Too young for sludge!
 

Hi all - I am new to this site. Have a 2004 A4 1.8T, currently at 30,000 miles. Had the sludge problem at 22,000 miles. Dealership tried to cover it up, using fancy words. I am hoping for some help. I have been reading other posts and see that most people like to use synthetic oil and change every 5000 miles. Going to tell my story and see what feedback I can get. (things like "do this..." or "sell it now!" would help)

Diagnosing the sludge...

1. Oil light came on, briefly, then went out. Checked oil - level was good, and the oil looked good.
2. Coolant light came on, stayed on. Stopped car and opened hood. Coolant tank empty. Dad found the leak in the coolant tank. Turns out it was blown out right at the sensor. Figured out from refilling and driving around that it only lost fluid when driving, not when sitting.

Started thinking to myself, hmm, this sounds oddly familiar to the problem I had with my Saturn which turned out to be a cracked head. Dad said no, what little coolant was left was still orange.

3. Drove home with refilled fluid tank. Did not go over 55 (Dad's suggestion)... only had to go 10 miles. No oil light.
4. Things seemed good for a few days, fluid practically stopped leaking, made appointment to have coolant tank, etc. looked at. Dealership assured me it was ok to drive. I kept coolant in the backseat, just in case - never needed it.

5. Oil light came on and stayed on. Stopped car immediately. Totally fed up at this point, I called Audi Roadside and had car towed to Dealership. Dealership said tow was unecessary and should not have been covered. Audi told me to keep them informed of the problems with the car and they would determine whether or not tow was covered. Audi of America Rep said that red oil light was a good enough reason.

So, dealership replaced coolant tank and sensor, oil pump, oil, some hoses and tubes (breather tubes?)... and a few other "related things"... asked if it was the sludge problem, they said no.

Fast forward 4 months - I go to a new dealership. Told them about service history and the mechanic said, how many miles on that last one? I said 22 k... he said, wow, that's young for a sludge problem. HMMM.

So, now the car is at 30 k and new dealership said next oil change is at 35 k (it was changed again at 25 k by new dealership). Do I go with this? If I add and pay for oil changes on my own, even at dealer, am I covered under the sludge warranty (80k)? And how do you know what type of oil they use? If they put in regular oil - how would I know?

RE: Too young for sludge!
 

Change it your self with mobil1 0w-40 or 5w 40.

Then you'll know and be good for another 5000 miles.

RE: Too young for sludge!
 

I doubt it was a sludge problem remember the oil isn't just a lubricant it also cools so when you run very low on coolant the oil takes over but when it get too hot the oil loses its viscosity hence the oil light, lose of coolant was your problem and synthetic oil is always the best to use on any newer engine because it eliminates sludging (as long as the service is carried out regular including oil filter change) 6k miles per oil change is good

RE: Too young for sludge!
 

Thanks for your help.

RE: Too young for sludge!
 

Your car includes scheduled service. scheduled service for the car is oil change every 5K miles. This should be synthetic oil.

RE: Too young for sludge!
 

Hi David,
Thanks for your reply. That's what I thought originally too, but when I have 2 dealerships telling me no, what do I do? Call Audi America? I can do that of course. But what's their deal?

I should not compare to Saturn but they were so straightforward and no games, these people just make me feel like a stupid girl.