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M

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Discussion Starter · #1 ·
well this is my first contribution to the gti world. i have already found out there is a ton of knowledge on this board but i like to find things out myself. in the process i found some info that my benefit us all...
i went to the vw dealer to see when they believed i should be changing the oil for the first time (due to the fact it was good to change your oil aorund 1000 miles to remove shavings). my questions were... when should i change it for the first time? at that point what should i change it to? when is it safe to switch to synthetic?
these were the answers, not made up by me, straight from the dealers mouth... change it for the first time at 5k, there is now such thing as break in oil anymore. it should be changed to 5w40 and a vw filter should be used. ok, the good stuff here... i asked what brand of oil should i use, they said either mobil or castrol synthetic... i asked about to the switching to sythetic at 5k. they said that the car comes with sythetic so it's not a switch. SO, A NOTE TO EVERYONE. do not switch to sythetic at 10k, always use it, the car comes with it.
the only thing that is still up in the air on this issue for me is that mobil 1 is switching their base... is this true? is mobil 1 cutting there quality or what? i saw a thread on this and would like to learn as much as i can before my first oil change.
thanks guys. i look forward to learning and contributing as much as i can for say the next 10 years.
also, my questions... since mobil 1 (only found in 5w30 to begin with) may not be a full sythetic now we have a few choices... delvac, amsoil (also a 5w30), and vavoline 5w40... why do so few of us run vavoline?
 
J

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#3 ·
Re: oil info discovered (mjmi11er)

This is all regional. In South Texas the dealerships all use 5w-30. They do use Castrol Syntec if you request synthetic, but the AWD engines did not come with it from the factory according to the service rep, so take it with a grain of salt. At my first oil change they were going to use regular Castrol 5w-30 or charge me $55 for 4.5 quarts of Castrol Syntec 5w-30. I went to Wal-Mart and bought 6 quarts for $24.85 and requested they use my oil.
 
M

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Discussion Starter · #4 ·
Re: oil info discovered (JosephShaw)

you could have a good point. i did buy my car in jacksonville, florida... i asked these questions of a dealer in south florida. my car is a 2002, so i'm not sure about earlier years. however, as for the oil weight it states 5w40 right in the owners manual... not a regional thing. as for the vavoline... it looks like the best bet at this point... the right weight, easy to find, and full sythetic.
 
S

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#6 ·
Re: oil info discovered (mjmi11er)

I was told to run Dino oil for the first 10,000 to make sure parts are fully seated. This made a fair amount of sense to me. I don't plan to run Dino for that long I do intend to run it until the first 5,000.
That being said Dino oil is DIRT CHEAP. So, I changed oil/filter at 1000mi. I changed the oil only at 2500mi, my next change will be oil/filter at 5000mi. At which point I will switch to a high quality synthetic, probably redline or amsoil.
I will continue to change my oil at 3000mi intervals.
Overkill? Maybe, but it's a small price to pay in the longrun keep my car running as well as possible.
As far as the Mobil 1 fiasco is concerned I say screw them if they don't care about the enthusiast and switch to a higher quality oil.
 
M

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Discussion Starter · #7 ·
Re: oil info discovered (smd3)

smd3, like i said, i was planning on doing it the old school way, at 1k, then every 3k after that until i spoke with the dealer. you said you were going to switch to sythetic at 5k however the car came with sythetic as of what i learned today... the car should never have dino oil in it ever.


[Modified by mjmi11er, 10:41 PM 4-10-2002]
 
G

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#9 ·
Re: oil info discovered (smd3)

Overkill is one way to put it... You are gaining NOTHING by changing synthetic oil and VW filter at 3K miles. You gained NOTHING by dumping the quality oil VW had in the car for "dirt cheap" dino oil you put in. You are only supporting facilities like Jiffy Lube (even if you never go there) that preach the 3000 mile oil change. Modern oils can last MUCH longer - how do you explain that the VR6 doesn't have scheduled maintenance b/n 10k and 20k? How do you explain that our filters are rated for 30,000km? It's called advances in technology...
 
G

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#11 ·
Re: oil info discovered (Gambit)

or, it could be called, if ur a lazy ass and dont give a poop about ur car, change every 5000, if u care and like ur oil clean , while driving, change every 2000-3000. u can never go wrong by keeping ur oil clean
 
S

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#12 ·
Re: oil info discovered (mjmi11er)

Your dealer says your car came with synthetic, mine says not to use synthetic until 10,000 miles. Actually they told me that "Valvoline" told them that. So, should we believe YOUR dealer, or MINE? I think it's safe to say that the majority of us have been lied to by the dealer at one time or another. I bet we could set up a pretty good poll on that one...
What it comes down to is that proper engine break-in is important to an engine. I agree that synthetic has terrific lubricating properties. Thus I feel that the small additional wear will help this car break in. C'mon now, we're talking about practically immesurable amounts of wear.
Now, when it comes down to the frequency of oil changes... I think it's safe to say that you won't cause any damage to your vehicle by changing the oil at early intervals. The only thing I can think of to worry about is the chance that the oil gets under/over filled is more likely. Actually if you change your oil yourself, like I do it's pretty safe to say it'll get done right.
Now, lets think of the _possible_ advantages to changing oil early. Have you ever heard of anyone saying their oil is TOO clean? That's like saying the shirt I put on today is too clean, I should wear the one I had yesterday for another day. I mean, just because I wore it yesterday doesn't mean it's so dirty that it'll offend people by me standing next to them. Yet everyday I put on a new shirt.
I agree that it may be overkill, I said that. I agree that it may even be wasteful. I think it's worth it...
But, please, if you think of any reason it's bad for the car I'll certainly consider it. After all, that's what I'm interested in and that's why I'm here.
 
S

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#13 ·
Re: oil info discovered (smd3)

quote:[HR][/HR]
But, please, if you think of any reason it's bad for the car I'll certainly consider it. After all, that's what I'm interested in and that's why I'm here.[HR][/HR]​
well... think of the environment and the earth's resources.
 
3

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#16 ·
Re: oil info discovered (VW-MAN)

Definately agree that its a regional issue. My dealer said they recommend 5w30 and not to switch to synthetic until 15K. With that, they reccomended both mobile1 and Castrol. I think the 15K is a combination of the fact that my oil changes are free up to 15K, so why waste the money, and the thinking that the engine will be without a doubt, broken in. I know from experience that using synthetic from the earliest stages of an engine's break-in will cause leaks sooner than it would have, had synth not been used. My $.02....moot point really...everyone does what they want
 
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