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markievw

oil change advice for novice

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hi

 

I have had quotes for changing the oil at over £60 for my mk2 golf gti and over £90 for the corrado vr6 so have decided to have a go myself.

Am going to start with the golf have got the oil filter, oil and sump plug from vw for £15. Now the oil they have given me is synta in a silver bottle that says it used for fuel injection and turbo charged gasoline and diesel engines! Is the oil okay to use in both petrol and diesel engines.

 

Do i need axle stands to support the car properly or can i get away without them.

 

Any other advice greatly received

 

mark

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Axle Stands should allways be used in conjuncton with a trolly jack.Please dont be crawling under your car with only a trolly jack supporting it.

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deffo as above!

 

If your car is at normal ride hight you may not need to jack it up to drain the oil.

 

oil filter about £4 from VAG

5l oil from vag £13 last time

sump plug washer £.60 from vag (all as you say)

 

 

I would use 10w40 (the silver stuff from vag) for the GTI and likly the Vr aswell. so all is fine with that!

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As above and yes thats the right oil, use an old fan belt to get the old filter off (use as a strap wrench) and do the new one up hand tight (20Nm)

 

There is a guide to do the VR6 in the knowledge base - make sure you get the correct filter - part number ends in 562

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Don't know about other models but i've never found it neccessary to jack the car up when changing oil/filter, mine is slightly lowered.

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So the oil i have got is okay, thought you had to have different oil for diesel and petrol engines.

 

I have had a look and can reach the sump plug without putting the car on axle stands. Am i alright to proceed?

 

Now the filter should undo anti clockwise? ie turn the filter from left to right? and the same with the sump plug?

 

cheers for your help

 

mark

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sump plug is anti clock when looking at it (i.e its points to the rear of the car on the gti/16v corrado). as long as you have the synta oil in a silver bottle its good. fairly sure the same goes for the filter.

 

worth putting some oil in the new filter before you put it on the engine and remember to oil the 'o' ring too.

 

have fun

 

p.s put some paper down as its a messy job :lol:

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well did you get oil up your sleeve then and all over your drive then buddy or did you do it like a pro and not spill a drop ? :black:

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chickened out plus football was, come on fulham!

Got tomorrow off work so will have a go then. Will let you know how i get on.

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if you can get your hands on it a 19mm single hex socket (impact driver socket) is ideal for the sump plug, the last thing you want to do is round it off if some monkey has wound it up extra tight!

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And on a VR a 36mm socket takes the filter off. Try a search, there is a thread with loads of pictures on how to do it somewhere. Should really update the wiki article as it has no pics at all.

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Don't know about other models but i've never found it neccessary to jack the car up when changing oil/filter, mine is slightly lowered.

Got to agree there. Both on my Golf Mk2 and the 16v Corrado, I did not need to jack it up and thats when the C was 40 lower. The C is very tricky to get your big hands in to get the filter off. NEVER work under a trolley lifted car.

 

The filter shouldn't be over tightened. Newspapers on the floor is always a good idea to save the driveway/lawn. I always use a new washer on the sump plug. And a dab of oil on the rubber ring on the filter helps installation. Keep the old oil container for next time if you want to decant into something.

 

That semi-synth Silver Quantum was good for the Golf, not a single rattle in the 18 year old, 120k mile, car. Always paid about £10 for it at VAG.

 

(although v a g just quoted me £54 for the Gold fully synth)

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Can I have some advice also.......please!

 

Gunna change the oil on my VR6 tomorrow, as it's going to be a rainy bank holiday Monday. This will be the first time I have done this myself. The question I have is.......once the oil and filter are changed will the oil warning light come on when I start the engine? From what I have read on here I don't think it should as the warning light is for low pressure and the pressure is measured in the pump (before the filter??), but I have also been reading Auto Repair for Dummies/Me...this reakons that after oil/filter change the warning light can come on for a few seconds when the engine is first run as the filter housing is being refilled with oil.

 

Basically I think changing the oil and filter should be a simple job which I am confident I can manage, but I don't want to be caught out if something goes a miss. So if the light/buzzer comes on have I done something terribly wrong or should I wait a few seconds for the filter to refill?

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Basically I think changing the oil and filter should be a simple job which I am confident I can manage, but I don't want to be caught out if something goes a miss. So if the light/buzzer comes on have I done something terribly wrong or should I wait a few seconds for the filter to refill?

 

 

could possible come on for a second, but isnt likely. as long as you put oil back in and make sure the filter is in and sealed again all will be well, not much can go wrong.

 

just use teh right oil...

 

:-)

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I did my first VR6 oil and filter change about a fortnight ago.

No probs and I am no gorilla of a mechanic.

(Have experience of oil changes on other cars over period of 34 years, though.)

 

Fill oil filter container two thirds with new oil before screwing it on.

 

Any problems, email or pm me. I will be in most of day.

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when changing the oil on any car the oil warning light usualy comes on for around 5 seconds , this is fine just dont rev the car up until the light goes out , when the lights off switch the engine off and re check the oil level , the light should come on every time you start the car as it self tests to make sure the warning light is working :D

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Well I finally got round to changing the oil/filter last weekend. All went well and didn't spill a drop on the floor. Turned out more by luck than judgement that I changed the oil 5000miles since the last change. The only problems I had were that the sump plug and oil filter housing were on very tight. Was very statisfying though.

 

Took the car round Pembroke on holiday last week and the oil is still golden.

 

Now to work out how to change pads/discs and save myself somemore cash.

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