What oil additive do you use in your TDi?

Joined
Jan 2, 2020
Messages
313
Location
South Carolina
Recently purchased 09 Jetta Sport Wagon 2.0 TDi with 198k miles not deleted. I also own 01 cummins 5.9 and 3.6 pentastar jeep. For the past 10+ years I've been using CSL Engine Restore in all on my vehicles as preventative maintenance. I never had oil consumption issues. I would like to use the restore on my TDi but I'm not sure about DPF. Mobil 1 ESP 5w30 has been used in that car for the past 100k. Since DPF still functioning, would restore cause any issues? I'm planning on deleting it once I have a issue with it, but until then wanted to give my car a little bit more love.
What additive do you use in your finicky 2.0 TDi? Why?
 
 
Recently purchased 09 Jetta Sport Wagon 2.0 TDi with 198k miles not deleted. I also own 01 cummins 5.9 and 3.6 pentastar jeep. For the past 10+ years I've been using CSL Engine Restore in all on my vehicles as preventative maintenance. I never had oil consumption issues. I would like to use the restore on my TDi but I'm not sure about DPF. Mobil 1 ESP 5w30 has been used in that car for the past 100k. Since DPF still functioning, would restore cause any issues? I'm planning on deleting it once I have a issue with it, but until then wanted to give my car a little bit more love.
What additive do you use in your finicky 2.0 TDi? Why?
No oil additive. Fuel lubricity additive every fill.

VW TDI is not "finicky."
 
Last edited:
Mine only has 358,000 miles on it, so the jury is still out on it. It does not use oil between changes. I change the oil every 5,000 miles and the oil filter every other oil change. I use Mobil 1 Turbo Diesel Truck 5w-40. I have been putting some Liqui Moly MoS2 in the oil, up to half a container per oil change. I also add Power Service in the gray bottle to the diesel, about 4 to 6 oz per tank.
 
I use Amalgamated TDR-FL year round in all my diesels since 2017. It's a summer formula. It doesn't get below 30F and even that is very rare here in N. California.

I have never had any issues with emissions systems or fuel systems using this additive. It does everything and does it very well. It has MMT to enhance combustion and lower soot, you will see some manganese in your oil analysis but it's not a problem is you know where it's coming from.

Amalgamated has WDA formula that is like TDR-FL but has anti-gel if you need that where you live.
 
Recently purchased 09 Jetta Sport Wagon 2.0 TDi with 198k miles not deleted. I also own 01 cummins 5.9 and 3.6 pentastar jeep. For the past 10+ years I've been using CSL Engine Restore in all on my vehicles as preventative maintenance. I never had oil consumption issues. I would like to use the restore on my TDi but I'm not sure about DPF. Mobil 1 ESP 5w30 has been used in that car for the past 100k. Since DPF still functioning, would restore cause any issues? I'm planning on deleting it once I have a issue with it, but until then wanted to give my car a little bit more love.
What additive do you use in your finicky 2.0 TDi? Why?
Oil additives only empty your wallet and do nothing else, fuel additives are a different story.
 
Looking for oil additive
 
I would not use any additive to the proper spec VW oil. Diesel oil is designed to suspend soot and I’d be afraid that any additive may affect its ability to do so.
Only additive I ever used in my diesel vehicles were fuel additives to help improve the mostly terrible diesel fuel we have today.
 
“We don’t take kindly to oil additives ‘round here.”

Some of us real diesel oil in our TDIs. That’s synthetic CK-4 10w30 and 5w40. I use 15w40 in my PD.

You need to deal with the BSM module if it hasn’t been deleted. They are problematic in CBEA engines.
I believe it's still intact. I guess I'll add it to the list of future deletes.
Once everything is deleted I'll just switch to Delvac ESP or just run 15w40. But until then.....
 
I believe it's still intact. I guess I'll add it to the list of future deletes.
Once everything is deleted I'll just switch to Delvac ESP or just run 15w40. But until then.....

I had a 2009 Jetta TDI, it was my first new car. I installed a magnetic drain plug at 30K miles. It always had high iron wear in UOA and visible metal chunks on the magnet. I assumed it was from the BSM or oil pump drive key. Never had any diesel that shed ferrous metals like that car. It was crushed in 2018 at 120k miles. 2009 was not a great year for the Jetta, 2010+ much better engine and transmission.
 
Last edited:
Mine only has 358,000 miles on it, so the jury is still out on it. It does not use oil between changes. I change the oil every 5,000 miles and the oil filter every other oil change. I use Mobil 1 Turbo Diesel Truck 5w-40. I have been putting some Liqui Moly MoS2 in the oil, up to half a container per oil change. I also add Power Service in the gray bottle to the diesel, about 4 to 6 oz per tank.
That Power Service is good stuff. If I forgot to add it my Mercedes diesel would start sounding like a diesel. I could tell right away.
 
I believe it's still intact. I guess I'll add it to the list of future deletes.
Once everything is deleted I'll just switch to Delvac ESP or just run 15w40. But until then.....
That Restore stuff has been around since the 80's and I doubt the formulation has changed. Still just a bargain Group II or even I oil with a lot of soft metal to try and restore compression. Odds are it all ends up in the oil filter.
 
That oil are you using?
I had in my business fleet in Europe overall probably 40 VW’s with 2.0tdi (and many with 1.6tdi).
They all made huge mileage as they were delivery vehicles.
We used Rapsol 5W30 C3 that had VW 504.00/507.00. We had on two vehicles way into hundreds of thousands of miles turbo failures, but considering how many people were driving those cars, how they were driven etc. that is actually remarkable results.
Use Mobil 1 ESP 0W30 and don’t baby that engine. Or if you want something with higher HTHS, Mobil 1 ESP 0W40 X4.
 
Back
Top Bottom