Parrothead, why don't you go brush-up on your material before you start posting?
Confused by VW's recommendation for 1.8t
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Based on what? I know what the letter says. Have you read it or are you just going by what others have said about it. Anyway, how about if you stop telling me what to do and we stick to talking about oil
tai, I'm not sure if any of the oils are better or not specifically but they are the oils recommended by VW. I'm not sure why you are using 10W-30 in the first place because that is not recommended.
The manual states only 5W-40 and a recent supplement (before this oil letter) states 5W-30 is ok to use (not only for topping off) in all engines except W8s.
Personally I use Valvoline 5W-40 with no problems.
The manual states only 5W-40 and a recent supplement (before this oil letter) states 5W-30 is ok to use (not only for topping off) in all engines except W8s.
Personally I use Valvoline 5W-40 with no problems.
RL331, I'm using Mobil 1 10w-30 because the user experiences I've read here has been positive, more so than the 0w-40. Many times folks here say 10w-30 is the most shear stable of the Mobil 1 oils. And before I received the letter from VWoA, 10w-30 synthetic would have met the requirements in my manual, which makes no mention of synthetic vs. conventional, or the 502.00 spec.
My manual implies 5w-40 is better than 10w-30 but if comparing conventional 5w-40 to synthetic 10w-30, I think most here would agree the latter would protect better.
My manual implies 5w-40 is better than 10w-30 but if comparing conventional 5w-40 to synthetic 10w-30, I think most here would agree the latter would protect better.
Well, I'm glad I've done all the oil changes on my 1.8T. I've used up the last of my Lubro Moly 5W-40 (I was short a 1/2 quart and topped off with M1 10W-30). I'm thinking of trying the Mobil1 5W-40 next based on price and availability, but the GC 0W-30 is a possibility if I can find enough of it (case or more).
Lubro Moly 5W-40 was left off the list as well, but it could be because it only SJ rated. It does, however, meet VW 502.
Lubro Moly 5W-40 was left off the list as well, but it could be because it only SJ rated. It does, however, meet VW 502.
Audi Junkie,
My '99 was on dealer non-synthetic oil until it's third change (approx. 16,000 km), at which point I started suppling my own Castrol Syntec 5W-50.
Maintenance for the first 40,000 km was "free" and took place at 8,000km intervals. Synthetic oil was not required by the dealers, which is why I provided the 5W-50 at my own expense. Once the "free" maintenance had ended I did all changes at 8,000 kms intervals, with factory Mann + Hummel filters and Syntec oil.
The only change from this routine occured when I performed two Auto Rx cleaning cycles, starting at around 125,000 km. The Auto-Rx cleanings seemed to have no effect on the sludge, even though I followed Frank's direct instructions to the letter.
Then at 135,000 km the timing belt let go....
..over 30,000 km shy of the recommended replacement distance. The timing belt was checked 24 hours and 800 km prior to the failure, but since the inspection wasn't performed at a dealer VW Canada would not offer any assistance on the repair. FYI, the inspection was done at a highly respected VW-only shop.
Can sludge cause premature timing belt failure?
My '99 was on dealer non-synthetic oil until it's third change (approx. 16,000 km), at which point I started suppling my own Castrol Syntec 5W-50.
Maintenance for the first 40,000 km was "free" and took place at 8,000km intervals. Synthetic oil was not required by the dealers, which is why I provided the 5W-50 at my own expense. Once the "free" maintenance had ended I did all changes at 8,000 kms intervals, with factory Mann + Hummel filters and Syntec oil.
The only change from this routine occured when I performed two Auto Rx cleaning cycles, starting at around 125,000 km. The Auto-Rx cleanings seemed to have no effect on the sludge, even though I followed Frank's direct instructions to the letter.
Then at 135,000 km the timing belt let go....
Can sludge cause premature timing belt failure?
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My '96 Audi manual warns explicitely of the use of 5W-30 dino oil and high speed driving and anything but low ambient temps.
I think there is a minor cause for concern that VW are recommending a 5WXX oil, and your running a 10WXX oil, and they also mostly recommend a XW40 oil, and your running a XW30 oil, so basically your running an oil that is both to thick, and to thin.
I'm not so sure "any" 10W30 will protect an engine as well, when the engine is designed to run a 5W40 oil?
Yuk - you will always get that 1 in 1000 timing belt that will just fail prematurely, for no real reason, it sucks, but it does happen.
Although, 150000kms seems awfully long on a belt to me.
Bishop quote:
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Yuk - you will always get that 1 in 1000 timing belt that will just fail prematurely, for no real reason, it sucks, but it does happen.
Although, 150000kms seems awfully long on a belt to me.
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I agree! That's why I'm looking for a class action suit to join, or other 1.8T owners who have experienced belt failures. Like the oil issue I believe that VW has always known that the timing belt replacement schedule for this engine is insufficient. I had spent a better part of a year trying to track down specific information about the lengthened replacement interval and everyone at VW treated me like a nut bar. Now I'm paying the price for trusting them.
I still can't believe that a company that can engineer cars as great as these would allow its customers to improperly maintain the vehicles, due to corporate dis/misinformation!
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Yuk - you will always get that 1 in 1000 timing belt that will just fail prematurely, for no real reason, it sucks, but it does happen.
Although, 150000kms seems awfully long on a belt to me.
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I agree! That's why I'm looking for a class action suit to join, or other 1.8T owners who have experienced belt failures. Like the oil issue I believe that VW has always known that the timing belt replacement schedule for this engine is insufficient. I had spent a better part of a year trying to track down specific information about the lengthened replacement interval and everyone at VW treated me like a nut bar. Now I'm paying the price for trusting them.
I still can't believe that a company that can engineer cars as great as these would allow its customers to improperly maintain the vehicles, due to corporate dis/misinformation!
Just surf on over to the Audiworld forums (the B5 A4 in particular) and do a search. There have been many cases of premature (according to the service interval) TB failures. Actually, it's not the TB that goes, but the tensioner. Depending on the engine and MY, the interval goes from 90-120k miles, IIRC. Common practice among 1.8T A4 owners in the know is a 60k change interval. Still, some have failed prior to 60k miles. It's amazing how many new posters show up and complain that their head just got trashed before the factory-recommended change interval. The tensioner was even redesigned (more beefy) and there is still a problem. Audi is practically negligent in this regard.
But the manual always said 5W-40 - no? Does M1 10-30 meet the VW 503 and 505 specs listed in the manual? This letter says 502 spec as well. Althought the user experiences of 10W-30 are positive, were they for the 1.8T? The 1.8T engine is very finicky and different grades of oil impact its performance drastically. The 5W-40 is recommended for the 1.8T and that is not to say that a 0W-40/0W-30/5W-30 is not as long as it meets the VW specs.
So the consensus here is that VWoA knows what they're doing in recommending Mobil 1 0w-40 but not Mobil 1 10w-30 or 5w-30 because the latter 2 are not as good in the 1.8t as the first?
How about the other synthetics on the list? Anyone want to say which are better than Mobil 1 0w-40 and are readily available in the US?
How about the other synthetics on the list? Anyone want to say which are better than Mobil 1 0w-40 and are readily available in the US?
I just did the math and realised that 60k miles is about 100000kms, so I'd certianly agree with that way of thinking, 80000-100000kms is heaps on a timing belt if you want to stay safe.
With some cars that are hard on belts, I know people who change at 60000kms!
Where do you guys get this stuff? This thread should be titled "Calling all Noobs".
No, it does not seem like you either know what the letter says nor bothered reading my post before answering. I did not ask what your personal preferences are, I pointed out that all that's required is API oil to maintain warranty. Simply "talking about oil" is not the same thing as correctly and knowledgably responding to other members' posts.
[ August 17, 2004, 01:44 AM: Message edited by: Audi Junkie ]
So then I guess then your suggesting that heat does not effect oil viscosity, and that manufacturers oil recommendations should be ignored?
Edit: Although, reading back, perhaps I should have said shear rather than thin, and just used overall increased engine stress as a factor rather than just heat, as I suppose people do get a little more pedantic about terminology on a "oils" posting board, but I would have hoped people would understand what I was getting at regardless of terminology?
But I'll try and make my views clearer in the future, as I suspect it's "that" sort of board.
[ August 17, 2004, 03:38 AM: Message edited by: Bishop ]
Dude, in case you haven't heard yet, crack kills. You obviously have not read the letter. The letter CLEARLY states that an oil meeting the VW 502.00 spec is REQUIRED for the 1.8T engine and the extended sludge warranty.
When we bought our new 2000 1.8T, Mobil 1 5W-40 or 0W-40 was not available. 4 years and 50K miles later Mobil 1 10W-30 has been the only fill with no top offs required at 4K oci. Why do I use Mobil 1 10W-30? Because I can get it in 5 quart jugs for $20 versus paying $4.77 a quart for 0W-40, plus, all of my other engines (about 10) use the 10W-30 as well, so using this grade makes it easier for me to keep up a simple inventory of one oil and grade. Philip.
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