02Audi-A4-3.0

Once my car is warmed up and driven a little harsh I can feel a slight knock in my steering wheel. I also hear the slightest knock coming from the dash/engine bay. The knock is not constant and is very faint (it knocks once or twice every 2 or 3 seconds) It seems like something might be rattling around the steering column, but it could also have to do with a vacum leak or the exhaust system. I get no check engine light. Both cat converters and the timing belt have been replaced very recently. The car is an (automatic) 02 audi a4 3.0L quattro with 85,000 miles on it. This knock may not even be a problem, but I would like to fix it before something could happen. Everything else seems to be perfect. I have noticed that when I slowly accelerate the engine has a puttering noise to it. However I notice no performance robbing. I am hoping that these symptoms have nothing to do with the engine. Thank you very much for the assistance.

vliou

Interesting, the puttering noise is more of a 1.8/2.0T sound...