The Sludge Prevention thread

[jackyaudi]

The 1.8T's engine is known for this issue from as far as I researched on this forum. Most threads were for addressing the issue, so I hope we can focus this one on prevention measures to take in order to avoid sludge.

So far, the following points were suggested:

- Regular oil changes with SYNTHETIC oil (5000 miles intervals, but it does not hurt to do it before that if you want to treat ur engine a litle better). KEEP RECEIPTS.

- Seafoam Treatment (can someone confirm that it helps?)

- Other?

Thanks and best of luck with your engines.

[UGwagen]

The 1.8T's engine is known for this issue from as far as I researched on this forum. Most threads were for addressing the issue, so I hope we can focus this one on prevention measures to take in order to avoid sludge.

So far, the following points were suggested:

- Regular oil changes with SYNTHETIC oil (5000 miles intervals, but it does not hurt to do it before that if you want to treat ur engine a litle better). KEEP RECEIPTS.

- Seafoam Treatment (can someone confirm that it helps?)

- Other?

Thanks and best of luck with your engines.

1) Use correct VW502.00 oil. (see list on Audi's website)
2) Use the larger oil filter to increase capacity (068 115 561B or equivalent)
3) Regular oil changes, 5000 miles max

4) Some people like the Auto-Rx oil additive to clean the engine.

Download pdf file from Audi on the approved oils

[n7plus1]

im always selling amsoil's engine flush...just another cleaner.

[bigbro]

I heard something about changing the oil pickup screen to prevent sludge works best.

[NVR STSFD]

I only drive my car about 5,000 miles a year. Work commute is only about 18 miles total. What would be the best intervals to change my oil to prevent sludge? I was thinking every 4 months. Thanks.

[jackyaudi]

Anyone has actually used Auto-Rx and can give us some tips or instructions on how to do it?

[djs]

I was showing signs of sludge and went to the following service schedule at the suggestion of my mechanic (a great german guy that works only on german cars and the only guy I'll let touch my car)

Oil - Elf (now Total)
Change interval - I change the oil every 5k and the filter every 10k

Basically I take it to the shop every 10k for service and drain and replace the oil myself at the 5k midpoints.

Since I've changed to this schedule I have had no signs of sludge whatsoever

[vc1492a]

seafoam works beautifully, not just for sludge but for carbon build up as well.

use it just before an oil change, 1/3 in tank (full), 1/3 through vacuum hose, and 1/3 in the oil.

drive around for a bit, not too long though. some people do 10 miles, others do 100. its up to you.

supposedly it helps with things, it sure has in my a4. ive got almost 89k miles now

[diagnosticator]

I only drive my car about 5,000 miles a year. Work commute is only about 18 miles total. What would be the best intervals to change my oil to prevent sludge? I was thinking every 4 months. Thanks.

I agree, every 4 months regardless of miles, is a good plan for you .

[bob12312357]

Seafoam FTW, my old BMW was starting to build sludge on the valve train, added 1 bottle seafoam to the oil. Drove 200 miles, changed oil engine sparkled. That stuff has saved me from carb rebuilds on my bikes b4 2.

[jackyaudi]

Same here, I only drive it about 5000 miles or so a year. So I dont base my oil changes on mileage, but rather every 4-6 months, depending how much I drive.

[1BadA4]

when you do seafoam, which vacume line do you do it through???

[04QuattroTurbo]

Same here, I only drive it about 5000 miles or so a year. So I dont base my oil changes on mileage, but rather every 4-6 months, depending how much I drive.

I thought the only reason that the time mattered was that conventional oils tend to breakdown after 3 months or so loosing it's variable viscosity. Synthetic oil doesn't break down (in theory). So if you only drive 5K miles annually, then you can probably get away with 1 oil change a year. But considering you drive it daily, but only 18 miles a day, since the short distance is not good for the oil or the car, I say change it to every 2000 - 3000 miles per OCI, regardless of time.

That's my $.02, at least.

[04QuattroTurbo]

when you do seafoam, which vacume line do you do it through???

I've read every 50-60K and you can use any vacuum hose, but most seem to prefer the one connected to the intake manifold. Some seem to want to change it every OCI. I guess that's up to you.

[B6480Avant]

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125055

its for b5 but i think its the same concept

[A4natomical]

where can i get seafoam? im due for an oil change soon.

[04QuattroTurbo]

Pepboys, Napa, Advance Auto Parts, ...here's the dealer locator: CLICK

[dougyfresh]

1) Use correct VW502.00 oil. (see list on Audi's website)
2) Use the larger oil filter to increase capacity (068 115 561B or equivalent)
3) Regular oil changes, 5000 miles max

4) Some people like the Auto-Rx oil additive to clean the engine.

Download pdf file from Audi on the approved oils

All you have to do is follow this /\


Use the search button if you want to figure out how to flush Seafoam or some other cleaner through the engine. There has been a lot of discussion on here about this topic.

[jackyaudi]

After a little search on google, here is how to use Auto-RX on our engines (http://auto-rx.com/pages/applications.htm):

"First change your motor oil and filter. Add one full 12 oz bottle of Auto-Rx® to your engine.

Auto-Rx® works best with conventional (non-synthetic) motor oil. If you feel you must use a synthetic motor oil we recommend using a Group III oil to avoid competing chemistries.

At 2,500 miles change your oil and filter again, but do not add Auto-Rx® or any other additive. Drive an additional 3,000 miles, then change your oil and filter again.

You may follow up your first application with a second if you feel additional cleaning is needed. Vehicles with over 100,000 miles require a second application.

We recommend that you follow up your treatment by going on the Auto-Rx® Maintenance Plan. This will ensure a clean motor and maintain peak performance."

Its pretty straightforward, except for the part where they mention to use Group III oil. On another thread, CO AVANT used castrol gtx 5w-30 oil for his Auto-rx treatment, and you have to drive 2500 miles with that, which I am not sure if we should do so. And for people who do a lot of stop and go (like me) and not much mileage, I think the 2500 number should be much less. Like I mentioned I only drive about 5000 miles a year, and thats a lot of stop and go on a daily basis. Any comments?

[Mike02A4]

I am almost done with my first clean cycle of auto rx. Do the auto rx cycle for 2500-3000 miles and if you suspect heavy sludge, change the filter at the 1/2 way point. You will need appx 1 more quart of oil to refill it when you change the filter. I used it with mobil 1 0w40. I changed the filter at the 1/2 way point. When I change the oil for the rinse cycle, I will not be using regular oil, I will use a group 3 sythetic. I am going to do another auto rx cycle after I complete the rinse.

When you guys start your cars up for the first time of the day, how long do you hear that valvetrain chatter noise?

[UGwagen]

The OE Audi/VW/Castrol 5w40 is a Group III oil.

[sloweryucf]

Where is the statement from Audi that you are to change your oil every 5K? I have yet to see anything from them stating this fact. The dealer told me that verbally. I've had my car over five years now and have had the oil changed every 10K miles with the big filter until my warranty went out and then have done it myself every 7500 miles after that.

My Bentley CD says nothing either. Anyone?

[04QuattroTurbo]

Manual says 7500K, IRC. The recommended OIC by most shops is 3K. If you are using Synthetic which doesn't break down as fast as conventional oil, 5K is probably the sweet spot. The truth is, you really can't change your oil often enough. Fresh oil is always good for the engine, you will not hurt anything but your wallet by changing your oil too often.

[UGwagen]

the interesting thing is, on the VW transverse 1.8T's, the factory OCI is 5000 miles.

What is interesting is, the transverse 1.8t's have a larger oil pan, which as why the sludge issue didn't affect them.

[Stockton]

I've been changing my oil every 5k with the larger filter and whatever oil comes with the oil change kit from ECS. I think it's a 5w-30 full synthetic.

I'm dumping in half a can of Seafoam then changing it out and putting in Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0w-40 for the first time cause I got it on sale at PepBoys.

Also when I reset the service mileage tracker in my dash it automaticly resets to 5k for the next service.

[zims666]

where can i get seafoam? im due for an oil change soon.

was picking up my car after service at the stealership, went by the "pro shop" to check out the audi merch and other schwag.
low & behold next to the audi certified oils & coolants was a shelf of seafoam.
so if anyone has doubts of using it, just know audi recommends it, and sells it at the dealership.

(***ps: guy at the counter couldnt find a price for it in the computer, so he gave me a bottle free! )

when you do seafoam, which vacume line do you do it through???

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125055

[jackyaudi]

Anybody who had a sludge problem with their engine noticed ANY kind of changes in driving behavior before it happened? What were the symptoms before you found out that your engine has sludge? [oil level, CEL, low oil, sensors failing, etc]


LOL, Audi seems like it was on the news for this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lEV6MBmLZE

The lady said the engine was very loud before.

[swrt83]

Bumpage

I wanted to Seafoam this weekend, and have the 3.0.. while I've seen plenty of vids on youtube for the 1.8T which is easy to find the vaccuum line into the manifold.. but I didn't see anything clear for the 6 cylinder. Anyone have pics or can instruct me? I thought I saw something promising towards the back of the block.. am I close??

[Papachristou]

i dont think there is any symptoms but some people catch it early when doing their VCG.

i had a question about the use of dino oil with auto RX. i started my cleaning phase about a week ago with castrol dino oil. (auto RX recommends dino while doing the cleaning phase) but i wasnt sure if i should or could go back to full syn for the rinse phase... so i emailed auto rx to see. their response is below for future searchers....

Q:My Dealership says that I Must Run Synthetic Oil
A:To use Auto-Rx to it best possible performance mineral oil is
recommended. Some motor designs have been listed as possibly at higher
risk of engine sludging. This may be due to small sump capacity, turbo
charging, and excessively small drain holes out of the heads, that are
prone to plugging.

Whatever the case may be your dealer is likely giving you good advice.
However, in an Auto-Rx application you will only be running the oil
change interval for 2500 miles during the “cleaning phase” and then a
fresh oil change for 3000 miles known as the “rinse phase”. There is no
daily driver automotive engine that suffer from running a mineral
oil(dino) for such a short duration. Besides it’s a lot cheaper.

If you are adamant about continuing to run a “synthetic oil” during your
Auto-Rx cleaning and rinse application, I suggest running a group III,
synthetic oil. This is still a mineral oil, but more highly refined and
has properties, such as pour point and durability very close to what is
referred to as a full synthetic or group IV oil. Most group IV oils
contain a relatively high level of esters in their formulation and do
not perform as well during the rinsing phase in particular. This is due
to the polar nature of the esters, which tend to help the oil cling to
the metal parts, instead of draining or rinsing off.

Once you have completed the “cleaning” and “rinsing” phase of your
application(s), then the use of the Auto-Rx maintenance dose can be used
with any oil.




so basically you are best off to use dino oil for your cleaning and rinse phase, then return to full syn

[nezach]

Bumpage

I wanted to Seafoam this weekend, and have the 3.0.. while I've seen plenty of vids on youtube for the 1.8T which is easy to find the vaccuum line into the manifold.. but I didn't see anything clear for the 6 cylinder. Anyone have pics or can instruct me? I thought I saw something promising towards the back of the block.. am I close??

scroll down to post number #9

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=223150

[swrt83]

lol, thanks nezach.. look at post 13 (prior to me reading your post here)

[nezach]

lol, thanks nezach.. look at post 13 (prior to me reading your post here)

lol, i had it bookmarked so didn't even see that you have already found it.

i did my car a couple of weeks ago and it didn't smoke nearly as much as i was expecting; i was kind of disappointed, but then again less smoke should be a good sign, oh well

[orttauq]

I heard something about changing the oil pickup screen to prevent sludge works best.

Bingo. One of my coworkers who leased an 05 passat, religious documented oil changes every 3500 had the dreaded oil pressure warning at 36k miles. Removed the pan and found the pick up tube screen clogged. Even working for VW, they wanted documented maintainence receipts. I plan on changing the pick up tube as soon as CPO expires. One of our techs bought out his leased passat and put a claim in on his car for oil pressure just so he could change the pick up tube before the powertrain expired.
If you ask anyone in the VW/Audi service field they'll all blame the P/U tube

[Papachristou]

it still doesnt fix the problem though. we have low capacity, high heat engines. the transverse engines have a lot more capacity and dont seem to suffer from sludge as much. even if you change your pickup tube but still have sludge in the engine, you are going to clog your new one as well.