losing power/using excess oil

[belindaeaster]

hi all, ok i have audi a3 2011 tfsi sportback 1.8, just on 70000 miles,about 4 years ago needed new water pump, 3 years ago new coil packs, since then been using excess oil, like 200miles 1litre oil, tiny oil patch now and then appears, coolant light comes on same every couple hundred miles, dont use very often and live on an island so no motorway or fast driving now, so what happens now is like coil pack going again, drive along starts to judder and lose power engine management light comes on but if i put the heater on hot full blowing it sorts itself but smells of heat and burning obviously i pull over as soon as and leave it to cool down, any ideas anyone please

[cliffcoggin]

Belinda.

I can't think of one single engine fault that would cause all the symptoms you describe, so I suspect there are many faults. I think the best place to start is to have the basic functions of the engine checked to ensure the rings and valves are in acceptable condition. If they are faulty they could well cause the plug fouling, overheating, oil loss, power loss etc. so you would need a new or re-conditioned engine.

[belindaeaster]

hi thank you i was hoping it would be a cheap fix but doesnt sound like it will be, i will book a diagnostics check.

 

[Magnet]

Hello Belinda, 

I think we have to be a bit more specific with the symptoms and the chronology of them. 

Was water pump changed 4 years ago as part of the scheduled cambelt change ( assume the cambelt has been changed?) Did you experience any coolant loss, or oil usage increase from that specific point? 

3 years ago, coil pack changed - why?  Again, did this mark a deterioration point? 

Does the temperature gauge actually indicate that the car is overheating at times? 

Oil leak = MOT failure if it is as you describe , and dependent where the leak site is (and would need to tell us) then this could be a rather big job in itself - although not necessarily.

200 miles/litre is a significant consumption - can you live with that if all other symptoms are eliminated, based on some Audi engines do have high oil consumption and causes are complex to resolve? 

Sorry about all the questions Belinda. 

Diagnostics? Personally I wouldn’t bother at this stage, but just entrust a diagnosis to a trusted local garage you can actually talk with.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[belindaeaster]

hi Gareth, ive said it was the water pump and now i cant be sure if it was and what lead up to it, i dont recall overheating happening but it had to have a specialist machine do a pressure test and it was losing pressure, i need to find my receipts we moved and lots of things still in storage, so the garage put a new pump? on i remember it costing over £600! but dont remember the cam belt being changed as car had by then only done about 40000, but do remember there being talk that it should of been changed because of where the new part was being fitted,, then about 3 years ago the car lost power going up a small sharp hill it was shaking the whole car the orange engine management light was flashing and it was juddering i turned round went home took it to different garage as i thought the one that done the work on pump was dodgy, they said it was coil packs 2 of them and once one went the other would soon follow they wanted 700+ found coil packs on eBay about 70quid with new plugs and brother in law car mechanic fitted them, but then started driving regular trip essex to isle of wight and was using litre of oil each trip and water coolant light coming on so topping it up regular the temperature light does not indicate car is over heating just the red warning light alarm goes off and saysd switch off engine and check coolant level, oil leak hasnt failed mot just sometimes theres a small patch on the floor not regular this is in middle at front the engine itself is very clean no oil around anywhere all pipes etc clean,yes can live with it if its not causing a problem elsewhere,but u cant even see where it comes from which is also strange, but as i say if it happens and i put the heater on full then it stops losing power and juddering after a few seconds, we have a local garage we can speak to, just thought i would ask on here as money is very tight right now and the car is my lifeline as im disabled and cant use public transport, many thanks for taking time to reply

 

[Magnet]

Hello Belinda,

Many thanks for coming back on this, and I understand that the history of the issues is a bit hazy with you, so let’s look to boiling it down:-

The car is using more oil than it should, and my view is that you will have to live with this (ensuring you keep the level topped up) since rectifying this problem will be expensive.

The oil leak can be lived with if you have an MOT station who aren’t too fussy with these things! 

The car is using coolant- so you will need to get someone to find out where this coolant is going - another pressure test would be suggested. 

The car misfires? - maybe associated with coolant leaking into a cylinder - but this is just an assumption and a coolant pressure test may reveal something.

Water pump?? I don’t think we have a clear understanding with this, so I cannot comment. 

Cambelt change? (If your engine is belt driven?). Belt would need changing say every 5 years irrespective of mileage. 

It sounds like you need to find yourself a trusted local garage - one where all the issues can be discussed, but I would strongly advise that you take your brother in law with you. 

Can’t your brother in law diagnose and assist with some of the work? 

Hope some of the above might help to clarify Belinda.

Kind regards,

Gareth.