Has anybody ever heard of stock k03's lasting this long? Im starting to wonder if they are the ones that came from the factory, espscially since I am chipped...I maintain my car very well(clean/check my dv's, change the oil every 3 grand or so)but if I had a nickel for every ******** who told me "get ready to buy new turbos in another 20,000 miles or so", Id be rich. I was going to get K04's about 6 months ago, but found out with the complete installation, for it to be done properly, its not worth it, especially since I have a tip, and its a daily driver...The only thing I can think of, is that they were replaced before I purchased the vehicle with 75,000 on it...I hope I havent just jinxed myself by posting this...

 

It's very likely they are original. I would be surprised if they failed with less than 75k on them.

 

I don't think theres anything fishy about that. I've talked to several audi mechanics who have told me that in the huge scheme of things, the k03s aren't as failure prone as we on the forums seem to believe. Life span of the turbos is a function of how hard to push the engine and ho meticulous your maintenance is with a big factor of luck thrown in. I have 110,000 on stock snails and they are spooling fine. I think the reason is because the last 80,000 miles have been 60+ mile trips on the highway.

 

I have 169,700 on orignal turbos. Chipped back at 74k. Also original battery and suspension. It all depends on how you maintain and treat the vehicle. I also admit to mostly high speed, highway driving.

 

Here describes a cause of turbo failure and the source of dentist drilling sound.

http://www.audiworld.com/tech/eng19.shtml

Have you replace the boots during the time you own the A6?

 

When I installed the GIAC chip I replaced the TBB and DVs as indicated in my signature. Those are relatively inexpensive compared to replacing the turbos, which normally requires the engine to be pulled (lots of forum discussion if really necessary, but my indie shop does it that way).