$230 Audi RS4 Oil Changes?

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Well, I got my laugh for the day. While looking at one of the Audi forums, some of the Audi RS4 owners were complaining about their $230 dealership oil changes. Some of the reasons given by the dealerships were:
9 - 10 qt. oil capacity,
$20 oil filter
over 20 panel fasteners must be removed prior to oil change,
labor, etc., etc., etc.

I know if you can afford the car, oil change costs should not be an issue... but I can't believe $230.

Hey Audi owners, can you verify any of this? From what I understand, some owners are using oil extractors to pull thru the dipsticks, to avoid the hassle and cost. Question to anyone who has an extractor: Do these extractors pull metal engine shaving from a new engine along with the oil?
 
I would think Jiffy Lube could remove the belly pan, were the owner too shiftless to do it him (her) self. Really good oil plus labor plus an oil filter does not equal that kind of money. Would a dealer charge that? Can a groundhog dig holes? There is a sort of hurt me fascination among owners, however. The VW/Audi dealers may have discovered that charging a ridiculous amount for oil changes is something the owners may then brag about to their friends and associates.
My car is so special that it costs $230.00 just to change the oil!
 
This sounds like one of those urban legends to me. Ninety dollars worth of materials is the most I can come up with. That leaves quite a bit to charge for labor.

You never know what some dishonest car dealerships will try to get away with though. I am thankful that I am not reliant upon such a corrupt system.
 
Not to long ago I had been told (VW mechanic) that the higher end Audi's (RS4-6-8) & VW's (Phaeton) require partial removal of engine mounts in order to get at the spark plugs. The engine must be lowered before any other work can be done essentially. Based on that, as for oil changes and the requisite number of "panels" that need be removed in order to get to everything, I would say that this is legitimate & $230 would not be considered out of the ordinary. These vehicles demand high maintenance.
coffeetime.gif
 
Unless the oil is drained through the heads, spark plug removal is not usally part of an oil change.
My personal opinion is that most VW/Audi products offered over the past twenty years or so are more trouble than they are worth.
 
You're joking right? My statement on spark plug changes was to infer that what is considered typical maintenance on any other vehicle is not for those aforementioned Audi/VW vehicles and requires what I consider excessive in order to accomplish. Ask and ye shall receive, dont make assumptions.
nono.gif



Quote:

Unless the oil is drained through the heads, spark plug removal is not usally part of an oil change.
My personal opinion is that most VW/Audi products offered over the past twenty years or so are more trouble than they are worth.

Click to expand...
 
Thing is, we were looking at oil changes in this thread. You brought up spark plugs.
Introduce irrelevant issues into a thread, and expect irreverent responses.
 
Ah I see, I'm sorry twas it too off-topic for your comfort sir? Oh well, stinks that you feel that way but ah you'll get over it. Breathe in, breathe out.


Quote:

Thing is, we were looking at oil changes in this thread. You brought up spark plugs.
Introduce irrelevant issues into a thread, and expect irreverent responses.

Click to expand...
 
My grandfather's Lincoln oil change involves removing a belly pan, and is ridiculously hard to reach the oil filter. It easily takes me 3x as long to change his oil as my own...

If it takes them an hour labor to change the oil, no doubt they're charging near $100-150/hr for labor alone!
 
Even if you calculated this using common retail pricing for Mobil 1 0W-40 @ $6.00/qt, you could easily be at $175.00 for a dealer oil change, assuming the dealer's labor rate is $100/hr.

In a large market like LA, NYC, etc, where labor costs are high, $230 for an OCI is completely plausible.
 
Yeesh, too much money, I do my oil changes for $7.

I could never buy a car like that. I've looked under the hoods of some cars and it's downright scary imagining me owning it, and having to put a new radiator in, or changing the thermostat or whatnot.

Popped open the hood of a new corolla this weekend, thing amazed me, engine was so bare you could smuggle a child under the hood. I wouldn't recommend doing that however, might affect the fuel economy.
 
Quote:

I could never buy a car like that. I've looked under the hoods of some cars and it's downright scary imagining me owning it, and having to put a new radiator in, or changing the thermostat or whatnot.

Click to expand...


radiators on Audis are usually pretty easy. you just pull the headlights and front bumper assembly out and everything is right there.
 
Audi dealers will commonly charge around $70 for an oil change if you bring your own oil and filter. That's in line with 1/2 hour labor rates ($120 per hour and up). In case of the RS4, I would not be surprised if the dealer will charge about $200 for an oil change, oil and filter included. If that's too much, either buy a different car of DIY.

Audi RS4 (B7)oil change

On my '96 A4 an oil change is only slightly complicated by the lower engine cover, which is fastened with 8 aircraft style twist fasteners (coin slots). Pops right off. Otherwise access is no problem. I wouldn't buy a car if basic service can be expected to become tedious due to design or limited space issues. I'm willing to sacrifice only a limited amout of skin, blood and flesh to my vehicle.
 
Mori, that oil change experience was entertaining. I can tell that it won't be long before we're reading about guys who drained their transmission fluid because they didn't know the difference between the crankcase sump and the transmission housing.

Maybe I am just a masochist but I simply love to work on German cars and VW/Audi specifically. I read of people complaining about changing the oil in the Golf TDI because they have to remove 10 screws under the car and three nuts and a engine cover on top of the car and then go to all of the trouble to remove a cartridge filter. Reality reveals 5 minutes of fiddle time.

I haven't fooled with a new RS4 yet but I'm certain someone will bring one by my house before summer gets here and I'll get to take look. That car has to be a bit on the rare side and will likely appeal only to the people that love the driving experience they provide.
 
I did an oil change on a B6 S4 not too long ago and the local euro parts store didn't have an oil filter in stock so I had to get the $25 filter from the dealer plus 10 liters of Lubro Moly 5w40. So parts were $85 alone.
 
Sounds perfectly reasonable. About 90 in parts and about an hour labor to remove sheilds, change the oil filter, check all of the fluids, trnsaxle and such, go over the car looking for problems and reset the maintence reminders
 
Quote:


Maybe I am just a masochist but I simply love to work on German cars and VW/Audi specifically. I read of people complaining about changing the oil in the Golf TDI because they have to remove 10 screws under the car and three nuts and a engine cover on top of the car and then go to all of the trouble to remove a cartridge filter. Reality reveals 5 minutes of fiddle time.

Click to expand...


I agree. The belly pan really isn't that much of a hassle. When I worked on the timing belt recently I had the pleasure of doing it with one of the TDIClub.com "Gurus" and he had a nice electric screwdriver with a Torx bit which basically meant the belly pan came off in a quarter of the time. I think I will have to get one of those
smile.gif
Plus, lately the engine has had the engine cover off, so that removes another step.

I don't understand why people don't like cartridge oil filters. I find them easier to deal with than the spin-on types, which are generally angled in such that it is impossible to get them off without dripping some oil (in my Honda, that oil drips right onto the exhaust.. D'oh). In the A4 TDI, I can just unscrew the cap, put a ziplock bag next to the filter housing, lift the filter, and drop it into the bag. No mess.

Oh - and since the TDI only gets an oil change every 10k miles, it really isn't a hardship to spend 15 extra minutes on the belly pan.
 
$230 is right in line for these. Audi dealer tech rates are now approaching $150/hr. in most places and they're going to bill one hour for this job. The materials are about $80-$85.

You can't approach an '07 RS4 with a '97 Dodge Neon mindset. Even if the oil is the same quality, they're otherwise totally different maintenance environments.

This is not a vehicle I would trust to a quickie lube kiddie.
 
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