Recently Purchased a 2018 VW GTI

Torrid

Torrid

Joined
Nov 7, 2010
Messages
4,249
Location
Wisconsin
I just picked up a low miles 2018 GTI Autobahn. I previously had a 2017 F150 I bought new and between gas prices and wanting a more fun car(I'm a car guy that didn't have a car guy car, fixed that). I've only had the GTI for a week now, but wondered if there's any concern with running the recommended 1 year 10k mile OCI? I doubt it would be a concern for me because a year of driving is usually closer to 7-8k anyway. I figure either 0w30 or 0w40 are my best choice with climate here (Wisconsin) with respect to winter and fitting VW 502. Leaning toward 0w40 since the GTI is a turbo car and likely to see more heat and occasional heavy foot of course.

Am I missing anything here?
 
If your use doesn't involve frequent short trips or lots of idling, 1yr/~8000mi sounds perfectly adequate to me.

Regarding oil type I don't believe the euro 0W30-5W40 spread is wide enough to concern yourself with, I have run anything from the dealer 0W20 to PPE 5W40 down to about -25°C with barely any perceivable difference. IMO best to simply use the most accessible and affordable oil which meets the recommended VW 502/504 (I presume for 2018 GTI) specs, though I believe some users here prefer 504 for decreased intake valve deposits amongst other factors.
 
The same car would be specified for up to 2 yrs/18,000 miles over here, so I wouldn't worry!
 
I've been doing the 5k/6 month oil change in my 2018 VW since new... no issues and yes the DIC always says i have 6 months to go i just reset it myself. Use the 5w40 they didn't change the OEM oil type until 2019+ and do the other recommended fluid changes if you can yourself. Great videos on youtube from companies that sell all the DIY stuff like DAP.
Do yourself a favor and buy a OBD11 plug in tool, not only lets you look at any codes from CEL but also play with all the electronic stuff like the stupid lock out of the radio while moving etc.... Great car will put smile on your face any time you let it so pay it back with the maintence.....
 
I once owned a 2013 GTI I purchased new. Wife does lots of business travel and put a ton of company paid miles on it while I would often drive her A4 since I'm close to work.

I did one 7500 oil change but all others were at 5K miles. Had to replace the intake manifold at 80K and clean the intake valves and used vw 504/507 and some ACEA C3 oils after that point on.

Sold the car to brother at 163K He's a pharmacy manager and uses it as his work car not wanting shopping carts, car doors.. to mess up his SUV. He has over 190K on it.

He sticks to the 5K oil changes and has been using Liquid Moly 4200 which is a VW504/507 oil.

I did 5K oil changes thinking 10K OCI's would wear out the timing chain and it's guides quicker.

Issues I had with mine:

Replaced dual mass flywheel and clutch components.

Intake manifold butterflies wouldn't open. Replaced and cleaned intake valves.

Replaced all ignition coils with the latest revision at 100K as a preventative measure.

Oil separator gave out. Look into this one and what to what and listen for. If you continue to drive when this goes out, you can blow the rear main seal

High pressure fuel pump died while my wife was far away from home.
She plugged a code reader in, I gambled it was the HPFP, watched a Youtube video of the tools needed for the job, the dealer had one in stock drove to her and replaced it in 15 minutes.

The car can drive on the in tank fuel pump at a whopping 50MPH max. HPFP on most engines are driven by the camshaft and such vehicles use a second fuel pump in the gas tank BTW.

The whole take away from me is if you put lots of miles on one, 5K OCI's may prevent the expensive hassle of opening up the engine to replace the timing chain and its related components.
 
Nice car, congrats. My former was one of the first MK7 Autobahns released in 2015. I had a few mods and power pushed to ~350 with nary an issue. Really loved that car, but alas, momma wanted a new Tiguan. Check this site for some of the best, most comprehensive info, and friendly folks more than willing to help: www.golfmk7.com

As far as oil, cheapest and most easily available will do fine. I used the Castrol 0W-40 most of its life with 5K changes. There is more and more evidence that points to a mid-SAPS formula VW504/507 reducing deposits over time. So if thats a concern, the new Valvoline XL-III, sourced from Amazon, is a bargain. Me personally, I think it helps a bit, but believe running the car as designed (ie; HARD), probably does a better job of mitigating deposits. Sage advice about regular breather changes around 40-60K intervals though. VWs are tricky with regard to seals and pressure. Can get expensive quick if not paid attention to. Enjoy.
 
Torrid said:
I just picked up a low miles 2018 GTI Autobahn. I previously had a 2017 F150 I bought new and between gas prices and wanting a more fun car(I'm a car guy that didn't have a car guy car, fixed that). I've only had the GTI for a week now, but wondered if there's any concern with running the recommended 1 year 10k mile OCI? I doubt it would be a concern for me because a year of driving is usually closer to 7-8k anyway. I figure either 0w30 or 0w40 are my best choice with climate here (Wisconsin) with respect to winter and fitting VW 502. Leaning toward 0w40 since the GTI is a turbo car and likely to see more heat and occasional heavy foot of course.

Am I missing anything here?
Click to expand...
i spent 50 years of my life working in VW dealerships as a mechanic up to service manager and retired as a master ,
VW group started to use the 15w40 euro spec oil in the later 1980's when the turbos started coming out, main reason was the heat from the turbo cooking?coking the oil, this was so bad a motor running cheaper non synteck oils would sludge up to a point of causing oil pressure issues in as low as 2500 miles, and i do mean sludge ,almost rock solid , most of time i found sludge was so solid it had the impression of the valve cover in it when removed and the oil pan close to it.
personally as long as you run a full syntec of the proper weights i have not personally seen any issues
 
Congratulation on a great car. I always wanted one but never did get one. Personally I wouldnt do 10k. I did 10k on my 2007 Audi 3.2 and at around 140k it was starting to burn some oil maybe a quart every 2k miles. I always felt I didnt do that car any favors. I think you would be ok with 7.5k but honestly if your doing it yourself its only about $40 if you buy oil at Walmart and filter from Rock Auto. If you plan to keep it a while, its cheap insurance. I do 5k on my 2019 Q5 with basically the same engine in your car. On my Q5 the filter is up top and I use an extractor it takes me all of 15min and I dont even get dirty.
 
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This is why I asked, thank you everyone. It seemed odd to do extended intervals on a turbocharged direct injected motor and this is my first DI vehicle. I do plan to run non ethanol premium in it since that is available in the area. Even with gas prices coming from a truck that got 18mpg this car seems economical even considering the extra cost per gallon. I can tell VW takes this car very seriously. I really feels like the most well thought out car I've owned.
 
Do not go more than 5K miles or 1 year in an EA888.3 engine. Just don't.

Run anything VW 502, it doesn't matter. You can get as creative as you want but most people are just buying the jug of Castrol Edge at walmart. Proven low wear and keeps the engine spotless. With 5K changes it doesn't make sense to dump more money into a drain pan.

Run a PEA based fuel injector cleaner at least once every 15k miles. These injectors are known to kill the EA888.3 if they are neglected.
 
Trav said:
+1. No more than 5K in any VW. Pay now or pay later and later will be a heck of a lot more than a few extra oil changes.
Click to expand...
My words exactly for years... tiny 1.6L in my ride gets changes at least every 4500 mainly due to being direct injection/turbo as I'm sure it likely prolongs useful lifespan and of course peace of mind is priceless.
 
skyactiv said:
I once owned a 2013 GTI I purchased new. Wife does lots of business travel and put a ton of company paid miles on it while I would often drive her A4 since I'm close to work.

I did one 7500 oil change but all others were at 5K miles. Had to replace the intake manifold at 80K and clean the intake valves and used vw 504/507 and some ACEA C3 oils after that point on.

Sold the car to brother at 163K He's a pharmacy manager and uses it as his work car not wanting shopping carts, car doors.. to mess up his SUV. He has over 190K on it.

He sticks to the 5K oil changes and has been using Liquid Moly 4200 which is a VW504/507 oil.

I did 5K oil changes thinking 10K OCI's would wear out the timing chain and it's guides quicker.

Issues I had with mine:

Replaced dual mass flywheel and clutch components.

Intake manifold butterflies wouldn't open. Replaced and cleaned intake valves.

Replaced all ignition coils with the latest revision at 100K as a preventative measure.

Oil separator gave out. Look into this one and what to what and listen for. If you continue to drive when this goes out, you can blow the rear main seal

High pressure fuel pump died while my wife was far away from home.
She plugged a code reader in, I gambled it was the HPFP, watched a Youtube video of the tools needed for the job, the dealer had one in stock drove to her and replaced it in 15 minutes.

The car can drive on the in tank fuel pump at a whopping 50MPH max. HPFP on most engines are driven by the camshaft and such vehicles use a second fuel pump in the gas tank BTW.

The whole take away from me is if you put lots of miles on one, 5K OCI's may prevent the expensive hassle of opening up the engine to replace the timing chain and its related components.
Click to expand...
MK6s had this issue which is solved for MK7...no more timing chain drama.
 
5K on a 502 xw40 or 504 xw30 will serve it well. Drive it hard and those deposits won't be an issue. I've seen (including my own) so many valve cleaning pics of the MK7s and deposits don't seem to be an issue on these thar ate routinely driven hard. Tune that thing!
 
RooflessVW said:
For now.
Click to expand...
MK7 has been out for 7 years at this point without any issues that I've ever read about w/r to the timing chains. MK6 timing chain tensioners were problematic and they improved not only that part but made the chains more stout for MK7/ea888 gen 3 engines (1.8/2.0).
 
TiGeo said:
MK7 has been out for 7 years at this point without any issues that I've ever read about w/r to the timing chains. MK6 timing chain tensioners were problematic and they improved not only that part but made the chains more stout for MK7/ea888 gen 3 engines (1.8/2.0).
Click to expand...
And the Cayenne V8 wasn't known for bore score until fairly recently. I'm just saying sometimes it takes a decade and 100k miles for stuff to rear its head.

High mileage VRs come to mind. Even the timing belt 4.2 have cam chain issues as they age.
 
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