Just bought a "Nearly new" audi with an oil leak!

mrjaywarren

Purchased from the main dealer as "nearly new" approved used car and came with 145point vehicle inspection.

I drove the car home last night then 2 and from my office and found an oil patch on my drive when I got home (where the car had been parked over night) so I popped the bonnet and found oil had leaked all over the engine bay!

Audi assist (RAC) came out very quickly to diagnose that a cap was missing from the manual oil check point which is why it has leaked but they've had to take it away to clean, check and fit a new one.

My question is what should I be checking that has been done, should I be pushing audi for some compensation (good will) as they've either missed the check on the cap as part of their cats is or the didn't put it back on?

What assurances do I need to get from them?

Thanks in advance!

Iceweasel

Compensation for what exactly?

What loss have you suffered?

They are going to fit a replacement for the missing/lost cap and I can't see they can do any more except perhaps clean the oil patch from your driveway.

Maybe it wasn't screwed on tightly enough.

These things happen to the best of mechanics and to the best of cars.

But I don't see you have suffered any 'loss' to be compensated for.

motorguy

Iceweasel wrote: »

Compensation for what exactly?

What loss have you suffered?

They are going to fit a replacement for the missing/lost cap and I can't see they can do any more except perhaps clean the oil patch from your driveway.

Maybe it wasn't screwed on tightly enough.

These things happen to the best of mechanics and to the best of cars.

But I don't see you have suffered any 'loss' to be compensated for.

+1

But this is 'claim culture' britain after all! :eek:

WTFH

Um, there's a difference between a leak and a cap missing.

As you run off to sue the company, make sure you have proof that it didn't come off as a result of something you did, make sure you can prove that the ingolstadt factory produced the car badly, etc.

rs65

You are entitled to £175 compensation.

















Oops, sorry, I meant £1.75.

egyptiancotton

I don't understand the reason behind some of the sarcastic replies in this thread. Have you heard of forum etiquette?

The poster is requesting advice. Given that the advice may not be what he wants to hear, it can still be worded in a polite manner.

We're grown-ups. Please start acting like it.

spacey2012

The Engine needs to be fully tested for damage.
The oil system is pressurised and if the cap has fallen off the engine has been running at reduced oil pressure.

globalds

this is the best oil leak you could ever want to find..you should be feeling pretty happy.

I had a similar leak because the wrong oil cap had been fitted
With original speculation of the mechanic being in the hundreds ..The final bill of nothing ..due to cap being so cheap ..I just took it as a piece of good news ..not bad and worth trying to make something extra from

mrjaywarren

Thank you to the last 2 posters, this is exactly what I was looking for.

I'm not a mechanic but I know running a car with no oil causes damage, the "good will" and assurances I was talking about are related to testing and diagnostics i.e how much can I demand they do to provide assurances that the engine hasn't suffered as a result.

I had to get a taxi to a 24hr hire care company for a replacement car, as audi couldn't supply one till tomorrow lunchtime and I have to get to work, audi are fully prepared to compensate these costs.

Not sure why so many people left shirty remarks...

londonTiger

i doubt enough oil spilled out from the top to take out much oil from the engine.

Did the mechanic check oil levels when they came out? did you check it yourself?

It could be that whoever was inspecting the car foregot to put the cap back on tightly and all the way which caused the cap to open and then it came off. But good luck proving that - nobody is going to own up to it if they did.

Joe_Horner

spacey2012 wrote: »

The Engine needs to be fully tested for damage.
The oil system is pressurised and if the cap has fallen off the engine has been running at reduced oil pressure.

Err, no it hasn't.

The oil in the sump (which the dipstick goes into) isn't under pressure. It's picked up from the sump by the oil pump which then pumps it under pressure to where it's needed. When it gets there it falls back into the unpressurised sump again.

Having the dipstick cap, or even the oil filler cap, off while running might get messy but it won't reduce oil pressure - unless you keep it running like that till it runs out of oil, of course.

OP, you could maybe have a claim for the cost of cleaning your driveway because (in answer to those asking what loss you've suffered) that's potentially a cost you've incurred because of their mistake. But it's probably not really worth it