1.9 TDI PD - oil changed to some 5/30 semi-synthetic

[alan55]

Firstly, just wanted to say hello as this is my first post here .

Couple days ago I bought '04 Fabia in 1.9 TDI PD and 90 000 miles on the clock. The first thing I did was taking the car to a mechanic for an oil change. On the phone he assured me that he'll put synthetic but of course he didn't :(. When asked he told that it was some bulk semi-synth 5/30 oil. I am not sure if this meets specification VW 505 01 or not.

I plan to change oil again after doing approx. 1500miles but at other, trusted garage.

Would you advise to change it straight away or would it be OK to drive 1500m before another change?

The car is great, engine in very good condition so I don't want to do any harm to it.

[Guest BigJase88]

If it 505.01 oil then its fine!

If not i wouldnt even do 1.5 miles on it! You need to find the exact spec of the oil

Pd oil is usually fully synth

[Anddenton]

Fully synth ftw

[alan55]

Ok, I will call this guy on Monday and ask for exact spec. of this oil. If I need to change again is there anything you'd recommend for this engine(from this list)?

[@Lee]

Quantum Platinum 5W-30 from TPS

[alan55]

Quantum Platinum 5W-30 from TPS

Thanks leepatrick01. I am not sure what TPS means but I found one 5W40 here: http://www.vwspares....oducts_id=1354. Would it be any good as you recommended 5W30 but it's for longlife servicing while the Skoda is on the fixed one?

Edited 23 June, 2013 by alan55

[_Jim]

Quantum Platinum is 5w40 and does the job fine. I believe long life is slightly higher specification but is mainly used in A4's/A6's and Passats which go longer between services.

When I went into TPS quantum platinum is what was recommended to me.

[Guest BigJase88]

Quantum is what skoda use!

Platinum is all thats req

Longlife III is better oil

Whichever you use is fine!

Right now im using triple qx pd oil from eurocarparts and it does the trick

[booke23]

Thanks leepatrick01. I am not sure what TPS means but I found one 5W40 here: http://www.vwspares....oducts_id=1354. Would it be any good as you recommended 5W30 but it's for longlife servicing while the Skoda is on the fixed one?

As already said the oil in the above link is spot on for your car.

The Longlife III oil is also great but over spec for a 1.9 PD......it's really for cars with a DPF or cars with the option of variable servicing, where they can end up doing nearly 20,000 miles between services.

As big jase says, if it has actually got the completely wrong oil in it, I wouldn't even start it up until you get it replaced!

Edited 23 June, 2013 by booke23

[sepulchrave]

I really would be VERY surprised if a professional mechanic put the wrong spec. oil in a PD, these engines have been around for ages, are fitted to a wide variety of cars and the trade is well aware how essential it is to use the correct spec.

Weekend warriors are the ones who make this (very expensive) mistake as a rule.

[Guest BigJase88]

I really would be VERY surprised if a professional mechanic put the wrong spec. oil in a PD, these engines have been around for ages, are fitted to a wide variety of cars and the trade is well aware how essential it is to use the correct spec.

Weekend warriors are the ones who make this (very expensive) mistake as a rule.

I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest!

Mechanics have massive barrells of plop oil that they usually whack in every car no matter the engine

[Jim H]

The oil has to meet or exceed VW 505.01 spec (usually 5W-40). If it is a long life oil it has to meet VW 504 or 507 spec, these normally exceed the 505.01 spec.

See note 3 at bottom of this post. http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/21250-what-engine-oil-must-i-use-in-my-fabia-vrs/

[booke23]

I really would be VERY surprised if a professional mechanic put the wrong spec. oil in a PD, these engines have been around for ages, are fitted to a wide variety of cars and the trade is well aware how essential it is to use the correct spec.

Weekend warriors are the ones who make this (very expensive) mistake as a rule.

Wouldn't surprise me at all if a mechanic threw in whatever oil he had lying around. Unfortunately a lot of mechanics have the attitude of it's not my car so I don't give a s***.

Illustrated to me recently when I changed the oil on my octavia. The mechanic who did the last oil change couldn't be bothered to replace the sump plug, so just plastered the old one in instant gasket and reused it. Nice.

Edited 24 June, 2013 by booke23

[billy2981]

5w30 is fully synth is it not? Didnt think you could get that in a part synth?

[alan55]

Thanks for all your replies guys, very informative.

Sepulchrave: the mechanic told me that it was semi-synth 5/30. When I asked about the brand(so that I can buy some more if needed) he said it was some bulk oil from barrel and to let him know if I need some :think: .

billy2981: I am not quite sure. I'm just writing what he told me .

I bought today Quantum Platinum 5W 40 + the original oil filter. Hoping to replace them tomorrow.

If you are interested TPS(I was in 812 Old Kent Rd., London) have this oil from tomorrow for £13.

Moreover I was really satisfied with their customer service. The seller went out of his way to give me a better price and they had all the parts I needed . Skoda dealer in London quoted me £30 for the same oil + £100 oil change fee.

[eric87]

It really is a **** take for labour, £100 to change oil when in reality most of that labour charge is them Standing about waiting for the oil to drain.

[Guest BigJase88]

I know its crazy!

For an oil change service at VW its £150-£200!

Absolutely scandalous! Takes about 15mins to do an oil change! Even less on ramps!

[eric87]

If your car is more than a few years old then jus do it yourself. Keep all your invoices for parts you have bought and jot down the date/mileage that its been fitted.

Like you say, oil & filter is no more than £30 odd even at the most expensive place. takes 30mins max to change if you've never done it before.

[eric87]

I done a full service on my car for little over £50.

That was:

Fuel filter

Oil filter & bung

air filter

Pollen filter

Quantum oil

Main dealers would be charging me around £200 for that.

[grr666]

Take it to a VAG independent if you aren't up to it.

Don't pay main dealer rates. They are a urine extraction.

[Oli3000]

Thanks for all your replies guys, very informative.

Sepulchrave: the mechanic told me that it was semi-synth 5/30. When I asked about the brand(so that I can buy some more if needed) he said it was some bulk oil from barrel and to let him know if I need some :think: .

billy2981: I am not quite sure. I'm just writing what he told me .

I bought today Quantum Platinum 5W 40 + the original oil filter. Hoping to replace them tomorrow.

If you are interested TPS(I was in 812 Old Kent Rd., London) have this oil from tomorrow for £13.

Moreover I was really satisfied with their customer service. The seller went out of his way to give me a better price and they had all the parts I needed . Skoda dealer in London quoted me £30 for the same oil + £100 oil change fee.

£13?! I'm not far from the Old Kent Road TPS, and that seems like a bargain for 5 litres of quantum!

[eric87]

That does seem rather cheap indeed. Get me 5 bottles please haha

[alan55]

£100 for an oil change is quite steep indeed. I don't know where is the value. Maybe their mechanics are Oxford graduates or something . I was quoted £30 @ independent garage for labor only. I don't know any decent VAG garage in London so I will need to use my kind-of-trusted french car mechanic(owned Citroen before). I hope that changing oil is simple enough not to do wrong.

It would be great to do it myself but I have no tools, space and experience in this and it may get messy if done wrong .

When it comes to TPS it's £13 without VAT(when you buy as a business) or around £16 with VAT. They had some other items on the discount list but I didn't scan through them. It may be worth checking out.

[Guest BigJase88]

Cars are pretty simple

Im an electrician by trade but working on a car is no problem, just nuts and bolts at the end of the day!

Get stuck in! No better way to learn

[alan55]

Cars are pretty simple

Im an electrician by trade but working on a car is no problem, just nuts and bolts at the end of the day!

Get stuck in! No better way to learn

Technically wise I would be ready to do it but for now I don't want to risk spilling oil on my landlord's driveway .