Originally Posted By: peterdaniel
Any diesel should be able to go 500K miles. Oil filters, fuel and air filters and good fuel are essential!!
Also Diesels do NOT like to be Reved like a gas motor... the sheer weight of the engine plus they have no advance like a regular motor does means a slow but torquey motor down low.
Actually, any diesel engine ought to be able to run for one million miles or more. But most folks do not drive enough each year to achieve that milestone. Or they get in a crash and the insurance company totals the car. Or they just get tired of the same car after 10 years or so.
I have seen the numbers that show the 1.9-liter TDI engine should have a mean lifespan of 1.25 million miles. 300k miles is nothing, 500k miles is almost nothing.
Driving a turbodiesel is not the same as driving a high-revving gas engine. But there is nothing wrong with running them up to the redline occasionally, to burn out the cobwebs.
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The PD motors are in 2004 and above. They "require" the VW spec 505.01 oil which at the time made sense. BUT todays TDT oil and Delvac are excellent and have been used extensively for 100's of thousands of miles with no detriment. VW no longer offers to spec oil for the older 505.01 so its not a valid ( imho) request anymore. Avery very high quality diesel motor oil thats synthetic should be fine. 505.01 is be- yotch to find anyways. Castrol makes an SLX thats available at the dealership for a reasonable 6.50 a quart ( by dealer standards, thats reasonable..)
Nearly all the PD engines (2004-2006 model years) are out of warranty by now (60k miles on power train) So most of these engines can be switched to a quality synthetic 5w40 meeting API CJ-4 (or even CI-4+), without any additional risk. (If you have a problem with the cam or cam followers, it would have happened anyway, regardless of oil used.
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The 2003 and below get better fuel mileage. They have a fuel pump while the later PD motors activate the injection by the cam lobe which has very very high pressures between the lobes and the injectors hence the need for an excellent oil and the 505.01 spec
Earlier ( 2003 and and before) VW's were not the most reliable vehicle. Lots of electrical problems. WIth the 2004's and the PD motor you get a bit less fuel mileage but a much better and reliable vehicle.
The 2003-and-earlier (VE) TDIs have a rotary injection pump; there is no fuel pump in the tank, just the IP which performs double-duty.
I would not say the VE TDIs are unreliable. The primary systems/components are very reliable, IMO. The engine, IP, turbo, manual transmission, brakes, suspension, steering, AC and heating, starter, etc., are all reliable. The automatic transmission is a POS. There were problems with window clips, glovebox door hinges, armrest lid hinges. In some years the alternator pulleys were problematic. The EGR system can be a source of problems for some owners.