Another good column today.
Re the correspondant with Skoda (a 1.9 so presumably a TDi) talking about oil usage and HJ's comment about VAG stopping the use of recycled oil for the running in period. I guess VAG dont use "running in" oil in the PD engines because they need a specific oil spec for sake of the health of the unit injector pumps. Is there is any evidence of high oil consumption with PD engines compared to early non PD TDis that may have had a fill of recycled "running in" oil from new?.
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Some other manufacturers used an initial fill oil;not recycled,but a straight oil with no additives-once again,to speed up the bedding down of the engine,which is mainly the cylinder bores.
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My point is that you cannot do this if certain components such as high pressure pumps require a certain oil spec.
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The base oil doesn't determine the lubricity of the whole package: in fact the additive fraction (20%) is mainly responsible for the lubricity. In fact, IIRC mineral oil has a greater lubricity than PAO (one type of synthetic) so by HJ's thesis, a synthetic oil would aid running in, if it wasn't for the fact that the base oil used is just a variable!
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I have a VW 1.9tdi in my Skoda Fabia. (103,000 kilometres on the clock). Its use of oil is almost nil, but I do change the oil (to VW 505.01 spec.) and the filter too, around every six to eight thousand miles - in kilometre equivalents!
Every time I go into the main VW/Audi/Skoda franchised dealer for this - I prefer genuine VW oil flters - they say " is no necessary", but I insist - its MY money! I always buy my oil at Norauto, the local equivalent of Halfords, as I won't pay the main dealer oil price, which works out at around 22 euros more for the same quantity of oil.
In fact one smaller Skoda dealer refused to change the oil & filter on a visit mainly to change the pollen filter!. Never been back there!
Just to make you all envious though, the labour rate for Skodas is around 46 euros per hour (£31 ish). In the same workshop, using the same staff, the VW rate is about 5 or 6 euros more per hour!
Come to Marbella:)
Roger. (Costa del Sol, España)
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Likewise my Skoda Superb 1.9tdi PD 100 uses almost no oil. This was a surprise to me as I had read of high oil consumption on the VW 1.9tdi before I bought the car.
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Prior to buying my Ibiza I'd heard the scare stories about PD oil consumption but mine uses less than 2 litres between 10,000 mile services and it's done over 70k now. At last proper PD oil is becoming generally available too, I've just bought some of Castrol's Edge synthetic diesel stuff at Halfords and it's to 505.01 spec. They do a 506.01 version too. Incidentally, PD oil feels incredibly slippery if you get it on your fingers - much more so than other oils. I suppose that's the 'high lubricity' bit.
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We've gone slightly off Cheddar's original post but I hope he doesn't mind as this whole issue is of interest.
Thelast 10 cars I've had - all doiung high mileages - have used no oil whatsoever between services: seven petrol Renaults, then three diesels (VW 1.9, Audi 2.5 and now Mercedes 2.0). Nor did any of them (the Mercedes so far) have any form of engine problem apart from a (forgivable) head gasket failure on the Espace at over 100,000 miles).
I am still convinced that this has a lot to do with gentle running-in for the first 1,000 miles.
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>>off Cheddar's original post but I hope hedoesn't mind as this whole issue is of interest.
No problem. The use of running in oil makes sense, not only in VAG engined cars clearly, however PD pumps etc seem to prohibit this, just wondered if there have been other implications.
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