Blesbok

Is it worth doing an oil change at 500 or 1000 miles?

markcincinnati

It is absolutely NOT worth doing an oil change this early. Rather than write another novel here, as I often seem to do, I'll urge you to google (or better yet call your dealer service manager) to discuss why changing the first oil before 5,000 miles could have an adverse impact.

In fact, going 10,000 miles would not be an unthinkable thing to do. Again, please consider a little bit of research prior to making a mistake by changing the oil prematurely.

You also need to CONFIRM the REQUIREMENT (not suggestion) to use GREEN oil. Audi, this time around, has determined their turbo engines -- when modified to the extent to void the warranty -- may have warranty claims made. Moreover, Audi engines have had "issues" that have been determined to be related to DIY customers using oil that does not meet Audi OEM specifications.

If your engine requires the New Engine Oil -- which adds further reductions in friction (and improved fuel economy) you should note: THE NEW OIL IS ONLY AVAILABLE at the dealer and comes with the suffix Professional OE. The oil is not downward compatible and is ONLY to be used in designated engines.

The oil can be purchased at any dealer for about $7.25 per bottle.

The preceding oil requirement comment is separate from the oil change interval question you posed. Again, I strongly suggest you (if you are a DIY owner) consider having the oil changed (assuming you got the AudiCare option) every 10,000 miles "at no charge" -- you can then change the oil yourself on the "odd" intervals every 5,000 miles. You would end up with 5,000 oil + filter change intervals and only pay for every other oil change.

Do find out about the GREEN COLORED oil change requirement to see if your engine MUST use this full-synthetic Professional OE oil.

Damn, I ended up writing another novel.

Blesbok

That is what I am curious about. It seems like a lot of newer cars come with "break in" oil but I can't find anything about it in the service manual. There are a ton of recommendations out there on service of the car in the early stages but almost no hard evidence, just a bunch of opinions.

Versprechen

Break in oil sounds like a myth to me. I've heard of it before but like you have never seen any proof. I don't pay attention to Asian automobiles but I've never heard of a German car that uses it -- they seems to use certain synthetic oils made by Castrol or whomever.

I like to change my oil at 5000 miles along with a tire rotation, somewhat splitting the difference with the 10,000 mile interval *just because* plus getting the tires moved around to help offset any feathering or other uneven wear caused by even slight tire canting or the usual road wear patterns.

JLoft

So I have read enough times about this new oil to believe. It does seem to be available in places other than the dealer. The Amazon listing says "Meets , VW 50200/50500/50501". So I know 502.01 is what's been around for 15+ years. So what is the proper required oil spec for this new engine? 505.01 is it?

NHman

Though I don't believe Audi requires it, I'm going with the first oil & filter change at 1200 miles. Most of my driving is interstate. Therefore subsequent changes will most likely be at 10k miles. If I were driving in the city and/or taking it to HPDE events, most likely the change frequencies would increase.

Why the change at 1200 miles, I still feel there will be some metal fillings in the oil and filter as a result of break-in. Also that I will be keeping this car beyond my normal retention of 2-years. If this were a lease with the intention of turning it in, I would most likely purchase AudiCare and follow their maintenance schedule (and increase the residual by 1%).

For my M car, BMW requires the oil & filter to be changed at 1200 miles.

markcincinnati

Two things:

1. There is NO break-in oil in the car; and, a premature (before 5,000 miles) oil change is both unnecessary and possibly not prudent (PLEASE ask your dealer service department -- not just the service scheduler).

2. IF - IF, IF, IF - your particular car is said to require "Professional OE" suffixed oil, it is ONLY available at the dealer (again call the dealer service and parts department.) The Professional OE Castrol oil is dyed greed to allow the owner to be able to rest assured there will be no issues down the road. After 50,000 miles, use what you want.

Is this compulsion to change the oil prematurely born of an historical Audi-specific experience or an experience from another brand and another time?

Are folks wanting to change the oil so darn early NOT AudiCare "subscribers?"

Every bit of information I can glean says 5,000 miles is plenty early.

Check all of the above with the top service person at the dealership, please.

James Cole

Mark do you happen to have a part number for the "green oil" because as Professional OE I keep finding them all over the place...

Talbot

When I read these discussions about over-changing oil (my words), I often ponder what EXPLICITLY the person expects to ACTUALLY gain from doing so. I need tangibles.

I think about an engine with 100,000 miles logged on it, and I wonder what could be WRONG on that engine that would be a direct result of following EXACTLY the manufacturer's recommended change interval - instead of doing it MORE frequently. And then I think about the additional $1000 spent over that 100,000 miles (being conservative @ $100/oil change * 10 additional oil changes). I surely MUST be missing something here?

I just keep thinking... what IS the didn't-change-the-oil-frequently-enough plague are these people trying to avoid that I've never heard of?

I hear about MAF sensors, and timing belts/chains, carbon buildup, fouled plugs, turbo actuator issues (all generically)... but none of those things correlates to not having changed the oil enough.

Lastly, I keep seeing this term "metal filings" thrown around. Maybe we have different ideas of what a filing looks like, but I'm pretty sure that any metal that gets cast-off by the break-in is closer to the molecular size level, not filing size. Then again, how do I know that having that molecular sized stuff swimming around in the oil isn't beneficial to further break-in?

markcincinnati

I called my dealer's service department and got the specific information; then I talked with my service manager who told me (as he has for over two decades) that when I get my oil changed they will give me a bottle (no charge) to keep in the trunk.

I've had dozens of Audis and the service department has always done this as a standard practice. The Parts Manager told me that the Green Castrol Synthetic Professional OE is ONLY available at the dealer, but that it is THE ONLY product that the dealer charges LESS for than "Pep Boys" but you can't even get it at Pep Boys (this is an example) even if you were willing to pay extra.

I believe it is $7.25 per bottle.

It is "free" to me as a subscriber to AudiCare -- are folks not typically subscribers to AC? At the two Cincinnati dealers, I can count on the fingers of NO HANDS the number of folks who are not subscribers.

My practice -- I have double the number of oil changes (i.e., every 5,000 miles). The slight extra cost of the oil change as an AC customer is the dealer's somewhat higher than "Jiffy Lube" prices minus 15%. The bottom line is that every 5,000 miles the car gets a "full check up" (in quotes as I am not suggesting they remove the "heads" and look at the valves or remove the calipers and inspect every nit -- but the dealer's oil changes include more than just the oil and filter,) so I pay for AudiCare and then start changing oil (at the dealer) every other 5,000 miles on my dime -- with a "free bottle" of oil (unless I have not used the one I got last time, of course).

The warranty can be kept in full force for 50,000 miles if you change the oil every 10,000 miles.

Most Audi customers, these days, lease. Usually the lease term is a maximum of 15,000 miles per year -- typically it is 12,000. Also most leases are equal to or less than 42,000 miles.

I'm not suggesting you do anything untoward or anything that would deliberately kill your new Audi's engine, but if your lease term is LESS than 50,001 miles, there is nothing wrong with following the manufacture's service guidelines.

We kept our 2014 SQ5 ~94,000 -- NEVER had to add a bottle of oil between changes (which were, as noted, evey 5,000 miles).

We did not buy the extended Audi branded warranty (to 75,000 miles) we did buy additional AudiCare service packs to 90,000 miles. Then we traded it in on a new SQ5 and were "informed" that the new 3.0T oil requirements were Castrol Synthetic Professional OE (and that it is dyed green.)

Then, there was a brief article about the new 3.0T engine in "The Quattro Quarterly" from the Audi Club of North America." The ACNA apparently copied or paraphrased an Audi service bulletin or press release -- this prompted me to call the dealer for further clarification. I spoke with my most trusted Service Adviser, the Service Manager and the Parts Manager (then just for grins, I also spoke with my sales rep who has been at the dealer since before the invention of dirt).

If ALL of these sources I am herein citing lied, I hereby apologize.

The message remains:

1. There is NO merit to changing the oil prematurely and possibly an unintended consequence since there is no break in oil and there are "scholarly" articles cautioning against changing the oil (especially the first time) too early; ASK THE DEALER the pros and cons of a pre-5,000 mile oil change.

2. The 3.0T engine in the 2018 S4 requires Professional OE oil that is only sold at the dealer. Please ASK ThE DEALER about this; do not rely on "we've always done it this way," or even the most erudite posters here on AW. ASK THE DEALER. There is (or should be) one "guy" one "GURU" at your dealer -- at my dealer it is the guy with the private office right next to the service manager. Any technical issues broached with the service manager are always cause for the SM to call the "guru" to discuss service bulletins and all other matters relating to the servicing of Audi cars. The guru we have must be able to teach a "master class" in Audi service. Hopefully your dealer has one of these guys.

Make friends with him.

The service manager, too, is someone you want to have a first name basis with -- when "stuff happens" (as it inevitably will) the service manager is the one with the "power" to cut through the "red tape" to get things done for you.

My wife's "fart sound" tail pipe actuators went south well after 50,000 miles (the part costs $373 bucks -- and there are two of them). That is the cost of the PART. The entire "fix" was done out of warranty for free due, in part, to our long standing relationship with the SM. He gave us the bill with the $ figures on it and it was stamped, "Customer Good Will."

This is the guy who started the process of the GREEN OIL requirement -- again, why would anyone (least of all the SM or me, for that matter) make this stuff up?

Check with your dealer.

Follow your heart.

Let the chips fall where they may.

As my lawyer wife says: "Be guided accordingly," which always sounds like it could be a threat, but actually isn't.