zia

Wanted to get some opinions regarding what point to replace the motor oil? If the display shows oil getting low, is it better simply to perform an oil change OR top off with oil and wait for the system to prompt for service?
Is there really any point in topping off oil in that it mixes new with the old?
Thanks

tenspeed

Topping it off will do no harm. Oil doesn't wear out - the additives do. If you're near the mileage for a oil change, go ahead and change it.

It is advised to top off with the same brand and grade of oil used at the last oil change.

dshahs420

Well oil wears out as well as the additives do too. Too much combustion byproducts and fuel dilution during an oil change interval can oxidize or nitrate an oil and can lose its lubricating properties.

To answer your question, its always good to top up your oil to the max level as soon as possible. Think of it this way, the less the overall volume running thru your car the faster its chances to burn even more oil since there is less oil trying to do the same job. The amount of oil between the min and max line is 1 quart so if its a notch below the max line add a 1/4 quart and so on.

Hope this helps!

jjsC6

These cars run synthetic which by itself with last an awful long time before "wearing out". It gets contaminated by moisture long before it wears out.

Steelcoil

What year is your Q7? Our 2007 gets Castrol Edge 0W40.

ElliottA6

Oil is cheap, but engines are expensive. I don't buy the 10K oil changes recommended by Audi. Even the Audi service manger says he changes the oil in his Audi every 5K, which is what I do, especially is these direct injection engines. That said, depending on how much oil consumption you have, if you're within a few hundred miles of an oil change, I would suggest changing the oil. However, if you're 2000-3000 miles away from an oil change, then add the quart to tide you over.

Valpo A7

Synthetic oil will easily last at least 15,000 miles so a 10,000 OCI is fine. If you have ever seen the Blackstone Lab results for Audi engines even they say it is safe to go beyond the 10K mark even with the 4.0 engine.

2 cars ago I had a car with the oil life monitor and would routinely get 7,000 miles or more on conventional oil. Traded that in at 176,000 miles with no engine problems. The car i replaced that with had an OLM as well and I fed it semi-synthetic and changed at 7,000 - 8,000 range. Traded that in at 190,000 miles with no engine problems. Current car, my A7 has 209,000 miles on it and has always had a 10,000 mile OCI and is still going strong. I had to do timing chains in the A7 last summer but that was not related at all to engine oil quality.

You are perfectly safe following the 10K interval recommendation. If you want to do a 5K OCI that is perfectly fine as well Your car, do what you want. Same goes for brand, as long as the oil meets the VW 502 spec you are fine. My car had Castrol for the first 155,000 miles of its life then I switched to Mobil 1. This last oil change was Valvoline 502 spec if I remember correctly.

Perfectly safe to top off the oil between changes as well.

FlatsCatFL

I concur with VALPO A7. I ran my B5 Passat GLX (Audi powered 2.8 30v) to 352k with no internal engine repair before parting with it. After VW’s free services were over, I used Walmart Synth. to VW specs every 10k for OCI.

B6_Dolphin

I use Ravenol 0W20 (VW508-spec) in my '21 SQ5 Sportback and recently bought Ravenol 0W30 (VW504-spec) for my upcoming 1st oil change @ 1k miles on my '23 RS5 Coupe Competition.