Hi there,

I am in search of 2nd hand Octavia 4 2.0TDI 150PS with the DSG transmission, up to 150,000 km of mileage.

I've found 3 cars (2 from Germany and 1 from Belgium) and they do have full service history, which includes regular engine service, filters, software updates.

But what is missing for all 3 is DSG oil change (DQ381), since all cars are have > 120,000 km of mileage.

Currently, I like very much one from Germany, which sits at 139,000 km of mileage. But as I said, no DSG oil change, whatsoever.

This is absurdly strange for me, why people miss/ don't care about this oil change.

Also, I heard that across Europe, the Octavias which were commercial vehicles on lease - the owner company only does what the official dealer requires, omitting the DSG to save money, then returns the car at around 150,000 km of mileage and buys the next generation.

If the information I have is correct, how am I supposed to find such car that was properly serviced (+DSG), including the features I want in the car itself. Its nightmare. I don't have the budget for new car, either.

Are my assumptions correct, whay do you think.

With kind regards,

Andreuwz

Edited 21 February21 Feb by andreuwz

This is a major reason I opted for a manual over a DSG. Best thing I can suggest would be to have it done yourself once you purchase the car, although ideally you don't really want to be spending money on a car you've only just bought...

51 minutes ago, scotthugh3s said:

This is a major reason I opted for a manual over a DSG. Best thing I can suggest would be to have it done yourself once you purchase the car, although ideally you don't really want to be spending money on a car you've only just bought...

Its not even about spending the oil change money. Its about that the car has 20,000 km overdue of the oil, so I cannot know in what condition is the gearbox.

Mind you, besides this car, I also checked one which was 161,000, so thats 40,000 km overdue.

21 hours ago, andreuwz said:

Hi there,

I am in search of 2nd hand Octavia 4 2.0TDI 150PS with the DSG transmission, up to 150,000 km of mileage.

I've found 3 cars (2 from Germany and 1 from Belgium) and they do have full service history, which includes regular engine service, filters, software updates.

But what is missing for all 3 is DSG oil change (DQ381), since all cars are have > 120,000 km of mileage.

Currently, I like very much one from Germany, which sits at 139,000 km of mileage. But as I said, no DSG oil change, whatsoever.

This is absurdly strange for me, why people miss/ don't care about this oil change.

Also, I heard that across Europe, the Octavias which were commercial vehicles on lease - the owner company only does what the official dealer requires, omitting the DSG to save money, then returns the car at around 150,000 km of mileage and buys the next generation.

If the information I have is correct, how am I supposed to find such car that was properly serviced (+DSG), including the features I want in the car itself. Its nightmare. I don't have the budget for new car, either.

Are my assumptions correct, whay do you think.

With kind regards,

Andreuwz

Last year I was having a conversation with a retired engineer from VW factory from Salzgitter, Germany. He believed that DSG oil was a "lifetime" oil and it never needed to be replaced like the old automatic cars' transmissions. He was actually driving a DSG at 110,000 km and I argued against it.

The confusion is arising from the type of DSG transmission:

• 7-Speed (Dry) DSG: Often marketed as "filled for life" (DQ200), but many mechanics recommend fluid servicing to prevent issues, particularly for the mechatronics unit.

• 6-Speed (Wet) DSG: Requires regular oil/filter changes (typically every 40k miles/4 years).

So, there's a big chance for those DSG transmissions not to had oil change at all.

1 hour ago, Octawia said:

Last year I was having a conversation with a retired engineer from VW factory from Salzgitter, Germany. He believed that DSG oil was a "lifetime" oil and it never needed to be replaced like the old automatic cars' transmissions. He was actually driving a DSG at 110,000 km and I argued against it.

The confusion is arising from the type of DSG transmission:

• 7-Speed (Dry) DSG: Often marketed as "filled for life" (DQ200), but many mechanics recommend fluid servicing to prevent issues, particularly for the mechatronics unit.

• 6-Speed (Wet) DSG: Requires regular oil/filter changes (typically every 40k miles/4 years).

So, there's a big chance for those DSG transmissions not to had oil change at all.

Wow, this coming from a VW engineer?

Very very interesting.

This issue is either from misinformation, not caring for the vehicle or from greediness of the official service.

unfortunately, there are lots of people who will say "no" - if you give them the option of spending money on a service item.

I just bought a second-hand Octavia with 98,000 km on the clock. I bought it from an official Škoda dealer in Germany. They said every service was done under the Škoda service plan, but when I checked the service history, it doesn’t explicitly state that a DSG oil change was performed. I’m now trying to speak with representatives at my local Škoda dealer to figure it out.
Anybody who did the oil change, is it explicitly stated on the service plan document?

1 minute ago, Draxx said:

I just bought a second-hand Octavia with 98,000 km on the clock. I bought it from an official Škoda dealer in Germany. They said every service was done under the Škoda service plan, but when I checked the service history, it doesn’t explicitly state that a DSG oil change was performed. I’m now trying to speak with representatives at my local Škoda dealer to figure it out.
Anybody who did the oil change, is it explicitly stated on the service plan document?

There should be explicit record, yes.

Is it a 7-speed (dry) or 6-speed (wet) gearbox? As I said earlier, in some countries they don't replace oil/filter on 7-

35 minutes ago, Draxx said:

I just bought a second-hand Octavia with 98,000 km on the clock. I bought it from an official Škoda dealer in Germany. They said every service was done under the Škoda service plan, but when I checked the service history, it doesn’t explicitly state that a DSG oil change was performed. I’m now trying to speak with representatives at my local Škoda dealer to figure it out.
Anybody who did the oil change, is it explicitly stated on the service plan document?

Just read up please.

Octavias missing DSG service history - why? - Skoda Octavia Mk4 (2020 > ) - BRISKODA

15 minutes ago, Octawia said:

Is it a 7-speed (dry) or 6-speed (wet) gearbox? As I said earlier, in some countries they don't replace oil/filter on 7-

Just read up please.

Octavias missing DSG service history - why? - Skoda Octavia Mk4 (2020 > ) - BRISKODA

Isnt the DQ381 a 7-speed wet? That's what i got i think.

Edited 23 February23 Feb by Draxx

2 hours ago, Octawia said:

Is it a 7-speed (dry) or 6-speed (wet) gearbox? As I said earlier, in some countries they don't replace oil/filter on 7-

Just read up please.

Octavias missing DSG service history - why? - Skoda Octavia Mk4 (2020 > ) - BRISKODA

The DQ381 is mounted on Octavia 4 2.0 TDI and its a 7 speed wet clutch DSG.

13 minutes ago, andreuwz said:

The DQ381 is mounted on Octavia 4 2.0 TDI and its a 7 speed wet clutch DSG.

Yes, that’s what I found as well. After browsing the forums, I saw that Škoda recommends an oil change at 120,000 km, which seems a bit too high to me. I’m going to book an appointment with an official service center and get it sorted out.

I asked my mum. She said it's prolly not been done and contact the local dealer local to the owner and see if they can check the system. Failing this, ask the seller to lower the asking price by the cost of a DSG service due to an overdue transmission service. Mum is tirerd now and is going to sleep.

On 23/02/2026 at 10:48, Draxx said:

Yes, that’s what I found as well. After browsing the forums, I saw that Škoda recommends an oil change at 120,000 km, which seems a bit too high to me. I’m going to book an appointment with an official service center and get it sorted out.

All DSG gearboxes have the service interval at 40k miles, except for the DQ200 (no service interval... do the MCU and gearbox oil around 100k) and the DQ381, which is at 80k miles. As you've noted, this is rather high. Many people (myself included) opt to do this in line with the other DSG boxes at 40k.

When it's being done, make sure they change the filter. Skoda dealers tend not to do this.