T6.1 oil level warning: Reduce Oil Level!

[jack454]

If they have needed to reduce the oil level then it is diluted with fuel. Waiting until the crankshaft seal is replaced on 06 Sept before changing the oil is risking engine wear, not that VW will care as it’s your engine.

it was a minimal amount dropped out, and all details are on the vw system, so in the event of a failure, it is all there

id rather have the oil replaced, but according to the tech, there was not the urgent need as the levels were not way up the stick, only a touch over the max

 

[GMAC]

Software update for the high oil level issue installed today after the 6th visit. Garage could not tell me when update was released but admitted it was a while ago. Either way, fingers crossed its the end of a long annoying saga.

 

[JonriceT6]

My oil warning light has been on for months now, still awaiting VW to call me for the software update. No change to my oil levels , but will call them on Tuesday now the update is released

 

[JonriceT6]

If they have needed to reduce the oil level then it is diluted with fuel. Waiting until the crankshaft seal is replaced on 06 Sept before changing the oil is risking engine wear, not that VW will care as it’s your engine.

Hi
Do you have any proof of this?
I’ve just called my VW dealer and they said the uodate isnt ready yet? Haha couldn’t make this up.
and proof I could supply to them would be great.

 

[DXX]

Hi
Do you have any proof of this?
I’ve just called my VW dealer and they said the uodate isnt ready yet? Haha couldn’t make this up.
and proof I could supply to them would be great.

If the oil level has physically increased requiring draining and nobody has added oil there are two possibilities;
Fuel dilution, hard to determine without a oil analysis.
Coolant dilution, this would result in emulsification and easy to spot.
Both severely affect the oils performance and can lead to engine failure.

FUEL DILUTION OF ENGINE OIL: CAUSES AND EFFECTS | TotalEnergies Lubricants

www.lubricants.total.com

Have a search on the forum using ‘fuel dilution’.

 

[suheal]

Went to my local van centre last Tuesday (JCT600 Wakefield) and was told the update wasn't ready either. I had an appointment booked however he said there was no point because there wasn't any fix they could offer.

They already have a load of cutomers who they need to call when the update is ready and they have just added me on the list.

 

[Mayfly]

No VW were not able to get to the bottom of it other than tell me its fine to drive and just keep opening and closing bonnet . But i have siphoned oil out to get the level bellow half way on dipstick and that has cleared the fault for me, i have done over 1400 miles since with no warning light or issues.

Was it easy to siphon. Is it via the dipstick. How much did you need to take?

 

[Mayfly]

Its oil expansion. I had no problem until i topped up oil before driving to France in September 2021.[ I had done 7000 miles with no light problem]. After 321 miles reduce oil light came on after a stop for coffee. Reduce Oil level Workshop! In the middle of France. FFS!
Took to garage they reduced the oil level. Came on again after 70 miles. Even if you lift dip stick up by 2cm and replace the light goes off. Garage in France said faulty sensor.
After watching 'California Time' video on U Tube i took van into VW main dealer and gave them a note of what to do as explained by VW master technician on U tube.
So, they checked that the oil level was below max but no faults found on their computer. They took 5 liters of oil and topped up with fresh oil to just below half way on dipstick as instructed by me. Carried out the software update. Road tested and rechecked oil when hot. Level must be half way on dip stick at temperature to allow for 400 mill oil expansion. This was carried out on warranty. So VW know its a problem.

The Diesel Particulate filter which controls the soot build up in the exhaust is injected with diesel in the T6.1. To clear the soot build up. Some could leak into engine?

Between top mark and bottom mark on dipstick is one liter. After 200 miles no warning light so far fingers crossed. Its a problem with a batch of T6.1,s. Some 2021 California's are having the same problem.

£60.000 pound vehicles and VW can't even control an oil light. So how do we know if any of the oil lights are reliable? The manual says, 'Before a long journey ensure oil level is topped up just below maximum'. So much crap on the computers these days its a joke! Hope this helps.
Still not sure if diesel in the oil was a problem. When i checked oil before the update the oil it was black and thin. I suggest regular oil changes maybe the answer.

 

[Janed1234]

Its oil expansion. I had no problem until i topped up oil before driving to France in September 2021.[ I had done 7000 miles with no light problem]. After 321 miles reduce oil light came on after a stop for coffee. Reduce Oil level Workshop! In the middle of France. FFS!
Took to garage they reduced the oil level. Came on again after 70 miles. Even if you lift dip stick up by 2cm and replace the light goes off. Garage in France said faulty sensor.
After watching 'California Time' video on U Tube i took van into VW main dealer and gave them a note of what to do as explained by VW master technician on U tube.
So, they checked that the oil level was below max but no faults found on their computer. They took 5 liters of oil and topped up with fresh oil to just below half way on dipstick as instructed by me. Carried out the software update. Road tested and rechecked oil when hot. Level must be half way on dip stick at temperature to allow for 400 mill oil expansion. This was carried out on warranty. So VW know its a problem.

The Diesel Particulate filter which controls the soot build up in the exhaust is injected with diesel in the T6.1. To clear the soot build up. Some could leak into engine?

Between top mark and bottom mark on dipstick is one liter. After 200 miles no warning light so far fingers crossed. Its a problem with a batch of T6.1,s. Some 2021 California's are having the same problem.

£60.000 pound vehicles and VW can't even control an oil light. So how do we know if any of the oil lights are reliable? The manual says, 'Before a long journey ensure oil level is topped up just below maximum'. So much crap on the computers these days its a joke! Hope this helps.
Still not sure if diesel in the oil was a problem. When i checked oil before the update the oil it was black and thin. I suggest regular oil changes maybe the answer.

It is a known problem, acknowledged by VW. The software update seems to have fixed mine - so far so good. It was only released mid December according to the vw dealer that did mine (2nd time) I was having this warning every 60-80 miles. Done 300 so far and no light -fingers crossed

 

[JonriceT6]

The software update seems to have fixed mine - so far so good. It was only released mid December according to the vw dealer that did mine (2nd time) I was having this warning every 60-80 miles. Done 300 so far and no light -fingers crossed

When did you have a software update? VW still saying it’s not available?
Do you know what update it was?
I had my oil changed free of charge by VW didn’t make a difference …

 

[DXX]

The Diesel Particulate filter which controls the soot build up in the exhaust is injected with diesel in the T6.1. To clear the soot build up. Some could leak into engine?

Yes, this is a common problem with regeneration injection if the fuel is not burnt.
If the oil level has physically increased at the same temperature when last checked, without adding oil and no coolant emulsification.
To prove this you need a professional oil sample analysis, probably the van spend you can make if you have a fuel dilution issue.

 

[JonriceT6]

The oil level h

Yes, this is a common problem with regeneration injection if the fuel is not burnt.
If the oil level has physically increased at the same temperature when last checked, without adding oil and no coolant emulsification.
To prove this you need a professional oil sample analysis, probably the van spend you can make if you have a fuel dilution issue.

My oil level has never increased on mine in 12 months. That’s the confusing part, and which makes me think it is the software issue

 

[DXX]

The fact that VW decide a high level alarm is required sort of indicates that there is an issue with over fuelling.
What other reason could there be?
I’ve never heard of somebody overfilling with engine oil, I’d say that people who are not confident checking oil levels get somebody else to do it.

 

[Janed1234]

When did you have a software update? VW still saying it’s not available?
Do you know what update it was?
I had my oil changed free of charge by VW didn’t make a difference …

I had it done on 16th December - the dealer said the update was released on 15th. It was a big update - took a couple
of hours to complete

 

[Janed1234]

Went to my local van centre last Tuesday (JCT600 Wakefield) and was told the update wasn't ready either. I had an appointment booked however he said there was no point because there wasn't any fix they could offer.

They already have a load of cutomers who they need to call when the update is ready and they have just added me on the list.

They did mine in December if you haven’t had it done

 

[JonriceT6]

The fact that VW decide a high level alarm is required sort of indicates that there is an issue with over fuelling.
What other reason could there be?
I’ve never heard of somebody overfilling with engine oil, I’d say that people who are not confident checking oil levels get somebody else to do it.

Mine has been checked 4 times by vw over a 6 month period and it’s never had high oil levels. I was present at the time of checking, and also stood and watched when they changed the oil.

 

[DXX]

I’m not sure where the oil level sensor is located or how it works.
My working experience of tank level sensors is that the set points need to allow for expansion, foaming, mist plus any movement like you might have on a vehicle or ship.
For that reason most software I’ve worked with has a trigger delay before alarming.

 

[mmi]

On T6 the oil level warning threshold is dynamic - I would expect it would be the same, or actually to be even more sophisticated on T6.1.

FWIW a plot from a T6 engine over a 30 minute journey.


The picture is an extract from

[T6_measured] 01-Engine - Oil pressure switches & Oil level sensor

For future reference. Applicable to T6 EU6 engines. Oil pressure switch - F1. Switch pressure 2.3 to 3.0 bar Oil pressure switch for reduced oil pressure - F378 (919-040) Oil pressure regulating valve N428 (906-030) References: Workshop Manual Transporter 2016- Engines: CXFA, CXGA, CXGB...

www.t6forum.com

the set points need to allow for expansion, foaming, mist plus any movement like you might have on a vehicle or ship.

I think we see exactly that on orange line - Oil warning threshold.

 

[DXX]

On T6 the oil level warning threshold is dynamic - I would expect it would be the same, or actually to be even more sophisticated on T6.1.

FWIW a plot from a T6 engine over a 30 minute journey.

View attachment 140999
The picture is an extract from

[T6_measured] 01-Engine - Oil pressure switches & Oil level sensor

For future reference. Applicable to T6 EU6 engines. Oil pressure switch - F1. Switch pressure 2.3 to 3.0 bar Oil pressure switch for reduced oil pressure - F378 (919-040) Oil pressure regulating valve N428 (906-030) References: Workshop Manual Transporter 2016- Engines: CXFA, CXGA, CXGB...

www.t6forum.com

I think we see exactly that on orange line - Oil warning threshold.

Probably variable according to thermal expansion.

 

[JonriceT6]

Hi guys.
Has anyone had any updates on this? Or had their issue fixed?
I have emailed VW customer care again and today they have replied stating … there is no issues , and no recalls or updates required for my van.
It is becoming tedious now.
They reset my warning light a few weeks ago, and during a 35mile motorway trip the light came back on again.