Ok, so just as I was approaching the roundabout over the M25 and the low oil pressure warning came on, so pulling over on the slip road I discovered no oil showing on the dipstick (I'd checked it earlier that day and it was up to the max), and a pool of oil under the engine running out furiously. To cut a long story short the dealership service guy called me to tell me it was caused by a manufacturing fault on the plastic washer under the sump drain plug.  Now that just doesn't ring true with me, so maybe you guys can tell me different?  Personally I wouldn't expect to see a plastic washer in that position, maybe a copper or aluminium washer yes?  I will try and corner the mechanic when I pick the car up to try and get a clearer picture of what happened.  The oil was obviously running out quite fast, and I figure even if it had lost the sealing washer totally it would drip out fast-ish but not run out like it did, there was an oil mist all over the back of the hatch.  Any thoughts on this one?  Has anyone experienced this problem before?

They are usually a steel washer I think but I could be wrong.

 

Unless it wasn't tightened up and has fallen out I doubt its anything to do with the sump plug to cause a leak that bad.

 

Hopefully you turned her off in time, if it was the oil pressure light you saw and not the level then you could have starved parts of the engine or the turbo of oil

Edited 12 July, 20169 yr by SuperbTWM

?

Some info would help, was it a new car for you, a used car, one just serviced with an Oil change or what is the story.

Diesel or petrol, how many miles / age?

Car is coming up to 3 years old,  23000 miles, 2.0 ltr diesel.  I've owned in for 2 years now and it was last serviced in August last year, coming up to nearly a year ago by the same dealer who has fixed it now.

Friend of mine had the exact same thing happen to a 14 plate not long after it was serviced, funnily enough also on the M25. Don't think the sump bung had been tightened properly after a service, turned out it required a new turbo etc etc...

 

Dealer took full responsibility in fairness, recovered the car nearly 200 miles to their garage, lent him a new A4 Avant. Not sure if the techie that had serviced it kept his job though...  :p

Edited 13 July, 20169 yr by skodaphile

Sounds too familiar to me too!

 

7000 miles after a service, I got home and realised oil was running out from the engine bay. Upon recovery to the dealers I was told the sump plug had fallen out! I didn't get any warning lights fortunately. The dealer was good about and sorted the issue while I ran around in a new A5

 

Car is a VRS TDi.

Isn't the sump and plug all plastic on the TDI much like the TSI? Just a half turn locking job with an o-ring to seal it... if so suggests it wasnt fitted correctly as even a damaged o ring shouldn't dump the oil like that

Isn't the sump and plug all plastic on the TDI much like the TSI? Just a half turn locking job with an o-ring to seal it... if so suggests it wasnt fitted correctly as even a damaged o ring shouldn't dump the oil like that

 

Couldn't tell you! I've not seen mine as there is an under tray in the way that I haven't taken off.

 

I think in my case it had worked loose.

Ah yeah the diesels have the sound deadening full undertrays unlike the TSI. It clips into place so it shouldn't work loose if you get what I mean. I think it is supposed to be replaced at every oil change

Interesting issue, as people have said above I wouldn't have expected oil to flood out with just a washer missing/damaged.

Edited 13 July, 20169 yr by Forge

Ah yeah the diesels have the sound deadening full undertrays unlike the TSI. It clips into place so it shouldn't work loose if you get what I mean. I think it is supposed to be replaced at every oil change

 

I'd suggest you check whether it was replaced - I've seen them re-use items like that before now

Trouble is you would probably have no way of knowing by looking at it

From the MkII sump plug...

 

 

To the plastic MkIII sump plug...

 

 

Progress or cost saving?

Blimey, much more chance of error with that plastic one, probably works well if fitted correctly but any slight over tightening and I'd imagine it will jump the threads and damage the seal!

Not unusual to find plastic washers on sump plugs - Ford used them for years (1454117 & 1454118 were the part numbers for the plug and washer) before changing to a metal with a rubber insert on the later ones.

Sounds more like the plug has come adrift to me, or not been tightened up properly, either way it's the dealer who changed the oil that should sort it out

Unlike ford the whole plug is plastic, along with the sump. If you look at the new design plastic plug you will see it has stops so it can't be overtightened. It screws in half a turn or so then clicks home if I remember correctly. I'd guess it just wasn't fully locked into place.

Guess it stops people stripping out the plugs in plastic sumps which is what happened to my brother in law's 650bmw which has a plastic sump with a brass insert in that the plug screws into, some one overtightened it and cracked the sump resulting in a slow leak

I've stripped thread on a metal sump before but I was being rather ham fist Ed.

It does make sense that if the sump is plastic then the sump plug should also be plastic. I still don't like it though.

From the MkII sump plug...

 

 

To the plastic MkIII sump plug...

 

 

Progress or cost saving?

 

Yep, me with my OCD over tightning I could see a few of those been mullered.

Blimey. Making me paranoid now, I have a 900 mile drive on Friday!

Yep, me with my OCD over tightning I could see a few of those been mullered.

Like I said above it locks into place, you can't overtighten it, you would be more likely to just damage the slot. A two pence coin works well for removal and refitting so you will struggle to fit it incorrectly anyway

The mk111 octavia diesel engines DO NOT USE A PLASTIC SUMP PLUG.

The only engine with a plastic "torque limited" sump plug is the 2.0 tsi and it would be incredibly difficult to maul it as it has a massive end stop.

The only plastic parts touched on an oil change are the drain on the oil filter and the filter cap itself. The filter drain is an item commonly left loose.

As v6 Jules says, tsi, 2p coin, plastic plug, half turn and click. Job done and seems fool proof.  Good design that.

Good to know then.

They probably just didn't tighten it correctly or replace the plastic washer

Update:   The sump plug come out and was found laying in the undertray.  It was serviced August last year and had done around 3000 miles in that period. so it took that long to work its way out?  Unfortunately I didn't get to talk to the mechanic as he was away at lunch!  They still insisted that it was a washer failure.