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Suitable oils (and service intervals)?


docc

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My nice new 1.2 TSI is set at QI6 for extended service intervals.  Doing only around 5000 miles a year, obviously I need to get that changed to fixed servicing by the dealer at some point (presumably at its first service in just under a year's time).

 

The oil that's in the engine now will be to the 504.00 specification, but that will be changed at the service to the cheaper 502.00, presumably.

 

I'm assuming it's OK to top up (if necessary) with 502.00, and there's no problem mixing the two?

 

And does anyone have any suggestions for reasonably priced (but good quality) oils that meet the two specifications please?

 

 

 

 

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Full Synthetic 5 w 30 to meet VW 502 00 when on Fixed Servicing

or VW 504 with Tesco, Asda or any place else will do perfectly.

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Did you not get a top-up bottle with the car? I would not have thought you would use all of that in 5000 miles. Am I wrong?

Top-up bottle?  No - maybe I drove too hard a bargain on the price!

Edited by docc
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Have you checked around in the boot? It comes in a leatherette zipped pouch with velcro to stick to the wall of the bootlining. I didn't ask for one but have had one with previous VAG cars and with this latest Yeti. Perhaps its only diesel cars that get them?

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Have you checked around in the boot? It comes in a leatherette zipped pouch with velcro to stick to the wall of the bootlining. I didn't ask for one but have had one with previous VAG cars and with this latest Yeti. Perhaps its only diesel cars that get them?

Thanks for the tip.  Just checked again, though, and no sign of it.  Not to worry - I'll get some to put by.  Just wanted to check to make sure I can mix 502 with the 504 that's in there now.

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And just to display my total ignorance still further (having now decided on Castrol EDGE FST 5W-30), a couple more questions for those who know please:

 

1  Is it OK to mix oils?  I seem to recall my father telling me that they shouldn't be mixed.

 

2  Does oil have a shelf life, once opened?  A 4 litre pack is much better value than single litres, but not if it deteriorates.  :think:

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And just to display my total ignorance still further (having now decided on Castrol EDGE FST 5W-30), a couple more questions for those who know please:

 

1  Is it OK to mix oils?  I seem to recall my father telling me that they shouldn't be mixed.

 

2  Does oil have a shelf life, once opened?  A 4 litre pack is much better value than single litres, but not if it deteriorates.  :think:

 

1. Generally no. Sometimes it is OK, but you never know whether the additives in the oils are compatible. My cousin once added some significant amount of BP Visco 3000 to BP Visco 2000 which had been in the engine and a few dozen kilometers later the engine stalled. He took out the probe and discovered that the oil turned into thick gunk. He had to repair the engine.
 
2. I think yes, even if the pack stays sealed. I wouldn't use oil which is older than 2 years.
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You can mix oils fine, especially those with a similar specification. It is not perfect but it is not problematic either.

If stored well, oil will last for years. If opened, make sure it is closed well and stored out of extreme temperatures or wet conditions.

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1. Generally no. Sometimes it is OK, but you never know whether the additives in the oils are compatible. My cousin once added some significant amount of BP Visco 3000 to BP Visco 2000 which had been in the engine and a few dozen kilometers later the engine stalled. He took out the probe and discovered that the oil turned into thick gunk. He had to repair the engine.
 
2. I think yes, even if the pack stays sealed. I wouldn't use oil which is older than 2 years.

 

 

 

You can mix oils fine, especially those with a similar specification. It is not perfect but it is not problematic either.

If stored well, oil will last for years. If opened, make sure it is closed well and stored out of extreme temperatures or wet conditions.

 

 

Thanks for the replies.  I'm puzzled - they couldn't be more different!  I wonder which is correct?  Or is it just one of those things there's no definitive answer to?

Edited by docc
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Let me justify my reply. 22 years working in product development, technical support, marketing and currently technical training for one of the big lubricant companies.

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Sorry, but mixing the 2 types of Viscostatic would have not caused that problem. The basic formula of 3000 and 2000 was the same, with only a small change of additives in the 3000. 

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Sorry, but mixing the 2 types of Viscostatic would have not caused that problem.

Those definitely were genuine BP Viscos, bought at a BP fuelling station. Maybe the second one was Visco 5000 and not 3000. It was more than 5 years ago, maybe something has changed in the formulas.

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I am just an amateur, but the example with BP Visco is from real life ;)

I'm sure it was. However, one of my previous jobs was running the analytical laboratory of said major oil supplier. We investigated problems exactly like the one you described all the time. In every single case there was some other factor at work to cause the problem. Mixing two different oils will not cause the problem you mentioned without something else in the mix.

Also, I'd be interested how Llanigraham knows the formulations of the BP oils?

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The SKODA bumff on Fixed Servicing and Variable servicing tells you that if you must you can put in some not Long LIfe oil. It would still need to be, 5w 30 or 5w 40 Full Synthetic.

(& if you are in doubt, then do not do it obviously!)

 

If the car has in Quantum/ Castrol 5w 30 or 5w 40 Long Life oil in now,

why not just top up with the VW 504 00 until the nest service,

then get it changed to Fixed if that is what you want,  

Oil/Filter change every 372 days / 9,400 miles and then use VW 502 00

 

?

Is it needing much oil to top it up?

The OP said "if necessary".

A nice new 1.2 TSI engine car after running in ,surely is not needing much topping up in only 5,000 miles.

 

A litre of VW 504.00 specification does not have to be an expensive purchase.

A skoda Dealer might hand you one, if they never put it in the car at the PDI or someone helped them self to it.

It is there as a promotion for Castrol Oil.

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If the car has in Quantum/ Castrol 5w 30 or 5w 40 Long Life oil in now,

why not just top up with the VW 504 00 until the nest service,

then get it changed to Fixed if that is what you want,  

Oil/Filter change every 372 days / 9,400 miles and then use VW 502 00

 

That's what I'm planning to do - top up (if necessary) with Castrol EDGE FST 5W-30 (VW 504.00) and maybe even stipulate that the 504.00 specification should be used for all future fixed, yearly, services (even though 502.00 would be OK).  The extra cost, in the overall scheme of things, really isn't that great.

 

What does concern me, though, is this mixing issue.  For a start, I have no idea what the dealer will actually put it - my guess is that it will be the cheapest available to them at the time, and even though 504.00 might be stipulated, you can never be sure that they've used it.  If it's OK to mix oils (and there seem to be mixed views on this) - no real problem.  If it isn't - more of a problem.

 

And the question I raised about how long oil 'keeps' was essentially related to whether buying a 4 litre carton to last a few years might actually prove to be a false economy.

 

This must all sound particularly anal.  Truth is, though, that the new Yeti was a big purchase, it has to last a good few years before being replaced, and I don't want to jeopardise its current good health by making basic mistakes with oil - it's one of the keys to an engine's longevity.  :)

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Hi docc & all,

I'm a bit of the same with engine oil, why should I pay £11+ a litre when there's oil for £5 a litre?

I roughly understand the numbers 5w-30 and/or 0w-40. As soon as my car is out of warranty I buy a cheaper known brand.

I do keep to the same spec for those numbers when buying the other known brand.

 

It's strange how we (me included) pay thousands of pounds for a car and then look at cheaper oil and fuel to run it.

If that upsets forum members, sorry.

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If you have to worry about a Dealership doing a Service and putting in the Oil they Invoice you for.

 

3.6 Litres of VW 502 00, @ £30 or 3.6 Litres of VW 504.00 @ £40-£50.  Long Life III, 

then you are going to the wrong place.

 

Skoda might be 3.6 litres  Z Longlife III Oil  - £45  plus vat

VW might be 3.6 litres Long Life VW 5W 30 -£47.50 plus vat

 

If they charge you for 1 thing and give you a cheaper one. then that is Fraud, 

simple as that.

So you are going to get the Cheaper 502 oil as a minimum on Fixed Servicing.

What might go in is 504.

If you pay for 504, then they put in 502, that is fraud. 

 

You either trust them or not, or you go to a viewing area and watch.

You still will not, know.

If you supply the Oil your self for a Service, say 'Mobile 1 5w 30'.  you need to trust them to put that in.

 

2 Litres of Asda, Tesco or anyone elses  Full Synthetic 5w 30 to VW 504 00 Spec for £9 is fine.

If in doubt pay £12 a litre for Castrol, or ask the Dealership for some.

A 4 Litre Can bought for the VFM will not go off if kept in a closed bottle.

But to top up a 1.2 TSI, occasinally if doing 5,000 miles between services, you do not need to buy a 4 litre bottle.

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