oilman

Fully synthetic only. Semi-synthetics are petroleum based. Synthetics come in every viscosity from 0w-20 to 20w-60. A 15w-50 fully synthetic is the same viscosity as a 15w-50 mineral or semi-synthetic. Basically synthetics don't have to be thin, they are available in any viscosity to suit any car. Cheers Simon

I thought this would be of interest as It's probably the question I get asked the most. Shame the answer isn't simple though! The basic benefits are as follows: Extended oil drain periods Better wear protection and therefore extended engine life Most synthetics give better MPG They flow better when cold and are more thermally stable when hot Esters are surface-active meaning a thin layer of oil on the surfaces at all times If you want to know the reasons why then please read on but, warning - Long Post! Stable Basestocks Synthetic oils are designed from pure, uniform synthetic basestocks, they contain no contaminants or unstable molecules which are prone to thermal and oxidative break down. Because of their uniform molecular structure, synthetic lubricants operate with less internal and external friction than petroleum oils which have a non-uniform molecular structure. The result is better heat control, and less heat means less stress to the lubricant. Higher Percentage of Basestock Synthetic oils contain a higher percentage of lubricant basestock than petroleum oils do. This is because multi-viscosity oils need a great deal of pour point depressant and viscosity improvers to operate as a multigrade. The basestocks actually do most of the lubricating. More basestocks mean a longer oil life. Additives Used Up More Slowly Petroleum basestocks are much more prone to oxidation than synthetic oils. Oxidation inhibitors are needed in greater quantities in petroleum oils as they are used up more quickly. Synthetic oils do oxidize, but at a much slower rate therefore, oxidation inhibiting additives are used up more slowly. Synthetic oils provide for better ring seal than petroleum oils do. This minimizes blow-by and reduces contamination by combustion by-products. As a result, corrosion inhibiting additives have less work to do and will last much longer in a synthetic oil. Excellent Heat Tolerance Synthetics are simply more tolerant to extreme heat than petroleum oils are. When heat builds up within an engine, petroleum oils quickly begin to burn off. They are more volatile. The lighter molecules within petroleum oils turn to gas and what's left are the large molecules that are harder to pump. Synthetics have far more resistance as they are more thermally stable to begin with and can take higher temperatures for longer periods without losing viscosity. Heat Reduction One of the major factors affecting engine life is component wear and/or failure, which is often the result of high temperature operation. The uniformly smooth molecular structure of synthetic oils gives them a much lower coefficient friction (they slip more easily over one another causing less friction) than petroleum oils. Less friction means less heat and heat is a major contributor to engine component wear and failure, synthetic oils significantly reduce these two detrimental effects. Since each molecule in a synthetic oil is of uniform size, each is equally likely to touch a component surface at any given time, thus moving a certain amount of heat into the oil stream and away from the component. This makes synthetic oils far superior heat transfer agents than conventional petroleum oils. Greater Film Strength Petroleum motor oils have very low film strength in comparison to synthetics. The film strength of a lubricant refers to it's ability to maintain a film of lubricant between two objects when extreme pressure and heat are applied. Synthetic oils will typically have a film strength of 5 to 10 times higher than petroleum oils of comparable viscosity. Even though heavier weight oils typically have higher film strength than lighter weight oils, an sae 30 or 40 synthetic will typically have a higher film strength than an sae 50 or sae 60 petroleum oil. A lighter grade synthetic can still maintain proper lubricity and reduce the chance of metal to metal contact. This means that you can use oils that provide far better fuel efficiency and cold weather protection without sacrificing engine protection under high temperature, high load conditions. Obviously, this is a big plus, because you can greatly reduce both cold temperature start-up wear and high temperature/high load engine wear using a low viscosity oil. Engine Deposit Reduction Petroleum oils tend to leave sludge, varnish and deposits behind after thermal and oxidative break down. They're better than they used to be, but it still occurs. Deposit build-up leads to a significant reduction in engine performance and engine life as well as increasing the chance of costly repairs. Synthetic oils have far superior thermal and oxidative stability and they leave engines virtually varnish, deposit and sludge-free. Better Cold Temperature Fluidity Synthetic oils do not contain the paraffins or other waxes which dramatically thicken petroleum oils during cold weather. As a result, they tend to flow much better during cold temperature starts and begin lubricating an engine almost immediately. This leads to significant engine wear reduction, and, therefore, longer engine life. Improved Fuel Economy Because of their uniform molecular structure, synthetic oils are tremendous friction reducers. Less friction leads to increased fuel economy and improved engine performance. This means that more energy released from the combustion process can be transferred directly to the wheels due to the lower friction. Acceleration is more responsive and more powerful, using less fuel in the process. In a petroleum oil, lighter molecules tend to boil off easily, leaving behind much heavier molecules which are difficult to pump. The engine loses more energy pumping these heavy molecules than if it were pumping lighter ones. Since synthetic oils have more uniform molecules, fewer of these molecules tend to boil off and when they do, the molecules which are left are of the same size and pumpability is not affected. Synthetics are better and in many ways, they are basically better by design as they are created by chemists in laboratories for a specific purpose. Cheers Simon

This is related to shear stability and the polymers concerned are VI Improvers. Explaining the importance of shear stability in laymens terms is difficult but I'll try. Viscosity Index Improvers. An oils viscosity will decrease as the engine temperature rises. Viscosity Index Improvers are added to reduce this thinning. They are a key addative in the production of multigrade oils. VI Improvers are heat sensitive long chain, high molecular weight polymers that increase the relative viscosity of the oil at high temperatures. They work like springs, coiled at low temperatures and uncoiling at high temperatures. This makes the molecules larger (at high temps) which increases internal resistance within the thinning oil. They in effect "fight back" against the viscosity loss in the oil. "Shearing" The long chain molecules in VI Improvers are prone to "shearing" with use which reduces their ability to prevent the oil from losing viscosity. This "shearing" occurs when shear stress ruptures the long chain molecules and converts them to shorter, lower weight molecules. The shorter, lower weight molecules offer less resistance to flow and their ability to maintain viscosity is reduced. This shearing not only reduces the viscosity of the oil but can cause piston ring sticking (due to deposits), increased oil consumption and increased engine wear. Like basestock quality, VI Improvers also vary in quality. The best quality ones are normally found in synthetic oils (Group IV - PAO / Group V - Esters) and it is important to understand that the less of these in the oil the better the oil will stay in grade. Which oils require more VI Improvers? There are two scenarios where large amounts of these polymers are required as a rule. Firstly in "wide viscosity" multigrades. By this I mean that the difference between the lower "W" number and the higher number is large for example 5w-50 (diff 45) and 10w-60 (diff 50) are what is termed as "wide viscosity" oils. Narrow viscosity oils like 0w-30 (diff 30) or 5w-40 (diff 35) require far less VI Improvers and therefore are less prone to "shearing". Secondly, mineral and hydrocracked (petroleum synthetic oils) require more VI Improvers than proper PAO/Ester (Group IV or V) synthetic oils as they are less thermally stable to begin with and this is due to the non-uniform molecules in petroleum oils as opposed to the uniformity of synthetics built in laboratories by chemists. It is a fact that some synthetics require little or no VI Improvers to work as a multigrade due to their superior thermal stability. Cheers Guy

Here's a copy of the lubricants report for your vehicles. Volkswagen, Corrado Manufacturer: Volkswagen AG, Wolfsburg, Germany Engine AAA Corrado VR6 - 2.8 Petrol, 4-stroke, 6 cylinder, VR, 2 valves/cil., liquid cooled Cylinder capacity: 2792 cc Power output: 180 HP/132 kW at 5800 RPM Capacity: 6 liter Filter capacity: 1 liter Use: normal Change 15000 km/12 months OEM recommendation Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-40 Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-50 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-30 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-40 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-30 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-20 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-30 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-50 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-50 If VW approved motoroils are not available, API: SF or SG oils may be used occasionally. Engine PG Corrado G 60 , Corrado 1.8i G60 Petrol, 4-stroke, 4 cylinder, Line, 2 valves/cil., Turbo, liquid cooled Cylinder capacity: 1781 cc Power output: 160 HP/118 kW at 5600 RPM Capacity: 4 liter Filter capacity: 1 liter Use: normal Change 15000 km/12 months OEM recommendation Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-40 Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-50 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-30 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-40 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-30 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-20 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-30 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-50 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-50 If VW approved motoroils are not available, API: SF or SG oils may be used occasionally. Engine 9A Corrado 2.0i 16V Petrol, 4-stroke, 4 cylinder, Line, 4 valves/cil., liquid cooled Cylinder capacity: 1984 cc Power output: 136 HP/100 kW at 5800 RPM Capacity: 4 liter Filter capacity: 0.25 liter Use: normal Change 15000 km/12 months OEM recommendation Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-40 Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-50 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-30 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-40 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-30 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-20 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-30 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-50 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-50 If VW approved motoroils are not available, API: SF or SG oils may be used occasionally. Engine ABV Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Petrol, 4-stroke, 6 cylinder, VR, 2 valves/cil., liquid cooled Cylinder capacity: 2861 cc Power output: 190 HP/140 kW at 5800 RPM Capacity: 6 liter Filter capacity: 1 liter Use: normal Change 15000 km/12 months OEM recommendation Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-40 Above -15 VW 501.01 SAE 15W-50 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-30 From -20 to 15 VW 501.01 SAE 10W-40 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-30 Below -10 VW 501.01 SAE 5W-20 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-30 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 10W-50 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-40 year-round VW 500.00 SAE 5W-50 If VW approved motoroils are not available, API: SF or SG oils may be used occasionally. Transmission, automatic Corrado 1.8i G60 , Corrado 2.0i 16V , Corrado VR6 - 2.8 , Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Automatic Capacity: 3 liter Gears forward: 4 Gears reverse: 1 Use: normal Change 60000 km OEM recommendation year-round Dexron IID - Transaxle, manual Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Manual Capacity: 2 liter Gears forward: 5 Gears reverse: 1 Use: normal OEM recommendation year-round VW G 51 SAE 75W-90 Differential, from automatic Corrado 1.8i G60 , Corrado 2.0i 16V , Corrado VR6 - 2.8 , Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Capacity: 0.75 liter Use: normal OEM recommendation year-round VW G 052 145 SAE 75W-90 Transaxle, manual Corrado G 60 , Corrado 1.8i G60 , Corrado 2.0i 16V , Corrado VR6 - 2.8 Manual Capacity: 2 liter Gears forward: 5 Gears reverse: 1 Use: normal OEM recommendation year-round VW G 50 SAE 75W-90 Hydraulic brakes/clutch system Corrado 1.8i G60 , Corrado 2.0i 16V , Corrado VR6 - 2.8 , Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Capacity: Use: normal Change 24 months OEM recommendation year-round Brake Fluid DOT 4+ - Hydraulic Brake System Corrado G 60 Capacity: Use: normal Change 24 months OEM recommendation year-round Brake Fluid DOT 4+ - Power steering Corrado G 60 , Corrado 1.8i G60 , Corrado 2.0i 16V , Corrado VR6 - 2.8 , Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Capacity: Use: normal Check 60000 km OEM recommendation year-round VW G 002 000 - Cooling system Corrado G 60 , Corrado 1.8i G60 , Corrado 2.0i 16V , Corrado VR6 - 2.8 , Corrado VR6 - 2.9 Capacity: 5 - 8.2 liter Use: normal Check 500 km Change 60000 km/24 months OEM recommendation year-round Water with antifreeze (40%) - Water with 40% VW Anti Freeze G 011 V8C, to specification TL-VW 774C. Cheers Guy

The first number "w" is cold crank viscosity (0w,5w,10w etc) the second number is the sae number (20,30,40,50 etc). The second number is the one that determines the viscosity to which the oil thins, normally measured at 100degC. i.e. sae 40 = 14cst, sae 50 = 18.5cst, sae 60 = 24cst. Depending on the first number "w" the degree of thickness at which the oil starts is determined and the second number is the minimum viscosity to which it thins too. All oils are thicker when cold, here are some examples that illustrate what actually happens to the oil with temperature. 0w-20..at.......... 0degC = 328......at 10degC = 181......at 100degC = 9 5w-40..at ........................811........................421..........................14 10w-50.at.......................1039........................539.........................18.5 15w-50.at.......................1376........................675.........................18.5 20w-50.at.......................2305.......................1015........................18.5 Obviously the thinner the oil the better the flow at 0degC and 10degC. Hope this explains. Cheers Guy

I don't think you'll find that it's down to the oil. Cheers Guy

I read on many forums about 0w and 5w oils being too thin. I will try to explain it without getting over technical and we'll go from there. 0w-40, 5w-40, 10w-40 and 15w-40 are all the same thickness (14cst) at 100degC. Centistokes (cst) is the measure of a fluid's resistance to flow (viscosity). It is calculated in terms of the time required for a standard quantity of fluid at a certain temperature to flow through a standard orifice. The higher the value, the more viscous the fluid. As viscosity varies with temperature, the value is meaningless unless accompanied by the temperature at which it is measured. In the case of oils, viscosity is generally reported in centistokes (cst) and usually measured at 40degC and 100degC. So, all oils that end in 40 (sae 40) are around 14cst thickness at 100degC. This applies to all oils that end in the same number, all oils that end in 50 (sae 50) are around 18.5cst at 100degC and all oils that end in 60 (sae 60) are around 24cst at 100degC. With me so far? Great! Now, ALL oils are thicker when cold. Confused? It's true and here is a table to illustrate this. SAE 40 (straight 40) Temp degC.........................Viscosity (thickness) 0..........................................2579cst 20..........................................473cst 40..........................................135cst 60..........................................52.2cs t 100........................................ 14cst 120.........................................8.8cst As you will see, there is penty of viscosity at 0degC, in fact many times more than at 100degC and this is the problem especially in cold weather, can the oil flow quick enough to protect vital engine parts at start up. Not really! So, given that an sae 40 is 14cst at 100degC which is adequate viscosity to protect the engine, and much thicker when cold, how can a 0w oil be too thin? Well, it can't is the truth. The clever part (thanks to synthetics) is that thin base oils can be used so that start up viscosity (on say a 5w-40 at 0degC) is reduced to around 800cst and this obviously gives much better flow than a monograde sae 40 (2579cst as quoted above). So, how does this happen, well as explained at the beginning, it's all about temperature, yes a thin base oil is still thicker when cold than at 100degC but the clever stuff (due to synthetics again) is that the chemists are able to build these oils out of molecules that do not thin to less than 14cst at 100degC! What are the parameters for our recommendations? Well, we always talk about good cold start protection, by this we mean flow so a 5w will flow better than a 10w and so on. This is why we recommend 5w or 10w as the thickest you want to use except in exceptional circumstances. Flow is critical to protect the engine from wear! We also talk about oil temps, mods and what the car is used for. This is related to the second number xw-(XX) as there may be issues with oil temperatures causing the oil to be too thin and therefore the possibility of metal to metal contact. This is difficult to explain but, if for example your oil temp does not exceed 120degC at any time then a good "shear stable" sae 40 is perfectly capable of giving protection. "Shear stability" is important here because if the oil shears it thins and that's not good! However, if you are seeing temperatures in excess of 120degC due to mods and track use etc then there is a strong argument to using an sae 50 as it will have more viscosity at these excessive temperatures. There are trade offs here. Thicker oils cause more friction and therefore more heat and they waste power and affect fuel consumption so it's always best to use the thinnest oil (i.e. second number) that you can get away with and still maintain oil pressure. There is more but this post is too long already so lets keep it to basics. Cheers Guy

Any VW Approved 5w-40 or 10w-40 will be fine. Cheers Guy

So, Oil is Oil is it? We'll agree to disagree there and call it a day on this one. Cheers Guy

Drop me a mail to mailto:[email protected] and I can forward on to you a list of costs for various types of oil. Cheers Guy.

A little knowledge is a dangerous thing and when most people talk about oil it's about price not quality and they're entirely different things. This hopefully explains for those that are interested. A word of caution – You get what you pay for! Below is an article written by John Rowland, Silkolene/Fuchs Chief R & D Chemist for 40 years. Quote: Costs of synthetics vary considerably. The most expensive are the “Ester” types originally only used in jet engines. These cost 6 to 10 times more than high quality mineral oils. The cheapest synthetics are not really synthetic at all, from a chemists point of view. These are in fact specially refined light viscosity mineral oils known as “hydrocracked”. These have some advantages over equivalent mineral oils, particularly in lower viscosity motor oils such as 5w-30 or other oils with a low “W” rating such as 5w-50 etc and they cost about 1.5 times more than good quality mineral fractions. We use several different grades of this base oil, where appropriate. This is the “synthetic” which is always used in cheap oils that are labelled “synthetic”. Yes it’s a cruel world, you get what you pay for! Now, you may ask, why are these special mineral oils called “synthetic”? Well, it was all sorted in a legal battle that took place in the USA about ten years ago. Sound reasons (including evidence from a Nobel Prize winning chemist) were disregarded and the final ruling was that certain mineral bases that had undergone extra chemical treatments could be called “synthetic”. Needless to say, the marketing executives wet their knickers with pure delight! They realised that this meant, and still does, that the critical buzz-word “synthetic” could be printed on a can of cheap oil provided that the contents included a few percent of “hydrocracked” mineral oil, at a cost of quite literally a few pence. So, the chemistry of “synthetics” is complex and so is the politics! The economics are very simple. If you like the look of a smart well-marketed can with “synthetic” printed on it, fair enough, it will not cost you a lot; and now you know why this is the case. But, if you drive a high performance car, and you intend to keep it for several years, and maybe do the odd “track day”, then you need a genuine Ester/PAO (Poly Alpha Olefin) synthetic oil. This oil costs more money to buy, because it costs us a lot of money to make, very simply, you always get what you pay for! Unquote: Boring maybe but FACT! Cheers Guy

Hmm. Afraid you're wrong. It's not related to petroleum at all. It's either poly alpha olefin or ester in the case of engine oils. It's about molecular structure not smell! Cheers Guy

If the car is modded then Quantum silver is unlikely to be up to the task. For stock cars it's not a problem but you need to consider something better if your car is pushing out higher BHP than stock. A standard oil will not be thermally stable enough to cope with higher temperatures without "shearing" meaning that the oil will not give the same protection after a couple of thousand miles as it it when it was new. Let’s start with the fundamentals. An engine is a device for converting fuel into motive power. Car enthusiasts get so deep into the details they lose sight of this! To get more power, an engine must be modified such that it converts more fuel per minute into power than it did in standard form. To produce 6.6 million foot-pounds per minute of power (ie 200 BHP) a modern engine will burn about 0.5 litres of fuel per minute.(Equivalent to 18mpg at 120mph). So, to increase this output to 300BHP or 9.9 million foot-pounds per minute it must be modified to burn (in theory) 0.75 litres. However, fuel efficiency often goes out of the window when power is the only consideration, so the true fuel burn will be rather more than 0.75 litres/min. That’s the fundamental point, here’s the fundamental problem: Less than 30% of the fuel (assuming it’s petrol) is converted to all those foot-pounds. The rest is thrown away as waste heat. True, most of it goes down the exhaust, but over 10% has to be eliminated from the engine internals, and the first line of defence is the oil. More power means a bigger heat elimination problem. Every component runs hotter; For instance, piston crowns and rings will be running at 280-300C instead of a more normal 240-260C, so it is essential that the oil films on cylinder walls provide an efficient heat path to the block casting, and finally to the coolant. Any breakdown or carbonisation of the oil will restrict the heat transfer area, leading to serious overheating. A modern synthetic lubricant based on true temperature-resistant synthetics is essential for long-term reliability. At 250C+, a mineral or hydrocracked mineral oil, particularly a 5W/X or 10W/X grade, is surprisingly volatile, and an oil film around this temperature will be severely depleted by evaporation loss. Back in the 1970s the solution was to use a thick oil, typically 20W/50; in the late 1980s even 10W/60 grades were used. But in modern very high RPM engines with efficient high-delivery oil pumps thick oils waste power, and impede heat transfer in some situations. A light viscosity good synthetic formulated for severe competition use is the logical and intelligent choice for the 21st century. Consider a "true" synthetic for "shear stability" and the right level of protection. Petroleum oils tend to have low resistance to “shearing” because petroleum oils are made with light weight basestocks to begin with, they tend to burn off easily in high temperature conditions which causes deposit formation and oil consumption. As a result of excessive oil burning and susceptibility to shearing (as well as other factors) petroleum oils must be changed more frequently than synthetics. True synthetic oils (PAO’s and Esters) contain basically no waxy contamination to cause crystallization and oil thickening at cold temperatures. In addition, synthetic basestocks do not thin out very much as temperatures increase. So, pour point depressants are unnecessary and higher viscosity basestock fluids can be used which will still meet the "W" requirements for pumpability. Hence, little or no VI improver additive would need to be used to meet the sae 30, 40 or 50 classification while still meeting 0W or 5W requirements. The end result is that very little shearing occurs within true synthetic oils because they are not "propped up" with viscosity index improvers. There simply is no place to shear back to. In fact, this is easy to prove by just comparing synthetic and petroleum oils of the same grade. Of course, the obvious result is that your oil remains "in grade" for a much longer period of time for better engine protection and longer oil life. If you would like advice then please feel free to ask. Cheers Guy

Spot on. Cheers Guy.

Fuchs XTR 10w-40 is the one you're looking for. http://www.opieoils.co.uk/TechSpecs/tit ... 10w_40.pdf Cheers Guy

Mixing is no problem so long as you use the same viscosity. Cheers Guy

Quantum oil is made under licence and the blender changes as it's based on tender to the cheapest supplier. It's made to a budget. Cheers Guy

Drop me a mail to mailto:[email protected] and I can forward on to you a full price list. Cheers Guy.

Fuchs is an excellent oil and very much designed for VW's, they are German afterall! You find the full range on our website. I would highly recommend it for VAG cars! Cheers Guy

I would recommend this one. http://www.opieoils.co.uk/TechSpecs/tit ... 05w_50.pdf Cheers Guy

No, this one is not expensive as it's not a long life oil but is designed for PD engines. http://www.opieoils.co.uk/TechSpecs/tit ... 05w_40.pdf Cheers Guy

If you want to look at technical data on many VW Approved oils then click on the Fuchs logo here: http://www.opieoils.co.uk/lubricants.htm Fuchs do 15,000,000 litres factory fill for VW per annum! Cheers Guy

I thought this may be of assistance and interest here: Volkswagen Group Oil Specifications and their Applications VW 500.00 This is an “old” oil specification and is applicable to engines built before model year 2000 (up to August 1999) Viscosity ratings: SAE 5w-40, 10w-40 or 20w-40 This oil can be used in all petrol and some diesel engines, apart from those referred to under other specifications. VW 501.01 This is another “old” oil specification with exactly the same application as VW 500.00. Viscosity ratings: SAE 10w-40, 15w-40 or 20w-40 VW 502.00 This oil can only be used in petrol engines and is recommended for those which are subject to arduous conditions. It must not be used for any engines with variable service intervals or any which are referred to under other specifications. Viscosity ratings: SAE 0w-40, 5w-40 or 10w-40 VW 503.00 This is a relatively new oil specification for petrol engines with variable service intervals. It includes the AUDI S4, but not the RS4, or the TT and S3 with outputs of more than 180bhp. Viscosity rating: SAE 0w-30 VW 503.01 A new oil specification specifically for the RS4, and the TT and S3 with outputs of more than 180bhp, Passat W8 and Phaeton W12. Viscosity rating: 0w-30 VW 505.00 For all diesel engines prior to model year 2000 (August 1999) Viscosity rating: 0w-40, 5w-40 or 10w-40 VW 505.01 For all diesel engines with unit injectors (Pumpe-Duse or PD) without variable service intervals. Viscosity rating: SAE 5w-40 VW 506.00 For all diesel engines except those with unit injectors, with variable service intervals. Viscosity rating: SAE 0w-30 VW 506.01 For all diesel engines, including those with unit injectors, with variable service intervals. Viscosity rating: SAE 0w-30 Cheers Guy

A very good quality pao/ester synthetic like the Silkolene and Motul will be happy at 145 deg for prolonged periods of time. Cheers Guy.

Kev, Just any half decent brand will do. Most motor factors will have a good one, dont bother with halfords own though. Cheers Guy.