GotMyA5

I know this has been discussed a million times. I'm posting here as basically my blog on this issue and I will update as I know more.

I just got a used A5 a few months ago with about 10,000 miles on it, in great condition. It's fun to drive, I got a good deal, and it's a cool car.

However last week the "oil level low" light came on and I knew what's going on. They had just given it an oil change before they delivered it to me and I had only driven it about 1500 miles. This is a common problem on 2009-2011, and some 2012, models.

I took it into the dealer and the idiot there tried to tell me that it's normal for cars to need oil added between oil changes. Come on, no one accepts that, and the fact that Audi fixed the problem after 2012 indicates that it was a problem.

Anyway, they did update the software, replace some valve, and start an official oil consumption test. I'm 100% sure of what the results of that test are going to be. The guy tried to prepare me for the idea that they might not want to fix it, but I told him, "don't explain it to me, explain it to my attorney".

I'm really disappointed with the guy's reaction so far. With all the problems going on at VW right now, you would think they would want to do the right thing without hesitating. He should have said, "We'll do the test. If the test confirms that your car is losing oil, don't worry, we will fix it." That's it! That's all he needs to say! But instead he says something about "meeting me half way". I told him, yes, we'll do the official test, but no, I'm not meeting him half way on anything.

lmariorod

I'm honestly not familiar with the the 2.0T but have heard of the oil consumption issues on the A5 and Q5. And probably others.

If it were my A5, I would start with getting an oil dipstick. I would never depend on the oil light to tell me I'm low. Both our Q5 and my S5 have had dipsticks to check the condition and level of the oil.

I would fill to max level and document that with my phone's camera and check it every 500 miles and document again with my camera phone. Good documentation is your friend.

Also, If still unhappy with car and dealer response, I'd try and open a case with Audi of America.

GotMyA5

Update on an old thread: The dealer said I needed to do an oil consumption test. We did it. It was definitely burning oil. Dealer wanted to "meet me half way" or something. I rejected that idea instantly and said, there's a class-action suit about this issue and you need to fix it. To their credit, they did without a fight. Engine rebuild, new pistons.

That did solve the oil problem.

But 10,000 miles later, I'm back here posting.

The "check engine" light came on. I took it in, they said, it's something wrong with the breather valve, and they fixed it.

A couple weeks later it came on again. I took it in again. Several days went by. They called and said it's a more complex repair, I'm not sure what exactly, and needed to get an inspector from my warranty company to come and look. They did that, and then called and said they found metal flakes in the oil, and needed to pull out the oil pan. They did that, and found a lot of metal flakes. They still have my car and are negotiating with the warranty company about what to do. I'm happy I'm not paying for any of this, but I'm a bit concerned about this car. It's a 2012 with 30,000 miles on it, always treated well, always had oil changes ahead of scheduled, always premium gas. It's having problems that I would expect around 200,000 miles, not at 30,000 miles.

I feel like they messed up the engine rebuild, and should replace the engine completely at this point. I also feel like I should get rid of the car and get a Prius.

Any opinions on all this?

jschrauwen

Not to pile on here but in 2016 when you got the car, the oil consumption issue was well known around the world. I was shopping for an A5 (2008 to 2010 model years) in January of 2015 and knew even then that whatever A5 I got, it would absolutely not have the 2.0T engine. I did my due diligence and I am still thankful today that I opted for the 3.2L engine as it has been a rock solid reliable performer. I know this doesn't help your current situation, and I guess you're at a point of no return as far as current repairs are concerned. If it were me, I would cut my losses now and sell the car as soon as the dealership fixes it's current issues before any more surprises spring up. I suspect that if it was a rebuild done in house at your dealership, they pooched the job. Perhaps poor placement/orientation of crank bearings or incorrect setting of rings or honing of the cylinder. There's a number of reasons for the excess metal flakes. It seems that the dealership management is attempting to do the right thing but perhaps some of their techs or the one(s) who worked on your car weren't the most capable.
At any rate, my solution would be to sell it when it's returned back to you pseudo healthy and try another car. Not sure what your budget is like to accomplish this but the 2013+ 2.0T engines are "supposed" to be sorted out with this oil consumption issue. Having said that, it's my own personal opinion that anything heavier then an A4/A5 needs a more robust engine. IE: another reason why I chose the 3.2L engine. I just finished helping my brother search for (and buy) a good used A6. Although the 2.0T was an engine option for the C6 A6, I told my brother to absolutely not got near a 2.0T engine even though the prospective A6 years were 2009 to 2011. I convinced him to get one with the 3.0T supercharged engine. That engine has been in play for the A4, A5, A6, A7 and A8 platforms since 2008 and has proved itself to be one of the best engines Audi has ever made. He recently ended up getting a 2011 A6 3.0T and he's completely thrilled with it so far. And they're still using them today. What am I getting at here? I would make it a point that whatever replacement Audi is in your future, ensure it has the 2011+ 3.0T engine.

GotMyA5

Thank you for your advice on this. Yes, I'm going to sell it.
The good news for me is that I do have a couple more years of extended warranty on this so none of this is out of my pocket. The warranty company is taking a big loss on this, not me. I will let them get everything fixed and then sell it when I'm ready to. It wasn't a good purchase decision.
Alternatively, if Audi agrees to replace the engine, I'll keep it. They might do that if the warranty company can pressure them to do it, because they may be out a lot more money on this damaged engine.
And yeah, they must have damaged the engine while rebuilding it. These engines are designed with tight tolerances and it's not put back together right and it's going to keep failing.
Again, fortunately none of this is on me.
I'll keep the forum updated on what happens. Definitely you are right, don't buy Audis with that engine / model years.

findalex

I have a 2013 A5 with 2.0 TFSI EA888 Gen2 engine and can confirm that oil consumption problem seems to have been fixed. It's never burnt any oil and has about 72K miles so far.

For engines prior to 2013, I think the general consensus is that VW's fix of replacing the piston rings (and a few other things) does indeed work. There are supposed to be several stages of repairs, the last being the replacement of piston rings.

If you can get a new engine out of this, with the correct fix, then I think you should be fine. Even if its a 2012 MY remanufactured engine.

GotMyA5

Quick update: Audi dealer has decided to replace the engine completely, a $14k job. They did this without me arguing with them. I have to say, I'm impressed. They have spent more on that car than what I paid for it. Including a couple thousand dollars in car rental costs and everything else, this repair is about $16k, which is equal to the bluebook value of the car. I am impressed that they didn't try to find some way of totaling the car and giving me money instead.
I'll post some updates when I get the car back, should be in a few days.
If this new engine is solid, then this is going to be a great car for many many years.

GotMyA5

One quick question about getting a new engine: I assume that the VIN on the new engine will be a new VIN. That means that when I go to sell it the buyer will see that the engine VIN isn't a match, and will understand that it's a replaced engine. A savvy buyer will be happy to have a new engine on a 2012 Audi but could this be bad for insurance and other things like that? I checked and it doesn't seem like this is going to trigger a "rebuilt" title but is this something I should worry about for the value of the car and future insurance coverage?

uberwgn

No, with all the history on this problem, and the class action suits, your car could be worth more assuming you save the documentation and can prove all.

In general, people with full re-builds have positive reports, GotMy.

GotMyA5

I got my A5 back today. It had "new engine smell" as the engine packing grease was heating up for the first time. I saw the invoice, it was about $14k, very fortunately for me I didn't have to pay any of it. I'm optimistic that they have fixed all the issues with this engine and I should be able to get a normal life out of this car now.
I really hope VW's top management has learned some big lessons from their mistakes of recent years and they can get back to building quality machines that we expect from a leading German manufacturer.
I'll post updates in a couple of months about how it's going.
I plan to get an oil change in less than 5k miles so this new engine gets off to a good start.