Awrench

I have a new 2014 Q5 and the 1st recommended oil change is at 5,000 miles. That seems like a long distance for the break in oil. We tend to keep our cars a long while, at least 150,000 miles. Interested in whether the mechanical folks out there recommend doing it sooner. Whether the break in oil is different than subsequent fills. Would certainly use the specified oil.

Ulmer

To pile onto this 5K service interval thread. My semi-related question:

It appears the later service intervals (15K, 25K, etc) are listed as being performed at that mileage, or 1 year after the previous service, whichever comes first.

Should I assume the 5K service is at 5K miles OR 6 months? I'll likely only have 3K miles or so when I hit 6 months. Should I just wait until I hit 5K towards the end of the first year?

Parsec

Only old school mechanics will recommend changing the oil earlier than 5k. New engines these days don't have those metal shavings like they used to. There is no need to change it earlier but people do it because they are used to doing things a certain way and don't want to change. It will also throw off your oil changes from the rest of your maintenance schedule.

MP4.2+6.0

I just went w/ the 6 month point, and if anything wanted to change it incrementally earlier anyway. If you have the AudiCare service plan, you could opt to run it out some. IIRC, you get thru 5 years to complete your last (45K mile) service under AudiCare, so you may evaluate your own annualized miles and figure out how to spread the intervals more evenly mileage wise for every 10K miles post- this first one. Being only at 3K miles, it implies your annualized miles may be low so you might let it go a bit, with a view to eventually letting that last 45K/4- 4 ½ year service happen just inside of the five year cut off. I did mine at 6 months at 4K because I knew the mileage would pick up on an annualized basis--it was Euro delivery so it spent two of its first six months in service on the boat from Europe--to more like the typical 1K/mo or 12K/year.

MP4.2+6.0

Search the web extensively and you will find endless speculation and posts about "break in" oils and Audi's (or other brands too), but no hard proof or evidence or parts numbers or suppliers or... that any such oil actually exists. I've owned 'em like forever, and remember the discussions back forever too. If you are a DIY'er, relatively easy to do a change w/ good quality parts. Factory filter can be had in the $20 range from a discount dealer/online and off-the-shelf quality synthetic oils can be found at the local store that meet the current Audi/VW spec. I would have done it myself at around 2-2500 miles, but my vehicle was on the boat for two months following Euro delivery and then had a series of dealer warranty visits that for various reasons just stretched into the 6 month and 4K mile point. If you are new to the Q5, you will also figure out--as I did finally--that for DIY oil changes you need either ramps or a special pad for your floor jack; there are no easy & safe floor jack points up front (unlike on all my prior Audis) in the absence of a jack pad that sits the lower side body seam. Some use a suction pump out the dipstick check tube I guess, but I would always rather flush out the bottom of the pan as I pull the drain plug, especially on the very first change.

On another reply about "old school", FWIW I am not on that page, though more so on longer term changes since at least Audi doesn't go straight to 10K on its very first change. The trouble is these aren't simply super modern refinements of old school motors--normally aspirated, tight tolerances, lower stress motors, quality synthetics etc. Instead, every single motor now used in a Q5 is either blown or turbo'ed, and have pushed the performance curve and stress levels up a bunch. Those put stress on the oil additive pack, even w/ synthetics and after run circulation to cool the turbo bearings and such. Most of the Q5 motors (other than the V6 gas flavors) are back to mixed iron block and aluminum heads with differential expansion rates, though that's probably more a head and gasket issue. Many have stop start and other stuff like the 8 speed tranny that lessen total motor run time and simply total engine rev's per trip (longer run time helps burn off the water condensation and other cold start crud), etc.

Mostly because it's a turbo on mine, while I'm on AudiCare at the 10K mileage points, I will probably put an oil change interval in between at every other 5K. I hope to have the car personally or in the family out well past 100K. (at 101K now on W12; sold most recent A6 4.2 I had from new at 147K to brother in law, etc.) Post AudiCare getting to a 7.5K cycle seems fine, but w/ AudiCare at 10K, no other easy way to slip extra ones into their cycle except to halve it. I run my W12 at 10K intervals, but that is 6 liters of normally aspirated, auxiliary factory coolers galore, 13 quarts of synthetic in its massive pan fill area, and low stressed most of its running miles. 2 liters of turbo at a higher specific output, about 5 quarts, and with less fully warmed gas run time sends me the other direction. Same answer on my family's highly strung 1.6L second gen. 2010 Mini S with a stick that loves to rev, and which has just slightly higher specific output than (the gas part of) my Audi 2.0T.

Reggie

If your car is a turbo I would recommend changing it at 3K oneself. I frankly change mine every six months or 5K intervals myself (with the regular changes done by Audi under warranty). I also use Mobil 1 0-40wt

Steppenaudi

I changed mine at about 2100 miles initially, and have had the 5K change at the dealership (and they overfilled the oil!). I have both the 2100 and 5K UOA results from Blackstone.

I'm at 9740 miles now and I plan to at least pull a sample out the dipstick tube & send to Blackstone for a UOA along with a new sample of 5W-40 Castrol euro-spec oil. If the UOA report shows that the oil lube package is depleted and won't last to the 15K change, I'll change it myself around 10K miles.

rdA4WtQ5

I am curious about the results of your test. Results posted on this and other Audi forums have shown very positive results regarding oil life. All folks testing their oils and posting results that I have seen have been showing that the factory recommended interval is more than satisfactory.
I have also seen concern that very often oil changes causes some volatile additives to "boil out" only very early on after an oil change slightly permanently damaging the catalytic converter each time. Because of many oil changes more damage. I am not sure I buy it but if you are keeping your car for long haul it may seem a consideration if the factory oil change interval is fine. In emission states high mileage vehicles get scrapped because of the high cost of replacing catalytic converters.

Ulmer

OK, makes sense. I do have AudiCare, so I'll likely hold off until closer to the 10-12 month mark. My annual mileage will stay around 5K unless I end up moving or changing jobs. That means I'll be hitting the 12 month service intervals rather than being at 10K for each.

MP4.2+6.0

There are lots of "other" Audi motors. Specifically, it would help me if you clarify if this prior finding that the 10K Audi interval was supported by oil testing data was specifically for turbo motors like the 2.0T, or rather for older non turbo'ed 4's, and most all of the older 6's (2.8, 3.0, 3.2, 3.6) and the 4.2.

Likewise on Steppenaudi's reply a step earlier, I'm curious on what the Blackstone analysis shows since I own the identical 2.0T Hybrid as Steppenaudi also does.