# Recommended Oil for Turbo Beetles in Northeast ?



## ridgemanron (Sep 27, 2011)

Owners Manual mentions a top grade of Synthetic 5W30 or 5W40 to be used. 
Is '5W30' or '5W40' in the car from the factory? Would think that it is best to
stay with the same oil that is presently in the Turbo Beetle until which time you
decide to change it but would like some comments from others.


----------



## Cadenza_7o (Jan 23, 2001)

It doesn't really matter because both has the same winter grade *5w*-xx. 

If you want to be precise, stick with the ACEA and API recommendation by VW... should be in the Owner's Manual. 5w-30 oils (as well as 5w-40) can have different ACEA and API specs.


----------



## KNEWBUG (Sep 13, 2011)

*Oil??*

I do not know whats in the car from the factory, my salesman(who drives a GTI with same engine says change it every 5,000 miles), the service manager says 10,000 miles. VW pays for the 10,000, 20,000,and 30,000 miles oil change and service.






KNEWBUG


----------



## ridgemanron (Sep 27, 2011)

Went to the Mobil 1 site and plotted in all the specifics relating to the 2012 
Turbo Beetle and the only 'specific' Mobil 1 oil that was recommended was:

Mobil 1 0W-40 (Advanced Performance Synthetic Engine Oil), with no mention of
their Synthetic 5W30 or 5W40 oils.

Found out it has builder approval for VW 502.00 (this designation recommended by VW Manual)
Meets or exceeds the requirements of API and ACEA (recommended by VW Manual)

Additional information: Mobil 1 0W-40 is recommended for all types of modern vehicles,
especailly high performance Turbo Charged vehicles.

Further investigation revealed that VW Part No. ZVW 352 540 S is their recommended 5W-40.
Coordinating to this OEM Part No. is Castrol Syntec (Regular Synthetic) 5W-40). This would
lead me to believe that 5W-40 is the oil in our Turbo Beetles from the factory.


----------



## John Y (Apr 27, 1999)

ridgemanron said:


> Went to the Mobil 1 site and plotted in all the specifics relating to the 2012
> Turbo Beetle and the only 'specific' Mobil 1 oil that was recommended was:
> 
> Mobil 1 0W-40 (Advanced Performance Synthetic Engine Oil), with no mention of
> ...


Castrol is factory fill (you should have a filler cap that suggests that) and all the NY area dealers I visited appear to use Syntec 5-40 for changes; you'll be fine with that and it's easy to find in most auto supply joints. When in doubt, refer to the VW/Audi 502.00 approved oil standard. Castrol may now be branding the 5W-40 as "Edge" not Syntec, but I thought this grade was not changed.


----------



## ridgemanron (Sep 27, 2011)

Thanks for the input John. Spoke to my mechanic today and he stated that he woudl 
not use 5W-40 in very cold months, using 5W-30 as the alternate. This could be why
VW lists 5W-30 and 5W-40 in the manual, stating that either one is acceptable if they
have the 502.00 designation. Would 5W-30 be the better choice for extended mionths
of very cold weather or is that a 'stretch' when one considers that these modern oils
have ingredients that make them extremely versatile with regard to weather at both
ends of the spectrum?


----------



## Cadenza_7o (Jan 23, 2001)

ridgemanron said:


> Would 5W-30 be the better choice for extended mionths
> of very cold weather or is that a 'stretch' when one considers that these modern oils
> have ingredients that make them extremely versatile with regard to weather at both
> ends of the spectrum?


Technically, 5w-30 and 5w-40 are the same at the cold-end (5w). Only specs sheets can tell... but I would stick with 5w-30. An oil pan heater will help ease start-up wear more effectively.


----------



## ridgemanron (Sep 27, 2011)

My mechanic doesn't see a problem with ' topping off ' oil levels as normal oil 
burning develops, with the ' topping off ' oil being 5W-30 and the engine containing
5W-40 as its bulk content. I've never mixed oils before but have seen him do it on
older vehicles. On those older vehicles he would also, at times, add a bottle of Lucas
Oil Treatment.


----------



## John Y (Apr 27, 1999)

Cadenza_7o said:


> Technically, 5w-30 and 5w-40 are the same at the cold-end (5w).


This - also Ridgeman, I think what your tech is suggesting is overkill; if I wanted to switch to something arguably better suited to colder weather, it would be a 0W-40, but NY winters just aren't that cold; take a look at the temp ranges that both of those oils are intended to cover. You are not going to hurt anything running 0W-40 (there are approved 0w-40s on the VAG approved list) in the car, especially in winter, but I wouldn't go out of my way to time oil changes based on seasonal switches unless it happens to work out, and then I wouldn't go out of my way to ensure I was changing oil grades, either. I think I actually did do this for a time with my 1.8T Audi TT, but that was a different kettle of fish. And I was more obsessive as an owner, then.

I am comfortable with Syntec 5W-40 in my 2.0T TSI, and I follow the factory change intervals. I may have done the first one at 5K, but then I went 10K to 20K, and will continue with that. Subject tot he fact that it is somewhat open to interpretation, I follow the factory break-in recommendations. For what it's worth, the car burned no or virtually no oil in the last 10K miles, and not much before that. Since bringing it over to Germany, you can be sure the oil gets a healthy workout now and again.

You might consider doing an oil analysis before the 10K if you're curious, but I would just take the freebies during the free maintenance period then see where you are.


----------



## John Y (Apr 27, 1999)

*FV-QR*

Also, it's no issue to top off with different grades, especially when the differences between them are so slight.:thumbup:


----------



## ridgemanron (Sep 27, 2011)

John Y said:


> Also, it's no issue to top off with different grades, especially when the differences between them are so slight.:thumbup:


Appreciate all your input and I will stay with the same 5W-40 presently in the vehicle, opting
for the less expensive Castrol label instead of VW's. Will get some of the pink coolant that
VW offers so that it is readily at hand in the event any small 'top off's' are needed.


----------



## ridgemanron (Sep 27, 2011)

ridgemanron said:


> Appreciate all your input and I will stay with the same 5W-40 presently in the vehicle, opting
> for the less expensive Castrol label instead of VW's. Will get some of the pink coolant that
> VW offers so that it is readily at hand in the event any small 'top off's' are needed.


Went to the Castrol site and plotted in the Turbo Beetle. They confirmed SAE 5W-40 being the
proper oil (Castrol Edge With SPT). SPT stands for Synthetic Power Trchnology.


----------



## John Y (Apr 27, 1999)

ridgemanron said:


> Went to the Castrol site and plotted in the Turbo Beetle. They confirmed SAE 5W-40 being the
> proper oil (Castrol Edge With SPT). SPT stands for Synthetic Power Trchnology.


:thumbup: Ah, yes - new name, same great bacon-y flavor as before!


----------



## Herbie3Rivers (Apr 12, 2003)

I run Mobil 1 in my 99 and 2010 new beetles, my 05 ford range and my 09 mustang Bullitt. I don't do anything other than use the same or comparable oil grade for the car. As for change intervals, despite what many say, I still go by the age old rule of every 3k miles.


----------



## silverspeedbuggy (Aug 8, 2001)

There was actually a study recently that debunked the whole 3K mile change. In fact, they say it's much more green to replace your oil when the manufacturer says to (every 10K, for example). This way we reduce our oil consumption as well as reducing handling of used oil. Makes sense to me.

That being said, I usually get my oil changed twice a year. VW recommends full synthetic oil every 10K on my 2.0T. But since I drive around 10K I just can't bring myself to only get it changed once every year. I regularly check the oil level, but get it changed every 5K or so. I've had my car since September 2005 and it has 62K and runs like a top.

Just my $.02.


----------



## BeetleCurious (Jul 18, 2011)

Yea I get mine changed every 6 months or 5K miles with full synthetic. It just feels right to change it after winter driving and after summer driving. My go to garage however uses Kendall synthetic oil product Now can I go to them every other VW oil change and not void my warranty??


----------



## UTE (Nov 12, 2011)

BeetleCurious said:


> My go to garage however uses Kendall synthetic oil product Now can I go to them every other VW oil change and not void my warranty??


Kendall GT-1 Full synthetic Motor Oil 5W-40 meets VW's 502.00 standard for the Beetle.

Bill


----------



## BeetleCurious (Jul 18, 2011)

UTE said:


> Kendall GT-1 Full synthetic Motor Oil 5W-40 meets VW's 502.00 standard for the Beetle.
> 
> Bill


 Great but what about the oil filter?? Isn't that a special design?


----------



## UTE (Nov 12, 2011)

BeetleCurious said:


> Great but what about the oil filter?? Isn't that a special design?


Yes. You may need to swing by the shop in a "pre-appointment" and make sure they order in the filter. And, while you're at it, check to see if they've got the oil too - as some places don't routinely stock it.

Or, if you're really compulsive (as I've been known to be), you'll show up with your own oil and filter and simply have the shop do the labor.

Bill


----------



## plex03 (Nov 10, 2011)

UTE said:


> Or, if you're really compulsive (as I've been known to be), you'll show up with your own oil and filter and simply have the shop do the labor.
> 
> Bill


That's what I usually do but more and more places are refusing to do that since they aren't the ones getting the mark up on the product. Tough to mark up labor anymore than it already is.


----------

