Audi A3 (2008) tdi interim service

MungoMan

My car needed a service, an oil and filter change.

So there is this reputable garage near me, they service all types of cars, they are a well known business, they are a chain in fact...I wont mention the name, because to be fair, they are generally very good


So today I take my Audi A3 to them, and get a quote for a service. To be fair, it's a good 35% cheaper than at Audi.

I ask them can they do it, and they say of course, they have all the equipment (tools, hardware, software). And I know they do have all the equipment.

So I go to collect the car, and they have changed the oil and filter (the car has 59'000 kms , it was previously serviced at 32'000kms

I pay, and get in the car, and the dashboard says "service due" !

I know they serviced it, so I asked a guy there why is the message showing up on the dashboard

He said "We followed all the instructions from Audi" and we couldn't get rid of the message" and they added "it doesnt matter though, we did change the oil and filter, thats the important thing"

I'm not happy about this obviously, I want the electronics of the car to realise that the car has just been serviced.......

They say, "there is an Audi garage nearby", which is true and "I should go there to tell them"

I deliberately didnt go to an Audi garage to save a few euros ! I'm embarrassed to go there in fact, they may rightly say that I should have gone to Audi for the service !!

So I just walked away, left the garage, and told them to sort it out, that I shouldnt have to go to an Audi garage.

Was I reasonable ?

R.O.R

RTFM?

It will tell you in the driver manual how to reset the service indicator.

bazz26

Got this from google on how to reset the service interval:

If carrying out your own service then to remove the anoying service light on start up then try this.

Press and hold the right button. (odometer reset)

now switch on the ignition
(oil lamp will not flash, but on at all times)

press the right button again
(insp is now displayed)

pull left button. (clock set)
(

---

are now displayed)

Pull left button again

Not sure it will work but might be worth a go yourself.

Nonoperational

I'm amazed they couldn't reset the service light. Maybe someone on here can help. But it is not big deal (other than being annoying).

MungoMan

R.O.R wrote: »

RTFM?

It will tell you in the driver manual how to reset the service indicator.

Cheers

I would gladly read the effing manual, but I didnt think it would be in the manual !

Surely the electronics of the car should realise that the car has just been serviced without me doing anything ?

I didn't think it was something that should need to be manually done.

MungoMan

bazz26 wrote: »

Got this from google on how to reset the service interval:

If carrying out your own service then to remove the anoying service light on start up then try this.

Press and hold the right button. (odometer reset)

now switch on the ignition
(oil lamp will not flash, but on at all times)

press the right button again
(insp is now displayed)

pull left button. (clock set)
(

---

are now displayed)

Pull left button again

Not sure it will work but might be worth a go yourself.

Yeah, cheers, perhaps I can try that later, but the car is currently in the Garage !

nogoodnamesleft

Out of interest what engine is it 1.9tdi or 2.0tdi?

Very strange that they couldnt reset the service indicator on the dash. Normally the way specialists and good independants do it is through the diagnostic port on the car they can select fixed interval (10k miles)or extended interval (20k miles) service.

Out interest did they stamp the book and inform you what oil the serviced the car with? As the tdis require a specific standard.

MungoMan

nogoodnamesleft wrote: »

Out of interest what engine is it 1.9tdi or 2.0tdi?

Very strange that they couldnt reset the service indicator on the dash. Normally the way specialists and good independants do it is through the diagnostic port on the car they can select fixed interval (10k miles)or extended interval (20k miles) service.

Out interest did they stamp the book and inform you what oil the serviced the car with? As the tdis require a specific standard.

its 2.0 litre

Yeah they stamped the book, and mentioned the oil, they said they used the identical same oil as Audi would use, and that there is only one oil that all Audis use........cant remember the name of the oil

Cheers for the info about the fact that the reset is normally done through the diagnostic port.........

So are you saying it shouldn't be done (the reset) through the method suggested by someone else on this thread, Bazza26 (by pressing buttons on the dashboard. ..etc...)

nogoodnamesleft

It can be reset using either method but the turning of the knobs method resets its to fixed interval AFAIK you cant set it to extended service interval using this method you have to use the diagnostic port.

The name of the oil isnt realy that important its the spec it conforms to.

So for fixed interval services it should be vw 505.01 spec (5w40).

Fiskar

MungoMan wrote: »

Cheers

I would gladly read the effing manual, but I didnt think it would be in the manual !

Surely the electronics of the car should realise that the car has just been serviced without me doing anything ?

I didn't think it was something that should need to be manually done.

How on earth would the car know if it was serviced! it only had the oil and filter done. The service indicator works off the clock in the car. If you only drove it 5 miles in one year it would still ask for a service! My Volvo S40 happily reminds me of this every year at the same time! It service indicator is a bit of a palarvy to reset.

MungoMan

Fiskar wrote: »

How on earth would the car know if it was serviced! it only had the oil and filter done. The service indicator works off the clock in the car. If you only drove it 5 miles in one year it would still ask for a service! My Volvo S40 happily reminds me of this every year at the same time! It service indicator is a bit of a palarvy to reset.

I was just rather hoping that the electronics in the car would detect that Hey, that's a new oil filter ! and hey, the oil now has properties similar to oil that has not done any work (not as dark, different viscosity), therefore a service must have been done !!!!!

OK, that's obviously not how it works !

Although the Audi guy did tell me a while ago that there is a sensor which monitors the state of the oil in the car, and it can make the car suggest an "ad-hoc" between interval service, so the electronics are in the car to detect the state of the oil, and that a service has been done......

Nevermind.

I took the car back, because i need it, and the garage asked me to come back next week, that a technical guy would sort it out for me.

They said they don't use the same software as audi use, they use "Bosch" software, and that this software is different to the audi software, but that it can do the same things, was he feeding me a pile of rubbish ?

He said the bosch software may have difficulty with my car because it's relatively new (2008) but the technican will sort it out next week (or at least try to sort it out)

You know what, I'm a complete fool for not going to Audi for the service

MungoMan

Fiskar wrote: »

The service indicator works off the clock in the car.

It doesnt just work off the clock on the car.

It suggests an oil change depending on which of the following events occurs first

- elapsed time
- kilometerage
- oil is in bad state (sensor detects this)

Fiskar

If your car is the same as a 2007 A3 then you should be able to reset the indicator as these folks indicate in this forum. Please try
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=4080773

500sel

The Bosch Equipment will reset your service light. unfortunately i think the "technicians" At Said Chain may not be competent enough to navigate the protocol. Makes you wonder are they capable of servicing a modern motor vehicle not as easy as it usde to be.
The sensor only detects low oil level and when it comes on, the level has droped by 1 litre.

nogoodnamesleft

Fiskar wrote: »

How on earth would the car know if it was serviced! it only had the oil and filter done. The service indicator works off the clock in the car. If you only drove it 5 miles in one year it would still ask for a service! My Volvo S40 happily reminds me of this every year at the same time! It service indicator is a bit of a palarvy to reset.

The above statement is incorrect.....from the Technical VW documentation I have read in the past the car does in fact know when it needs to be serviced. It depends on a number of parameters recorded by the ECU, miles driven, how hard the car has been driven since its last service and on some models there is a sensor in the engine that monitors the degradation of the oil in the sump.

Edit: beaten to it :-)

Fiskar

nogoodnamesleft wrote: »

The above statement is incorrect.....from the Technical VW documentation I have read in the past the car does in fact know when it needs to be serviced. It depends on a number of parameters recorded by the ECU, miles driven, how hard the car has been driven since its last service and on some models there is a sensor in the engine that monitors the degradation of the oil in the sump.

Edit: beaten to it :-)

My experience of a VW Polo, Golf, Volvo S40 and one Corolla with these indicators is that they appear annually regarldless of what way the car is driven. How does a car define how hard it is being driven and what does this sensor detect? The sensor information interests me. Does it work on viscosity?

mickdw

Many of the later audi models can be set for fixed or flexible intervals. If the owner manuals says that your car can be set either way, this means that your car has got the smart stuff installed which monitors oil condition, driving style etc to decide on when a service is due. Unfortunately, the cars arent quite smart enough to then reset the service indicator although it would make sense that this should be perfectly reasonable.

I dont think the dash button procedure works on the latest audis. Anyway, the garage should have been able to reset it. Every garage doing servicing have basic diagnostic equipment which can clear warning lights & reset service light. In fact for the whole vw/audi/seat/skoda brand of cars, the vcds diagnostic cable & software is only about €300 and this offers pretty much full dealer diagnostics etc apart from some functions that require a live link with the audi factory.
So really, tell them to get their act together.
Another point of interest is that the audi dealers love to charge for the longlife oil (which is only required for the extended flexible service) but then also set the service indicator to call you in again for a service at about 9000 miles. This is an absolute scam.
If your car is under warranty, dont go to the audi dealer with the display showing it miles past requiring a service

mickdw

Fiskar wrote: »

How does a car define how hard it is being driven and what does this sensor detect? The sensor information interests me. Does it work on viscosity?

Yes there is supposed to be a sensor/sensors in contact with the engine oil which measure viscosity & temperature constantly. This can therefore record how the viscosity changes with temperature and how quickly the temperature changes. This can easily be mapped against a set threshold for 'old oil' and therefore request a service.

MungoMan

mickdw wrote: »

Yes there is supposed to be a sensor/sensors in contact with the engine oil which measure viscosity & temperature constantly. This can therefore record how the viscosity changes with temperature and how quickly the temperature changes. This can easily be mapped against a set threshold for 'old oil' and therefore request a service.

this makes sense

If the garage cant reset the system to turn off the warning light, what should I do ? Should I be entitled to a refund, and then go to Audi to service it.
Audi would have to change the oil and filter again I guess, because you couldnt expect Audi to reset the system without having done the service.

mickdw

You could try to find some private person with a vagcom cable who would do it for you for the price of a pint. At least you still have the garage stamp. Are you out of warranty? If so, you could consider driving it until next service as is if it didnt annoy you too much. Paying audi alot of money to redo the service sounds like madness. Get back to the garage & see what they can do.

MungoMan

the garage rectified the problem with the service indicator

they did it with the bosch software

However, when I asked to see the oil they used, it didnt exactly match the audi specification. It wasn't compatible with standard 507-00 which is required when the vehicle has a particulate filter, and where you want long life flexible servicing.

The oil they used was ok, but would require changing in 16000 kms.

I insisted that they change the oil to Mobil 1 ESP 5W-30. (one of several compatible oils I found out from the internet)
There was some arguing, and I verified their mistake with Audi.
They changed the oil to the correct one

I learned a bit about servicing from this episode
It really is better to go to Audi for servicing, they wont make the same mistakes, and they know the ins and outs of all Audi cars

They charge a bit more, well, up on 50% more which is a lot

Only for I have the internet, I wouldnt have known the oil the independent garage used was not completely up to spec, the mechanics just didn't know.

mickdw

I wouldnt be so confident of Audi either tbh. Fair enough you got some hassle with this garage but I bought a new audi and kept the servicing with them throughout warranty and it really is worse than pulling teeth to get anywhere with them.
The car was filled with longlife oil from factory so flexible servicing should apply but no, it was counting down from 10k miles on the set interval. I got this service carried out anyway as its no bad thing to do it. I asked why I was needing to get it serviced more often than promised and they couldnt give an answer. One response I got on the phone to the dealer was 'Surely after having purchased an expensive car, you want to service it properly'.... Blood boiling at that stage.
Anyway, I then noticed it was on the set count down again even though they charged for longlife oil and booked into garage to get this changed. First they said, yes it was a mistake, then the receptionist tells me ... No, it is correct, the confusion was down to how I had the car display set in miles instead of km (You can change this via the in car display). I managed to convince her that she was talking ****e so off she goes and service manager comes back. He agrees that they can change to the lnglife setup when resetting at next service. I say ok. Still meant I had paid for an extra service basically.
Following latest service, the car is showing 15000 to next oil change (which is 5k more than before) but 10,000 to next service...... I give up.
Service manager claimed to not know that a less expensive oil meets Audi spec when going on the fixed interval. A load of crap the whole experience.

MungoMan

mickdw wrote: »

I wouldnt be so confident of Audi either tbh. Fair enough you got some hassle with this garage but I bought a new audi and kept the servicing with them throughout warranty and it really is worse than pulling teeth to get anywhere with them.
The car was filled with longlife oil from factory so flexible servicing should apply but no, it was counting down from 10k miles on the set interval. I got this service carried out anyway as its no bad thing to do it. I asked why I was needing to get it serviced more often than promised and they couldnt give an answer. One response I got on the phone to the dealer was 'Surely after having purchased an expensive car, you want to service it properly'.... Blood boiling at that stage.
Anyway, I then noticed it was on the set count down again even though they charged for longlife oil and booked into garage to get this changed. First they said, yes it was a mistake, then the receptionist tells me ... No, it is correct, the confusion was down to how I had the car display set in miles instead of km (You can change this via the in car display). I managed to convince her that she was talking ****e so off she goes and service manager comes back. He agrees that they can change to the lnglife setup when resetting at next service. I say ok. Still meant I had paid for an extra service basically.
Following latest service, the car is showing 15000 to next oil change (which is 5k more than before) but 10,000 to next service...... I give up.
Service manager claimed to not know that a less expensive oil meets Audi spec when going on the fixed interval. A load of crap the whole experience.

You know, internet forums are full of stories like yours above.
Some people on American forums went so far to say that they insisted on buying the oil themselves, and then asking the service people to show them the empty containers after servicing (to prove they used the correct oil). I think this is a great idea, and I'll be doing it the next time !

My experience with Audi is excellent, however, just like in any profession, there will be some good employees, and some not so good.
There can always be some employees who arent as technically knowledgeable as they should be, like the Audi guy who was feeding you the most unbeliveable sh.i.te, and treating you like you have a very low intelligence !

skyhighflyer

MungoMan wrote: »

You know, internet forums are full of stories like yours above.
Some people on American forums went so far to say that they insisted on buying the oil themselves, and then asking the service people to show them the empty containers after servicing (to prove they used the correct oil). I think this is a great idea, and I'll be doing it the next time !

My experience with Audi is excellent, however, just like in any profession, there will be some good employees, and some not so good.
There can always be some employees who arent as technically knowledgeable as they should be, like the Audi guy who was feeding you the most unbeliveable sh.i.te, and treating you like you have a very low intelligence !

Next time go to your local motor factors, buy the correct Audi oil and filter for your car and a filter wrench and just do it yourself. You will save a couple of hundred quid and trust me, you will do a better job yourself than some of the chains out there, who often don't even use mechanics.

You've already checked out Audi forums to verify the correct oil for your car, there must be someone on there who has posted up a DIY guide for an oil change on the A3. Not that it's a difficult job but never hurts to have someone show you the way your first time. Then you can move on to other jobs like the air filter, pollen filter, coolant changes etc.

nogoodnamesleft

OP you didnt specify what tdi variant you have 1.9 or 2 litre?

Anyways here is a how to I wrote a few months ago for servicing a Passat 1.9TDI if you have an A3 1.9 it should be very similar.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055757452

MungoMan

nogoodnamesleft wrote: »

OP you didnt specify what tdi variant you have 1.9 or 2 litre?

Anyways here is a how to I wrote a few months ago for servicing a Passat 1.9TDI if you have an A3 1.9 it should be very similar.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055757452

mines a 2 litre

Thanks for posting this information.
I'm sure I'll try it the next time/