Oil in Mk2's

[killakornkobb]

hey guys what oil is everyone running? when i take a corner hard i get my oil light on, i just checked the oil and its very low.. what should i top it up with? its not due for a service till feb.

[syncro]

Mobil 1 :)

[killakornkobb]

ta much :)

[86gti]

FUCHS!!!!!! titan....keep it German!

[h100vw]

I wouldn't use mobil 1 or any synthetic oil in an old VW. They were built long before that technology was common. I don't think that the tolerances are anywhere near good enough to use thin oils.

I have tried it in a couple of my old VWs in the past. A 2 litre mk1 and a 16V Corrado. In both cases the motor just burnt the oil twice as fast. Nothing wrong with either motor before someone gets that in.. At the next change the consumption dropped to a litre over 6000 miles again.

I would use the best quality 'dino' you can get.

Gavin

[evorobin]

I always used Magnatec with my 8v.

[Tulyar]

Have to confess that Ive used Mobil 1 in VW engines for many years.

My Scirocco hasnt had the gentlest of lives and has done 250,000km + on Mobil 1 and still doesnt move on the dipstick between changes.

I think the issue with using Mobil 1 in older engines used to be that if the engine had been used for some mileage on mineral based oils it built up a layer of gunge over the seals. Over the years the gunge "becomes the seal" and the seal itself dries out and shrinks. When Mobil 1 is introduced it removes the gunge and then you find your engine has lots of oil leaks.

I dont know whether thats the case now modern oils have many more anti gunge properties about them?

Certainly Ive found it very useful for curing the cold early morning "death rattle" when starting engines with tired hydraulic tappets!

[h100vw]

I agree if you use top quality synthetic early on in a cars life, assuming that it has had a chance to run in the rings.Then it shouldn't use oil.

The only way to have that happen is to buy the car new and service it religiously. What are the chances of buying a 20 year old car, that has been looked after in that manner????

In the 'real world', in a mk2, I wouldn't spend big money on mobil 1.

Gavin

[gldgti]

DIY oil change always....

as to the oil.... i use penrite, seems far and a way the best compared with others i've used (castrol, shell (total rubbish)). always have lower consumption and less engine noise on penrite...

just my experience

[Oneofthegreats]

I've only ever used Mobil Super XHP 15W-40 in all of mine & family's watercooled VW's & have never had one problem in a combined total of over 800,000+ km's. Used to be called Mobil XHP.

The only other oil I use was Pennzoil GT Performance in my 5 litre. Had a very distinctive nice smelling crankcase vapour too.

[antinora]

my car was low and i filled it up with castrol gtx2.......it was all i had that was around and my brother filled it up.... tell me he wwas right lol

[tommymac]

i wouldnt mix oils that arnt the same weight and viscosity :)

[antinora]

fu** so what he has done is wrong ?

[silverMK1]

i wouldnt mix oils that arnt the same weight and viscosity :)

wat are the repercussions of doing this.... i do it now and then.. only a few ml at a time

[antinora]

you telling me that GTX2 is the wrong oil for my mk2 gti ?(8V)

[tommymac]

no im not saying that im not a vw expert but i dont like to mix oils cos im anal like that, what weight and viscosity is the oil that ure using?

[antinora]

its 20W-50

[tommymac]

and its running fine?


nice article :

The viscosity grade (for example, 5W-30) tells you the oil's thickness, or viscosity. A thin oil has a lower number and flows more easily, while thick oils have a higher number and are more resistant to flow. Water has a very low viscosity -- it is thin and flows easily. Honey has a very high viscosity -- it is thick and gooey.


Viscosity is ordinarily expressed in terms of the time required for a standard quantity of the fluid at a certain temperature to flow through a standard orifice. The higher the value, the more viscous the fluid. Since viscosity varies inversely with temperature, its value is meaningless unless accompanied by the temperature at which it is determined. With petroleum oils, viscosity is now commonly reported in centistokes (cSt), measured at either 40°C or 100 °C (ASTM Method D445 - Kinematic Viscosity).


Multi-weight oils (such as 10W-30) are a new invention made possible by adding polymers to oil. The polymers allow the oil to have different weights at different temperatures. The first number indicates the viscosity of the oil at a cold temperature, while the second number indicates the viscosity at operating temperature. This page from the Sci.Electronics.Repair FAQ offers the following very interesting description of how the polymers work:

[antinora]

well i think so ..... it runs smoother than before... but is that the wrong oil ?

[Golf Loon]

It doesnt matter for topping up. Any is better than none.

When you get a chance do a full oil and filter change $100 job and keep the same kind of oil in your car.

I always use Castrol Magnatec as it is not too pricy and Watercooled VWs love it :)

[tommymac]

well if its fine then nup do what loon says tho get a mann filter and oil change ;) :)

[antinora]

ok well im hope to take the car for service very soon thanks guys