Oil Service cost/time

[gregozedobe]

Who cares if castrol 5W-30 meets 502 or 504 spec? As long as it meets one of them you're okay to use it, as we only have fixed interval servicing in Australia anyway.

I do . AFAIK 504.00/507.00 is a significantly better oil than 502.xx, so I put the better oil in mine (mind you, I do tend to keep my vehicles for much longer than average).

[Transporter]

Maybe it would be worthwhile to mention that VW504.00 and 507.00 once approved by VW are fully synthetic oils resistant to oxidations and offer better protection for the engine since they don't degrade as fast as the lower specs oils.
Also when the oil is not approved by VW and only meets specs, it could mean that it is only semi synthetic oil or even just mineral oil.
Example is PENRITE HPR Diesel 5 (synthetic performance) that is 5W40 where Penrite says Meets VW 506.01, which would be suitable for R5 engine (used in VW T5 and Touareg R5) up to year 2005 however VW oil approved for 506.01 applications is 0W30 always.

So, when you use the lower specs oil you could be using mineral or not fully synthetic oil.

[brad]

Who cares if castrol 5W-30 meets 502 or 504 spec? As long as it meets one of them you're okay to use it, as we only have fixed interval servicing in Australia anyway. Don't assume the dealers follow the VW spec either. One particular VW dealer here in WA used Supersyn 10-40 in my GTI which doesn't meet the spec, it is in fact the oil for diesels. They claim they have approval from VW Aus to use it. I stay away from that place, and feel far more comfortable using Castrol Edge 5W-30.

I can see your point MRX and I use Edge Sport 5w-30 myself. It's just that some people are really particular about these things and there are still people out there (wrongly) saying that 504/507 is the only spec oil that should be used in our generation of engines.

Grego: Nobody has ever been able to anser this for me, maybe you can?
Technically or chemically, what makes the 504 spec superior to 502 (I'll leave the diesel/dpf side of it out for simplicity). I appreciate that it is the latest spec and that 504 has a longer service life under ideal conditions but what technically/chemically makes it a superior spec to use under normal 15,000km/12 months service cycles?

[gregozedobe]

Technically or chemically, what makes the 504 spec superior to 502 (I'll leave the diesel/dpf side of it out for simplicity). I appreciate that it is the latest spec and that 504 has a longer service life under ideal conditions but what technically/chemically makes it a superior spec to use under normal 15,000km/12 months service cycles?

I don't have a specific answer to that question, nor do I recall reading one. It may be on the US based TDI club forum, as there is a huge amount of info on lubrication there. Also you may be able to get that info if you approach the tech support areas of the oil manufacturers themselves.

What I believe is:

VW themselves appear to think that 506.01 is better (more wear resistance) than 502.xx, as they are very careful to tell owners of the early R5 (5 cyl TDI fitted to T5 Transporters and Touaregs) that 506.01 is the ONLY oil that can be used for these motors (regardless of short or long servicing schedules). If 502.xx passed the same tests (as 506.01) I'm sure VW would allow it as option for 12 month servicing like they do for other VW TDI engines.

From what I've read these particular R5 motors had fairly "weak" hardening of the cams and followers, and thus were rather prone to wearing out cams and followers. This indicates better wear resistance is a significant difference between 506.01 and 502.xx. Of course that doesn't tell me whether the owners who had cam trouble were changing their oil every 12 months/15,000km, or whether they even used 506.01 like they were supposed to.

Reports on the Brickyard forum indicate that 504.00/507.00 has even better wear resistance than 506.01 (one of the members there chased up the tech specs for these two oils). Many owners of early R5 engines are now using 504.00/507.00 rather than 506.01.

506.01 seems to be more prone to being burnt/consumed in normal highway running by the R5 motors than 504.00/507.00 in the same conditions.

506.01 is getting more difficult to obtain, while 504.00/507.00 is reasonably easy to find.


What oil to use in your engine is something every owner of a vehicle should decide on (and enforce). I am obsessive about using a very good oil in all my engines. It is also peace of mind for me. If I know I have used a really good oil and changed it (and oil filters) regularly then I can relax and not worry. Even if something does go wrong I can console myself by telling myself I did my best and it wasn't my fault ( I hate it when I know I could have done something better).

[brad]

Grego: All that information is great if you are running a diesel but I was specifically asking about the 502.00 & 504.00 petrol spec oils.

If I can see a good technical/chemical reason to use 504.00 then I'll do it but
more expensive != better
latest spec != better

I've seen a few references to 504.00 that mention "environmental reasons" and the cynic in me equates that to taking out some of the additives which might be environmentally harsh but are good for our engines.

[mrx]

It's just that some people are really particular about these things and there are still people out there (wrongly) saying that 504/507 is the only spec oil that should be used in our generation of engines.

Yes, I have learnt all about being particular after joining VW forums. I used to think I was pretty careful about getting things right, but the bar has been raised.

Personally I'm happy using anything off either list, and in all honesty I would expect any fully synthetic oil of the correct weight from any reputable oil company to be fine, provided it is changed regularly.

Each to their own, Greg wants piece of mind at any cost, I want a good piece of mind/cost ratio.

[gregozedobe]

Grego: All that information is great if you are running a diesel but I was specifically asking about the 502.00 & 504.00 petrol spec oils.

Oops, sorry for the confusion - AFAIK all 504.00 oils are also 507.00. which is where I went off on my "diesel" tangent

For petrol applications I guess you'll have to do your own research - the only snippet of petrol specific oil info I can remember is that some years ago there was a lot of trouble with sludge in VW petrol motors in the US, and that was related to oil specs somehow.

Please let us know what you find out, it adds to the corporate knowledge.

[woofy]

Lol.....I think I resurrected this thread talking about whether I need an interim service because I had heard about the oil sludge as well.....and now it gets back to it...lol