Turbo Issue? Burning Smell/Lag
 

Hey all, I have had my 2012 MS3 for a little over a year and 40k miles and in this last week it has been giving me issues. When accelerating and engaging the turbo an awful burning smell emanates from the engine compartment and my RPMs jump around from 3-5k before it seems to actually accelerate which has never happened before.

I recently got an oil change then drove 3000 miles and the smell started happening close to the end of the life of the oil change, I want to assume its just an oil change issue and cross my fingers but part of me thinks it might be something worse and wanted to ask some seasoned veterans what they're thoughts on it were.

Any feedback is appreciated!

sounds like a slipping clutch. How many miles on the car?

Any mods? Does it smoke under throttle?

+1

no mods, 73k miles. no smoke.

This would give acceleration issues cruising down the highway having not used the clutch recently?

Slipping clutch as said before. Only good news if it's that, you can get an OEM replacement kit on Amazon for cheap.

@alternativesight; That's exactly where the slipping clutch would show up, higher gears, when you load it up. It is probably slipping, heating up and then grabbing.

does not sound like the turbo, generally if the turbo is going bad you will start to see alot of smoke from the exhaust at idle.

Take the car onto the highway and do a few 4th gear pulls, if you start seeing the rpms jumping up during the pull then it's time for a new clutch.