2 point SLOW reccomendations

[buickman50401]

My wife's 06 Golf with the 2.slow is out of warranty in 2 months. She does a lot of short trip driving as part of her job (pastor - meaning she's routinely doing in home and hospital visits at least 3 times a day with distances of under 3 miles).

I usually run Syntec 5w40 that meets the VW 502 spec. However, its getting much much harder to find lately and Mobil 1 0w40 is nonexistent around here.

Reading through the threads, it seems that Rotella T6 5w40 often comes up as a suggestion for these cars but there is also some opposition to using them.

Price is not a concern as the oil is only changed 2x year at the 6k mile mark. Availability and performance of the oil however is of concern.

Seems 5w40 Syntec gets a bad rap around here. So does anyone see an issue with using T6 5w40 in her car other then the "cat poisoning issue". I don't think it'll be a problem on her car as it burns no oil (less then 1/4 qt makeup between 6k oil changes.)

So should I go with T6 or look into ordering more expensive options through places such as germanfilters and the Solaris options they have their and $60 a pop for a 5 pack of Solaris' offerings?

 

[BobFout]

T6 should fit your needs well. It's rated API SM, also.

 

[Audi Junkie]

Short trips, I'd run 5w30. I have 5w-20 in Mom's Passat 2.Slo.

 

[buickman50401]

Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie
Short trips, I'd run 5w30. I have 5w-20 in Mom's Passat 2.Slo.

Isn't that 5w20 a bit thin in an engine that calls for a 40wt minimum. I mean you generally won't find people on here advocating 5w20 for 5w30 applications outside of some Ford Products.

 

[FowVay]

The technical requirements for this engine are pretty lackadaisical when you consider the company that issued them. The BEV engine needs nothing more than a API SJ or SL (non-ILSAC rated), ACEA A3 or VW 502.00 oil in the viscosity of: 5w30 through 20W-50 and anything in between. This info is directly from the service manual.

The service manual specifically states: "The preferred viscosity is either 5W-40 or 10W-40."

Also, "When changing or adding oil, use 5W-40, 10W-40 or 15W-50 meeting the above oil specifications. If the above oil types are not availabe, it is permissible to use ILSAC GF3 SAE 5w30 (API SL Energy Conserving) for topping up purposes only. It should not be used when changing.

It appears VW doesn't care for the ILSAC 'fuel economy' standards. I'd choose the Rotella-T 5W-40 personally... or a 15w40 in summer and 5W-40 in winter.

 

[Jorge]

Any VW 502 approved oil of a 5W-40 viscosity should serve you well. A used oil analysis will tell you how often to change the oil or change it once a year to be safe with the short runs/low mileage.