I need some advice on what oil to use in my wifes 2000 Jetta. It has the 2 liter 8 valve 4 cylinder in it. I want to run it on 5K intervals. She commutes about 45 miles a day to and from work so it sees a lot of highway miles. The car is garage kept but does see plenty of cold starts as she parks outside at her workplace. The manual states a 5-30 can be used if 5-40 isn't available. Since I'm not using the 10k intervals, would a 5-30 be ok or do these engines like a heavier 10-30? I did a search of UOAs but the oils used were all over the board.
VW oil advice
- Thread starter t-squared
- Start date
- Status
VW's like a heavy oil. I've been using Delvac 1300 15w40 and it's never run better. I think 5w-40 or even 0w-40 would be your best bet.
SAE 5w30 seems to be the Oil you want.Check out www.castrolusa.com -There Oil Calculator will put you in the picture..
A good synthetic 5W-40.
For winter, a good synth is in order.
1 Mobil 1 5w-40 SUV
2 Mobil 1 0w-40 (if it does not burn oil)
3 Syntec 5w-50 (if it does burn oil)
1 Mobil 1 5w-40 SUV
2 Mobil 1 0w-40 (if it does not burn oil)
3 Syntec 5w-50 (if it does burn oil)
JHZR2
Staff member
I think that a heavy 30wt would be the best. Try the german castol 0w30 if you have autozones around. its rated for all the specs your VW needs, and is in the upper range of '30 weight' viscosities. I bet the engine will really like that stuff, and I bet there's lots of VWs in europe going around with that exact oil in their crankcases.
JMH
JMH
The only thing you should be looking for is VW 500.00 or 502.00 or 501.01 approval on the container. Makes it very simple.
Commonly available oils: Castrol Syntec 10W-40/5W-50, Valvoline Maxlife Synthetic 10w30, Valvoline Synpower 20W-50, Mobil 1 0W-40 and the holly grail of North American motor oils -- German Castrol 0W-30. All of these are available by simply stopping by your local AutoZone or Wal-Mart.
Commonly available oils: Castrol Syntec 10W-40/5W-50, Valvoline Maxlife Synthetic 10w30, Valvoline Synpower 20W-50, Mobil 1 0W-40 and the holly grail of North American motor oils -- German Castrol 0W-30. All of these are available by simply stopping by your local AutoZone or Wal-Mart.
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2002
- Messages
- 4,661
Here's what the factory service manual says about the 2000 model 2.0 liter engine oil requirements:
Use a oil that meets one of the following specifications:
VW 500.00, 501.01, 502.00
ACEA A2 or A3
API SJ
For viscosity it has a chart which lists the following:
if you use a energy conserving oil then for all temperatures you can use any of the following viscosities:
5w30/40 or 10w30/40.
If you use a non-energy conserving oil then use one of the following viscosities:
all temps: 5w-50, 10w-50/60
for temps above -15ºC use: 15w40/50, 20w-40/50
The comment about using a 5w-40 and if this isn't available use a 5w30 only appeared in the section relating to the diesel engine. It also had the caveat for the diesel engine which stated not to do high speed driving if using the 5w30. Again, this was only listed under the diesel requirement.
If you're lucky and didn't get one of the oil burners then I'd use a quality synthetic 5w30 (Mobil-1 is my preference) in the winter time and mineral HDEO 15w40 (Mobil Delvac1300 is my preference) in the summer. This combination has worked wonderfully for my fleet of VW's over numerous years.
Use a oil that meets one of the following specifications:
VW 500.00, 501.01, 502.00
ACEA A2 or A3
API SJ
For viscosity it has a chart which lists the following:
if you use a energy conserving oil then for all temperatures you can use any of the following viscosities:
5w30/40 or 10w30/40.
If you use a non-energy conserving oil then use one of the following viscosities:
all temps: 5w-50, 10w-50/60
for temps above -15ºC use: 15w40/50, 20w-40/50
The comment about using a 5w-40 and if this isn't available use a 5w30 only appeared in the section relating to the diesel engine. It also had the caveat for the diesel engine which stated not to do high speed driving if using the 5w30. Again, this was only listed under the diesel requirement.
If you're lucky and didn't get one of the oil burners then I'd use a quality synthetic 5w30 (Mobil-1 is my preference) in the winter time and mineral HDEO 15w40 (Mobil Delvac1300 is my preference) in the summer. This combination has worked wonderfully for my fleet of VW's over numerous years.
Mobil Delvac 1300 is just about perfect for this engine, but with the colder temperatures coming up, it's going to be too thick for you in NW Indiana.
I'd pick:
Rotella T 5W-40 or Mobil 1 Truck & SUV Formula 5W-40.
I'd pick:
Rotella T 5W-40 or Mobil 1 Truck & SUV Formula 5W-40.
my sister owns a 2002 2.0l jetta gl and i found the chart below to be useful when looking for what oil to use in her car. another member posted it an earlier thread, and although it says its for the 1.8t's, 502 approval is still 502 approval.
if your wife has a 2000, i think you got lucky and that 2.0l does not burn oil due to vw's mistake like my sisters '02 2.0l does. in the past i've run valvoline synpower 5w-40 which burnt a lot of oil (this was over a year ago so they mightve improved the forumla). mobil 1 5w30, it consumed that even more, and overall just did not like it, foul burning smells and such. ive had good luck with syntec 5w-40 which can be found at vw and audi dealers, ive heard of people paying as much as $8 a quart for it, i found a dealer who charges 5.50 per qt and took it.
if your wife has a 2000, i think you got lucky and that 2.0l does not burn oil due to vw's mistake like my sisters '02 2.0l does. in the past i've run valvoline synpower 5w-40 which burnt a lot of oil (this was over a year ago so they mightve improved the forumla). mobil 1 5w30, it consumed that even more, and overall just did not like it, foul burning smells and such. ive had good luck with syntec 5w-40 which can be found at vw and audi dealers, ive heard of people paying as much as $8 a quart for it, i found a dealer who charges 5.50 per qt and took it.
I got a 02 VW Jetta GLS also with the 2.0L engine. Mine consumes oil and will switch to Delvac 15w40 next oil change. I don't know if the newer 2.0L like thicker oil since they got the low tension rings. It probably has tigher clearances compared to the older 2.0s. If you consume no oil, 5w30 synthetic or conventional will be fine. If you consume oil or want to use regular oil, then you could do 15w40 summertime and maybe 10W-40 or 10w30 wintertime. Synthetic can get expensive if it consumes oil.
Yeah the incorrectly installed pistion rings is one possible cause for oil consumption. As for low tension pistion rings, I don't know a whole lot about that. Just something that I've heard many times about. Maybe someone here could tell more about the rings. Checkout the below threads.
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=006020#000002
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=005283#000000
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=004182#000005
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=005824#000000
[ October 07, 2004, 09:08 PM: Message edited by: lpcmidst128 ]
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=006020#000002
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=005283#000000
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=004182#000005
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=005824#000000
[ October 07, 2004, 09:08 PM: Message edited by: lpcmidst128 ]
Thanks a bunch for all the replies. The VW specs kinda threw me. I'm just getting past the "change it by 3000" mentality. Can't quite make myself let the oil go 10K yet!!!
VW enguines are hard on oil. Generally they liek thciker oils even in winter, in 1995 I saw my new PS Passat with the VR6 spec'ed 15w40 in winter (20w-50 in summer) stay away from all 30 weights ion general.
Many good 40 weights out there that still start up well despite being 40 weigthts, ( M1 0w-40 etc)
The only 30 weight I would trust in a VW engine is GC.
Many good 40 weights out there that still start up well despite being 40 weigthts, ( M1 0w-40 etc)
The only 30 weight I would trust in a VW engine is GC.
T-squared,
I'll second the comment for the 5w-40. I'm using Rotella T Synthetic 5w-40 right now and my 2.0 runs great at 143k miles. It's still $12.84 a gallon at my Wal-Mart. Using an STP (Champion Labs) filter at $2.99 from AutoZone and she's good to go on 3-4k mile changes!
Cheerios,
Ashley
I'll second the comment for the 5w-40. I'm using Rotella T Synthetic 5w-40 right now and my 2.0 runs great at 143k miles. It's still $12.84 a gallon at my Wal-Mart. Using an STP (Champion Labs) filter at $2.99 from AutoZone and she's good to go on 3-4k mile changes!
Cheerios,
Ashley
Yes the Shell Rotella 5W-40 is a great choice too. I might consider that in my 2.0 as it is the recommended viscocity. At about 13 dollars a gallon its a great deal. You could do 5000 miles with that. Also can be used year round. Since someone mentioned filters, I think Bosch or Puralator are good choices if you wamt alternative to VW ones. I thought STP were made by Fram because they have the same number as the Fram models.
Flash,
Did you noticed any difference in the car(performance, gas mileage, consumption) when you switched to Rotella? Also I think you could go 5k miles with the Rotella. You got one of the lucky 2.0s free from oil consumption.
[ October 08, 2004, 01:38 AM: Message edited by: lpcmidst128 ]
Flash,
Did you noticed any difference in the car(performance, gas mileage, consumption) when you switched to Rotella? Also I think you could go 5k miles with the Rotella. You got one of the lucky 2.0s free from oil consumption.
[ October 08, 2004, 01:38 AM: Message edited by: lpcmidst128 ]
Yes, I'm one of the lucky 2.0 owners that does not have an oil consumption problem. In fact, even at 143k miles, it doesn't seem to burn one drop between changes.
As for mileage, I haven't really noticed any difference since switching to 5w-40 from the 5w30 I had been using. Otherwise, the engine just seems to run a bit smoother.
And no, STP filters are in fact made my Champion Labs. Says so right on the box. In fact, I think they're the ONLY version of that filter that actually says that it's DISTRIBUTED by Champion. That says to me that they're shipping them out directly and have simply licenced the STP name. Maybe I'm wrong on that, but it made sense to me.
The STP, Bosch and VW filters are all basically the same. I just choose to get mine in blue and red with a $2.99 price tag on the box.
) I've been waiting for there to be a SuperTech version of my particular filter, but I don't think the price would be any cheaper.
Cheerios,
Ashley
As for mileage, I haven't really noticed any difference since switching to 5w-40 from the 5w30 I had been using. Otherwise, the engine just seems to run a bit smoother.
And no, STP filters are in fact made my Champion Labs. Says so right on the box. In fact, I think they're the ONLY version of that filter that actually says that it's DISTRIBUTED by Champion. That says to me that they're shipping them out directly and have simply licenced the STP name. Maybe I'm wrong on that, but it made sense to me.
The STP, Bosch and VW filters are all basically the same. I just choose to get mine in blue and red with a $2.99 price tag on the box.
Cheerios,
Ashley
- Status
Similar threads
