Hi

Posted this on Honest John backroom yesterday, so apologies to those who may have already seen it :-)

I bought a 07 plate 1.9 diesel Octavia last month and a mighty fine car too. Trouble is I can't get my head round a two year service interval ( I always did a six month intermediate oil change on my last car) and since we only cover 10K a year, so might be better changing to fixed annual service. Last service was April 09, next one due April 11 - we have a long trip to S of France this August.

Q: Would it be wise to do a National Tyres Castrol Edge oil change now (£31.50 and 507.00 spec) or would it void my Approved Used Skoda warranty? Or is it really fine to run two years on the same oil. I'm sure I'd be looking at £100-ish for a main dealer oil change.

If you do not want to change the oil yourself,buy a genuine Skoda filter,supply it to National Tyres to fit and nobody would be the wiser, I would never leave oil in for 2years,Whats cheaper, A gallon of oil or a new engine?.

If you do not want to change the oil yourself,buy a genuine Skoda filter,supply it to National Tyres to fit and nobody would be the wiser, I would never leave oil in for 2years,Whats cheaper, A gallon of oil or a new engine?.

National tyres will only fit parts supplied or authorised by head office and defo won't fit your own parts.

I have run both my current superb (22K miles) and previous octavia (98K miles) on variable and never had any problems. The Octy had just 4 services in its 98K mile history and was still driving perfectly using virtually no oil between services. That said though, at 10K per annum you are best suited to the fixed 10K service intervals.

Why not change the oil and filter yourself, not that difficult and if it's a genuine skoda filter then no one will be any the wiser and you will have your piece of mind.

Ian

Why not change the oil and filter yourself, not that difficult and if it's a genuine skoda filter then no one will be any the wiser and you will have your piece of mind.

Ian

Probably the best option if National don't fit VAG filter. Is it an easy to access filter and any special tools needed for filter/drain plug removal?

To be fair, if you have never done it yourself i would leave it till you could get some to show you.

Get a pella pump.

If the full dealer drain is done every 18.5k miles, then you're going to have no problems using it to do an extra change and filter swap at 9-10k miles.

I would never leave oil in for 2years,Whats cheaper, A gallon of oil or a new engine?.

It's not a 2 year interval, it's upto 2 years. The oil quality is monitored so what's the problem? It's not like you've got poor oil in there, if there was a problem with ageing of the oil, the car would tell you to get it changed!

I think there's a lot of misplaced fear when it comes to variable servicing. Really it's people on fixed schedule who should be nervous because they have no idea if their oil is ok, even if it is changed more often - if you drive very hard on fixed, you'll be using potentially bad oil for some period, but if you drive hard on variable, you'll just hit your next oil change very early. I know which sounds safer to me

Oil and filter change is dead easy on a 1.9PD. Have a look around online, you should find a video / pictorial guide. Buy the oil from here (the seller is Rainworth Skoda). You can get the filter and a new sump plug from your local dealer or http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/5-LITRES-QUANTUM-LONG-LIFE-3-ENGINE-OIL-5W-30-VW-507-/320473934632?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Cars_Parts_Vehicles_Other_Vehicle_Parts_Accessories_ET&hash=item4a9dbc2b28#ht_1586wt_911 - probably a shade cheaper at your dealer though if you've got one close by. Keep your receipts for oil and filters you buy in your car file.

If you don't want to go to the trouble of draining the oil through the sump drain hole, you could invest in a Pela extracter pump (twenty odd quid). Personally, I'd only use that method for interim oil changes though.

The car is designed for 2 year servicing and the oil and monitoring has all come from the factory so whats the problem, I would have thought you will damage the engine if somebody puts the wrong oil in there, just move with technology improvements, I personally would drop the oil via the sump plug to make sure all the crud comes out, anybody know if the sump plug is magnetic for catching the swarf ? are these pela pumps good enough to remove everything ? cheers - Stuart

If you have swarf on the sump plug (or in the sump) then you have major problems. Thats what the filter is there for. I've never found any 'bits' in the sump when I have removed sump plugs in the past, hence why I happily now use a Pela pump.

My Pela pump removes just as much oil as dropping the sump plug out, perhaps even more as you can you use it to empty the oil filter housing which doesnt drain totally when the sump plug is out.

Mine is on the variable regime but every 9-10k I do an intermediate oil+filter myself. I know it probably doesnt need it but it gives me piece of mind and doesnt cost much if you DIY.

Edited 6 July, 201015 yr by Keith Lard

Mine is on the variable regime but every 9-10k I do an intermediate oil+filter myself. I know it probably doesnt need it but it gives me piece of mind and doesnt cost much if you DIY.

If you do a intermediate oil+filter change say at 9k when on variable service does you mileage increase before the next variable service is due?? if so how much? or is it the case the engine senor dictating the condition of the oil and milage too the next service stay the same.

I dont think the 'sensor' is that intelligent. The mileage to next service remains exactly the same, I do a few motorway miles and I always get 17-18k between variable services.

I know a lot of you will disagree with me,But in my opinion variable servicing was only bought in to keep fleet managers happy.

I know a lot of you will disagree with me,But in my opinion variable servicing was only bought in to keep fleet managers happy.

I wouldn't disagree as such because it's a possibility, but do you have any evidence to support this? Otherwise, it's just guesswork on your part.

I was attracted to the idea of less visits to the garage, so it's not just the fleet managers who like the idea of variable servicing!

Mine is on the variable regime but every 9-10k I do an intermediate oil+filter myself. I know it probably doesnt need it but it gives me piece of mind and doesnt cost much if you DIY.

Does this work out cheaper than the fixed regime, because otherwise I don't see why you'd persist with variable servicing when you might as well be on fixed if you're doing intermittent oil changes?

IMHO, it may not cost much, but it's still money down the drain, unless you intend to keep your car for 15+ years...

Yes it's cheaper (for me anyways), there is little difference between fixed and variable service prices as you still need to use 507 spec oil each time. With variable I need roughly half the number of services as I would on fixed. I do 20k per year (ish)

I know and fully understand that an intermediate oil change isnt strictly neccessary but it doesnt cost much (under £40 as I DIY it)

I know a lot of you will disagree with me,But in my opinion variable servicing was only bought in to keep fleet managers happy.

You might be right but remember it suits Skoda dealers far better if they can service your car every year rather than up to 2 years. The margins on servicing are very high and the service department is a major contributor to the dealership income - this is particularly so when you get to the "prestige" brands. When Saab got into difficulties a year ago and was likely to go bust there was concern for the UK operation. However Saab UK weren't too concerned as they admitted 70% of their income was from servicing and repairs rather than car sales. So, a typical car dealer would prefer to service your car annually as he will make more money.

I have always been a fan of regular oil changes but technology moves on and I am going to stick with the variable servicing (as supplied) on my new Skoda.

Yes it's cheaper (for me anyways), there is little difference between fixed and variable service prices as you still need to use 507 spec oil each time.

Doesn't this depend on your engine? I don't think all the PDs need to use 507 if they are on fixed, only if they have a DPF fitted?

Mine is a CR so I couldn't comment on the PD. I'd never put anything other than 507 in my CR though.

You might be right but remember it suits Skoda dealers far better if they can service your car every year rather than up to 2 years. The margins on servicing are very high and the service department is a major contributor to the dealership income - this is particularly so when you get to the "prestige" brands. When Saab got into difficulties a year ago and was likely to go bust there was concern for the UK operation. However Saab UK weren't too concerned as they admitted 70% of their income was from servicing and repairs rather than car sales. So, a typical car dealer would prefer to service your car annually as he will make more money.

I have always been a fan of regular oil changes but technology moves on and I am going to stick with the variable servicing (as supplied) on my new Skoda.

Totally agree with colsay ! and I think its the same with cam belts - every 4 years and around £300 (guess) sees loads of money rolling in.

I know a lot of you will disagree with me,But in my opinion variable servicing was only bought in to keep fleet managers happy.

Most fleets keep cars for 3 years. I reckon it would be cheaper for them not to service them at all, but I guess there is a safety aspect.