When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
2014 Q5 2.0T PP+ with 94k miles burning oil up to a quart every 500 miles or so, getting progressively worse over the past year. No signs of oil leaking on my driveway or on my garage floor. Car runs fine though, no problems otherwise, no decrease in acceleration or strange idling or noises. If it was the piston rings/heads failing as I'm reading about has been an issue with these cars, wouldn't I be experiencing other issues with the car? Or, not necessarily? It could just as easily by the PCV needing replacing, right? Just realized I've never changed my PCV and I had been encouraged by someone here to do so as routine maintenance 10k miles ago. Any other theories? Thanks in advance.
Last edited by Moonlightblue; 06-18-2023 at 07:32 PM.
Sorry you're dealing with this headache. The oil consumption is very likely from the oil control rings. The 8Rs use a thin slotted ring that is problematic and empirically we are seeing many B8s burn oil as they get into higher mileage, especially those that used longer OCIs and poorer quality oils. If the rings are toast the engine will need to be re-pistoned. Have I found a solution to this? Maybe. I have the exact same 2014 Q5 2.0T P+ with 115K miles and it does not burn any significant amount of oil between OCIs; but I have made a concerted effort to run the highest quality oil and then on top of that I have always used short drain intervals. I changed my oil yesterday and made a post showing how dirty the oil gets in just 2,000 miles -- which is, quite frankly, shocking just how dirty the oil gets and how quickly -- to try to make people aware with something that will resonate with them (often talking about the tribological properties is something they won't understand so hard for them to believe in, even though it's just chemistry). https://www.audiworld.com/forums/q5-...-like-3057461/
The PCV if due to be replaced anyway but you can check if your PCV is the issue by measuring your crankcase vacuum. I pull down almost 35" of water with a new PCV and I just re-measured this week and pulled down 31.5" on the same PCV that's now 40K miles old (I will replace it the next time I order parts):
I’ve always changed my oil at least every 5k miles, and use a high quality oil. I also changed the transmission fluid about 25k miles ago. All other regular maintenance has been done religiously. Maybe I’ll change the PCV first, as it’s likely to cost as much as my indie shop would charge me to diagnose. I’m assuming that if it was in fact the PCV, I wouldn’t see a fault being thrown through an OBD (Eleven) scan? Will also fill with 505 oil treatment before next oil change this week as someone else mentioned in a different thread. Hoping it’s not the pistons!
Last edited by Moonlightblue; 06-19-2023 at 03:45 AM.
Which oil are you using? I was changing my oil every 5K miles too until the engine hit 100K miles and now I do every 2-3K miles. Especially since this engine was designed to be used with an oil extractor it is literally only 10 minutes to change the oil (not counting the time you go do something else while the extraction happens).
The fact that the oil gets so dirty so fast is a canary in a coal mine. On one hand it is good that it gets so dark because this means the oil I use has a dispersant that is working; but on the other hand the fact that it has this much to disperse and at this rate is shocking.
Which oil are you using? I was changing my oil every 5K miles too until the engine hit 100K miles and now I do every 2-3K miles. Especially since this engine was designed to be used with an oil extractor it is literally only 10 minutes to change the oil (not counting the time you go do something else while the extraction happens).
The fact that the oil gets so dirty so fast is a canary in a coal mine. On one hand it is good that it gets so dark because this means the oil I use has a dispersant that is working; but on the other hand the fact that it has this much to disperse and at this rate is shocking.
My indie shop, who are scheduled to do an oil change this week, are telling me not to worry about it, that the PCV valve doesn't need to be changed unless there's a problem with it. They don't seem to want to take a look at it, and tell me to just drive it as is, and keep topping the oil off whenever it goes down. It's dropping much faster now. The reading went from over half filled, to clearly under the half-way mark in the span of one week. Not sure now how it's idling to be honest. They told me the oil they use is called, "Total" 5w-40 I believe. I see it's used on a lot of German cars per the (mostly positive) reviews on Amazon. Unsure about the quality.
UPDATE: Gonna change my oil and do an oil consumption test. Can tell you that if it's the pistons, I'll never buy another Audi again. Will report back.
Last edited by Moonlightblue; 06-19-2023 at 06:04 PM.
Can tell you that if it's the pistons, I'll never buy another Audi again.
LOL I've said "I'll never buy another Audi again" three times ;-) I've also said it about BMW and I've made good on that promise.
At this point, it doesn't matter which brand, they all have problems and are too complex. The B8-8.5 chassis is probably the last Audi platform which a reasonably skilled shadetree can reasonably expect to tackle.
A more realistic statement is "I'll never own another modern vehicle out of warranty". That pretty much prices all the Euro brands out of my wallet; a Hyundai/Kia will likely be the replacement for my SQ5.
Sorry you're dealing with this headache. The oil consumption is very likely from the oil control rings. The 8Rs use a thin slotted ring that is problematic and empirically we are seeing many B8s burn oil as they get into higher mileage, especially those that used longer OCIs and poorer quality oils. If the rings are toast the engine will need to be re-pistoned. Have I found a solution to this? Maybe. I have the exact same 2014 Q5 2.0T P+ with 115K miles and it does not burn any significant amount of oil between OCIs; but I have made a concerted effort to run the highest quality oil and then on top of that I have always used short drain intervals. I changed my oil yesterday and made a post showing how dirty the oil gets in just 2,000 miles -- which is, quite frankly, shocking just how dirty the oil gets and how quickly -- to try to make people aware with something that will resonate with them (often talking about the tribological properties is something they won't understand so hard for them to believe in, even though it's just chemistry). https://www.audiworld.com/forums/q5-...-like-3057461/
The PCV if due to be replaced anyway but you can check if your PCV is the issue by measuring your crankcase vacuum. I pull down almost 35" of water with a new PCV and I just re-measured this week and pulled down 31.5" on the same PCV that's now 40K miles old (I will replace it the next time I order parts):
So, my mechanic is telling me the PCV valve doesn't need to be replaced unless a fault is thrown. And that it would be whining loudly if it was needing replacement. Sound right? Or should I replace it simply for preventative reasons?
Your mechanic is likely correct that it's not the PCV but the way to test is to measure your crankcase vacuum -- you can buy that device I have above on Amazon for like $30. Else yes you can just buy a new PCV and it is 15 mins to install. But I am almost sure it is your pistons/rings unfortunately, I hope I am wrong.
If you are having an oil consumption test done at the Audi dealer, Audi may pay for some of it depending on "goodwill" but in my experience they would charge something like $11,000 to do the job and you might be lucky to get them to pickup $5,000 of that cost -- but you could have a good independent mechanic install the same OE parts for about $6,000, which is the route I will go if my engine ever develops this problem (so same cost as the best-case from Audi without having to jump through any hoops with Audi of America begging for goodwill). I created a thread with all the parts exactly for your car, which is the exact same as mine, if you need it:
Your mechanic is likely correct that it's not the PCV but the way to test is to measure your crankcase vacuum -- you can buy that device I have above on Amazon for like $30. Else yes you can just buy a new PCV and it is 15 mins to install. But I am almost sure it is your pistons/rings unfortunately, I hope I am wrong.
If you are having an oil consumption test done at the Audi dealer, Audi may pay for some of it depending on "goodwill" but in my experience they would charge something like $11,000 to do the job and you might be lucky to get them to pickup $5,000 of that cost -- but you could have a good independent mechanic install the same OE parts for about $6,000, which is the route I will go if my engine ever develops this problem (so same cost as the best-case from Audi without having to jump through any hoops with Audi of America begging for goodwill). I created a thread with all the parts exactly for your car, which is the exact same as mine, if you need it:
Thanks for your recommendations. Just started the "oil consumption test" at the dealer today. I doubt the dealer would make any "goodwill" offer. I've had the car maintained by an indie shop for the last 3-4 years. The engine is still running strong right now. No current problems with acceleration, no strange noises. I've kept up with maintenance meticulously. Changed the transmission oil at 65k miles. Always changed the oil at 5k miles, used nothing by 91 octane gas. Did all recommended maintenance, and then some. Funny though, whenever I bring my car into the dealer for any reason, the car comes back with the sunroof squeaking and squealing when it's opening. I never bring it up because I don't want to get into a debate about it, but I'm sure of it now. Wish I had video taped it before and after this time, but I forgot to. What if I just continue to drive it and add oil every 500-1000 miles as needed? How long before I start experiencing engine problems?
06-18-2023, 07:22 PM
Excessive Oil Consumption
