thebossbot

I had my oil changed at 14k and i am just about to hit 19k. I just had the low oil light come on. "still safe to drive" but at the warning mark. seems quick to me, but no oil on the ground in the garage and no smoke.

will take it in to see what they say.

derfA8L

Even though modern oil lubrication properties have greater advanced, cars with turbo engines do run hotter which increases the chance of deteriorating the oil's effectiveness faster---dependent on your driving style to be sure. I generally do 10k miles per year, and schedule oil changes at either 5k miles or every 6-months, whichever occurs first...on both N/A and especially turbo engines, despite the fact that I also have AudiCare. Even though I lease, my feeling is that if I want to buy my car at lease end I'm secure in the knowledge that I've done everything within reason to promote optimal engine component lifespan.

S6inNH

When I purchased my first Audi (2001 2.7t A6, std trans) and saw the 10K oil change interval, my first reaction that it was Audi trying to save money as back then the first 50k of oil changes were free. But I went along with it and carefully changed the oil every 10K miles with synthetic. Today I still own the car - 235,000 miles, with original turbos, clutch, alternator, starter, etc. Other than timing belts no significant maintenance. It is still fast, and burns less than 1 qt in 10k miles. (In addition we have a 2015 S6, which means the old Audi no longer gets driven hard)

goliath1

Not sure I agree that turbo fed motors run hotter. if anything, turbo motors are lower compression and lower heat. If you have too much boost and not enough fuel to keep that 14.7 sweet spot and it starts to run lean that will increase motor temps.

and FWIW, and since syn-oil has been available, I change every 10k...Never experienced any motor failures of any type. Oil change intervals are a personal thing....whatever makes you feel good!!!

derfA8L

I'm an old Luddite, and base my understanding of the issue on the info Audi provided back when I had a 2001 A6 and a 2004 Allroad with the 2.7l oil-cooled twin turbo engines. The owner's manual for those cars alerted you that indeed the engine/turbos ran hot and that you should let the engine idle for 30-seconds before shutdown on warm/hot days or after "spirited" driving to prevent the oil from turning into sludge and choking the turbos---And back then, Audi did specify Mobil 1 synthetic oil for the 2.7T engine. I know the 4.0T turbo setup is now different versus the old 2.7T, and I believe the turbos are now cooled via the engine's internal cooling system, but I'm pretty sure (in the case of the A8) it does throw off more heat than the 4.2l V8 it replaced. The post-shutdown fan that runs for an extended period in my 4.0T V8 didn't exist in any of the NA 4.2 V8 engines I had in 3 previous Audis, leading me to believe that the turbos in this engine still generate more heat. Perhaps it's a non-issue if the oil doesn't directly run through the turbos anymore.

I suppose being the Luddite that I am, I'm a bit more comfortable changing the oil and filter twice a year (every 5K miles or 6-months). I know if I had an S-variant car and drove it harder (more spirited, shall we say), I'd definitely stick to that schedule. Bottom line is I don't trust Audi's minimum recommended oil change maintenance schedule...just a personal preference that allows me to sleep a bit better I guess.