Camshaft Damage Photos VW T5 - BPC Engine

Hello,

I haven't been active here for a while, as everyday life keeps getting in the way. Just a few days ago, I had a problem with a T5 BPC engine (year 2007) and wanted to share it with you. The vehicle sometimes had a rougher idle during cold starts for the first few seconds, but then everything was fine again. Lately, however, the vehicle's performance felt sluggish (noticeably less power at low speeds). One day on the highway, there was a loud knocking sound, as if there were no air filter anymore, and the engine ran very unevenly and had no power whatsoever (our old tractor at home sounded better).
So, the final result: The camshaft is completely worn out, and one hydraulic lifter has a hole (worn through). Please see the attached pictures. Without this special tool, it's impossible to correctly re-align the timing. Conclusion: The vehicle is running again, but are you familiar with this problem in the T5? I personally thought that the Audi V6 TDI camshafts were known for being prone to failure, but it seems the T5 also has a similar issue...

but do you know about this problem with the T5? I personally thought that the Audi V6 TDI camshafts were very prone to failure, but it seems the T5 also has a problem...

These problems are not only present in the T5. However, with the T5, this is considered to be normal.
Depending on the mileage, the first thing to check in the service booklet is whether everything has already been replaced.

Hi,

Apparently, the T5 R5 engine (without DPF) is very sensitive to the type of oil used, and even dealers are reportedly filling it with 507.00 instead of the recommended 506.01. This is what people are saying in the T5 forum, at least.

haithamina

Hello,

MKB: BPC comes with a DPF!

T5 owners still believe in this oil story! - Now, slowly but surely, as even BXX engines fail with damaged glow plugs, they'll blame it on something else entirely!
According to their view, the oil is also responsible for defects in plasma coatings.

@luiggi: You could have also gotten that special tool from me!

Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

"Sg" means "singular". It is used to indicate that a noun or pronoun is in the singular form. For example, the sentence "The cat is black" uses the singular form of the noun "cat".
Alevuz.

Oh, I also think that it definitely has to do with the oil, the maintenance interval, and the load on the machines.

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Slowly but surely, as even BXX engines with faulty NW components fail, they will try to blame it on something else, I have no idea what!

These engines are not the only ones affected. All models from production year 2005/2006 onwards with either tappet valves or rocker arms (but *not* roller rockers) are more or less susceptible to this issue. It's simply a matter of understanding that the camshafts designed for two-valve engines in this configuration are, regarding material quality, just too narrow. And when even one of those parameters deviates from the norm...

The problem isn't the oil itself, but rather the design and materials used, including the artificially increased oil consumption. Any remaining safety margin is then sacrificed to cost-cutting measures.

Just two or three generations of engines ago, with mechanical valve lifters (tappets), a camshaft in a VAG engine would typically last for the entire lifespan of the engine, or they were virtually indestructible. These engines, however, experienced high loads regarding valve timing and RPM compared to today's standards. Some gasoline engines even had double valve springs. And all of this worked perfectly fine with the cheapest motor oil.

Autoservice wrote:

Everything from the years 2005/2006 onwards that uses tappets or pushrods (but not roller rocker arms) is more or less affected. You simply have to understand that the camshafts for the two valves in this design are simply too narrow in terms of material quality. If even one of these parameters goes wrong,......

Are you actually referring to the year of manufacture, or rather the year it was released on the market?
"For example, my car's manufacturing year is 2006, but the basic engine design is the 1.9L 2V PD TDI, which is a few years older. As far as I know, the part number for the water pump is the same for all manufacturing years and engine codes."
Occasionally, one reads about such defects, mainly with Automatic Transmission Fluids (ATFs), but in my opinion, it doesn't happen often enough to talk about widespread failures, unlike, for example, the issue with the 1Z timing belt pulley.

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From time to time, one reads about such damages, mainly with ARL engines, but in my opinion, it doesn't happen often enough to talk about mass defects, unlike for example with the 1Z crankshaft pulley.

That is not being claimed. They are just more susceptible.
You could try searching to see if this is also the case for engines like the 1Z, AHU, or AFN.

Vehicles from before 2005 could also be affected, but this is less common.

Hello everyone!

ulf wrote:

... Are you actually referring to the year of construction, or rather the year it was released onto the market? For example, my BUK has a production year of 2006, but the basic construction is the 1.9L 2V PD TDI engine, which is a few years older. The part number for the water pump (NW) is, as far as I know, the same for all production years and engine codes (MKB). ...

@Ulf:
As is well known, materials are delivered and processed or installed "just in time."
You shouldn't assume that for a motor within the production period, e.g., 04-08, all 50,000 new parts will be discarded and installed within those 4 years.
This will also be made cheaper within that time frame, the supplier will continue to be pressured/forced, and if the result doesn't regularly become noticeable within the warranty period, there is still no possibility of changing anything here (or better said: no need ).

Therefore, you absolutely cannot assume that the same "ET number" always refers to the same component manufactured during the same production period!
...as the name suggests: a REPLACEMENT part .

Best regards from Munich!

Autoservice wrote:

You could check if this is also the case for engines like the 1Z, AHU, or AFN.

If it happens at all, it's probably even less frequent than with the ARL (that's my impression).

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Based on the year of manufacture, vehicles produced before 2005 could also be affected, but this is less common...

Are you actually basing it on the manufacturing year – as if, for example, all camshafts (including those in older engine series like the 1.9 8V PD-TDIs) were made with inferior hardening processes starting in 2005?

EDIT: My response overlapped with DBär's answer... so I probably need to keep a close eye on my BUK. Maybe I'll quickly swap the NW with our 2004 ASZ if the latter is ever sold .

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Does it actually depend on the year of manufacture – as if, for example, after 2005, all camshafts (including those in older engine series like the 1.9 8V PD-TDIs) were hardened worse? icon_eek.gif

No, it only reflects what one has read and seen. Whether they are simply poorly hardened, or simply undersized (also according to the camshaft lift curve),...?
That's not important either. The crucial point is that it's no longer possible to reliably predict the long-term durability of these vehicles, making them a potential time bomb for both buyers and sellers as used cars. This certainly isn't an advantage for the used car market.

For the 16V engines with roller rocker arms, things are different. These have valves similar to those in a lawnmower (with less mass). The valve springs can almost be compressed by hand. Consequently, the pressure on the cam lobes is correspondingly lower. In combination with the roller rocker arms, the cam lobes can be designed accordingly narrower (for reduced friction) without any minor imperfection leading to damage.