# Oil Change



## vwroutan23 (Aug 17, 2010)

How often do you change oil on the Routan? I called VW service and they said every 12k miles.


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## MozartMan (Jul 31, 2010)

vwroutan23 said:


> How often do you change oil on the Routan? I called VW service and they said every 12k miles.


 Wrong. Manual says not more than 6,000 miles.


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## GTI-2007 (Mar 27, 2008)

I do mine every 5,000 kms, but I am also not using synthetic oil, and my wife only does 10K a year, so it's spring and fall routine.


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## redzone98 (Jun 10, 2004)

MozartMan said:


> Wrong. Manual says not more than 6,000 miles.


exactly


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## ben55124 (Apr 29, 2009)

Every 6k for me (as covered by 3yr maintenance).

Does anyone know if dealerships use use synthetic for the 3yr covered oil changes? Hoping standard oil will suffice when I have to start paying for oil changes.

I have to get synthetic for my wife's Passat (2.0 turbo), and those oil changes are expensive.


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## cscsc (Jun 14, 2009)

I change mine at 3K or 3Mos., whichever comes first, using Castrol GTX. My dealer also uses Castrol, so we're on the same page. So, for the 3yrs, every other oil change is free. While under warranty, I'm using Mopar filters so there are no warranty issues. As I've stated here before, this is the easiest vehicle to do an oil change that I've encountered.

I'm from the old car-guy school that believes that oil should be changed often to keep the contaminants and condensation at bay. Synthetic oil may have its benefits, but it stays in an engine too long for the average driver. Probably best for taxis, police cars and constant highway driving. My 2 cents.


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## N2OIL (Apr 22, 2006)

Our dealer uses Castrol GTX 5W/-20. This is a non synthetic oil.


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## RyanM (Aug 6, 2001)

Our dealer uses a synthetic 5w-20. We change every 6000. 

When its out of warantee i plan on using a semi synthetic every 6000.


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## cscsc (Jun 14, 2009)

Manufacturer calls for 10W-30 oil in normal use.


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## redzone98 (Jun 10, 2004)

cscsc said:


> Manufacturer calls for 10W-30 oil in normal use.



should have swore my cap says "5w20"


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## RobMan8023 (Jul 17, 2002)

redzone98 said:


> should have swore my cap says "5w20"


So does mine, the 3.8 and 4.0L engines call for different oil, hence the confusion there.


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## redzone98 (Jun 10, 2004)

ahh ok. so 5-20 on the Pushrod motor


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## Cool Dub (Aug 25, 2010)

*Our dealer uses Synthetic oil*

They change _*free synthetic every 10k mikes*_.


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## Cool Dub (Aug 25, 2010)

*SW40 syn Castrol form our sticker*

We get 3rd change when we hit 16K. Some I was wrong it is every 6k.


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## JEREMYDB75 (Sep 16, 2010)

*Oil change*

I work at a VW dealership. 3.8 uses 5w20 Castrol GTX. 4.0 uses 10w30 GTX


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## iThread (Sep 27, 2005)

I just did the first oil change myself at 5642 miles when the oil change notification went off. I used Castrol GTX 5W-20 (http://www.castrol.com/castrol/genericarticle.do?categoryId=82915464&contentId=6003410). It's labelled for the Chrysler motors and meets what is in the manual. This is the 3.8L pushrod motor. 

Easy peasy, just put it on ramps, drained the old oil, pulled off the old filter, put the new filter on, and filled it with 5 quarts of the new stuff. Took less than 15 minutes. And, I reset the service indicator. 

The factory fill came out a nice coffee color and not too sparkly in the sun. I thought about getting a sample of it for blackstone just to see how it was breaking in but, didn't have a sample container handy. Next time maybe.


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## taxman100 (Apr 30, 2011)

My oil monitor maintenance reminder just went off for the first time at 3,800 miles on our 2011. We just drove over the mountains of WV and western Virginia in both directions, so maybe driving a loaded van in the mountains did it. 

My question - I still have 30 days before my 90 day check-up. Should I try to schedule my check-up early? I'd hate to change the oil now myself, as my wife drives maybe 800 miles a month, and then do another change after only 800 miles. 

Also, the 2011 has the new cartridge filter, which is hard to find (and expensive) except at a Mopar or VW dealer.


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## JETwagen (Mar 1, 2002)

Not sure what grade oil my dealership used (I'll worry about that when I need to change the oil), but it is Castrol convensional oil. I was told by my dealer that VWoA only pays for only what is required, and since synthetic is not required by the manufacture, they won't pay for it (they told me some VW engines DO require synthetic and are covered by VWoA.) Any dealer using synthetic in the Routan is either paying the extra cost out of their pockets, or... well, let's not accuse anyone of doing anything wrong. :laugh: I give a big thumbs up to any dealer that goes the extra mile for you giving you synthetic however they are paying for it. :thumbup: Oh, and the manual (and my dealer) says 6k miles between changes but my dealer said if the change oil notification comes on before then, bring it in and they will change it. eace:


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## micah360 (May 19, 2010)

anyone know what the factory fill oil is in the new Pentastar 3.6? I'm getting ready to change it with Mobil 1 5w-30.

Also... it it hard to find magnetic drain plugs for these??


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