Hi all- I have a 2008 2.0 a3 (manual transmission) with just under 60,000 miles. Twice recently my oil light came on to tell me I was low on oil. The first time was just before my oil change at 5000 miles, but this time it is after about 3500 miles. I added a quart of oil and the light went off. In case your wondering, I only use fully synthetic oil but I go to a quicklube type of place. I only go to the dealer for emergencies. Any thoughts?

 

Check if you have any oil dripping underneath, it might be they didn't completely screw in the filter cap or the oil drainage plug seal is leaking little bit. I had this happen before on my older A6. In my case the oil drainage plug was not completely screwed in. Good luck

 

2006-2008.5 2.0T A3's (TFSI engine) use oil. Your rate of oil consumption seems pretty low compared to many.

My 2006 A3 consumes Mobil 1 0W-40 at the rate of 1 qt/1500-2000 miles. That rate has been constant since I bought the car (as CPO) at 25K, and I'm at 76K now. Oil is changed every 6K miles and tested by Blackstone Labs each time. I have no evidence of oil leaks, plugs looked great when I changed them ~60K. I believe the "problem" is associated with the PCV method in this engine. The newer TSI engines (timing cam chain instead of belt, spin-on filter at top of engine) don't seem to burn oil.

I've heard several reports that Mobil 1 5W-40 Turbo Diesel oil cuts the consumption, but dno't know if it is VW 502.0 approved. There are also reports from users of 'boutique' oils like Amsoil, Royal Purple, Redline, etc. giving lower consumption, but also not VM-approved.

 

Thanks dfrost. Does it surprise you that the oil loss has only begun in my a3 after hitting the 50,000 mile mark?

 

Yes, a sudden change in oil consumption indicates that something else has changed - maybe the brand or weight of the oil used by the quicklube place?

 

krilleater, I'm seeing about the same rate of burn. 1 qt every 2k mi or so. Always dealer serviced with oil changes every 10k, but I just started doing them myself with mobile 1 0W-40. Currently at 82k mi on my '06 2.0T and I'm going to change more often now. If the burn continues I am going to switch to AMSOil.

 

Recently just bought a 2008 a3 with 22k. I noticed that I needed to add 1 qt after 2k miles, which is ridiculous. Noticed a lot of soot on the tailpipe. Took it to the dealer and asked them to check the PCV/breather. The said it was bad and that my valve cover had a leak.

I had a Saab previously with a notoriously bad design for the PCV. Valve Cover leaks, exhaust had smoke. After the PCV was replaced, no more issues.

PCV is very critical since if it is not working, it will cause the engine to pressurize and force the oil through wahtever is weak - valve cover, rings....

Too soon to tell if my fix worked, but i bet your pcv is shot.

 

Thanks seanc. The sooty tail pipe has been bothersome for some time and that may explain it. Did you do the pcv change yourself? I see it's $66 at ECSTuning. Just wondering what sort of undertaking that would be. Need new breather hoses too? Valve cover gaskets bad because of high back pressure?

 

yes, the valve cover was leaking due to the increased pressures in the engine. I am gonna keep my eye on it for the next 10k miles. I would not expect an immediate change but one that improves over time. at least that is what I am hoping for.