceed as follows.

3.

Detach the underbody trim until the plugs for the
side member are accessible. If water has already
accumulated in the sill areas water will flow from
these plug openings (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Access to the side member plugs.
4.

Figure 2 shows the opening where water generally
enters this space.

Figure 2. Water entrance point.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
5.

Fastener position number 4 shown in Figure 3 is
the opening through which a modification to the
sound absorber will be made.

Figure 3. Sill trim fastener openings.
6.

Figure 4 shows the location of the sound absorber
marked ‘A’.

Figure 4. Location of the sound absorber.

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intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
7.

Figure 5 shows a closer view of the sound
absorber to be modified in the cut-away image.

Figure 5. Hole through which the sound
absorber will be accessed.
8.

Figure 6 shows a cut-away view of the sound
absorber from the rear.

Figure 6. Side member cavity sound absorber.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
9.

Figure 7 shows a drawing of the sound absorber.
The blue dot marked ‘D’ corresponds with a point
through which a hole 8mm – 10mm in diameter
will be made. This hole will allow for a normal flow
of any accumulated water to reach the normal
drainage and exit the sill cavity. The method for
creation of this hole follows.

Figure 7. 8mm – 10mm hole to be made through
the sound absorber.
10. From a steel rod 8mm – 10mm in diameter
fabricate a tool as shown in figure 8. Bend the end
of it in an ‘L’ shape 50mm long.
Heat the bent end of the rod to approximately 500
°C (~932° F).

Figure 8. Heating the fabricated tool.
11. Guide the heated rod into opening number 4 from
Figure 3 and melt a hole in the sound absorber in
position ‘D’ from figure 7 (Figure 9).

Figure 9. Making the hole in the sound absorber.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
12. Figure 10 shows a drawing of the operation
performed and the correct positioning.

Figure 10. Correct positioning of the heated rod.
13. Apply cavity preservative or anti corrosion wax to
the area in the cavity having been modified. Use a
sprayer VAG 1379, VAG 1538 or equivalent
generic sprayer to carry out this operation.
Ensure that the drain function of the draining plugs
on the front and rear of the side members are fully
functional and not damaged (Figure 11).

Figure 11. Drain plug on rear of the side
member.
14. Figure 12 shows the drain plug on the front of the
side member.

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
Figure 12. Drain plug on the front of the side
member.
15. Reassemble the underbody and sill trim.

Warranty
Claim Type:

• 110 up to 48 Months/50,000 Miles.
• If the vehicle is outside any warranty, this Technical Service Bulletin is
informational only.

Service Number:

5145

Damage Code:

0050

Labor Operations:

One sill panel trim remove and reinstall

6629 1900

See SRT with
associated
operations

6629 2000

See SRT with
associated
operations

-orBoth sill panel trims remove and reinstall.

Diagnostic Time:

Claim Comment:

Perform modification to sound absorber
5145 5099
partitions (includes loosening and refastening
of underbody trim, removal of body plugs and
application of steel rod)

100 TU

Body seal coat cavity

5101 7501

See SRT with
associated
operations

GFF

No allowance

0 TU

Road test prior to the service procedure

No allowance

0 TU

Road test after the service procedure

No allowance

0 TU

As per TSB 2061754/5

All warranty claims submitted for payment must be in accordance with the Audi Warranty Policies and Procedures
Manual. Claims are subject to review or audit by Audi Warranty.

Required Parts and Tools
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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
The part numbers mentioned in this TSB are different than the ones listed in ETKA. Only use parts
listed in this TSB, this includes superseding part numbers!
Part Number

Part Description

Quantity

See ETKA

Fasteners, Bolts, Nuts, and Screws as needed per the Repair
Manual

See ETKA/ELSA

8W6898909

1

1 set of securing parts
8W6898909A

1

1 set of adhesive tapes
D 330KD2A1

0.3

Or alternatively:
D 321M16M2

Cavity Preservative
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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin

Anti-Corrosion Wax

Tool Number

Tool Description

VAG 1379 or equivalent generic sprayer

Spray Gun

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.

Technical Service Bulletin
VAG 1538
(Or alternative generic sprayer)

Suction Feed Spray Gun

Additional Information
All parts and service references provided in this TSB (2061754) are subject to change and/or removal.
©2024 Audi of America, Inc. All rights reserved. The information contained in this document is based on the
latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other intellectual property
rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes
at any time without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites without the prior expressed written permission of the
publisher.

© 2024 Audi of America, Inc.
Internal

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All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is based on the latest information available at the time of printing and is subject to the copyright and other
intellectual property rights of Audi of America, Inc., its affiliated companies, and its licensors. All rights are reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, nor may
these materials be modified or reposted to other sites, without the prior expressed written permission of the publisher.