Any theory on why the previous owner's mechanic used semi-synthetic oil?

[GolfVFSI]

Hey everyone,

I recently purchased this 2007 Golf V 2.0 FSI which is in pretty good condition for its age. The previous owner didn't know anything about mechanic, but he did service the car regularly at his local indie mechanic.

However I noticed that when the car was last serviced, they used semi synthetic oil which is not what VW recommends.
I actually don't know of any modern car that requires semi-synthetic oil, as far as I know nowadays all cars requires full synthetic oil.

Anyway, I bought some Castrol 5W30 full synthetic oil (VW 502.00) and I'm going to do the oil change this week (for peace of mind I'm also replacing oil filter, air filter, cabin filter and fuel filter).

My question is, can you think of any reason why a mechanic would decide to use semi synthetic oil VS full synthetic on this engine? Are these engines known to consume oil or something? Maybe they were trying to reduce oil consumption between oil changes? Any thoughts?

Thanks

[Lucas_R]

My opinion - either prevous owner was on a tight budget (or a tight arse) and asked mechanic to use a cheaper oil. Or the mechanic wasnt very familiar with VW's and didnt realise modern VW's need a certain spec of oil.

Dont be too worried, the VW oil spec is more so around reaching emissions targets rather than keeping the engine alive and healthy. Any oil is better than either old oil or no oil in my books.

Its always good practice to service any 2nd hand car that you recently bought anyway, so it gives you the opportunity to address these things.

[jets]

Its always good practice to service any 2nd hand car that you recently bought anyway, so it gives you the opportunity to address these things.

Many years ago I purchased a 2nd hand '01 Polo. I asked who had done the last oil change because it wasn't recorded in the service booklet. During the phone call, the mechanic looked up his records & said that there wasn't a special oil needed for this model. I didn't agree with his opinion so I spoke to my mechanic friend who said if it was his car he would drop the oil & filter straight away.
The improved driving was noticeable straight away, with the engine feeling more lively & eager to rev.

[GolfVFSI]

My opinion - either prevous owner was on a tight budget (or a tight arse) and asked mechanic to use a cheaper oil. Or the mechanic wasnt very familiar with VW's and didnt realise modern VW's need a certain spec of oil.

Dont be too worried, the VW oil spec is more so around reaching emissions targets rather than keeping the engine alive and healthy. Any oil is better than either old oil or no oil in my books.

Its always good practice to service any 2nd hand car that you recently bought anyway, so it gives you the opportunity to address these things.

Thanks for your reply.

I think it's because the previous owner was on a tight budget. Going through the invoices I also noticed he fitted used tires to the car! I didn't know it was a thing especially for that tire size, they aren't that expensive brand new to begin with.

He also never replaced the timing belt and water pump even though the car was reaching 150k. He did say that his mechanic checked the timing belt who said it didn't need replacement. What kind of mechanic would recommend not to replace the timing belt past 120k and risk a catastrophic engine failure?

The first thing I did was to replace the timing belt and water pump. In their defence, they were right, the timing belt was still in great condition, not 1 visible crack. I mean I would never risk it but who knew that a timing belt could last that long? I was legit super impressed but anyway the car is fitted with a new timing belt and water pump now.

On the bright side the car has been serviced every year in due time and that's why I picked this car and so far it's been running good.

Now that I think about it, brake fluid was flushed last year but it may be possible they didn't use brake fluid that is compliant with VW standard 501 14 given they didn't bother to use correct oil either.

I also bought a pair of 4 Bosh spark plugs that I will fit in when doing the oil change. Curious to see if I'll notice any difference after replacing oil + all the filters + spark plugs

[GolfVFSI]

During the phone call, the mechanic looked up his records & said that there wasn't a special oil needed for this model.

Man this is scary! I mean it's common knowledge that BMW, Mercedes, VAG among other brands use their own oil specs. Good on you for checking. It's mind blowing to me that professional mechanics can be that clueless about their own job

[ML24WA]

Sounds like something that is becoming more and more common, people buying cars they can barely afford, and then skimping on maintenance or consumables (tyres is a big one).

I've seen plenty of decent euro cars (and japanese for that matter) getting around on cheap tyres because thats all they could afford etc.

[GolfVFSI]

Sounds like something that is becoming more and more common, people buying cars they can barely afford, and then skimping on maintenance or consumables (tyres is a big one).

I've seen plenty of decent euro cars (and japanese for that matter) getting around on cheap tyres because thats all they could afford etc.

Especially for euro cars in Australia. I'm from Europe and the first thing that struck me when I moved here and when I bought my first car (euro obviously) is how all my Aussie friends told me not to buy a European car and how it was super expensive to service. I didn't really understand what people meant at first, I was like what do you mean, all services are the same regardless of the car maker, oil change + filter, brake jobs etc.
After I went to an Audi dealership out of curiosity to check how much their charge for a simple 12 months service (oil + filter) I understood why everyone kept telling me it was expensive to run/maintain European cars. Audi charges $375 for 1h of labour . Servicing a premium German car in Europe is not much more expensive than servicing a Peugeot for example.
In Europe no one says don't buy a german car because it's expensive to run. We focus more on the acquisition cost and insurance. (we also don't pay a yearly rego...) Usually people will say make sure you can afford to insure the car before buying.

Interesting how perspectives are different in different markets.

But yeah to your point, maintenance cost should be part of your budget for a car but what do you want, people.

[mydavestrong]

Dont be too worried, the VW oil spec is more so around reaching emissions targets rather than keeping the engine alive and healthy. Any oil is better than either old oil or no oil in my books.

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