Polo GTI High Oil Usage - Discussion Thread

[JonP01]

It is the VW branded bottle. I will have a look tomorrow to see if it states anything about Castrol.

Thanks. It's OK - no need to look - I looked mine over sitting on the dunny and never saw any mention of Castrol.

[JonP01]

It's hard to gauge exactly how large the problem is when it stands to reason anyone who has the problem is more likely to join a forum, but given similar threads start on every forum with cars running this motor, there must be something to it.

I find this to one of the internet's biggest frustrations. You want to buy a product and it is really hard to gauge whether what you read is truly a characteristic of the product or just the vocal minority. Almost every day on my daily drive I go past my VW dealer and see a brand new Polo or Golf GTI making it's way from the BP station across the road to greet it's excited new owner. I find it hard to think that every one of these cars they are selling is going to drink oil prodigiously. To be honest, the evening after I signed my contract for the Polo I was reading this forum amongst others and got that terrible sweaty feeling in the pit of my stomach, grabbed my contract and tried to figure a way to wriggle out of it and then buy a Yaris. I know mine isn't the GTI, but over on the UK forums they seem to have just as many oil and other issues with the 1.2 as with the 1.4. I haven't done enough kilometres yet to know what my oil situation is with the standard 77TSI, other than the dipstick level has not moved yet since new. But that's only 1300 kms so far, though I tend to think if it was going to be a drinker, it would have needed some by now.

[Rubbadub]

I hope you're right, mate. Mine has also done 1300km, and the oil level is still sitting on the top edge of the cross-hatched (middle) section of the dipstick. Just to make sure it's OK, I've purchased a 1L bottle of top-up oil in the hope Murphy's Law means I'll never have to use it!

[Karly101]

I think the problem is quite large but these are also popular cars where many are sold.... I've spoken to handful of other people who have had engine replacements (a couple were golfs so not all polos) just through my workplace!

It would be interesting to see how my polo would go on an emissions test - my old beetle is fitted with a supercharger that burns oil and even it isn't going through anywhere near the amount of oil the new car goes through and it's all being burnt out the back by design!

[JonP01]

I think the problem is quite large but these are also popular cars where many are sold....

It is reasonably telling that at my vehicle handover, some time was spent going over the oil requirements, including receiving a advertising card by Castrol specifically outlining the oil required. I never had that before when buying a new car. To be honest though, the 1.4 has a very high specific power output and that alone put me off stretching the budget to the GTI (that and not wanting the DSG and preferring a better ride from the smaller wheels). 95 kw per litre is right up there and it is the same reason I went for a normal Polo now instead of waiting till next year to compare it to the upcoming Fiesta (which will have the 1 litre Ecoboost).

I am not necessarily suggesting that the oil issues are directly related to power output but I wonder if these problems would have existed if they had made the GTI more conservative - say just a 1.4 version of the 1.2 TSI. I know it would be slower but it might have had less problems too.

[gavs]

Polo GTI High Oil Usage - Discussion Thread

Mate, the twincharged 1.4 has oil consumption issues, regardless of the power output as does the 1.2 tsi (now becoming apparent in Europe) and also the 2.0TSI in the golf GTI. I don't think that power output can be used as an excuse for a design flaw.

[RoknRob]

For those that didn't think about it.

The oil level should be checked with the engine at operating temperature, standing on the leveled ground, 5-10 minutes after you've switched the engine off. Put only small amounts of oil in and recheck it, as Diesel_vert says, it's easy to overfill.

Here's how to do it right, every time - IMHO.

After having driven the car enough to warm it up, go to the petrol station when you are low enough on fuel for a fill-up - the surface is usually pretty level at petrol stations.

1. Fill car with petrol.
2. Go inside to pay.
3. By now, usually 5-10 minutes have passed - so, do your oil check - they even have handy paper towels for you to use to wipe the dipstick clean.
4. Do it every time you fill - it only takes a few extra seconds, there - and you will have a fair idea how much oil your car is using.
5. Keep a 1 litre bottle of oil in the passenger side door bottle holder, for top ups.

Easy European style!

[Transporter]

Re: Polo GTI High Oil Usage - Discussion Thread

Thanks for that.

Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

[mchieff]

They've just made the millionth 6r haven't they (1 Millionth Fifth Generation Polo now calls Down Under Home | VWWatercooled Australia).
If so i don't think the forum problem % is representative of the overall user problem %

[RoknRob]

WEll its official my new polo is chewing through the oil. Much more than my previous one. I have already done a 5k km oil change, did a top up at 9k kms when the oil light came on. And now at 12.5k kms the light has come on again. So will have to go and get more oil for it to top up. As 15k Km service is not too far off.

Gambit, considering your presence on this forum, I'm surprised you're seeing the oil light. I would have thought you'd be checking more often. I remember my oil getting pretty low once, but no warning light. Your engine must be bone dry by the time you top up...

[RoknRob]

They've just made the millionth 6r haven't they (1 Millionth Fifth Generation Polo now calls Down Under Home | VWWatercooled Australia).
If so i don't think the forum problem % is representative of the overall user problem %

One million Polos does not equal One million Polo GTIs.

[kaanage]

Gambit, considering your presence on this forum, I'm surprised you're seeing the oil light. I would have thought you'd be checking more often. I remember my oil getting pretty low once, but no warning light. Your engine must be bone dry by the time you top up...

Lulled into a false sense of security by the good engine in his original GTi

[RoknRob]

Lulled into a false sense of security by the good engine in his original GTi

Makes sense...

[alexz]

Oil mark on my 2200km old gti is half way down the flat of the stick after the crosshatching. Taking to dealer today for top up. Car is 6 weeks old.

[JonP01]

Mate, the twincharged 1.4 has oil consumption issues, regardless of the power output as does the 1.2 tsi (now becoming apparent in Europe) and also the 2.0TSI in the golf GTI. I don't think that power output can be used as an excuse for a design flaw.

I just would have thought that it there was a design flaw responsible, then all engines would by definition have this flaw and therefore all would consume excessive amounts of oil, but I don't believe this is the case. I could understand if it might be quality control issues, but if some cars don't use any oil then it is more difficult for me to believe it inherent to the design. I have read numerous posts from people who own both the TSI and GTI models and they say they do not use oil.

Incidentally, in the newspaper Carsguide today, someone wrote in about excessive oil consumption on their Audi Q5, but the reply was that using a litre of oil every 1,000 kms was normal - and that reply wasn't from VW, it was a general reply from Carsguide.