Golf Gti chewing through oil?

[Fangy]

Hi guys,

I got my oil changed at the 30k service about 2 months ago and has done only like 2000kms and already the engine oil flash has come up. I've checked on the floors and don't see any oil marks so I don't think it's a leak. I don't thrash it that much but I do have to point out that I go through about 2.5hrs of bumper to bumper traffic each day (making my fuel consumption also avg at 12-13L/100 ), not sure if this is the cause though? I can't think of why it's chewing through the oil so fast.

Just wondering if any one else with a MK5 Golf GTI has the same problem as well? Also do you guys usually use 5W 30 or 5W 40?

Cheers.

[Madhatter]

Definately trust the last mechanic? any possibility they didnt quite put enough oil in it? last service consisted of the same oil? brand wise I mean. Sometimes some cars just dont like particular brands, I cant explain it, even though its similar weights/ratings they just seem to use oil. Volkswagen probably wont consider 1L over 2000km to be all that extreme, so If you are running the 5-30, I would start by changing to the 5-40 and see if it goes through oil at a similar rate. Might find its all good when you change weights or brands.

There is, however, a very remote possibility that should only be turned to when all avenues are exhausted and nobody can find a cause for the increased usage. If you have had the car since new and spend a lot of time in start stop traffic, it is possible that the bores have glazed over and the oil rings arent doing their job anymore. One of the signs of glazing is the oil usage can increase, however it accompanies other things like increased crankcase pressure and oil smoke too. Its only a remote possibility (as I said, the last thing I would be thinking about) because fresh engines (even though they have been run in), generally dont like spending a lot of time sitting at idle and low revs like you find in traffic.

Start by a change in oil weight/brand firstly, thats the easiest thing to start with that could change the usage But if you tend to baby the car (out of traffic I mean) and spend a lot of time in traffic, I suggest you take it out on your day off and give it a bit of a run. Taking the car up to high revs and driving aggressively wont hurt the engine, infact it actually helps keep things clear of carbon deposits and really gives the rings a good seal, so long term its actually better to vary the revs and loads on the motor.

[brodzta_GTI]

They're actually supposed to run 5-40 ( VW reccommend castrol ). definatly give the engine a good 'hard' run to deglaze the bores.. 1lt in 2000km wont make vw stress too much, see how you go with the oil wieght and hard run

[Getti]

The Castrol website lists 5W-30 for a Golf GTI

Castrol Australia - NetLube

[Fangy]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I would definately not be worried if it was using 1L per 2000km, however it actually used all 5L which was concerning.

I rang my mechanic who servied the car and they advised they use Fuchs Proceed 3 5W-30. They did however mention that with the MK5 GTI's it is known to chew quite a lot of oil. I might change to a different brand and try 5W 40 for the thicker oil to see if this makes a big difference or not

[Getti]

The oil consumption seems very excessive.

I have a 2007 GTI which has done 43,000kms. I check my oil regularly (every couple of weeks when I wash the car) and always ensure it is topped up. Between the 30,000kms service and 45,000kms service the GTI used no more than 1lt (I purchase 1lt bottles at a time). This would have been the same oil usage for the previous 15,000kms travelled.

Since the dealer topped up the oil at approximatley 3,000kms ... I have travelled approximately 40,000kms and used no more than 2.5lts of oil. The car now seems to burn very little oil.

Obviously dependent upon driving conditions also and living in Townsville the traffic is obvioulsy different to Melbourne - i.e. traffic jams are non-existant.

[Madhatter]

how do you know it went through 5L? I would have thought that would have left the motor bone dry, not a single drop in the sump.

[slitko]

My brothers GTI has this issue. It has had the oil light come on a few times. His service is due in 2 weeks and they will be looking into the issue again as we have taken it back there a few times already and they always say the GTI uses a lot of oil cause of the engine.

My other cars have same engine and have never given the oil warning light.

[HOTHATCH]

Have you checked your pcv ? If not remove your engine cover and disconnect the hose from the inlet manifold and see if you can blow through it. If you can then your pcv is cactus. You will also be losing boost big time. Do a search on pcv fixes for Golf Gti if you haven't already heard of the problem. It's very common.

[Fangy]

how do you know it went through 5L? I would have thought that would have left the motor bone dry, not a single drop in the sump.

Sorry mate I meant it would have used at least 4L coz it was fully at the end of the low mark on the dipstick.

[Fangy]

Have you checked your pcv ? If not remove your engine cover and disconnect the hose from the inlet manifold and see if you can blow through it. If you can then your pcv is cactus. You will also be losing boost big time. Do a search on pcv fixes for Golf Gti if you haven't already heard of the problem. It's very common.

Will check on the weekend thanks.

[Madhatter]

Sorry mate I meant it would have used at least 4L coz it was fully at the end of the low mark on the dipstick.

The high to low mark on the dipstick is 1L. Dipsticks dont sit all the way to the bottom of the sump.

[Maverick]

Hi guys,

I got my oil changed at the 30k service about 2 months ago and has done only like 2000kms and already the engine oil flash has come up. I've checked on the floors and don't see any oil marks so I don't think it's a leak. I don't thrash it that much but I do have to point out that I go through about 2.5hrs of bumper to bumper traffic each day (making my fuel consumption also avg at 12-13L/100 ), not sure if this is the cause though? I can't think of why it's chewing through the oil so fast.

Just wondering if any one else with a MK5 Golf GTI has the same problem as well? Also do you guys usually use 5W 30 or 5W 40?.

Oil usage isn't that unusual, if you do a search of this forum and the golfmkv.com one you'll see that some people use more oil than others. Volkswagen have a procedure for testing if your oil usage is excessive and if you want something done about it you will have to see your dealer and ask them to start monitoring it. This means you have to go back to them for refills.

And did you check the oil after the service to make sure it was the correct level? And how often do you check it? The oil should be checked on a regular basis, waiting for the idiot light to come on is irresponsible IMO and engine damage caused by lack of lubrication is not covered by warranty. As your engine is using oil I'd be both taking it up with the dealer who does the servicing and taking it back to them _before_ the idiot light comes on for top ups. They will record how much the engine is using over a period and see if Volkswagen consider it to be worthy of further investigation.

It's possible that the oil level was just above the idiot light trigger after the service and a minimal loss of oil has triggered it but you will never know if you didn't open the bonnet and check manually (or check by vagcom/vcds - many GTI's after MY08 (some earlier) can measure the level to the nearest mm in the sump).

I would definately not be worried if it was using 1L per 2000km, however it actually used all 5L which was concerning.

If it used all 5L you'd be on here asking about a new engine!

I rang my mechanic who servied the car and they advised they use Fuchs Proceed 3 5W-30. They did however mention that with the MK5 GTI's it is known to chew quite a lot of oil. I might change to a different brand and try 5W 40 for the thicker oil to see if this makes a big difference or not

Make sure whatever oil you're using is Volkswagen approved for your engine, if it's not they won't cover any warranty work on the engine and use this as the reason. I can't see that oil listed and this is the latest data from Volkswagen so if that oil they using is not one of the ones listed you can kiss your engine warranty goodbye so it would pay to check to see what they're using.

The only Fuchs oils approved for the 504.00/507.00 standard are

Fuchs Fuchs Sintolux Force V SAE 5W-30 50400/50700
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN GT1 Longlife III SAE 5W-30 50400/50700
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN GT1 PRO C-3 SAE 5W-30 50400/5070

And there are no 40 weight oils approved at all in the 504.00/507.00.

Volkswagen 504.00/507.00 Approved Oils


For 502.00/505.00 it's

Fuchs Fuchs TITAN GT1 SAE 5W-30 50200/50500
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN Supersy n SAE 0W-30 50200/50500
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN Supersy n SAE 5W-40 50200/50500
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN Supersy n LONGLIFE SAE 5W-30 50200/50500
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN Supersy n LONGLIFE SAE 5W-40 50200/50500

Volkwagen 502.00/505.00 Approved Oils


and lastly for 502.00/505.00/505.01 it's

Fuchs Fuchs TITAN GT1 SAE 5W-40 50200/50500/50501
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN GT1 PRO FLEX SAE 5W-30 50200/50500/50501
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN GT1 PRO GAS SAE 5W-30 50200/50500/50501
Fuchs Fuchs TITAN Supersyn PLUS SAE 5W-40 50200/50500/50501
Fuchs TITAN GT1 SAE 5W-40 50200/50500/50501

Volkswagen 502.00/505.00/505.01 Approved Oils

[Unbelievable]

Have you checked your pcv ? If not remove your engine cover and disconnect the hose from the inlet manifold and see if you can blow through it. If you can then your pcv is cactus. You will also be losing boost big time. Do a search on pcv fixes for Golf Gti if you haven't already heard of the problem. It's very common.

Sorry for the NOOB question, but what is a PCV? And why is boost pressure relevant to the oil consumption?

[Unbelievable]

Hi guys,

I got my oil changed at the 30k service about 2 months ago and has done only like 2000kms and already the engine oil flash has come up. I've checked on the floors and don't see any oil marks so I don't think it's a leak. I don't thrash it that much but I do have to point out that I go through about 2.5hrs of bumper to bumper traffic each day (making my fuel consumption also avg at 12-13L/100 ), not sure if this is the cause though? I can't think of why it's chewing through the oil so fast.

Just wondering if any one else with a MK5 Golf GTI has the same problem as well? Also do you guys usually use 5W 30 or 5W 40?

Cheers.

FYI I had exactly the same thing happen this weekend (MY08 MKV GTI) - and it worried me too. OK I will be more diligent about checking the oil when I clean or refuel the car, but I was still surprised that it could go through that much oil in only a couple of thousand K. I reckon the significant thing is that I recently changed jobs and now have a car park - which means I am doing a LOT more driving in traffic - as you are. There is no oil mark at home or work, so the car is not leaking.