Hello, Belgian chocolate lovers, VOA has just lowered the price for Belgian made <b>Castrol Syntec 5W-40</b> from $6.79 to <b>$4.66 per quart. That's cheaper than M1, and it's a VW approved oil with the elusive VW 502.00 spec. All US VW dealers carry this oil</b>. I saw a few used oil analysis on this oil, and they looked good. It's probably a Group III with some good esters. Definitely worth looking into, especially for the new price. Looks like VW is now, after the disastr and sludge issue in the 1.8T, adamant about people using VW 502.00 spec oil.

What's your preference between this and the M1 SUV 5w40?

I expect the M1 5W-40 to be the better oil (Group IV PAO and esters), but at Mobil's cost of about $5.40 per quart, the Syntec looks very tempting. Since it's offically pitched by VW and Audi, I expect the oil to be very capable.

It's a shame that Audi and VW have for years perpetuated a double standard when it came to oil requirements. Now that there are sludged engines, they are changing their requirements and insist on approved oil, or the warranty is voided. Thank God I don't have a warranty anymore. :-P

I hate going to Walmart.

They have to slash their prices (and the employees' benefits and wages) a bit more to tempt me. The next Walmart is also 30 miles away. ;-)

i have like 5

Castrol GTX7 DYNATEC (rebadged for US market)· SAE 5W-40 · übertrifft API SL/CF · ACEA A3/B3/B4 · VW-Normen 502 00 / 505 00 · BMW LongLife-98 · MB 229.3 · Porsche-Freigabe

right now I'm in with M1 15w50 synthetic (duh)... 5w40 seems like it might be a little friendlier for cold

since I'm in Kanata it's a little more difficult for me to get the stranger M1 &amp; Redline products. But it's possible this Castrol will prove easier to get. tia

check yah later

How cold does it get where you are?

If you see mostly freezing temperatures, go with M1 0W-40 or Castrol SLX 0W-30 (make sure it's the A3-rated version). Cold starts are brutal on the engine, and I'd really opt for a 0W-X oil.

But not while driving! ;-)

Once.

BTW, Castrol says there are a few Syntec grades that meet VW 502, not sure of the availability everywhere. I just put some 10w40 in.

On another oil related note, while I was buying the Castrol I noticed they also had a Havoline full synthetic for under $4.00/qt.

Here's a link to the Castrol site, click on Grades for the ratings.
<a href="http://www.castrolusa.com/products/productpager.asp?product_id=4&product_category=1#">castrol</a>

Here's a link to Havoline. It looks like the 5w40 could be a viable option. I know mori wants to download the MSDS and give it a thorough going over. ;-
<a href="http://www.havoline.com/products/na/motoroil_smo.html">havoline</a>

Around 5 bucks per quart is a tad high for any Group III oil (hydrocracked dino oil, known as semi-synthetic oil elsewhere), which almost all grades of Syntec are. Mobil will sell you a true Sythetic (Group IV) for the same price.

I've never come across Havoline 5W-40, but it has nice specs, including VW 502.00.

So, how do you know what's a group III and what's a group IV, and where do the so-called 'synthetic blends' fall?

but I haven't been listening. I checked the dipstick this weekend after about 1500 miles and it was halfway between the Max and Min lines. About a 1/3 of a quart that I had in my trunk brought it up most of the way. I'll probably top it off this weekend and continue monitoring. How's that compare to your experience?

consumption started out higher (cleaning effect?) with the new oil and is now tapering off. Right now consumption seems to be around 0.25 qt/1k miles.

and can dip as low as -10 to -20*c or be as high as +15*c....

so then the 5w40 isn't really applicable for those temps eh. Isn't that the weight you run year round?

I may haveta make trips to Bellingham for oil then

check yah later

Mobil was the company that sued Castrol over calling hydrocracked mineral oil "synthetic," and Mobil lost in court.

Supposedly Mobil uses a small amount of mineral carrier oil as a carrier for the additives. You won't even get the same information from Mobil each time you ask them.

The Drive Clean oil are blends, and Mobil states that.

Based on specs you can usually tell if an oil is Group I, II, III, or IV.

Group I and II are mineral ("dino") oil, made from crude oil.

Group III oil is also made from crude oil, it is made by hydrocracking mineral oil for a more uniform oil molecule size. A good Group III oil approaches the quality of a Group IV oil. Group III oils can be called "synthetic" in the US, but not in other parts of the world. There they count as semi-synthetic.

Group IV oil are generally synthesized from ethylene gas.

Exotic stuff like esters can be derived from vegetables. Red Line and Neo use large amounts of esters in their oils, some may be made only from esters.

M1 oils are group IV (with the possible exception of a small quantity of mineral oil as carrier oil). Some Mobil oils seem to contain esters, most notably commercial grade Delvac 1 and its consumer product clone M1 5W-40.

All oils are blended to meet certain criteria. In the end, a good additive package is probably more important than the base oil.

Well, for me it is. I barely ever see 0 degrees C here. :-P

Both, M1 15W-50 and M1 5W-40 have the same pour point of -45 degr. C. M1 0W-40 has a pour point of -54 degr. C. Pour point shows that the oil will still "move" at that temperature, but it doesn't mean your pump can actually pump it.

M1 5W-40 is truly an all season oil. I'd keep using it even during the winter, unless you see less than -10 degrees all the time. Then I'd go with a 0W-X oil instead.