Welcome Guest!
Audi Oil Consumption.....
- Thread starter jcountry
- Start date
NE GA Pappy
Mr. Pappy
I would bet on valve stem seals. It would only smoke a little bit when it is first cranked after sitting for a long while, and he probably isn't looking then.
transfixer
Senior Member
Ditto on valve stem seals, though if they are real bad he should be able to tell if he lets it sit idling for 5 or 10 mins and then has someone step on the accelerator, if it puffs smoke then for a second or two that will verify the valve stem seals are bad.
rayjay
Senior Member
with that many miles I would think that was totally acceptable.
transfixer
Senior Member
While that may not be excessive for an Audi, its not what I would consider acceptable when compared to other car manufacturers engines, most vehicles on the road today do not have to add oil between oil changes, ( approx. 3,000 miles) many can go longer without having to add. Audi was the subject of a class action lawsuit a couple years ago, regarding excessive oil consumption on certain models. 100k miles should be nothing on todays engines, with normal maintenance you should be able to put 150 to 200k miles on an engine without any major worries on 90% of the engines put on the road in the last 10-15yrs.
T-N-T
Senior Member
Does it have a turbo?
GoldDot40
Senior Member
My suggestion would be to resesrch #1 if there's been a TSB issued from Audi about oil consumption. #2 is do an internet search to see how common it might be. I'm sure there's several Audi/VW forums out there with tons of user info.
I agree completely. If it had 150k+ miles on it and used a half quart in 3,000 miles, that would be reasonable and acceptable. But a quart in 2,000 miles is not good at all.
I would also suggest again to rule out an oil leak before doing anything else. Always look for the simplest things first. Put some cardboard or something under the front of the car. If it has a substantial leak, that will tell you. If you find any oil on the cardboard, put it up on ramps and try to see where the leak is from underneath. If it's coming from a spot between the engine and transmission, then it is likely a rear main seal. $10-15 part, but fairly costly and difficult to replace. But still way better than an engine on its way out.
NE GA Pappy
Mr. Pappy
yup, excepting for a visible leak
GoldDot40
Senior Member
Never owned a vehicle that used 1 quart within 2000 miles. Come to think of it...never had a vehicle even use 1/2 quart in 3000 miles...including my old '94 Honda Accord that had 300K on the clock.
transfixer
Senior Member
No, of course not, they won't even attempt to fix a vehicle for oil consumption of around 1qt per 1000 miles, they will call that " normal " , but that doesn't mean it should be considered acceptable, I wouldn't keep a vehicle that burned a quart of oil in 2000 miles very long, it would belong to someone else very shortly.
Last edited:
NE GA Pappy
Mr. Pappy
BMW says that 1 quart in 700 is not excessive. Audi says 1 quart in 1000 to 1200 miles.
I had a 87 Ford diesel that would use a quart in 300. You couldn't tell it was burning the oil because it was a diesel
I had a 87 Ford diesel that would use a quart in 300. You couldn't tell it was burning the oil because it was a diesel
GoldDot40
Senior Member
A lot of manufacturers state that a certain amount of oil loss is acceptable within XXXX miles. A lot of times, it's total hogwash. They're trying to avoid a bunch of warranty work.
I've seen vehicles that would burn/consume/lose 3 quarts in 3000 miles. Dealership told these the owner that it was normal. The problem is that the specific vehicle only held 3.5 qts total. So by the time they were scheduled for an oil change, they'd be operating on just 1/2 quart of motor oil.
In a perfect world, EVERYBODY checks their oil periodically. But we're nowhere close to living in such a place. I'd say the vast majority of motorists never even raise their own hood...ever. They take it in and pay somebody else to do it. A good practice is to get to know every characteristic of your engine...that would include monitoring all vital operating fluids regularly and making a mental note. That way, if there's ever an abnormal occurrence, you'd know to investigate further.
Oil consumption in forced induction engines is common, but I wouldn't say in excess is 'normal' or acceptable. There's usually an issue with a oil supply line to the turbo or a seal within the unit that has failed. In my opinion, 1 quart in 2000 miles is a repairable issue.
I've seen vehicles that would burn/consume/lose 3 quarts in 3000 miles. Dealership told these the owner that it was normal. The problem is that the specific vehicle only held 3.5 qts total. So by the time they were scheduled for an oil change, they'd be operating on just 1/2 quart of motor oil.
In a perfect world, EVERYBODY checks their oil periodically. But we're nowhere close to living in such a place. I'd say the vast majority of motorists never even raise their own hood...ever. They take it in and pay somebody else to do it. A good practice is to get to know every characteristic of your engine...that would include monitoring all vital operating fluids regularly and making a mental note. That way, if there's ever an abnormal occurrence, you'd know to investigate further.
Oil consumption in forced induction engines is common, but I wouldn't say in excess is 'normal' or acceptable. There's usually an issue with a oil supply line to the turbo or a seal within the unit that has failed. In my opinion, 1 quart in 2000 miles is a repairable issue.
lonewolf247
Senior Member
I guess my first question would be, has it always done this, or is this just something it suddenly started doing? Maybe he can't answer that if he just recently acquired it. Either way it's not under warranty I'm sure. Some possible suggestions have been mentioned above.
On the subject of what's acceptable, 1 quart used for 1000-2000 miles would not be acceptable for me. I had bought a used truck for my son that would use 1 quart for 2000 miles also. It was the the first year GM came out with AFM, and they were known for oil consumption problems. It had over 100,000 miles on it, but otherwise ran well. I ended up just switching to 10w-30 oil instead of 5w-30 and it seemed to help a lot.
I've owned a couple of trucks that would use 1 quart over a period of a 5000 mile oil change, and I consider that normal. If your one of the unlucky people to buy a newer vehicle that has excessive oil consumption, as mentioned above, the dealer will say just about anything is normal consumption to avoid repairing your problem.
On the subject of what's acceptable, 1 quart used for 1000-2000 miles would not be acceptable for me. I had bought a used truck for my son that would use 1 quart for 2000 miles also. It was the the first year GM came out with AFM, and they were known for oil consumption problems. It had over 100,000 miles on it, but otherwise ran well. I ended up just switching to 10w-30 oil instead of 5w-30 and it seemed to help a lot.
I've owned a couple of trucks that would use 1 quart over a period of a 5000 mile oil change, and I consider that normal. If your one of the unlucky people to buy a newer vehicle that has excessive oil consumption, as mentioned above, the dealer will say just about anything is normal consumption to avoid repairing your problem.
rayjay
Senior Member
Instead of putting a $3 qt of oil in it every 2k miles the guy should spend $2000+ getting the motor totally rebuilt [ and then hope the rebuilt motor doesn't use a qt of oil every 1k miles ]. ETA 
:tongue in cheek :
:tongue in cheek :
Last edited:
GoldDot40
Senior Member
Nobody suggested he have the engine rebuilt. I guarantee you if it was mine, I'd at least diagnose the issue to see exactly what it would cost to fix it. IF it came down to a bad ring on a piston, there's cheaper ways to remedy that too...like using higher viscosity or high mileage formulated oils.
If it's a turbo problem...and it's sucking oil into the turbo, that could potentially turn catastrophic by catching on fire. I've seen it happen.
Valve seals...won't break the bank either to have them replaced. There again, these new formulated high mileage oils can slow that down too.
T-N-T
Senior Member
If it has a turbo, and a crank case filter, it could be sucking the oil through the turbo
If the filter gets clogged it creates a problem with pressure in the engine. It an issue with gen 3 Cummins trucks. Well it's an issue with emissions not the engine.
My truck was drinking oil. I deleted the filter and went back to a puke tube and now don't use any.
I was using a quart every 2,000 miles. Now none
If the filter gets clogged it creates a problem with pressure in the engine. It an issue with gen 3 Cummins trucks. Well it's an issue with emissions not the engine.
My truck was drinking oil. I deleted the filter and went back to a puke tube and now don't use any.
I was using a quart every 2,000 miles. Now none
Lilly001
Senior Member
My '01 chevy 5.3 uses 1 qt per 5k oil change. It's got 135k on it so I'm ok with that. I did switch to 10w30 although I didn't see any change.
I've tried oil treatments for older engines and, again, found no real change.
I've tried oil treatments for older engines and, again, found no real change.
Similar threads
