OIL WARNING LIGHT BUT PLENTY IN????

veccyj

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Hi long time reader in need of assistance, i have owned a 3.0 V6 Quattro for 3 weeks now (A3 1.8T gone) and runs like a dream, however, the min oil warning light keeps coming on the dash every couple of days. Always check the level and according to the dipstick it doesn't even need topping up? Anyone out there know if this is a sensor fault or any help to cure most appreciated.
 
run a vag-com check see if it shows up. and it will tell you exactly what fault it is
 
hello mate
i had posted a thread about this, but did'nt say the previous problems i had,

i regulary get the low oil light, discovered its down to the type of driveing, and short drives anyway, before hand i had the oil level sender changed, at the advice of audi, 3-4000miles later, and get another warning, audi topped up the oil and sent me on my way, 5-6000miles later just before the service i get another warning, audi put this down to a dash problem, with no errors listed???? stange but the senior tech said this was the problem,

got a good second hand one off ebay and had it fitted, also had the milage corrected, a new unit is £300 plus and second hand one cost me £50 nice.

had the car serviced and dash fitted, and 5-6000miles later... get another warning,

took the car stright to audi who did a head check and every other check they could and could'nt fault the car.

in the recent thread i had i've learnt its a audi thing common on high mile cars, and audi are aware of this problem and changing all there oil types for older cars,


my advice is do the cheapest thing first, a oil change and sensor change

and see how it goes

also does your oil pressure light go out straight away?
 
The oil pressure light goes out straight away as normal, think i will try the oil level sensor first, is this a diy job?
 
its normally on the bottom of the sump, with a couple of bolts, you'll have to change the oil and filter at the same time as you'll loose it,
 
I had exactly the same problem on my 2001 Audi A4 3.0 Quattro Sport that I bought in 2003.

After driving around 50-60 miles as a continuous trip the orange “Oil Level Low” text warning came on the dash board. This is not to be confused with a red oil pressure warning which did not light. Oil level looked fine from the dipstick, but did top up a little to be on the cautious side. I was also aware that too much oil can also damage your engine! The warning went away after I got back in the car and started the engine.

Fortunately the car still had ~12 months warranty, so I took it down to my local Audi dealer and explained the problem. In their infinite wisdom, they advised that the oil level was Ok?!

50 miles further the next day – no surprise “Oil Level Low” and the oil level according to the dipstick was OK. Started the engine again warning gone. Perhaps a duff sender unit I thought? Anyway back to Audi for the day. They then advised that this was a known fault on A4 3.0 V6 engines – problem with software in the ECU.

Couple days later they changed the ECU under warranty and the problem was solved.

Also what I was told by the Audi technician, is that opening the bonnet resets any related errors and they are re-checked a further 50 miles down the road. If you stop/start the engine this counter is also reset. This is why errors flagged up got reset and you may think you have solved the problem. This type of error may not show up on short trips either since you need to do 50+ miles.

(I recently had a look into my ECU area housing, the Motronic box says Year of Manf. 2001, and the ECU YOM=2003.)

So it sounds like you may have this “old” ECU Software problem??
 
Hi long time reader in need of assistance, i have owned a 3.0 V6 Quattro for 3 weeks now (A3 1.8T gone) and runs like a dream, however, the min oil warning light keeps coming on the dash every couple of days. Always check the level and according to the dipstick it doesn't even need topping up? Anyone out there know if this is a sensor fault or any help to cure most appreciated.
It is caused by a switch sticking in the bonnet catch, strip it down and clean and lube it, make sure it pops right out about 5mls I pulled mine out and pushed it in a few times, it was sticking in.
See this link for details but it’s an easy fix, 30 mins.
 
Wow, what an interesting video...oil level sensor reset switch linked to a hood latch actuator...what in the world were the engineers thinking?
 
Wow, what an interesting video...oil level sensor reset switch linked to a hood latch actuator...what in the world were the engineers thinking?
It's essentially so the driver information system "knows" that the oil or whatever problem has been looked at.
That's why it repeatedly comes up because it hasn't seen the bonnet open and close.

Sent from my ANE-LX1 using Tapatalk
 
It's essentially so the driver information system "knows" that the oil or whatever problem has been looked at.
That's why it repeatedly comes up because it hasn't seen the bonnet open and close.

Sent from my ANE-LX1 using Tapatalk
Well I think they over-Engineered this unnecessary “feature” adding cost, complexity and waste...
 
Well I think they over-Engineered this unnecessary “feature” adding cost, complexity and waste...
A car without an engine is a large paperweight, I wouldn't say it was unnecessary to make sure the driver checks on engine related warning lights.
It's only an issue because the switch stuck closed after after how many years?

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We pay a premium to purchase an Audi...think of cost vs return on investment...allocation of hardware and software resources, ECU overhead to create this obscure digital logic controlled feature. Rather they spend money on making the Cabriolet top and window more reliable...JMHO
 

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