Oil consumption on my 1.2 Rapid seems a bit high. My diesel Jetta would go a year (8-10K miles) without topping up. Petrol Rapid gets through a litre after 2,700 miles. Is this normal? And is there any indication when the level is getting  low? According to the book that came with the car, the MFD should warn me. However the book covers all variants and doesn't always indicate when features are missing.

I know I can use the dipstick, but the drive is not level, so the reading will be wrong. 

 

I hope it is not getting to 1 litre low before getting topped up, as in every 2,700 miles.

Are you checking it sooner and maybe topping up with 1/2 a litre each time?

 

VW Group / Skoda tell you it 'May use as much a 1 litre in 1,242 miles, but then you are not going over mountain passes in high summer towing an elephant.

(0.5 litres in 1,000 km) they said that for decades, but you might use as much oil as you are. 

 

??

Are you sure you start off after services with the oil level at full, do you ever check?

 

** Not that clever waiting until the oil might be 1/4 or more low and you get a warning light or message.**

 

When you get someplace maybe check it,

or before you set off from a place where you have parked.

 

Best that is done after at least 10 miles driving you check the oil level with the oil at normal operating temp.

Stop someplace where it is level and see there is enough oil.

 

OK checking it cold but best you know where it is the way it should be checked & that is hot, not warm.

 

Edited 15 August, 20214 yr by e-Roottoot

If the engine has an oil level/temperature sensor, it will probably be quite evident by looking at the bottom of the sump. 

 

Thanks for your replies. I'll check tomorrow, as i have a 30 mile trip to do, and the car will be standing for at least an hour on a flat car park. I know it has a temperature sensor, so, Wino, there should be a level sensor too.

And no, I don't wait until the light comes on normally. I do check when cold, but the car is higher at the front than the back on the drive. It is at the low end of the dipstick on the drive, so I'll see where it is on the flat tomorrow, and then have an idea of what the reading on the drive really is.

I've done a bit more general research, and checking hot or cold is OK, allowing for the fact that more will drain back to the sump overnight. Checking hot too soon could lead to over-filling, which is also a Bad Thing. I'll add a note tomorrow to let you know the outcome...

Skoda / VW say after a 'few minutes' that is 4 or 5 minutes.

You will not overfill if the oil is not much above the crosshatch so in area A when at Normal Operating Temp,  that is around 90*oC.

 

?

Are you topping up with and servicing with 5w 30 FS III (VW 504 00)  or 5w 40 FS (VW 502 00) 

 

At the next service i would start using VW502 00, & stick with fixed service intervals.

Thanks for this - yes, using VW 502 & on fixed intervals. One thing I haven't yet established is how much between top & bottom of cross hatched section? 1/2 litre or 1 litre? I think 1/2 a litre at a time would suffice, to keep the level between marks.

I am not sure what mileage your car has, but if it using a litre every 2700 miles then something is either very worn or leaking, most tsi engines use less than half litre every 10k miles so you are using oil at least 7 times common rate.

 

Potentially a solution is to use a thicker oil, rather than a multi grade that has very light elements in it, and that may lower oil consumption.  But this will only be a partial solution and won’t fix what is already worn, and could cause faster wear.

 

@Manxmotorman It would be interesting to know what mileage each oil change was done at, these should be on the pages of the service book.   It might give a clue to current oil consumption.

 

@SurreyJohn

How many Skoda cars have you see that came with a Service book since around 2012?

?

If most TSI's use less than 0.5 litre every 10,000 miles what about those that use more, which is quite a lot among Euro 5 1.2, 1.4, 1.8 and 2.0 TSI's.

 

Some need some oil and run on just fine for many years.  People drive in all sorts of ways, lots of short journeys or a mix or mostly longer ones and it all makes a difference.

 

If you pay attention you will see across the Briskoda Section just how many ask about what oil they need for topping up their TSI's.

That includes pretty new Euro 6 TSI's.

Edited 15 August, 20214 yr by e-Roottoot

10 hours ago, e-Roottoot said:

@SurreyJohn

How many Skoda cars have you see that came with a Service book since around 2012?

?

If most TSI's use less than 0.5 litre every 10,000 miles what about those that use more, which is quite a lot among Euro 5 1.2, 1.4, 1.8 and 2.0 TSI's.

 

Some need some oil and run on just fine for many years.  People drive in all sorts of ways, lots of short journeys or a mix or mostly longer ones and it all makes a difference.

 

If you pay attention you will see across the Briskoda Section just how many ask about what oil they need for topping up their TSI's.

That includes pretty new Euro 6 TSI's.

Firstly I didn’t say it’s not normal to top up with some oil, but I said putting it in at a rate equivalent to half litre every 1400 miles is not normal (which is roughly a sump full between a 10k service interval)

 

As far as I’m aware Skoda still issued service books with new cars in 2012, our 2012 Skoda has one, I think they went electronic from about 2016.   The 2 main dealers I have used in last 2 years still tick the boxes in service book and stamp it, none have volunteered to copy over all the book entries to an electronic version.   Why do you think a 2012 car has electronic records?

 

Edited 16 August, 20214 yr by SurreyJohn

I posted since 2012 about Service Books.  The OP has a 2014 car. 

Then they posted a litre used every 2,700 was being used. Many have found that to be very normal.

(2,700 miles is 4,345 km. 

so 0.5 litres used every 2,172 km if the use is that when checked properly.)

 

Service records started being online in 2013 and Service books stopped being in cars when delivered, some still got them for a while longer.

By 2014 they were pretty much not in vehicles, but you could buy them and have them stamped.

 

It was a shame because the Body Inspection page was after the Service Page and Skoda UK started saying that there was no Record of Body Inspections when people made Warranty Claims on paint or Corrosion, yet the checks should be done at Main Dealer Services and also put on the system, so Skoda / VW know who are not or were not doing them.

 

As to the oil, dealership employees would say 0.5 litres oil per 1,000 km was within tolerances yet Skoda / VW group have replaced engines that used 0.3 litres per 1,000 km as using oil at the rate a 2 stroke might is not acceptable.

The thing is you needed an Official Oil Consumption test as per TPI, and then some Tech doing it who actually knew 1 litre of engine oil at 15*oC does not weigh 1,000 grams.

 

.................

This members car actually got a new engine as the Tech carrying out the Official Oil Consumption test did not know their arse from their elbow.

There are many similar examples of the same over the years and not only with Mk2 Fabia.

 

The oil capacity of this 1.4TSI is 3.6 litres and the weight is 857 grams a litres as given by Skoda and as should be in the TPI not 1,000 grams.

Top one was a co-ck up. 

and bottom one they had the nerve to accuse the owner of topping up oil during the test that was wrongly carried out.

Both the same type engine.  CAVE 1.4 TSI / 132 kW Twinchargers that the recommended oil is 5w 30 FS but 0w 30 FS can be used,

but actually the Service Code of these was for Fixed Servicing so VW 502, 5w 40 FS could be used.

Edited 16 August, 20214 yr by e-Roottoot

I've been a short trip this a.m., and checked the level after 10 minutes at the destination. Level is 1/2 way between max & min. I will check again this p.m., after a longer journey and longer delay before checking. going back over my records from taking ownership, the first 12 months required 1/2 a litre at 5,983 miles. (Mileage on purchase, 19,285). This corresponds with a reasonable consumption > 10k miles/litre. That year was a mix of mainly short trips locally and several longer journeys to the south coast from Rochdale.

Last year, owing to covid, I only did 2,278 miles. So far this year, owing to my wife being unwell, I have done 2068 miles, most of that in the last couple of months, to and from hospitals.

The car is running well, returning exactly 50mpg on the 2nd screen, i.e., over about the last 1500 miles.

I don't think I have a problem after all - just confused by the low mileage since the plague, and not checking properly on a level surface.

The most useful information for me, (being a bit old school), is checking after a short drive and a 10 - 15 minute delay. Back in the 60s it was always advised to check before starting the engine, to ensure all the oil had drained into the sump. BUT the oil was much more viscous, and took a while to drain down. (Remember Duckham's 20-50?)

As long as the checking is done pretty much the same way.

 

But it is a 'few minutes' that VW / SEAT / Skoda / Audi seem to have used, and a few is much less than 10-15 minutes. 

 

Only the 1.2 44kW engine is to be checked cold according to owners manuals,

and while Skoda said 'Warm' VW often say at Operating Temperature or Normal Operating Temperature.

 

Too many cars leave a Service with the oil level low and this is easily checked by looking at Used Sales cars at Dealerships or just your own car when collecting it.

 

** When a Low Oil Warning Light or message shows and you open the bonnet yet do nothing the light then goes out for as much as 60 miles.**

 

Edited 16 August, 20214 yr by e-Roottoot

Seems like I do a similar mileage to yourself and have a car that has the same kind of use and mileage on it.

Mine the 1.2Tsi (105) with 27k miles.

Topped that up around 3 weeks ago, only around a teacup full as it was showing just a smidge under the upper mark on the stick. Now it's probably going to be another 1k miles before check it again and going on how it gets used and runs (7 years of ownership) it won't need topping up. I self service so I reckon it uses around half litre of oil in-between services, that's probably done in normal times around 5k miles over 12 months. I didn't service this year only stripped the brakes for servicing, it's covered less than 3k miles since last year. I put in Castrol Magnetec 5w 30 and always (my way for years) check the engine oil level cold (stood overnight) that gives me a true reading on all my cars despite what any manual says. Not saying the manual is incorrect but it works for me the way I do it.

I've never owned a car that consumes a great amount of oil, except for a dirty old Vauxhall diesel one time, that had mega mileage on.

Dipping oil stone cold and knowing where the oil is before starting a car and driving anyplace is just common sense.

 

But you need to know the level when the car has the correct quantity of oil in at a service or brand new and after has been up to operating temp and then when you know that you can check again when cold and the oil is back in the sump and if the level shows different or not.

With the Oil filters on the top of the engine it might well show differently.  You would expect the oil back in the sump to show higher on the dipstick.

 

Area A is the flat bit above the cross hatch & some models with say 3.6 litres oil can be 1.3 litres low before a Low Oil warning shows, 

maybe a Low oil pressure will come up sooner.

 

Edited 17 August, 20214 yr by e-Roottoot

The car was parked on a level surface for about 2 hours yesterday, following a 30 mile, mainly motorway at 60 mph journey. Oil level before returning was about 2/3rds from the top of the cross-hatched section. I've checked again now, in the usual parked position, and it's at the bottom of the cross-hatched section. I would estimate, therefore, that when it gets towards the bottom of section C, it will really be at the bottom of the cross-hatched section, and time to top up.

I'll continue to monitor the level, both after parking at the supermarket and at home when cold, and establish my personal way of ensuring that the oil is always as it should be.

I no longer do my own maintenance, as age is becoming a bit of a limiting factor. I now entrust the annual service & issues I can't manage to a small family run independent garage, whose specialism is Jaguars of all ages. They do service all makes, and are most helpful. They are aware of my past history of dealing with competition cars when I had my RAC competition licence, and treat me as if I do, mostly, Know what I'm talking about!

Thanks to everyone for your comments and assistance, much appreciated.

If you are using/burning that amount of oil after such a short journey you would definitely know about it. Either the smell of it burning it away and terrible running of the engine and smoking, or you have  more than a few drops of oil from under the car in the places that you park each time. Which one could it be?

Edited 18 August, 20214 yr by MickA