Audi A4 Oil Change: VW 508 00, Quattro and the Yearly Service

The A4 is Audi's everyday sedan, and in Northern Nevada nearly every one has quattro badges on the grille. Owners usually ask us three things: whether a drive-in can use the right oil, whether the S tronic gearbox needs anything, and whether quattro adds work. This page answers all three with what Audi publishes, and then walks through how we handle an A4.

Audi's interval, in Audi's words

Audi of America's Audi Care brochure says Audi highly recommends a maintenance service every 10,000 miles or 12 months, whichever occurs first, and points owners to the Warranty and Maintenance Booklet or maintenance.audiusa.com for model details. Oil and filter are part of each of those services.

The 12-month side catches a lot of A4s in Reno. A sedan that lives in an Old Southwest garage and does the 18.5-minute average commute for the 89509 ZIP (ACS 2020-2024) may only see 6,000 miles a year, and it is still due when the year is up.

VW 508 00 or VW 502 00

Audi shares its oil approvals with Volkswagen. The newer 2.0 TFSI engines in the B9 A4 list a 0W-20 oil approved to VW 508 00, the low-viscosity standard oil maker Fuchs describes for the newest VW Group engines. Earlier A4s, including many B8 cars and early B9 cars, list VW 502 00, a thicker approval typically sold as 5W-40. Owners on Audi forums report manuals and stickers that changed within a model year, which is the reason we read the sticker under the hood, not just the year.

We stock both approvals for the common A4 engines. If yours lists something unusual, such as an S4 or RS 4 approval we do not have, we say so before starting.

S tronic and quattro

Most recent A4 2.0 TFSI models in the US use a seven-speed S tronic dual-clutch gearbox. Audi lists its gear oil service at a fixed distance; Audi Australia's service interval sheet puts it at 60,000 km for the A4 2.0 TFSI, and the US booklet gives the figure for your car. We read the booklet and tell you if it is due, and if the procedure needs dealer equipment, we say so plainly.

Since 2017 many A4s use quattro with ultra technology, which can disconnect the rear axle and has a rear differential with its own oil. We check the rear differential and the gearbox for seepage at every oil change. Our differential service page covers how we handle AWD fluids.

The A4's oil filter and level

The 2.0 TFSI uses a spin-on or cartridge filter depending on year, and many A4s have no dipstick; Audi shows oil level in the MMI. We fill to the capacity in the manual and check the electronic level before you leave. A small top-up between services is normal on some turbo engines, and we can do that any day with the same approved oil.

Our A4 visit

1. Drive in, no appointment, at any of our four service centers.
2. Confirm VW 508 00 or 502 00, drain, new filter, refill to capacity, check the level.
3. Check engine and cabin filters, coolant (Audi's own pink or purple type), brake fluid, battery (participating locations), tires, lights and wipers.
4. Reset the service indicator and walk you through what we saw.