[itmike78]

Not true at all, find a better dealer

I was looking at the warranty for the extended emissions and didn't see anything regarding the oil cooler. Can you direct me to where it says that so I can discuss with this dealership?

 

[itmike78]

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?

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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.

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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

 

[lmbk88]

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

 

[knello]

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.

 

[itmike78]

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?

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

So let's review.
The dealer said

"it's definitely the oil cooler leaking"

You checked and can't see any evidence of external leaks at the oil cooler. This can be explained in the following ways.
1 - the oil cooler isn't leaking as per dealer, so keep looking.
2 - you are blind
3 - the oil cooler is leaking internally, which means that you should either see oil in your coolant or you should see your oil level increasing
4 - another component\connection in the coolant system is leaking instead

I'll wait while you decide which of these is the most feasible, or you want to look into.

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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.

 

[itmike78]

So let's review.
The dealer said


You checked and can't see any evidence of external leaks at the oil cooler. This can be explained in the following ways.
1 - the oil cooler isn't leaking as per dealer, so keep looking.
2 - you are blind
3 - the oil cooler is leaking internally, which means that you should either see oil in your coolant or you should see your oil level increasing
4 - another component\connection in the coolant system is leaking instead

I'll wait while you decide which of these is the most feasible, or you want to look into.

I may be a little blind.

I mean there was oil along the bottom of the cooler as you can see in those pictures so maybe it's that bottom plate and gasket. Otherwise I definitely didn't see anything obvious. I will take it on a drive later and check afterwards to see if more happens once it's been worked a little harder. I'm in Florida and it was definitely hot yesterday and I had it running idle for at least a half hour while I was tinkering around. I would think it would have gotten up to temp enough to start flowing through the EGR. I will say though when I towed my boat last weekend I'm pretty sure I lost more coolant than I typically do. So I will try that...running it harder, maybe some wide open throttle on a quick highway drive and then check again.

I was happy to see that the small dealership I purchased the car from that replaced the oil cooler actually did use a VW/Audi part and not some junk imitation.

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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.

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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

 

[itmike78]

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".

 

[itmike78]

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

 

[lmbk88]

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.

 

[itmike78]

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.

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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!

 

[Bracus]

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?

 

[SaVAGeSoot]

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

If what?

 

[Bracus]

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.
View attachment 252472

what about the possibility of that being oil and fuel mixed? do you think you’re seeping oil and leaking a small amount of fuel from the fuel injector seal area?