Temp gauge is useless. Do you have VCDS to monitor different temp sensors?
The leak could be anywhere..... more than likely EGR\oil cooler in valley..... it will be covered by dieselgate.
You need a proper VCDS scan as you might have soft or pending codes... just nothing sufficient to throw a CEL.
The dealer may make you pay diagnostic fee without a CEL....

 

savagesoot is right. its the oil cooler. I've had mine replaced twice now. first time the dealer did it and it failed 1,000 miles past the warranty. second time went to the indy shop so far so good.

 

how do you start to figure out the oil cooler is leaking? just to give me an idea of what i’d be asking the dealership to specifically check out?

 

I have a VCDS scan cable coming so hopefully it will show something but maybe not. At this point I might just make an appointment with the local VW dealership. I don't typically like dealing with dealerships unless covered under warranty so hopefully it's something that is covered which I would imagine it would be. I still have the extended emissions warranty for another 13k miles.

I could do it myself as I've done similar work on my 2006 F350 6.0 Powerstroke but I'd rather not! LOL

 

Dealership for warranty repair. Also hope you're using proper g12 or the dealer gonna laugh you right back out.

 

Or G13 Violet colored coolant? Mine looks like a purple color

 

Can I figure out if the Oil cooler is leaking with VCDS? Would the exact temp gauge be a little higher or something that I would be able to diagnose? Or anything visually to look at around the engine?

 

No, VCDS won't tell you that you have a leak there.
Yes, look for oil and\or coolant in the valley, under all the crap that's there.... use a borescope.
Are you seeing coolant\oil loss? Or why are you suspecting you have a leak?

 

Doubt any variables in vagcom would be of help. Look for obvious leaks at this point

 

I was wondering though ... wouldn’t oil temp module show that it’s a little hotter than normal in VCDS?

 

I noticed new oil cooler from Nissens. I am considering oil cooler change, but I cannot decide which part.
There are two possibilities: Nissens 91100 or Nissens 90807. Part 91100 is with aluminum plate, seals and package is also cheaper than 90807 (only cooler).

So what is the catch?

 

Check out this thread: 2013 3.0 TDI - Probable EGR Valve coolant leak

Many have gotten it covered under the extended warranty. I'd take it to the dealer first (after reading that thread) and let them deal with it. It will not likely show any pressure loss with a coolant pressure test so they may be a little stumped. There may be evidence of coolant around the water pump but that is probably coolant dripping from the valley above. I was past warranty so I decided to do the work myself. It is not a very fun job. It took me 4 solid days. It is most likely the vacuum solenoid for the coolant line buried deep under there plus some gaskets under the oil cooler.

 

So I took it to my local VW dealer and they just called me to say "it's definitely the oil cooler leaking". Pretty annoyed considering the small dealer I bought it from said they replaced the oil cooler due to a leak. So that leaves me wondering...did they really replace it and if so did they just do a bad job or use a crap part.

The VW dealer is quoting $2200 to repair. Not sure where to go from here. Back to where I bought it to see if they'll fix this or to a local mechanic to avoid the dealership. Or do it myself if I can source the correct parts.

 

So I took it to my local VW dealer and they just called me to say "it's definitely the oil cooler leaking". Pretty annoyed considering the small dealer I bought it from said they replaced the oil cooler due to a leak. So that leaves me wondering...did they really replace it and if so did they just do a bad job or use a crap part.

The VW dealer is quoting $2200 to repair. Not sure where to go from here. Back to where I bought it to see if they'll fix this or to a local mechanic to avoid the dealership. Or do it myself if I can source the correct parts.

Its hard to tell where the leak is untill full valley strip.Mine was done twice because i didnt want it be the front plastic housing which required full strip of front of engine,which it was.Be sure to replace all plastic housings and hoses while your in there,my bill was a mere 5K.

 

Powertrain expired?

Lol I wouldn't trust any small dealers with these

 

Yeah I'm at 108K

So if the oil cooler is not covered under dieselgate warranty then it's either pay the VW dealer $2200, do it myself, or take it back to the small dealer that said they replaced it with VW part and have them fix their work.

If I would do the work myself what part(s) would I need to purchase. I've done an oil cooler job on a 2006 F350 and that was a PIA but doable.

 

What are you talking about? I told you in #2 it's covered under dieselgate. Did you not have the fix applied?
If the first dealer said "they did whatever fix", did you not ask for receipts, proof, whatever... were you like "ok thanks".

 

This VW dealer told me the oil cooler is not covered under the extended emissions warranty. Is that not true?

Right now I'm just under 108K so obviously still under dieselgate warranty

 

OP, you were at 106k a few months ago... you should still be under BOTH warranties! Dieselgate only since powertrain is only 100k

 

So no evidence of said repair?
Read your warranty and decide if you want to argue to fix on your dime.

 

Well...I didn't see anything regarding the oil cooler in that extended emissions warranty overview. Can you direct me to where I can find a more detailed description on what is covered? Isn't there a number I can call also?

 

No I can't. Read the document. It's up to you to argue that it's a part that can be reasonably impacted by the fix. You either figure out how to argue that point, or you figure out how to get the first butchers to redo the repair correctly, or you pony up.

The number is also listed in the same warranty document which you're apparently reading from what I recall.

 

This is what I'd push for if it was me and I couldn't go back on the original butchers.

 

Go to the thread I linked. Lots of info there about getting it covered under the extended warranty as well as parts lists. The oil cooler itself is just metal plates welded together so it's more likely some of the other plastic parts or gaskets in the valley related to coolant. These are the parts I replaced. They are easy to get. I got mine in 3 to 4 days. Does not include oil cooler itself which is around $600.

Part Number Qty Price Ea Price Total
059-117-070 1 18.82 18.82
059-117-070-A 1 2.13 2.13
059-117-070-B 1 10.54 10.54
059-121-149-B 1 2.32 2.32
059-121-737-AM 1 112 112
059-121-506-H 1 21 21
N-908-091-02 1 0.67 0.67
059-129-717-N 6 1.69 10.14
059-129-718A 6 1.69 10.14
059-131-547-P 1 1.81 1.81
059-131-358-B 1 3.12 3.12
059-131-547-R 1 1.69 1.69
059-121-103H 1 10 10
059-121-625D 1 10 10

 

Go to the thread I linked. Lots of info there about getting it covered under the extended warranty as well as parts lists. The oil cooler itself is just metal plates welded together so it's more likely some of the other plastic parts or gaskets in the valley related to coolant. These are the parts I replaced. They are easy to get. I got mine in 3 to 4 days. Does not include oil cooler itself which is around $600.

Thanks for the info, I started reading through that thread last night. I beginning to think that the oil cooler is not actually leaking and it's one of the several other parts that have been discussed in that thread. I mean, why would a brand new oil cooler leak unless it was installed wrong (which is entirely possible) but I would imagine my coolant wouldn't be so clean looking. There should be oil in it at that point right? I reached out to the VW dealer this morning to ask them how they diagnosed that it "definitely is the oil cooler".

 

I used my scope to try and see down in there and took some pictures. I did it with and w/out the car running hoping to see something but really I couldn't see much. Obviously there's oil on the outside of the oil cooler especially towards the bottom. Some areas had oil splatter marks. Also is it odd that the top of the oil cooler has that weird stain and what looks like a drop of oil?

 

Lastly... when you had the car running, was it fully warmed up and hot, or just idling? The cooling system is split so you'll only have "partially circulating coolant" unless you are fully up to operating temp and the cylinder block circuit is open to allow flow through the EGR cooler, rad, etc.

So you basically need to go drive it aggressively for a little to make sure you are nice and hot and then check with it "running" before it has a chance to cool down and isolate the circuits again.

 

Diesels are quite efficient... they won't warm up at idle (not to full temp).... go drive it, make sure it's hot and check again.

 

You could also do a proper pressure test of the cooling system to actually diagnose things properly..... just sayin....

 

Update - looked again after I got home from work today. My drive is about 40 mins, 20 miles of which is highway. I still did not see any noticeable leaks. Some oil in the valley - yes. No idea where it's coming from. I talked to the dealer where I purchased the car and they sent me the invoices for the parts they purchased and installed including the oil cooler. They purchased the parts directly from their local VW/Audi dealership. Those parts are warrantied... and have only been in the car a little over a month.

So I called my local VW dealership back who said my oil cooler was the issue. I told them I have the receipts for the parts and they are all genuine VW parts. I forwarded them all to them via email. So the service advisor said that he would talk to their shop foreman in the morning but he thinks it means they will replace free of charge. I'm not so sure that's how it works but I'll take that if they're willing to do it. Worst case I get the replacement parts for free and have to pay labor. I'm still not convinced it's the oil cooler so I'd rather let the dealership do the work and replace what they believe is wrong. If it's still leaking after that they should stand behind their work and their diagnosis. That and whatever else could be leaking after the oil cooler should be covered under emissions warranty. I will reach out to them again tomorrow to see what the game plan is and when I can bring it in to have the work performed.

Here's a list of the parts replaced by the place I bought it from.
059-117-015-P Oil Cooler
059-121-506-H Flange
059-129-717-N Gasket
059-129-718-A Gasket
059-129-069-A Gasket
059-145-215-8 Gasket
059-121-149-B Washer
N-908-091-02 Seal Ring

 

059-121-737-AM is the part that seems to fail most often for people if you're losing coolant. Are you sure it's oil around the oil cooler and not coolant? Stick a long rod in there and dip it in the fluid to see the color. If it is oil then sounds like thr gaskets failed. You could be losing coolant to the oil channels. You wouldn't see dirty coolant in that case but they can do a fluid analysis of the oil to see if coolant is getting in there.

 

Are you sure it's oil around the oil cooler and not coolant?

I mean it just looks like oil more than coolant and a couple times I pulled the scope out it had oil on it, not coolant.

 

Pressure test coolant system and quit clowning around. Could be EGR cooler,, shutoff valve, water pump, oil filter housing, etc.. probably something super obvious like your overflow bottle!

 

So the latest from my local dealership. Since the part is under warranty they said they should be able to do the repair free of charge. However they said they need me to agree to pay labor if they do all the work to get in there and it's not the correct part number. "Sometimes Audi and VW part numbers aren't the same". 😂...well from everything I've seen they use the same part. I mean it's the same engine. Haha. Kind of strange that they'd try to throw in that little caveat that doesn't even make sense.

Anyway, while they're in there I'm going to ask them to pressure test and probably replace other parts known to fail from other threads, especially if they're not expensive parts.

 

So the pressure test is done prior to any repairs in order to identify the failed component. This will not end well.

 

Well I would think they would have done that then when I took it to them and paid the $150 diagnostic fee and said to me "it's definitely your oil cooler". If they didn't I will ask them to.