Hi All,

I would like to report a potential concern regarding Comma brand 505.01 spec oil (marketed as 'Comma Diesel PD'). I recently serviced my car using this product with a OEM oil filter. The car has covered about 1500 miles since the service and the engine has begun to sound different, especially when cold. The best way to describe it is 'tappety', like an old skool diesel engine, but certainly very different to the way it sounded before. There has been no noticeable difference in performance or economy. This is now starting to seriously concern me, especially regarding cam lobe wear and the stringent oil requirements of PD engines. I also found this threadpreviously reporting a concern regarding Comma 505.01 oil. What would people recommend? Change the oil asap?

The car is a 56 plate Fabia vRS with a BLT engine. Current mileage 105000. Serviced by Skoda every year (5000-10000) miles by the previous owner. This is the second oil service since I have owned the car and I did it DIY at home - very easy job with a spare afternoon and a Haynes manual.

Thanks in advance.

Crap - I have been putting this in since I got the car. Should be okay though... 505.01 spec and I thought Comma was a known quality brand, no??

Might be the general onset of the PD camwear - not necessarily due to oil grade. Just keep an eye on it.

Crap - I have been putting this in since I got the car. Should be okay though... 505.01 spec and I thought Comma was a known quality brand, no??

That's what I would have thought. Certainly you would believe that if an oil brand quotes 505.01 spec on the bottle than it should have been proven to do so by VAG or some other regulatory body - but other threads on here say this may not be the case, i.e. crafty marketing language on bottles designed to deceive :-(

I'll definitely keep an eye on it and report back.

Have you put the right amount in? Too little or too much will give you similar sounds.

Have you put the right amount in? Too little or too much will give you similar sounds.

If your in doubt about the oil, then get changed, to another brand perhaps??

Any oil that meets VW505.01 is suitable for a PD diesel (without DPF and on fixed servicing). The approval process to check that oil meets the spec is quite stringent.

It may be a coincidence that the engine sounds a little different with the new oil or that a higher viscosity oil was used before which may have made the engine quieter but with a higher cam lobe wear. Using a high viscosity oil was an old trick to disguise engine noise.It could also be that the wrong spec oil has been used for quite a while and the cam lobes are worn excessively.

If the car has now over 105,000 miles on it ,it should have had more than one service each year if it was on fixed servicing.If it had been on variable service with about 18,000 miles then the yearly interval sounds about right ( 5 X 18K =90K)- this variable service needed the higher long life oil spec VW507.If VW spec 505.01 has been used for the much bigger mileage interval (say 18K), then the use of 505.01 rather than VW507 oil may have caused excessive engine wear as VW505.01 does not have the additives that give the long life oil its' extended life properties.

Edited 19 September, 201114 yr by vwcabriolet1971

Want some more excellent info?? You know the Halfords own brand oil - they do a 5w40 for PD engines too - its made by Comma, comes to the same spec and you get 5 litres for like £30!

I get it so cheap on trade that I do changes every 3000 miles. no issues with it

Just buy the basic pd oil from skoda. About £15-20 for 5L. Been using it for 2.5 years with no problem.

Any oil that meets VW505.01 is suitable for a PD diesel (without DPF and on fixed servicing). The approval process to check that oil meets the spec is quite stringent.

It may be a coincidence that the engine sounds a little different with the new oil or that a higher viscosity oil was used before which may have made the engine quieter but with a higher cam lobe wear. Using a high viscosity oil was an old trick to disguise engine noise.It could also be that the wrong spec oil has been used for quite a while and the cam lobes are worn excessively.

If the car has now over 105,000 miles on it ,it should have had more than one service each year if it was on fixed servicing.If it had been on variable service with about 18,000 miles then the yearly interval sounds about right ( 5 X 18K =90K)- this variable service needed the higher long life oil spec VW507.If VW spec 505.01 has been used for the much bigger mileage interval (say 18K), then the use of 505.01 rather than VW507 oil may have caused excessive engine wear as VW505.01 does not have the additives that give the long life oil its' extended life properties.

Thanks very much for your thorough reply I checked the service book last night - despite my previous statement the car has actually been serviced religiously every 10000 miles at a Skoda dealer by the previous owner, on average every six months. When I bought the car back in March the garage I bought it from did an oil service before I collected it. I questioned them about the oil they put just to make sure, and they assured me they had looked up the required oil in a reference book. Maybe they put the wrong oil in and now the engine sounds different with the correct oil? The only issue I have is that the engine just feels rougher - when I first test drove Fabia vRSs I was so pleasantly surprised by how smooth the engine was despite it being a diesel - now it actually sounds and feels like I imagine a diesel to be I know I'm potentially being fussy but a car has to be a pleasant place to be if you're doing a lot of miles in it.

Edited 20 September, 201114 yr by piggoy

I'd be tempted to take the rocker cover off and inspect the cam and followers, as devontopia mentioned it might be the dreaded PD chocolate cam syndrome.

Its more common on the pd150 engine, have a search on uk-mkivs.net as there are a few threads about it.

UPDATE - Drove to Sheffield and back this weekend (200 miles) and the engine has now quietened down back to its usual sound. It seems really bizzare that it got louder temporarily :S It never sounded like any of the videos posted on YouTube of PD engines with worn cams, it just sounded a lot more 'diesel like', with the characteristic clattering sounds being a lot louder. Maybe it's related to the weather, temperature, humidity etc. I will certainly keep an eye on it. I will also inspect the camshaft when I plan to change the timing belt.

my dads used this comma oil for 70,000 miles on his leon cupra pd150 and no signs whatsoever of any cam wear.. (had the rocker cover off to ispect).... i know it does not have vag vertification but the oil is the exact specification required. The reason comma never went through with getting vag certification was to keep prices down.