oil sludge recall for 1.8t's

[Dan DiBiase]

Brett, I think you're being a little harsh....;-)  Assuming that the 20k example is NOT the norm (maybe a bad assumption on my part), the fact is that the automakers are setting themselves up for these problems by touting the minimal service requirements of their cars these days. (Didn't Volvo even have a concept car recently where you could not even open the hood??) Perfect example is the 10k oil change intervals in Audi's, as indicated  by the free scheduled maintenance schedule. Until the '04 models came out, it was oil changes at 10k, 20k, 30k, 40k, paid for by Audi. I doubt many 'average' owners would have oil changes done in the interim. Even the '04 models were at 10k, after the first change at 5k (15k, 25k, 35k). 
 
I'll be interested to see whether buyers of '05 models still get 40k of free scheduled maintenance if VAG has to double the amount of oil changes included, now using more expensive synthetic oil.
 
I purchased an OEM filter earlier this week, for my 10k change, and was given the larger (by about .5 quart) filter that came out with the '04.5 cars. I was told this is all they sell for the 1.8T motors now (it is actually the same one used on the old Rabbit diesel). 
 
Dan D
'04 A4 1.8T q MT-6
Central NJ USA 

Brett Dikeman <brett at cloud9.net> wrote:
http://www.cars.com/news/stories/090104_storya_an.jhtml?page=newsstory&aff=boston

"Duh, gee, if I don't change my oil for 20,000 miles, my engine will 
get damaged? Duuuuh, that's VW/Audi's fault!"

Christ, this country is full of morons. Has anyone actually heard of 
or seen a case that was properly cared for (ie followed the 
recommended 5k oil changes) that had the sludge problem? Because 
this seems like owner neglect, pure and simple- and that it shows in 
the 1.8t's because they're turbos and in low-end models (ie owned by 
people who don't put as much care into their car as they would, say, 
an S4 or A6 biturbo).

Brett