Right - I'm after a straight answer if someone can help me please.

Been reading on here trying to decide which oil I need for my 54 plate Fabia VRS with 70K on the clock. All this talk of 505 or 505.1 leaves me a bit confused as I'm no tech expert.

Can someone tell me in plain English what oil I need for a full change or just to keep for any top ups required?

Many thanks,

Dave.

The oil specs that have been discussed in this forum are what you should look for on the oil container. Your car needs an oil that meets VW grade 505.01, and preferably also ACEA grade B4.

(505.00 is not good enough; B3 is inferior to B4 and, in my opinion, is also not good enough, though there are several VW 505.01 oils that meet B3 but fail to make it to B4.)

These grades are printed on the label of the oil container. So read the label. Make a note of the grades you need and take it to the shop. These grades show the performance of the oil in real engines. They should be your guide and your only guide. Purple prose and the snazziness of the bottle are no guide.

So write down VW 505.01 and ACEA B4 and take the note with you.

For the sake of completeness I should point out that there are newer VW grades that are superior to 505.01, but you are very unlikely to run across them in a motorist's supplies shop and your car does not require them in any case.