Rear Crank Seal Leak (2019 A6 50 TDI)

[KingSlayer]

Hi all,

I just had my car in with Audi for a routine oil service and inspection and they identified what they described as a rear crank seal leak. They said it would be a >20 hour repair involving removing engine and transmission from the car and the cost would likely be in the region of €6-7k. Does anyone have any experience of this issue? The car has around 80k miles and there is no sign of oil leakage around the engine, so I am trying to understand how bad the issue is before making a decision. The car is out of warranty so it obviously seems like a ludicrous cost to fix an oil leak.

Thank you.

[Magnet]

Hello Jamie,

The dealer is certainly correct in the amount of work involved in replacing this cheap part. They are also likely to contact you during repair and suggest renewing clutch components as well - resulting in additional 4 figure sum being added. 
The question is - how severe is this leak? My feeling would be bordering insignificant at this stage, but I could be wrong. 
If it were mine:- I would get a second opinion from a trusted independent. 
I would question why you are having this 6 year old car serviced at a main dealer.

Kind regards,

Gareth,m

 

[cliffcoggin]

I am puzzled how Audi can tell you there is a leak if there is no visible sign of oil outside the engine. Have you been under the car to inspect the underside Jamie?

[spartacus 68]

As mentioned. If the engine is out, then there's other work that should take place given access. That's Audi main dealer prices for you, so £180+ an hour. Would be worth checking out independent garages that specialise in this type of work, or even consider selling it. You'll never recover the money otherwise. Depends if you plan to keep it for a few years, ultimately its only 2019.

50TDI is 3 litre (286hp). If it was me, then I would get chains replaced to future-proof it. The plastic guides can wear and its an engine out job to replace anyway.

Get a quote from VAG Technic (Dudley). They are on YouTube and only use genuine parts.

 

[KingSlayer]

Thank you very much for the responses. It sounds like getting it checked by an independent dealer for a second opinion is a sensible next step. To respond to some of the specific points:

 

On 3/12/2025 at 12:35 PM, Magnet said:

The question is - how severe is this leak? My feeling would be bordering insignificant at this stage, but I could be wrong.

The leak isn't severe at all as far as I can tell. Certainly no signs of oil externally or in or around the engine. I should have mentioned that they also said there was a rocker cover leak, but the price they quoted to fix that was reasonable (as in 3 figures..) so I didn't think too much else of it, but equally the lack of sign of oil in the engine bay does make me wonder about that one too.  I will probably speak to Audi again and ask them how exactly they identified these leaks and how serious they perceive them to be. I don't know if they are just recommending this more as a preventative maintenance item than anything else.

 

On 3/12/2025 at 12:35 PM, Magnet said:

I would question why you are having this 6 year old car serviced at a main dealer.

Fair question, although to my mind 6 years isn't exactly old. I guess I still cling to the notion that main dealer service history is important for resale value, although of course I know there are different schools of thought on that.

 

On 3/12/2025 at 3:00 PM, cliffcoggin said:

I am puzzled how Audi can tell you there is a leak if there is no visible sign of oil outside the engine. Have you been under the car to inspect the underside Jamie?

Yes I am now too! I haven't been underneath the car myself no and I don't have access to a lift or anything, but I will speak to Audi again and see if I can get any more insight. Interestingly they sent me a video of the car on the ramp during the inspection, and in the video they didn't look under the engine or otherwise show any signs of a leak either.

 

21 hours ago, spartacus 68 said:

Depends if you plan to keep it for a few years, ultimately its only 2019.

I was certainly planning to keep it for a few years, but that could easily change because frankly I'd sooner sell the car than pay this kind of money to fix an oil leak!

 

21 hours ago, spartacus 68 said:

Get a quote from VAG Technic (Dudley). They are on YouTube and only use genuine parts.

Thanks for the recommendation but I am based in Ireland, and we don't have too many highly regarded VAG specialists that I am aware of!

Edited March 13 by KingSlayer