My 03 plate superb is the 1.9TDi PD130

its done 130,000miles and it just went for a service this wednesday, cost me £160 (£140 for the service....oil, oil filter, air filter, fuel filter, and some flushing....£20 for some chimp with a VAGCOM to reset my C/locking so it opens when i remove the key from the ignition)

now i told them that its on the long, variable service... (something like GQ2 or some such in the service manual and the code on the sticker in there)

now i was under the impression that for that you needed 50600 or 505001 oil ..... last time i topped up i looked for this oil and it was 5w-30 fully synthetic stuff.

the people who serviced it put in 10w40 semi-synth........ i asked them about this and said surely thats not right, but apparently ill be fine even on the long service interval. (despite that they still wrote down next service in 10,000 miles time).

now theres no DPF to ruin with the wrong oil, but i dont want to have this stuff they put in need changing again in a few months or worse damaging my engine..... with my driving im on for 22,000+ miles a year.

It (10w40) won't damage your engine, as long as you change it before the mileage limit for fixed mileage services (i.e. QG1), which I think is 10000 miles, but not sure, check your handbook.

5w30 is there principally to reduce the fuel consumption a percent or two.

Long life oils for these engines are 5w30, but be aware that there are lots of other oils available which are also 5w30 but are not long life. It's all to do with the additive pack content, in other words the chemistry in the oil that absorbs the abrasive particles and stops them being in direct contact with the very rapidly moving parts in the engine. 5w30 is merely a viscosity classification, but if you are doing loads of miles, may be better to take it back and get them to pour in some specific long life 5w30.

If I were you, though, I would drive around 1-2k miles on the currently present oil, and then go for long life. An additional "flush" doesn't hurt!

Maybe the issue should be "is it safe to use with a PD engine" - ie what was the VAG approval for this oil? I'd think that right now, that should concern you more than the viscosity being a bit on the "heavy" side.

Oh and at 22,000 miles a years, I'd reckon that you had always intended to have the additional benefit of fully synthetic oil!

So, all in all, personally I'd go elsewhere, get the oil changed by someone you trust and never return to these guys who have not done what should have been done.

Edited 3 April, 201016 yr by rum4mo

It (10w40) won't damage your engine, as long as you change it before the mileage limit for fixed mileage services (i.e. QG1), which I think is 10000 miles, but not sure, check your handbook.

As far as I know if your handbook shows QG1 , your car is set up for long life service, and if it shows QG2, it is set up for fixed service intervals.

"Ordinary" 10W-40 will damage a PD engine.

Oils to VAG specification 505.01 (fixed servicing) 506.01 (variable servicing, no DPF) or 507.00 (all applications) are the only ones suitable for these engines. Other lubricants may cause premature cam and follower wear.

Find out the actual specification (not the viscosity) of the lubricant in the sump, and if it is incorrect, get it out asap.

rotodiesel.

"Ordinary" 10W-40 will damage a PD engine.

Oils to VAG specification 505.01 (fixed servicing) 506.01 (variable servicing, no DPF) or 507.00 (all applications) are the only ones suitable for these engines. Other lubricants may cause premature cam and follower wear.

Find out the actual specification (not the viscosity) of the lubricant in the sump, and if it is incorrect, get it out asap.

rotodiesel.

Where did you get it done, was it a franchise or a local garage?

Roto is right in one respect, if they've shot some cheap 10/40 in it it will damage the engine eventually, a good quality one should be ok as long as you run it no longer than 10k, 8 preferably and under normal conditions, so if you stop start a lot you wanna get it out asap.

There's also the issue with the grades as well, I read that it's bad for engine seals to mix synth with semi or ordinary oil, one attacks the residue of the other and rots the rubber.

Ideally the book says use the 500 spec oils, but it also says in emergencies you can use other oils but short term until you can get the right stuff, me personally I use a full synth VX oil 5/30, I've had no issues with it and the lump still sounds quiet after 50k of it, so I think personally if you use high spec oils they will be ok, but something off a supermarket shelf or a bulk buy of unbranded by a garage will probably do the lump in eventually, but at the end of the day it sounds like the garage has no idea about PD engines, I wouldn't run 10/40 in mine due to the thickness of it, as Roto has said before the whole issue is oil under pressure to the cam to the injector, so a synth oil imo is a must.

btw, I use the VX oil which is longlife, but I drop it every 12k, but even if it was 507 I'd still drop it every 12k anyway because imo the longlife thing is a fleet manager hook, who won't be worried about the lump long term because it will be long gone before it blows up.

I take the oil with me when I get the car serviced. I recently bought 4 x 5 Litre of Quantum 507 for £100 delivered, off EBay. That way you should be totally sure what goes into the engine.

I take the oil with me when I get the car serviced. I recently bought 4 x 5 Litre of Quantum 507 for £100 delivered, off EBay. That way you should be totally sure what goes into the engine.

I used to do the same when I had my Nissan Navara, dealer charged £75 for 4 litres of Texaco semi-synthetic. SO I bought a can of fully synthetic Valvoline VR1 for £28 and told them to use it! It is advantageous to know exactly what goes into the sump. And it is cheaper too.

ok thanks guys,

i did inquire at the time and was assured it'll be good for the longer service intervals, but i think im gonna let it run for a few K and then get the lot flushed out and ill go buy the right oil, that way i can read on the back of the bottle and make sure its exactly what the service book says.i normally get it serviced by a family member, who i trust completely.... he even asked me what oil it needed because he wasnt sure and he went and bought a big bottle of the stuff, didnt even charge me any more money either!