Engine Overview and Common Failures
According to the CDNC engine catalog, the weight of the engine is 142 kg. The CDNC engine number is located at the junction with the gearbox. Oil consumption is a well-known issue for second-generation EA888 turbo engines due to thin piston rings and tiny oil drain holes. VW has released several revised repair pistons, but it is better to buy forged ones. Owners of cars with this engine regularly experience fluctuating RPM, which is caused by coking of the intake valves due to direct injection system. Another culprit is contamination and sticking of the swirl flaps in the intake manifold. On power units before 2012, the timing chain could stretch or jump due to a weak tensioner if the car is left on an incline while in gear. Then the engine was updated and everything started to run smoothly up to 100-150 thousand km without any major issues. In this power unit, the oil filter is located on top for convenient replacement. And to prevent oil drainage into the bracket, there is a pipe with a relief valve. When its sealing rings wear out, it no longer performs its function. The engine is very demanding in terms of maintenance, especially the quality of the lubricant used. Impurities can clog the oil channel filters and cause the phase regulator to fail, and if the balance shaft filter becomes clogged, it can seize up and its chain can break. This power unit uses a modern variable-performance oil pump with two operating modes: up to 3500 rpm, it creates pressure at 1.8 bar, and after that, at 3.3 bar. The design turned out to be not very reliable, and the consequences of its failure are often fatal. Other weaknesses of the engine include the control unit for the auxiliary pump, short-lived supports, leaking water pumps, weak vacuum pump gasket, frequently torn membranes of the oil separator and turbocharger bypass valve. If the spark plugs are changed according to the schedule every 90,000 km, ignition coils last a long time.