Turbo Underboost (P0299) // Oil Consumption // Positive Dealership Experience

[easyMFe]

Hey guys - just thought some of you might be interested in hearing about my experience with Audi regarding a major warranty claim.

The other day, after some high rpm revs, my engine threw the code P0299 "Turbocharger/Supercharger "A" Underboost Condition". Ok, not a huge deal for day to day driving - but definitely not as it should be, needs to be fixed, and the prospect of the cost was scaring the s*** out of me. Along side this, I've burned 2 quarts of oil in the last 1k miles (right on 1qt at 500 miles). Thanks to this wonderful forum, I was able to determine that these are two major known issues with this vehicle. Also that there is a 70,000 mile warranty extension for the turbo issue specifically - I'm at 54,000 - WHEW!

So... I made an appointment with Audi and took it in early Wednesday morning. That afternoon he calls and let's me know that indeed the turbo is bad (likely wastage failure which isn't replaceable by itself) and that Audi will be replacing it fully under warranty. YES!!! Once I brought up the oil consumption problem, Audi quickly said "well we'll go ahead and throw a full oil consumption test in there too". WOW! After reviewing the cost of some of these services on here, I am more than thrilled at the dealership's care and responsiveness. The car is still there now being worked on, so I'll be sure to update you guys as things progress. Rodney was saying that after the oil consumption test, if the oil light comes back on, to bring it back in and they'll likely need to replace the pistons. There is no way I could have afforded all this without the extended warranty, and am very glad Audi is owning their engineering mistake.

Any input from you guys would be greatly appreciated!

[piotrowr]

I had the same code, had it was cleared and has not come back. It also triggered at high rpm but I'm told it's not always a sign it's the turbo so I'm crossing my fingers when I take it in assuming they can reproduce it. How did they diagnose it to be turbo for you? The pistons are also covered. Even if you were out of the warranty they sent out letters that if you did have to repair the oil consumption on your own once warranty ended you could submit for a reimbursement. I believe they did that to avoid a class action lawsuit.

[easyMFe]

I cleared the code myself and drove it for a few weeks before it came back on. I believe you have to complete a whole drive cycle for the computer to allow the code to pop up again. At least that's what it seemed like for me. According to the dealer, this is between 80-200 miles of a variety of city and highway driving.

The other most common thing I'm reading is that it could be a tear in the diverter valve, but he honestly didn't go into a whole lot of info on the diagnosis. I mean the code was related directly to the turbo, so they diagnosed a bad turbo - I'm not wishing that they think about it too critically ;) A DV is way cheaper than a turbo replacement, so if I need to handle that on my own later - so be it.

I bought my car used from a 3rd party dealer, so any of those types of letters related to service bulletins I do not receive unfortunately. Good to know though. Unfortunately it seems like a lot of these service bulletins are shrouded in darkness though - I've been told before that there were no known reported issues with my car, and then what-do-you-know, they conveniently find this coverage.

[easyMFe]

One thing I would recommend to everyone is that if this code pops up, DO NOT clear it. This is the only ammunition you have in attempting to get a warranty repair done - without the code, they won't entertain the repair. The car is fine to drive without a fully functioning turbo (essentially just turns into a regular 4 cylinder, or just less boost than it should have).

[piotrowr]

Okay thanks. The code occurred about 2months ago and after it came on I pulled over and could hear some strange hissing sounds coming from the front right side of the engine bay when I popped the hood. It went away a couple minutes later. I had an indy shop check it out and clear it. They drove the car for a day or so and could not get it to come back. I took it for the weekend and everything was fine until I really stressed it and put the peddle the metal, causing the code to return. Took it back to the indy shop and they cleared and could not reproduce it again, said it might need a smoke/leak check done and that they check the turbo and it looked fine (they seemed to be aware of the the turbo issues with the car as they specialize in Audi's). This was over a month ago now and still has not returned. I plan to stress the car this weekend and if it does in fact return, take it to the dealer to check the turbo. I just wonder if it's something else like a pin hole leak due to the noise I heard the 1st time it occurred.

[Audi_4_1ife]

I would say get a boost gauge if you don't already. I had the same code p0229. I went crazy trying to figure what was going on. I checked for leaks even tho my boost gauge says I had 25psi vacuum which seems to be normal while driving. I changed the DV knowING that was a pretty common issue. That didn't work. I noticed that my 08 audi a4 sline would have boost and react normal on a cold start. After a few miles it would go in limbo mode and wouldn't let the turbo boost at all. Turns out once the n75 valve got hot enough it would fail. Easy replacement. Cleared the code has not come back on. I have seemed to even gained a lb or two of boost with the new valve. Solved my problem. Hope this info helps