I have an out-of-warranty 2008 VW 2.0T that calls for VW 502 oil. I also have a case of Pennzoil Platinum 5W/30 Synthetic in my garage, bought for a former ride of mine, although it's NOT 502 spec'd. I was thinking about using it over the cooler fall and winter months in the VW. This all hinges on the significance of the 502 spec, of course, something I tried researching a while back but never got a good grip on. My conclusion was that 502 was primarily (but not exclusively) about oil longevity and sludge prevention, which is pretty much what everyone including my dog knows. My gut feeling is that, more than anything, 502 simply prods folks into using a name brand 100% synthetic in order to achieve their 10K service intervals, but that pretty much ANY reputable synthetic oil of appropriate viscosity would suffice, although I could be entirely wrong on that. I’ve wondered if perhaps my Pennzoil would pass the 502 cert just fine if tested, but that Pennzoil simply didn’t bother with same since they didn’t anticipate many people using that particular oil in VWs, plus the fact that they have a separate “Euro” Platinum as well. Just suppositions on my part, but they seem reasonable. One option would be for me to simply use the oil but drain it out 1.5K - 2K sooner than I would an actual 502 oil, just to compensate for any real or perceived non-502 deficiencies. Your thoughts? Thanks.