jeff sterling

I just got a really nice used 2001 A6 2.8 wagon in great shape. The oil light just came on and is beeping so i took it to get the oil changed thinking it may have needed oil and just changed it to be safe. It is still screaming at me. The display on the dash is a bit garbled but i see the oil can and a drip and what looks like the word sensor?
Now the oil temp gauge has never moved from the lowest position so I am thinking the oil temp sensor???

I would like to know if this is something i can do myself, where is it? and is it something I can do with basic tools?

any help and advice is much appreciated

I really like this car so i would like to keep it running in top condition as long as i can

thanks!

the_duke

Well it sucks that you just changed the oil as the sensor is on the bottom of the pan. Very easy to change but you have to drain the oil.

But before you do that check and see that the sensor is plugged in. If it is then unplug it and re-plug it in. It could just be some corrosion in the connection.

If you do have to change the sensor buy oem or Hella brand as others have a high failure rate.

jeff sterling

Well i got under there and it is plugged in and i removed the plug and it looks really clean so i plugged it back in and took it for a spin and for awhile it seemed to be fine but as i returned home the oil light came on again and it beeped. It does look like a simple thing to fix the hard part being that you have to catch the oil and then refill it after it's done. I don't see any leaks or drips so that's a good sign and it does have enough oil.

jeff sterling

the check engine light is on too... I made sure the dip is in all the way and gas cap snaps and oil lid is tight.

jeff sterling

When i send it thru the check procedure it reads OK after the cycle

Airbag

a couple of possibilities ..

the first thing I would do is drain the pan ,, see how much oil comes out . we have actually had oil return tubes plugged and it doesn't drain back down to the pan. More common on the 3.0 engines but I would certainly check it.

the part that fails on the sensor is usually the oil temp part of the sensor. But you definitely want a hella sensor as pointed out above do NOT put in a Myle sensor .