I realize it has been a topic before , but I didn't see any good explainations or remedies.

I've got a 03 A6 Quattro with 98K miles.

The low level indicator light came on and sure enough it was down a little over a quart with only 3K miles on the change.

There are no external leaks and I don't see any blue smoke out the pipe.

I've heard it could be things like PCV valve (others claim there is no PCV valve), I hear it could be some spider valve, but that is impossible to change, that all is required is too clean some tiny holes somewhere - WTF.

Does anybody have actual experience with the fix?

Any input is appreciated

Thank you

 

turbos burn oil. 1 qt at 3k miles really isn't that bad. if you don't see any signs of leaks, puddles, drips, drops, smoke/odor of oil burning under the hood, or a bunch of other definite signs of a leak, I would say it is just normal oil loss.

the Audi PCV system is a bit more complex than just a valve. You do have one, it is the round black plastic doohickey on the driver's side of your Y-pipe just near the junction of the Y (it's sometimes called a pancake valve. a description that might help you visualize it). you will notice that it has a hose on the bottom of it that goes down to your "crankcase breather system" which is sometimes referred to as the spider pipe. it is neither impossible nor difficult to clean, it just takes a week and a day to tear apart all the crap that it takes to make enough space to barely get a weak hold with the barest tips of your fingers to remove and manipulate it enough to remove it.

anywho, if you aren't actively "leaking" this is probably not your problem. You can check the PCV easy enough. Refer to above where I told you how to find it, tightly squeeze the plastic ring where it joins the Y-pipe, you will see the ridged plastic where you are supposed to squeeze. Pop the valve (gently) out of the Y-Pipe, remembering that it is still attached to stuff underneath. The valve should rotate easily so you can point the open end in a direction where you can look into it. You will probably seem some oil/residue in there, that is normal. If it is really clogged with gunk, then it needs to be replaced.

good luck

-not an expert, just an enthusiast

 

I'm sorry, but I do not think turbos should be "burning oil". They may leak a little oil into the fuel-air mixture as they age, but it should not be significant. My indie shop has spotted some oil leakage on one of my turbos for the past 30k miles. We're keeping an eye on it. But I have 196k on the car, change oil every 6-8k, and do not even show low on the dipstick between changes.

 

02A6Beau,

Thank you for the description and location.

I am going to check the cleanliness of the Valve.

I tend to agree with ppgoal, it doesn't seem right that a manufacturer, German no less, would allow oil consumption rates this high, it can't be good for the Cats.

I could be wrong, so I am hoping to find something in the crankcase vent system that is causing this.

Thanks for the help

 

I have a 01 a6 2.7t Recently it started smoking every 10 to 15 minutes I changed the valve cover gaskets and it continues to smoke took the y pipe out and that piece at the top connected to the y pipe is where the oil is coming from but is it supposed to leak like that? I see some oil at the bottom of where the y pipes end and theirs oil on both sides so what should I do? What other parts should I change where do I look HELP!!!

 

Believe it or not, Audi's allowable oil consumption on a turbo engine is about a quart per 1000 miles. I heard this straight from a friend of mine who is an Audi dealer tech. I said BS, but he insisted that that was the info from the Audi of America.

Beside from that statement, you can check for some things as people already have mentioned.

- Check for the usual leak spots i.e. valve cover, cam seals, cam plugs, turbos and etc.
- PCV piping maybe plugged. Take it out and clean "IF POSSIBLE". If possible, meaning you won't destroy the piping while taking out... Most likely it will disintegrate in contact if you try to take it out. Then you are out a couple of hundred dollars.
- Updated venting oil cap actually helps in both oil consumption and seal leak prevention.

In short, if you don't have a major leaks, then I would just live with it. It is not worth on a 10 year old car. Don't get me wrong, I am pretty meticulous aka **** when it comes to the maintenance, but I also know that I have limits on how much I want to spend on a 10 year old car.

 

Did you change the cam adjuster seals while doing valve covers? Both should be done at the same time or else the leak will come back soon.

 

I don't know of a single vehicle manufacturer which sells cars in North America that doesn't use the 1,000 mile (or fewer) to a quart metric for determining excess oil consumption.