Does the 2003 VW Passat require premium gas?
All the VW's sold in the USA except for the NON turbo 2.0 liter and diesel motor, will require premium fuel. On some years VW doesn't state on the fuel door what grade of fuel is required, instead they list the octane number needed. On a 2003 Passat in the USA, that number is 91 octane, which is considered to be premium fuel. On the later 2006 or so Passats, the 6 cylinder engine is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to use Premium fuel, but it is not a requirement per se. Due to the anti-knock sensors built into the motor, it probably can safely run on something other than Premium fuel. However, reports have been mixed as to whether or not this is a good idea. You will loose performance when you use something other than preium fuel, the question is: is the level of performance acceptable to you? In addition to reduced performance, it does appear that in addition, you many well loose fuel economy as well. My advice has been that you use whatever fuel the manufacturer recommends for your vehicle. In many cases,, people are unhappy with the reduced performance they get when they use something other than the recommended fuel. Only actually trying it out can you tell if it is acceptable to you or not. If the vehicle is turbo equipped, then you have no choice. The vehicle must run on premium fuel at all times and of the highest octane possible. In many cases, the turbo motors will require more octane than the 91 octane most commonly found. Saab, some BWM's, Audi and Mercedes have vehicles that require 93 octane in order to perform properly. In any case, don't forget that your Passat will require the use of sythenic oil that meets VW-Audio requirements of 501.000 or 505.001, which means either certain Castrol Synethic (says on the label it meets VW-Audi requirements) or Mobil 1 European formula only. Hope this helps, a car nut.
5w30 oil used in Audi A4 destroyed engine?
2 issues here... 1) The shop does not know jack and is the wrong oil. 2) Sorry guy, you failed to read the Owner's Manual and says it there that is VW and Audi Specs 502 and 505. The oil is 5W40 or 0W40 and Synthetic. Sorry for been somewhat rude but that is the truth. Anyway, the Oil that I used was Castrol Syntech 5W40. Is one of the ones that is recommended. It says on the can that is approved by Audi and VW. Also on the link it has a list of oils that you can use. You can use Mobil 0W40 also. Oil changes are like 10,000 miles apart, that is why they use these types of oils. They last way longer than any petroleum base. Each can are like $6 a piece. The filter is not that much, just the oil and has a cavern for sump so you might need 6 Qt or more. Check your manual is there. There is not an Audi "special" oil. Is as expensive as using Synthetic oil on any car. You can buy the Oil at Auto Zone, Checkers, Advance Auto Parts, even Wal Mart. Just that you have to read the labels and find the brand that meets the specs, that is all. If you do it yourself, it will be easy over $40 oil change. Wal Mart will change it, but you have to buy the Oil. It might come out about $50 the change. Here where I live, Wal Mart will take the used oil for free. In Germany, you are not allowed to change the oil, except the dealer. Jiffy Lube is none existent. So each oil change are like $125.00 my friend over there, she changes her oil 2 times a year, some people 1 a year. The manual says, 10,000 miles or a Year, whichever comes 1st. At least that is on my Wife's Beetle (it has an In Line 5Cly 2.5L Audi engine). Audi was the 1st car with a Gasoline 5 Cly Engine and was the 2.5 on the 5000S in the USA. Back in 1985 it was changes at 7,500 miles on regular oil. Change that oil ASAP and get the real deal. Sorry guy, read your Owner's Manual, it would saved you tons of money in a mistake. Also, be careful with the coolant. You can mix some colors and some do not.
Is the 30,000 km oil change interval that my dealer recommended safe?
Answers all over the board, I’m sure based on personal thoughts or advertising of some sort, even owners manuals in some countries. all with good intentions. For most of my customers, I recommend 8000 km with semi-synthetic API certified oil. People who drive moderate speeds on highways can get more, and can easily pass 12,000 km.My answer comes from working with customers, analyzing their used oil (more than 5000 samples), and relating the results to their individual maintenance practices.Bottom line is, that it is doubtful if it is a passenger car with an oil capacity of 5 liters or less. If it is an over-the-road truck with a 18 to 36 liter oil sump, sure, it is possible with good maintenance procedures. I have a customer with 20 over-the-road trucks who goes 30,000 km between changes with the oil I sell him. He never allows cleaning of his air filters, keeps the trucks well maintained, and keeps them on the road. The wear metals in his oil are extremely low, indicating that it will easily pass 3 million km. before any repairs.Why?Oil breaks down with usage, heat, aeration, etc. It absorbs moisture from the air. If you don't get the engine hot on every drive, the moisture will stay in the oil and form sludge.Oil gets contaminated by dirt, fuel, combustion by-products, etc. A will tuned engine with clean injectors can go much longer between oil changes than a typical engine. Many people (and most 3rd world car manuals) recommend trying to clean your air filter with compressed air or tapping it. Both procedures will allow much more dirt into your engine and require more oil changes and a shorter engine life. Some people will use oil coated performance filters that do not retain enough dirt.Oil filters fill up and then allow the dirty oil to pass through their by-pass valve to keep oil in the engine, even if it is dirty. There is no way to tell when it is full. There goes your oil change interval and engine life.I have a dozen delivery vans and small pickups, where I use my 8000 km rule. But I put Synthetic in my Grand Cherokee, and change it once a year, 15,000 km, or when the light comes on (whichever is first).
Is an Audi A4 with high mileage worth buying?
These are FANTASTIC cars and one of the BEST on the market! They will NOT RUST ever, and the AUDI engines are STRONG and worth the cost! HOWEVER, a NOVICE AUDI buyer is in for some SURPRISES< maybe! They can handle ABUSE, and LOTS of SPEED and even QUICK acceleration but they CANNOT handle the use of IMPROPER OILS or FLUIDS in them! You CANNOT USE VALVOLINE or other WAX based CHEAP oil in them! They MUST have VW/AUDI approved oils that have the spec numbers 502/505 PRINTED on THE LABELS! This means MOBIL ONE 0W-40, AMSOIL SYNTHETIC, PENNZOIL ULTRA EURO, 5W-40 and a HANDFUL of other ones! if you DETECT the presence of SLUDGE in an AUDI ENGINE< it MUST be De-sludged as these engines have OIL SPRAY JETS built into their ENGINE BLOCKS! They FOCUS CLEAN SYNTHETIC OIL on the PISTON WRIST PINS, and SKIRTS for HIGHER revving and COOLER running! NOW both FORD and GM are using this OLD technology pioneered by the GERMANS! ANY AUDI is worth buying, and ALL FLUIDS must be changed at 100k mile intervals! This is why SOME audis are CHEAPER than other ones! it all depends on whether they had their TIMING BELTS and WATER PUMPS changed yet! If an AUDI timing belt BREAKS before it is changed, it can be VERY PRICEY to repair! VALVES can bend! CLINT EASTWOOD has a FEW of them in his GARAGE! An AUDI wil last as LONG as it it properly CARED FOR! OI Choices are VERY IMPORTANT! use 1-800-ALL-AUDI, 1-800-ALL-EURO and BLAUFERGNUGEN as sources of parts for wear items and even TOOL rentals! A TIMING BELT KIT from CONTINENTAL is about a $250 KIT from BALUFERGNUGEN! this includes NEW FRESH AUDI ROSE coolant, and a genuine HEPU water pump! They also have TIE RODS, BALL JOINTS and other WEAR items like BRAKE PADS and ROTORS and they RACE test things out quite thoroughly FIRST! GOOD LUCK!!
Is it okay if I use engine oil rated 20W50 instead of the 5W30 oil stated in the vehicle manual since I live in a tropical location?
No, your engine is designed to pump the oil recommended at full working temperature which is around 100 deg C. The fact that your air temperature is around perhaps 30 deg C is irrelevent.Any 50w oil, whether 5w-50, 10w-50 or 20w-50 will be too thick at 100 deg C and will fail to flow as fast as the engine maker intends so will not carry heat away as well as the intended 30w.Furthermore, at start-up, the 15w-50 will be at least 10 times thicker than rthe 5w-30 and will pump so slowly you’ll get a high rate of engine wear even before the oil gets to temp.There’s a reason engines only lasted for at best 100,000 miles in the ‘70’s and it was because they used 20w-50, the 20w part causing extremely high wear before the oil was hot.Most if not all 5w-30’s are fully synthetic which can handle much higher temps than any mineral oil so high ambient air temps are simply not an issue. The 15 degree difference between the 15 deg C on a cold day in the UK, and the 30 deg C you might enjoy is literally irrelevant compared to the 300+ deg C the oil is good to.