2.5 TDI Oil Change

[Turkster]

Its that time again when the "Service" logo flashes up on the screen, More money for Audi Service, Or is it?

I predict it just needs oil and filters as i keep a very good eye on the car all of the other times,

The TDI V6 seems to like the long life oils, not the cheap stuff,

My question is

how many Ltr's does it take and what brand to use or does audi use ?

is it worth giving the car back to Audi at this point in its life being a 2001 car to affect its value? It does have a full Audi Servise history up to this point, my only concern with giving it back to Audi again was the £400 bill and would i really be getting £400 back on the cars value later minus the price of the oil and filters?

 

[fjtwelve]

Mines 2001 too. I gave up going to Audi, ridiculously expensive. I use my local VAG dealer - Skoda. Labour rates last time i compared them were about 2/3 Audi. They are quite comfortable working on the V6, their head tech is interested which always helps.

 

[denzelburner]

Mine uses around 4.5 litres and I put in the 5-40 castrol turbo diesel oil that you can pick up from halfrauds. It also means that I have the same oil to hand if I need to top up

 

[sebhar70]

I've been quoted £220, £235 & £285 by independants and £260 by Bexley Audi, they state that they are doing me a deal at reduced labour rates due to the cars age this offer usually applies to engines upto 2ltr only. They all quote that it's a full service with fuel/air/pollen and oil filters changed as well as checks to the car (inc diagnostic). Brake fluid change is £60+ gearbox oil change is around £110-£120. When you've added all this up your pushing nearly £500, that is too much really for a 8 year old car. After this service I will do the service myself in the future.

 

[Turkster]

Well iv been into my local main Audi dealer, they have done me a deal of only £100 all in for just an oil service with filters with the stamp in the service book and the service reset on the cars display, TBH im happy with that, i get all that i wanted at a fair price,

 

[JimLoskot]

I'm just changing the oil on my 2.5 tdi quattro, a quick question. I've come to replace the filter but there is some oil in the bottom of the bit that the filter goes in and it doesn't seem to drain away.
Is it supposed to or is it on some sort of thermostatic valve preventing it doing?
I have soaked it up with an old rag. Do I need to part fill it again with new oil?
Thanks

 

[JimLoskot]

also, does anybody know what this part is and why is it covered in oil?
(It's at the front right hand side of the engine bay, at the bottom)

Thanks

 

[John C]

Hi Turkster
I have just done the service on my A6 2.5 TDI & the wifes A4 1.9 TDI - changing the Oil; oil filter; fuel & Air filter & pollen filter on each. The oil & filter I normally do every 10K & all the other filters about every 20K - or 2 years. I too have have been using Castrol Magnatec Diesel from Halfrauds - but found it cheaper from Argooos - which you can reserve in-store & pick up at your convenience.

As my 'new' A6 (03 TDI 163 Sport) has only done 80K, compared to my last '98 A6 with 220k, on the clock, I have treated it to Castrol Edge oil which is a higher performance oil - which I got from Opie oils. They are actually cheaper than Halfrauds & Argooos - even with the postage - & they did a discount deal of 15% off (?) as well over Easter. They do also do all the filters etc.

The whole oil change only takes about 30 mins (if that) & is very straightforward to do. I DO suck the old oil out of the oil filter housing - just to be sure to replace as much new oil as possible but I am sure its not really necessary. I could pay to have it done & have heard of some good deals but just like to know its done properly as I have also heard of some horror stories!

My next job is changing the ATF oil in my multitronic gearbox - which is another story!!

John

 

[AudiLeon]

also, does anybody know what this part is and why is it covered in oil?
(It's at the front right hand side of the engine bay, at the bottom)

Thanks

I could be wrong, but is that part of the aircon system?
The oil looks to be on your intercooler too, any chance of a leaking intercooler?

 

[Mudplugger]

I've recently bought a 2003 Allroad with BAU coded 2.5Tdi engine; according to the computer it's now due for it's first service, and I intend to do the work myself.

What I'm not clear on though is what weight (viscosity) of oil I should be using, and how long to leave it in there for afterwards (i.e. what the recommended oil change intervals are, or does the computer calculate this?).

Is a semi-synthetic oil such as this - http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_720969_langId_-1_categoryId_165581 - appropriate (Mobil 10W40 Super S Semi Synthetic Turbo Diesel 5L Oil) because for something that may be in there a while, this seems like a sensible price for a decent quality oil.

 

[JimLoskot]

doesn't matter on what oil you use, just change it every 5000 miles or so regardless of if you use the long life or not.
The best way to give a diesel engine a longlife is with regular oil changes

 

[Mudplugger]

Thanks Jim. I must confess that I haven't quite got my head around the Audi service schedules yet, beyond a gut-feel that the 15,000km interval quoted in the handbook seemed more like something to keep the first 3 years running costs down (and attract fleet buyers) rather than something designed to see the car still working happily after 200,000 miles.

I've owned various turbo diesels in the past and, regardless of the manufacturer's advice, I've always changed the oil every 5,000 miles and the filter every 10,000 miles. I've taken them from nearly new to high mileages with the engine as smoke-free as the day it was born, so that strategy has worked for me (and as I do the change myself it really hasn't cost that much either).

From what you say it seems that this is exactly the same schedule I should be following now with my 2.5 Tdi?

The only slight problem here is perhaps that I have bought this car with 120,000 miles already on it, because I was in a hurry, so I have to hope it's not too worn already...

 

[Mudplugger]

I phoned Audi Technical (0800 699 888) today and quoted them my VIN. Their response was that I require an oil that meets their specification VW50601/VW50700. After some more questioning they eventually revealed that this means Castrol Edge 5W30.

So I checked this out on the Castrol website (http://www.castrol.com) where I entered my registration number. This correctly identified my car, told me to use Castrol Edge 5W30, and added that I should change the oil at minimum 10,000 mile / 12 month intervals (maximum 20,000 miles / 2 years).

Handily (for those who sell the stuff, not me!) it comes in 4 litre cans and I need 5 litres. Each can is £45 at Halfords.

The best price then appears to be from http://www.nielsencdg.co.uk/acatalog/5W-30.html where I can get 5 litres (4 + 1 "free") for £51.59 including delivery by FedEx, the only problem there being that their website says "* Engine Diesel: No", implying that it's only suitable for petrol engines (and, unlike the other Castrol Edge products, this one doesn't say "Diesel" on the tin).

 

[fjtwelve]

I've been using Shell Helix for several years, comes in 5L containers. After all my trials and tribulations I change oil and filters every 10.000 miles. Mind you its using a litre every 1500-2000 miles so by the time its changed its already had another 5L put through it.....Wish i knew where it was going, been hunting for 2 years, it must be burning it somehow but theres no sign inside anywhere

 

[Mudplugger]

So you're effectively changing your oil twice every 10,00 miles...

I've been reading your mega-thread about tuning your car with great interest and, while I'd love to try and make a helpful suggestion as to where your oil is going, if all your assembled experts can't figure it out I don't suppose I have much hope sitting here, sorry

Have you tried changing oil brand (e.g. to Castrol Edge or Mobil 1) to see if that gets consumed at the same rate?

 

[Mudplugger]

Following on from my post yesterday, I have now spoken with Castrol's technical guru (01793 512 712) who has informed me that Edge 5W30 is the correct oil for my car even though there is no mention of diesel on the tin, and that Nielsen's website is wrong.

So I'm off to buy some Castrol Edge 5W30, as it complies with VAG's VW50700 standard.

 

[Mudplugger]

Actually I did much better than that in the end: I went into my local Audi main-dealer to buy a filter element and, out of curiosity, asked about the price of their 5W30 (VW 50700 spec) oil that was next to the counter, specifically how it compared with Halford's price of £45 for a can. The guy behind the desk said "we can beat that" and, following a quick discount, he did. The price came down to £35 a can, so £10 cheaper to buy Audi's own product than Edge at Halfords.

The best bit though is that the Edge cans are only 4 litres, whereas the Audi cans are a full 5 litres - enough to fill the car - so the price per litre really was much better from Audi

Hopefully that tip will save a few people on the forum some money...

 

[AudiLeon]

So, so long as the oil is 50700 compatible, its right for my 2.5 tdi?

 

[Mudplugger]

So, so long as the oil is 50700 compatible, its right for my 2.5 tdi?

As I said earlier in this thread

I phoned Audi Technical (0800 699 888) today and quoted them my VIN. Their response was that I require an oil that meets their specification VW50601/VW50700.

I have a 2.5 Tdi, and it's the spec Audi Technical recommended for me. The dealer has my VIN and sold me the oil that meets the spec (plus a filter). So I'm pretty sure it's right for my 2.5 Tdi.

If in doubt though, phone Audi Technical or visit your dealer, and quote them your VIN; it's much better to be safe than sorry.

 

[HerefordQuattro]

Changed my oil and filter today and all went well (once the ****** undertray is off) put castrol Edge 5w30 507 spec in it.

By the way it needed a full 5.5 litres as per the handbook so i had to buy 6 litres which is a pain but got 1/2 litre spare for top ups (hope it doesn't burn like fjtwelve's)

Very impressed with the oil filter positioning up top but fairly awkward to syphon out the last scraps from the housing (but worth doing)