joegolden481

Hello I am a new guy here and just picked up my A6 avant 3.2 yesterday. What a beautiful car. The interior looks like 5000 miles instead of 154000. I can't find a single scratch or door ding. It has great service on carfax 28 service records and it runs and drives so well. The transmission shifts are imperceptible. I picked it up for $4600 which I felt was good for how nice it is. I could smell some oil burning on the exhaust but I never imagined what a leak or leaks this car would have. Holy toledah I removed the belly pans and the 2 lil plastic covers on top and it is covered in oil on the front. All over alternator, compressor, all pulleys and serpentine. There is a pool of oil deep in the V kinda under the intake manifold. Way back in there I did identify leaks coming from timing covers around back but I have no clue where it's coming from up front. It looks like it has been leaking for a long time. It is caked on. I don't understand how a dealer serviced car can overlook such a leak. The valve cover gaskets were done by Audi in 2014. Can anyone give me some ideas? I changed the oil, filter and rotated the tires today so I'm mechanically inclined. I just need help indentifying specific parts and hoses and issues alike. Thanks have a great weekend! Joe

4Driver4

Start by washing the engine, then driving the car an hour or so. Then look again.

joegolden481

Should I use degreaser and power wash it? I don't want to ruin alternator of other components. I have always wanted to do this to an engine bay but was always nervous I would ruin something. Thx

Gerarddm

Did you get a pre-purchase inspection? If so, surely they would have mentioned something to you? I would hate to think all that oil was post-PPI.

If you didn't get a PPI, now you know why you should have.

Yep, clean the engine, drive a bit, take a look. I hope it isn't anything too serious.

joegolden481

No I did not because I knew ther was a leak and the price reflected this. I just did not realize how much until I removed the belly pan. Wow. Love the car still though. It's a beauty. I posted some pics in the new member section. Thx

joegolden481

Well $220 later my Audi mech changed the o rings in the 4 solenoids on top. I thought it had stopped the leak but after driving 100 miles today I notice it pooling again in the valley. No drips on the ground tho. And the smoke from dripping on exhaust has gone away. Looks like there is more to be done.

Nightlifephantom

I know the saying "if it's not broken, don't fix it" but since your car has 15x,xxx miles, this is a good time to replace all seals/gaskets that are easy to get to and of course if you have the funds to do so. Also, you never know what seals (if any) that the previous owner replaced.

I have a 05 4.2 that I purchased back in September and now has 113k but changed most of the seals that weren't too big of a deal. Valve cover gaskets, cam shaft positioner seal, oil cooler o-rings. All those seals had a noticeable leak, even if it was small. As it's winter here in NY, me and my local Indy shop will be tackling some more seals this spring. In my opinion, the higher the miles, the more effort should be done in replacing worn out seals or they can cause a bigger problem down the road, especially if one is planning on keeping the car for a long time.

joegolden481

Yes I agree with you ! My Indy told me we would start from the top and work our way down. So I would say he has stopped 50% of the leaks now. Valve covers were done in 14 and are dry. He put some dye in the system to see what's next.

My car is immaculate to the eye inside and out. It also runs very well. So quiet. But when you remove the splash pans and the plastic cover in top of the engine it looks like a bloodbath. Oil everywhere. Such a deceiving car. This car has 155k and all dealer service. Why was this never addressed?

Nightlifephantom

My guess is maybe the last owner didn't feel like ditching out the $ for the repairs other than basic maintenance. But who knows...

My 4.2 was always dealer serviced from day one to a few weeks before I purchased the car as well and I myself even had some questions as to why this was never done, that was never done. For instance, all the wrong fluids were in the car... not a single fluid was a Audi/VW recommended fluid.

kelisko

Would also like to know a SAFE way to clean the engine bay. Mine is very dusty