OBD-II Code
P1136
Severity
Not yet reviewed
Nobody on our side has assessed this code yet, so we are not going to guess at how serious it is.
Can you drive it
We cannot say
Treat it as unknown until a shop reads it with live data. If the check-engine light is FLASHING, stop driving as soon as it is safe to — that means an active misfire, whatever the code.
Indicative cost (USD)
$400–$1,800
From this code's diagnostic notes. Varies by vehicle, diagnosis, parts, and local labor. This is not a repair quote.
$400 (PCV valve cover DIY on an EA888) to $1,800 (cover + walnut blast + smoke test at a shop).
P1136 on VW/Audi is Fuel Trim Additive (Long-Term Lean Bank 1) System Too Lean — the ECM's additive long-term fuel trim (the slow-learn correction stored in EEPROM) has drifted past the lean threshold, typically +15% or higher sustained over multiple drive cycles.
How a shop works this
Work from evidence to part, not the other way round. A code names a circuit or a symptom; it does not name the part that failed.
Note every code that is set, not just this one.
Codes that appear together usually narrow the cause faster than any one of them read alone.
Read the freeze frame — the conditions the fault was recorded under.
Cold or warm, idle or load, road speed and engine speed. A fault that only appears cold is a different fault from one that only appears under load, even with the same code on the scanner.
Confirm the fault is current rather than history.
Clear the code and see whether it returns under those same conditions. A code that does not come back may have been logged during a repair, a flat battery, or a bad connection that has since been disturbed.
Then follow the diagnostic notes further down this page, in the order they are written.
They are written in the order a shop works this code, cheapest checks first. Where they name a component, inspect its wiring and connector before replacing it.
If the code comes back after a repair, the underlying fault is still there. That is the point to bring in a scanner with live data and freeze-frame, or a shop that has one.
Common symptoms
- Check engine light
Read the full diagnostic procedureP1136 on VW/Audi is Fuel Trim Additive (Long-Term Lean Bank 1) System Too Lean — the ECM's additive long-term fuel trim (the slow-learn correction st…
P1136 on VW/Audi is Fuel Trim Additive (Long-Term Lean Bank 1) System Too Lean — the ECM's additive long-term fuel trim (the slow-learn correction stored in EEPROM) has drifted past the lean threshold, typically +15% or higher sustained over multiple drive cycles.
This is the deep-cause version of a P0171
short-term trims have been compensating long enough that the ECM has written the correction permanently into the additive table. Cheapest-first ladder: scan live data with VCDS or any OBD tool that displays both additive (FRA / long-term) and multiplicative (FRM / short-term) trims separately — if additive is +15% or higher at idle and multiplicative is also positive under load, you have a real lean condition, not a sensor calibration drift. Smoke-test the intake side at 10-15 inHg: look for smoke escaping the PCV crankcase breather hose (PCV diaphragm tear is the #1 EA888 cause), the intake manifold gaskets, the brake booster hose, or the fuel tank-vent shutoff valve stuck open. Inspect the MAF sensor element for dirt and re-test trims after cleaning with MAF-safe cleaner. Pull the upstream O2 sensor and check the tip for white ash (coolant entering combustion = head gasket) or fuel-wet black (running rich, contradicts the lean code = wiring fault). Don't replace the O2 sensor on a P1136 until you've smoke-tested the intake and verified fuel pressure under load — the O2 is usually telling the truth and the leak is real.
Vehicle-specific patterns2008-2014 VW/Audi 2.0 TSI/TFSI EA888 (Jetta GLI, GTI, A4, A5, Q5, Passat) is the dominant P1136 platform — the failure is almost always the PCV diaph…
- 2008-2014VW/Audi 2.0 TSI/TFSI EA888 (Jetta GLI, GTI, A4, A5, Q5, Passat) is the dominant P1136 platform — the failure is almost always the PCV diaphragm on the valve cover tearing internally, creating a massive vacuum leak that pulls the cover into the intake. The fix is a complete valve cover/PCV assembly, not just a gasket. Same engines also throw P1136 from carbon-fouled intake valves (direct injection only, no port-injection wash) restricting airflow asymmetrically — walnut blasting resolves it.
- 2004-20101.8T 20-valve (B6/B7 A4, Mk4 Jetta/GTI) throws P1136 from PCV breather valve failure and from the well-known cam-chain tensioner gasket leak introducing unmetered air.
- 2009-20152.0 TDI EA189 (Jetta TDI, Golf TDI, A3 TDI) throws P1136 less often (diesel runs differently) but can set it after DPF/EGR-related issues introduce air on the intake side.
Estimated repair$400 (PCV valve cover DIY on an EA888) to $1,800 (cover + walnut blast + smoke test at a shop).
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