Dealer used Havoline 5W-40 12month service, 2.0 TSI

[RSOK]

Just had the first scheduled service on my 2010 Octavia RS, the job sheet from the dealer shows they used Havoline 5W-40.

Now I believe this oil meets VW 502 spec, but given the handbook recommends 504 spec oil for this 2.0 TSI engine, should this be a concern?

I know oz cars are not on the variable service intervals, so 'long-life' oil such as 504 may not be so critical (and I change my oil every 6 months so I guess I'm not too concerned for my own engine)... but should dealers be using the 504 oil spec as recommended by the manufacturer in the handbook?

[Transporter]

I would ask VW Australia about it. I believe that they should be using VW504.00/507.00 oils only. But it's worth while to ask first, before you question the dealer.
VW502.00 is old specs oil from more than a decade ago.

[kaanage]

Tell your dealer that the Caltex site recommends (using the product picker for brand/model) that your car should be using Havoline Ultra V 5W-30 which is 504.00-507.00 compliant

There's a note there that says "May also use HAVOLINE SYNTHETIC 5W-40" but I'd be pushing the case for the recommended one.

[Corey_R]

Yeah - I'd also be checking the manual of the car to see which they recommend. There is no way I'd be happy with the dealer using inferior products with the amount most of them charge the for servicing

[brad]

how much did they charge for the oil?

502.00 is also recomended by the manufacturer.

This is a scan from my owners manual.
As you can see, 501.01, 502.00 & 504.00 are all listed as suitable oils for QG0/QG2 service intervals without any caveats, asterix, footnotes or the words "good, better, best". This implies that on a fixed service interval, using any of those three oil types isn't going to make a lot of difference.
As you can also see, the diesel selection does have a number of footnotes and I believe that oil choice is quite critical in this case. The QG1 petrol engine requirements are also quite specific and you'd be mad to use anything but 504.00 if you were going beyond 15,000km.

So to answer the question, I don't believe the dealer has done anything wrong or against VW policy.



Does your Owners Manual have the same table or is it different? I've asked a few people to scan the appropriate page out of their owners manual (to see what has changed since when i bought my 1.8TSI) & nobody ever does.

If we were in the UK, the workshop standard is that on fixed services they use 502.00 & on variable they use 504.00. The customer can request that 504.00 is up-specced at the fixed service interval if they wish to pay the premium. People over there get pretty annoyed when the dealer uses 504.00 without asking as they feel the cost difference is significant enough that it's worth using 502.00.

BTW: This is a scan of the oil analysis on 504.00 after 15,000km. It's like new.

[RSOK]

Thanks for the responses guys.

As Brad says, I'm pretty sure 502 spec won't be harming my engine given a) I change oil every 6 months and b) even if I didn't, I won't be exceeding 15,000kms annually [fyi for my 6-monthly oil changes I use 504 spec Penrite Enviro+ 5W-30].

I was more curious than anything as to whether, for example, the dealer's use of 502 spec oil could land them in hot water should engine trouble of any sort develop... I would have thought a dealership service would stick by the newer oil spec, ie 504, to avoid any potential claims arising from using 'old spec' oil.

I'm awaiting a response from Skoda and the dealer to my query, will let you know what they say.

Brad, my owner's manual shows same table.

[brad]

Therefore sticking strictly by the handbook recomendation uses either 501.01, 502.00 or 504.00. No? All will maintain warranty.

[Diesel_vert]

If it were my car, I would not use 502 oils (let alone 501.01!) in a TSI engine, regardless of service intervals or regime. However, as 502 is deemed acceptable by the manufacturer (and therefore warranty-safe), you can't really protest against what the dealer has done - unless you specifically asked and paid for 504 oil but didn't get it, or other such shenanigans.

Out of interest, how much did they charge for Havoline 5W-40?

[RSOK]

Not planning to protest, just curious is all.

Dealer charge was $75 for 4.9L.

That's what I normally pay for 5L of Penrith Enviro+ (VW 504 approved) when I do the in-between oil changes!! But I suppose the 'dealer stamp' in your service book is worth a premium?

[Diesel_vert]

Thanks for the price.

In regards to service, you can always supply your own oil, and provided that it's 502 or 504 approved, I'm sure they'll still stamp the book.

[brad]

Dealer charge was $75 for 4.9L.

I think that's a bit rich. My dealer was charging me $75 for Valvoline 504.00 (fleet discount + some other loyalty discount they had).

Dealer prices for 504.00 will generally be $75-$95. I would expect any 502.00 to be in the region of $50-70 from the dealer.

For those of you that want some competitively priced Mobil1 502.00 (I don't believe they have any 504.00 approved oils yet)
gllubricants.com

[RSOK]

Thanks for the price.

In regards to service, you can always supply your own oil, and provided that it's 502 or 504 approved, I'm sure they'll still stamp the book.

Think I will do that in future, $75 for 502 spec from dealer or $75 for 504 spec supplied by me... no brainer really.

[RSOK]

[QUOTE=brad;641374]I think that's a bit rich. My dealer was charging me $75 for Valvoline 504.00 (fleet discount + some other loyalty discount they had).

Seems that way doesn't it, but I wasn't about to argue seeing as how it was my first dealer service experience and the overall customer service experience was quite good. I'll know to supply my own 504.00 oil at the 24 month service.

[Corey_R]

Yeah - last time I was at a Liqui-Moly stockist, I bought a 5L bottle for $80 and I intend to provide that to whoever does my service.

[Diesel_vert]

I would expect any 502.00 to be in the region of $50-70.

Prices can vary considerably more than that because it's an older spec. You can formulate a 502 oil that only meets the minimum test requirements (which IMO wouldn't be that good for its intended applications), or you can formulate a very good 502 oil that far exceeds these requirements (bolstered by other manufacturer specs).

The problem is that if you're looking for quality, the onus is on you to pick out an excellent 502 oil as opposed to an average 502 oil - which can be difficult to do objectively, especially when it comes to a murky subject like this.

However, with 504/507 oils, the tests are supposedly more stringent so the minimum requirements for a "pass" are much higher, which means that choosing an oil becomes easier for the enthusiast-minded consumer.