Engine Oil For Diesel

[NISAR1]

Hi everyone,

I have a VW Bora 150PD 2003 plate and wanted to know if you can mix different makes of engine oil. I have 2 cans of semi synthetic 5w-40 one is a Millers oil semi synthetic the other is Comma fully synthetic.

Also what is the difference in semi and fully synthetic which is the best of the two?

Thanks

[BRIGHT SPARK]

Mixing oils of the same weight/viscosity wont cause a problem but mixing mineral and synthetic past a certain ratio could be problematic ...especially if you need to claim against the warranty.Semi is blended with mineral oil and fully synthetic is considered better for some engines.However a lot of older engines were not designed for synthetic so check your service book.

[BlueToffee]

You need to know what type of oil you already have in the reservoir.as BS says! not a good idea to mix. Google 'which oil for my car?' And you will get your answer.

I have a 1.6 VW diesel, and I use Shell Helix 5/30 synthetic.

May I also suggest that you carry a spare litre in the boot as VWs have a reputation for using oil faster than other models.

[WELSHYORKIE]

BT - I am driving a VW Golf Estate 1.6 diesel mileage 72000 and apart from scheduled service, I have not had to put a drop of oil in it.

[NISAR1]

Thanks for the replies I found out that the car required long life engine oil but it was too late as the mechanic had already placed the fully synthetic oil into the engine. I will remember next time when it is due an oil change it had semi synthetic in before and have had no issues.

Thanks again

[Graham-W]

BT Ihave a Skoda Superb with the 1.9TD VW engine. It's done 165,000 miles and doesn't need topping up between 10,000mile services.
On fully synthetic BTW.

[richtee]

Hello,
just a word of caution regarding the oil to use in your car. Your post suggests you have what is known as the "PD" engine in your vehicle. If so, make sure you buy the oil as specified by VW- these engines have an individual injector pump for each cylinder, driven off the camshaft. The oil has to withstand higher shear forces with this arrangement, and the oil spec takes care of this -the specs are shown in the handbook as 505. 01 I think from memory- this is if you do 5 to 6000 mile oil changes. For higher mileage changes, 506. 01 is the one to use. Here is one link with some useful info for you regarding this subject- Google is your friend for more info.

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/?t=15877

hope this helps.