Volkswagen spec'ed oil: ANY weight will work.

[rg200amp]

Hello all. There has been quite a few posts stating VW ONLY allows 5w40. Or they require only one oil weight.

I am here to put this to rest. VW does not spec oil by weight. But by there own specifications. Sooo any weight oil will work and keep your warranty intact aslong as it meets the VW Spec that is called for.

The proof is in the pudding:

First we have this:
http://www.audiusa.com/etc/medialib/cms4imp/audi2/aoa/company/aoa-specific.Par.0023.File.pdf

Not enough for you?

Ok, Here is the page right from my owners manual:


Uploaded with ImageShack.us


Look at the wording. Look at the statments.

The ONLY thing VW says you MUST use is an oil that meets their spec (i.e. VW 502, VW 504, ect. . .)

 

[Kestas]

The VW oil requirements have always mystified me. I'm never owned a VW. In general, what oils are they excluding? Why? What will happen if you use a non-approved oil that otherwise has the proper starburst (SL or SM) rating?

 

[beast3300]

I like the "synthetic" quotations, reminds me of "laser." The VW spec is usually met by common brands in their 5w40 so I guess by default that's what you use?

 

[fredf]

I have read that page several times in my own manual and I still find it somewhat ambiguous. In the end, I agree with you that as long as it is 502 the grade doesn't matter.
However, VW muddies the waters by then going on to say, essentially, make sure it is 5W-40 or 5W-30.

On the one hand they say 'any 502 is ok' and on the other hand they say 'as long as it is grade XX-XX'.

In the end 502 should be the final word.

By the way, I have put in a request to VW to clarify this and am awaiting the answer which I will post.

 

[addyguy]

You are right, BUT, they mention that VW's are filled with synthetic 5W-40 from the factory, AND they say you can use synthetic 5W-40 or 5W-30 later on.

In both statements, the 5W-40 grade is prominent, mentioned first, and it is the factory fill. I'd say they really want you to use 5W-40 oil, and that is what most owners and service techs will read into it....

 

[eljefino]

Maybe they want to allow castrol's group III "synthetic".

 

[rg200amp]

Originally Posted By: fredf
However, VW muddies the waters by then going on to say, essentially, make sure it is 5W-40 or 5W-30.

No where in the owners manual, online, nor any publication that I have seen does VW ever say "make sure it's 5w40 or 5w30". As you can see in the owners manual, the 5w40 and 5w30 oil weight talk is under "general recommendation" VW is recommending those weights. They are easy to come by and work in most climates/driving conditions. The only thing that is stated as a must is the meeting of the VW spec.

Originally Posted By: fredf
On the one hand they say 'any 502 is ok' and on the other hand they say 'as long as it is grade XX-XX'.


Again, no where is it said VW 502 is ok "as long as it is" a certain oil grade/weight.

Originally Posted By: addyguy
You are right, BUT, they mention that VW's are filled with synthetic 5W-40 from the factory, AND they say you can use synthetic 5W-40 or 5W-30 later on.

In both statements, the 5W-40 grade is prominent, mentioned first, and it is the factory fill. I'd say they really want you to use 5W-40 oil, and that is what most owners and service techs will read into it....


Again, the only requirement ever mentioned from VW is to follow there VW spec.

No where does it say a certain weight is required.

 

[rshunter]

Originally Posted By: addyguy
You are right, BUT, they mention that VW's are filled with synthetic 5W-40 from the factory...

And I've got manuals that state that the engine was filled with 0W-30 at the factory. The weight varies, the requirement for VW specifications doesn't...

 

[rslifkin]

It's a perfectly logical way of spec-ing oil. If they have certain performance criteria it must meet, and an oil company can meet all of them with both a 0W-30 and a 10W-40, why not allow both?

 

[fredf]

I intend to use GC 0W-30 but will be happy when VW 'officially' answers my email saying this is ok.

 

[GMorg]

I find the Note section entertaining. NO mixing, but if you do mix it must be synthetic A3, 5W30 or 0W40. And, it cannot be more than 0.5 liters added to the VW approved fill.

 

[dparm]

Originally Posted By: fredf
I intend to use GC 0W-30 but will be happy when VW 'officially' answers my email saying this is ok.


It's 502/505 certified.

 

[UG_Passat]

the older versions of VW502.00 did mandate 5w40, but throughout the past several years, VW502.00 got updated and allowed more flexibility on the weight.

My 2002 manual did mandate 5w40 oil, however allowed 5w30 in emergencies

 

[GordonC]

Originally Posted By: fredf
I intend to use GC 0W-30 but will be happy when VW 'officially' answers my email saying this is ok.


VW has "officially" approved GC 0W30, loooong ago - VW and Audi regularly publish on their web sites the list of approved oils that meet their various specifications (502, 504, 505, 507) - and they specifically say that "the oil you use must conform to one of the following Audi (VW) oil quality standards" - if your VW specifies 502, then GC 0W30 is acceptable since it is VW 502 certified. The Audi and VW oil specs say "the correct viscosity grade for your engine also depends on climatic or seasonal conditions where you drive."

502-approved oils include 0W30, 0W40, 5W30, 5W40 grades - all are acceptable as long as they meet 502. The approved lists, PDF files, are published all over the web, including here on BITOG, after being downloaded from the VW or Audi web sites. Here's a link to one of the Audi bulletins listing which oils meet which VW/Audi specs: http://www.audiusa.com/etc/medialib/cms4imp/audi2/aoa/company/aoa-specific.Par.0023.File.pdf

You can also search to find these on the web - but you will see there that Castrol Syntec European Formula SAE 0W30 meets VW 502 00 and is listed as generally available in North America. It doesn't get more black and white than that - GC 0W30 is officially OK.

 

[GordonC]

Originally Posted By: Kestas
The VW oil requirements have always mystified me. I'm never owned a VW. In general, what oils are they excluding? Why? What will happen if you use a non-approved oil that otherwise has the proper starburst (SL or SM) rating?


VW does not care about the API starburst ratings, they are totally meaningless - they do not compare or correlate to their quality standard ratings, 502/504/505/507. In other words, there is NO proper starburst rating for VW approved oils, only the VW specification. (and the VW/Audi specifications far exceed the requirements for the starburst ratings)

 

[Quattro Pete]

While I concur that VW specs are much more stringent than any API spec, the question remains:

Quote:
What will happen if you use a non-approved oil that otherwise has the proper starburst (SL or SM) rating?

And I think the issues are several:
1. Some of the VW engines are turbocharged (high temp, high stress environment). Synthetic oils (VW spec) typically handle such extremities better. In the past, VW turbo engines experienced a lot of sludge issues when mineral oil was used.

2. Even if the engines aren't turbocharged, VW recommends rather long OCIs (10K miles or more). Again, a typical mineral API SL/SM/SN oil may have difficulty handling it properly.

3. Then there is the whole DI issue... I'm guessing that here again synthetics may have an advantage, although even the best oil doesn't prevent valve the deposits as we've seen.

 

[fredf]

Originally Posted By: dparm
Originally Posted By: fredf
I intend to use GC 0W-30 but will be happy when VW 'officially' answers my email saying this is ok.


It's 502/505 certified.


I know that. I am just responding to peoples' concerns that 502 certified is not enough---that it needs to be the proper weight (which, some claim, GC is not).

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete

Quote:
What will happen if you use a non-approved oil that otherwise has the proper starburst (SL or SM) rating?

And I think the issues are several:
1. Some of the VW engines are turbocharged (high temp, high stress environment). Synthetic oils (VW spec) typically handle such extremities better. In the past, VW turbo engines experienced a lot of sludge issues when mineral oil was used.

2. Even if the engines aren't turbocharged, VW recommends rather long OCIs (10K miles or more). Again, a typical mineral API SL/SM/SN oil may have difficulty handling it properly.

3. Then there is the whole DI issue... I'm guessing that here again synthetics may have an advantage, although even the best oil doesn't prevent valve the deposits as we've seen.


And to dig deeper, you could more specifically ask a question:
Quote:
What will happen if you use a non-approved synthetic oil that otherwise has the proper starburst (SL or SM) rating?


And here the answer becomes more tricky. We've seen people run such oils in their VWs and posting great UOAs, whatever it means. Long term effects unknown.

 

[Bluestream]

Originally Posted By: fredf
I intend to use GC 0W-30 but will be happy when VW 'officially' answers my email saying this is ok.
+

You can start right now; It's approved.

And to the OP, I have not seen one tread the says you must use 5W40 in a VW. That would make no sense.

 

[bluesubie]

Originally Posted By: Bluestream
Originally Posted By: fredf
I intend to use GC 0W-30 but will be happy when VW 'officially' answers my email saying this is ok.
+

You can start right now; It's approved.

And to the OP, I have not seen one tread the says you must use 5W40 in a VW. That would make no sense.

I don't believe the question is whether or not GC is ACEA A3 or VW 502 approved. I believe the question is whether or not you can use 0W-30 sine that viscosity isn't in the manual. Most of us think so, but we'd like confirmation from VoA. I'm also waiting for a reply from AoA.

-Dennis