Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI

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Fri 28 Feb 2014 11:03
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - Rianp

Going to take a look at an 06 1.9TDI Octavia later today which seems a good price having done 80000 miles. The car doesn't have a full service history but I figure so long as I check that it hasn't covered too many miles between oil changes, I should be pretty safe. So my question is, what sort of mileage between oil changes would the car need to have covered to make me think I should be looking elsewhere?

Any other suggestions of things to look out for on a used Octavia?

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Fri 28 Feb 2014 11:17
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - craig-pd130

On the 1.9TDI engines the standard interval is 12 months / 12,000 miles. This MUST be with the correct oil for PD engines, otherwise the camshaft dies quickly. To be honest, this is one of the big things to look out for on any VW / Audi / Seat / Skoda diesel - also the cambelt.

It's possible to have the 1.9PD engine on an extended service regime, in which the ECU tells the owner when an oil change is due (a special long-life oil must be used in these cases) but I'm not 100% sure that this was available on Octavias. Hopefully someone can clarify this.

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Fri 28 Feb 2014 11:40
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - Rianp

So assuming it hasn't been on an extended regime, If I were to spot that it had a couple of intervals of say 15k.. Would that be fine or not worth the risk?

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Fri 28 Feb 2014 12:17
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - craig-pd130

Possibly, but only if the correct PD-specification oil has been used. Not every owner (or mechanic) would know about this.

Also, if I remember right the cambelt interval is every 4 years, so if there's no evidence of the cambelt, pulleys etc having been changed in the past year, assume it hasn't been done, and will need doing.

Given the gaps in the service history, I'd bargain very, very hard and be prepared to walk away and look for another Octavia ... plenty of them out there.

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Fri 28 Feb 2014 14:29
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - corax

Agree with craig-pd130.

If there is any doubt over the right PD specific oil being used, the engine could have cam lobe wear which is seriously bad news because the injectors are operated by the camshaft.

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Fri 28 Feb 2014 15:12
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - Rianp
Thanks for your help guys. As it happens another buyer beat me to it! But at least I know what to look out for ongoing.
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Fri 28 Feb 2014 15:33
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - concrete
Thanks for your help guys. As it happens another buyer beat me to it! But at least I know what to look out for ongoing.

Hello Rianp, Craig is spot on, can't be too careful. My 1.9PDtdi130 is on an extended service regime, although a Superb, but the same engine. The computer tells me a service is due 1000 miles in advance, usually every 18/19K or so, but I do high weekly mileages so this is usually every 8/9 months. The garage uses the VAG long life diesel engine oil, and I top it up(hardly ever needs much) with the same oil. Cambelt changed every 75K along with water pump etc. Now on third cambelt. Engine goes like a dream and the garage tell me they service cars with 'starship' mileages on them with this engine. If it has only been serviced using standard oil, then obviously follow the service book recommendations. My friend runs a diesel Octavia, but he changes the oil and filter every 5K and his car has done over 300K. So servicing and caring for the car really helps. Best of luck with your search, but I would recommend Skoda to anyone. Cheers Concrete

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Sat 1 Mar 2014 16:27
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - Rianp
Great, thanks. I do a huge mileage myself (over 600 a week) so it's good to know I'm going for an engine which should last me for a good while. Sounds like checking the service history is pretty vital though. I guess looking through receipts is the only way to check oil used
so it's not just a case of checking how many stamps are in the book?
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Sat 1 Mar 2014 17:25
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - craig-pd130

If it's got a full set of stamps from a Skoda / VW dealer etc then it's a fairly safe bet, they should know which oil to use (ironically, some dealers weren't fully aware of the need to use special oil when the PD engine was introduced around 99/2000)

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Sat 1 Mar 2014 17:29
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - bazza

I bought a 58 reg 1.9 tdi Octavia estate last year. I looked for a main dealer service history to give at least the confidence that the correct oil had been used. The one I found had been on variable with changes about 15K and done 52K. Now I've got it, I will change the oil and filter every 5 to 6K or 10K max depending how much time I have. The 4 year 40000 cambelt change seems to be a VAG UK stipulation, but the important thing is to get the water pump changed at the same time as the belt. I negotiated that into the deal as it's worth a few hundred. My previous 1.9 tdi was written off at 100K, the engine was still perfect and good for the same again. The rest of the car was starting to show its age though!

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Sat 1 Mar 2014 20:35
Skoda Octavia - Oil Change Intervals Octavia 1.9 TDI - Hamsafar

Long life service (variable) is up to 2 years, 30,000Km (~18,000mile) - sooner will be determined by rpm, number of cold starts etc.. The type of oil used is even more expensive.

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