Excessive oil consumption

[Brian C]

I have a 2016 Cali Ocean, DSG diesel turbo it has done approximately 108,000 miles, regularly serviced. It is using approximately 1litre of oil per 1000 miles, does anyone else have similar or consider this excessive

 

[Perfectos]

Presume T6 ?

What engine is it ? 150/ 201 etc ?

When did you acquire the van ? (Have you owned it long)

Search function top right spy glass will turn up lots of reading

 

[Brian C]

Yes T6
Engine 1968
Had from new 2016

 

[Perfectos]

Yes T6
Engine 1968
Had from new 2016

My question regarding engine was not what CC it is, the question was regarding power output I.e Twin turbo or single ?

 

[Oscarthebeddie]

Main dealer told my friend it's within tolerance, his van had 20k from new and had been lovely cared for by him but still used 1ltr per 1k from the start

 

[Perfectos]

Main dealer told my friend it's within tolerance, his van had 20k from new and had been lovely cared for by him but still used 1ltr per 1k from the start

I suggest you research what engine you have (single or twin turbo) then do some Research here and on T6 forum, depending on what engine you have.

There are known issues with twin turbo 199 -204 ps engine set ups

I wish you the best of luck

 

[sidepod]

Any engine using that amount of oil is a boat anchor!

 

[Perfectos]

Any engine using that amount of oil is a boat anchor!

Except VW think that oil usage in that magnitude is within acceptable tolerance!

When has that been acceptable in the history of engineering I have no idea , but others have reported that VW seem to think oil usage that high it's OK for their engines !

I.e. VW will not admit problems exist with certain engine types.

 

[Perfectos]

Search : Some threads related

Search results for query: High oil use

vwcaliforniaclub.com

 

[Christine Kirk]

Ours is a bi-turbo 199 2018 and has always used ( leaked) some oil but nothing like 1ltr per 1000 miles; now done about 85k from new and has had full dealer services to the VW schedule, but it still does use some oil!
VW seem to think that’s OK but we are used to previous models not requiring any between servicing!

 

[Alexlex85]

Mine is a t5.1 2010 180bhp CFCA engine. 1L oil every 250 miles
Known for issues with EGR cooler breaking apart and damaging the cylinder bores, piston rings, leading to increase oil consumption.

Its been sold to me as a perfect running order by a scumbag which owns a very known camper van dealership from Watford but I wont get into details.

It has been said that the later years with revision D egr cooler(can be seen on the label in the engine bay) are better/reliable, however I have read cases where even rev D have failed.
I am personally half way through a home diy swap with a brand new crate engine from TPS. Ill be doing an egr delete whilst im at it for good measure.

Your oil consumption is excessive and a ticking time bomb until will clog up the DPF.

I suggest you start with a compression test. ~£200. Can be done through the glow plug ports.
This is by far the cheapest way to confirm if your engine is kaput.
If compression is low, then you don't need to go chasing oil leaks, turbo rebuilds or other avenues of wasting money on different garages and everyone's "expert opinion"

In theory you should have been safe with it being 2016 with rev D egr. however, i have read reports of rev d failing too.


Worse case scenario - £6k parts from TPS plus labour.

I know this is terrible news Brian but I hope this might give you some direction

Please keep this thread going for everyones benefit

Best of luck
Alex

 

[Alexlex85]

I thought it’s also worth mentioning

I’d stay well clear of engine rebuilds. It sounds sensible… right up until it starts emptying your wallet in slow motion.


Usually it goes one of two ways:

• They quote you pretty much what a crate engine costs anyway (so you pay “rebuild money” for “still a rebuild”).
  or
• It yeets itself again, and the car becomes a semi-permanent resident of a back-street garage — popping home occasionally just to remind you what optimism feels like — until you’re at breaking point, nearly divorced, and suddenly Webuyanycar offering 30% of its value feels like a gift from above.

Rebuilding an engine with cylinder bore damage usually means honing the bores, which then means oversize piston rings. And as you’ve guessed, we’re talking tight tolerances on a high-compression engine there’s basically zero room for error.

This isn’t a “that’ll do” job or a “should be fine for another 5k miles” kind of situation.

Have a look at Darkside Developments for costs and a proper breakdown of parts.

And if you can get through to them (fingers crossed here), give them a call and see what they advise.

2.0 BiTDi Engines. What to know!

The idea of a 2.0 BiTDI Transporter or Amarok sounds great, and with quoted figures from the factory round the 180bhp mark, it sounds like the perfect platform to start with

www.darksidedevelopments.co.uk

New crate engine comes with injectors, egr cooler, glowplugs. Its not exactly expensive in my books

 

[cpaharley2008]

That oil consumption definitely sounds excessive to me - 1L per 1000 miles is way too much regardless of what VW says about "tolerance". I'd definitely get that compression test done as Alex suggested, it's the cheapest way to know if your engine is properly knackered before throwing money at other potential fixes.

 

[andyinluton]

I have a 2016 Cali Ocean, DSG diesel turbo it has done approximately 108,000 miles, regularly serviced. It is using approximately 1litre of oil per 1000 miles, does anyone else have similar or consider this excessive

VW will say thats within tolerance.
Has it built up over the years to that consumption or is suddenly worse?
Any signs of an external leak or is it digesting it?

 

[Alexlex85]

Safe to say VW will definitely class that level of oil consumption as outside the expected range.
That said, they still won’t be much help. And whatever a service advisor (or a mechanic’s apprentice on their first tour of duty) tells you is basically background noise

 

[JuanVecino2023]

Main dealer told my friend it's within tolerance, his van had 20k from new and had been lovely cared for by him but still used 1ltr per 1k from the start

That’s definitely not within tolerance. Engine oil is a lubricant, not a fuel!

 

[Alexlex85]

it is not unusual for some brand new engines to use a bit more oil until they wear in. but this shouldn't last past 10k-15k miles.

 

[Oscarthebeddie]

Search : Some threads related

Search results for query: High oil use

vwcaliforniaclub.com

Hi thanks for the info I have past it on to my friend now it's up to him to push the buttons at his dealership and cause a fuss

 

[sidepod]

At least with that level of use you can save on service costs given you’re constantly changing the oil!!!!!!

 

[Nand0]

If your engine is a CXEB this may be relevant: https://www.t6forum.com/threads/204ps-bi-turbo-cxeb-t6-engine-turbo-problems.52916/

 

[Perfectos]

The comment regarding "Within Tolerance" is what VW have stated in the past, when presented with the issues reported here.

It is not the opinion of the posters, it is fact. (& a disgrace that VW will not accept despite un refutable evidence of many many failures of the twin turbo variant)

 

[vmaxkiddy]

VW’s oil usage limit is 600 miles per litre, yours is well within their tolerance.
Have a look at the oil, you’ll probably see it sparkle slightly which is the aluminium particles from the cooler, a compression test would be beneficial to save unnecessary expense

 

[sidepod]

It’s mad how they’ve allowed to get away with this low bar. If it was a safety related item they wouldn’t. Imagine say, a steering rack failing and being told the failure rate is acceptable!

 

[Alexlex85]

I just finished swapping a new CFCA crate engine. I personally went down the EGR delete kit from darkside developments. Personal preference.
I do now have a brand new Rev D EGR cooler available for sale if anyone is interested to upgrade theirs as preventative measure. Its genuine VW part straight from VW TPS Guildford.

If anyone is in a pickle with their CFCA engine and not far from Aldershot/ Godalming area, I can put you in touch with a mobile mechanic which can sort you out. It will take about a week and will need space to work and a gazebo. He can do anything from regular servicing, engine swaps, timing belt jobs etc. fairly cheap too.

 

[sidepod]

A week for an engine swap?