Is there a better oil than Mobil 1 VW 502 spec

[Valpo A7]

Normally I use Mobil 1 502 spec but that was also before Covid and I was logging 35,000 - 40,000 miles a year and so the quality and price of Mobil 1 was a good choice. Now with Covid times I just am not putting the miles on the car. I work from home and so my wife takes the A7 to work and we will not put 10,000 miles on it this year.

I know the 3.0 needs anything VW 502 spec but I also not oils are created equal.

Oils that I can think of off the top of my head that I can get locally or for a reasonable price online are:

Castrol
Mobil 1 European spec
Valvoline European spec
Liquidmoly
Pentosin
Motul
Ravenol

When we bought the car it was dealer serviced so it had a steady diet of Castrol from the dealer. I remember an oil study that listed many of these oils and the Mobil 1 was better than Castrol which is why I made the switch. This last change I tried the Valvoline and it seems to perform as good as Mobil but its not easy to find locally.

Is there any on my list or others that I am not thinking of that would be better suited for the yearly change that I am gonna be doing?

[choy188]

I personally use motel 8100 xcess gen2

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[gk1]

I think it is all splitting hairs really, and everyone will have their own favorite.
Mobil1 is probably the most popular as you mentioned due to quality, availability and price.
2nd most popular is probably Liquimoly. (Who doesn't like to see "made in Germany" for their German cars.)
With the rest pulling up the rear.

Personally I use Motul.
I was using Motul Specific 502.00 505.01 but as time goes by Motul discontinues specific lines and incorporates them into others.
Some use the Motul 8100 x-cess as it is top-of-the-line however I noticed the x-cess is not 505.01 spec like the Specific was and instead have been using Motul 8100 x-clean (not gen2). Again, splitting hairs probably. Also probably makes damn near no difference at all, just offering my thought process.

Still others will tell you the 502/505 specs are obsolete now with 504/507 being much better.
From this chart it certainly looks that way, but I also know 504/507 oils can be hard to find in 5w-40 weight.
But still some will say you can use the 504 5w-30, I am just not in that camp.



There is also Amsoil which IMO is also excellent but does not get VW spec certs, they just say "exceeds" whatever spec.

[paul-g]

I think it is all splitting hairs really, and everyone will have their own favorite.
Mobil1 is probably the most popular as you mentioned due to quality, availability and price.
2nd most popular is probably Liquimoly. (Who doesn't like to see "made in Germany" for their German cars.)
With the rest pulling up the rear.

Personally I use Motul.
I was using Motul Specific 502.00 505.01 but as time goes by Motul discontinues specific lines and incorporates them into others.
Some use the Motul 8100 x-cess as it is top-of-the-line however I noticed the x-cess is not 505.01 spec like the Specific was and instead have been using Motul 8100 x-clean (not gen2). Again, splitting hairs probably. Also probably makes damn near no difference at all, just offering my thought process.

Still others will tell you the 502/505 specs are obsolete now with 504/507 being much better.
From this chart it certainly looks that way, but I also know 504/507 oils can be hard to find in 5w-40 weight.
But still some will say you can use the 504 5w-30, I am just not in that camp.



There is also Amsoil which IMO is also excellent but does not get get VW spec certs, they just say "exceeds" whatever spec.

i agree 100% i'm a castrol guy. i tried Amsoil and for the price just not worth it. When i had my BMW i was Mobile but noticed it used more oil between changes than Castrol so i've stuck with it ever since

[choy188]

i agree 100% i'm a castrol guy. i tried Amsoil and for the price just not worth it. When i had my BMW i was Mobile but noticed it used more oil between changes than Castrol so i've stuck with it ever since

+1 for Castrol as well, it's the OE oil so definitely can't go wrong there, after I switched to motul on my 4.2 C6 the chain rattle went away though so ive been using that ever since

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[Vinng86]

I've stuck with Castrol too. Helps that Costco basically sells it in large containers for cheap so you can literally change it as often as you'd like.

[Valpo A7]

Thanks. I am going to stick with the 502 spec 5W40 weight oil for my engine. At 209,000 miles a thinner oil might result in more oil consumption.

[fastboatster]

i agree 100% i'm a castrol guy. i tried Amsoil and for the price just not worth it. When i had my BMW i was Mobile but noticed it used more oil between changes than Castrol so i've stuck with it ever since

wasn't Castrol oil "demoted" from the official BMW engine oil? Lots of anecdotes that Castrol formulation was very susceptible to varnish formation. But I guess engine oil preferences are just that, preferences, any quality oil with appropriate certification would work in a street driven car.

[gk1]

wasn't Castrol oil "demoted" from the official BMW engine oil? Lots of anecdotes that Castrol formulation was very susceptible to varnish formation. But I guess engine oil preferences are just that, preferences, any quality oil with appropriate certification would work in a street driven car.

Audi also switched away from Castrol. Supposedly Mobil Super now. But I figured that was a contract/money thing.
Even if you buy replacement oil caps for models which were branded new from the factory with "Castrol" they are now blank.

[Cris_OO7]

My S6 blew its turbos while under Audi care they used Castrol oil so I grew a hatred towards that oil… lol I had to top off with Pennzoil and mobile 1. LM and Motul had the least oil consumption in my S6 sticking to those.


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[Brooklyn]

Good info. My local shop uses LM, but since my 85k service I’ve hit the minimum line twice and my top off oil via Costco has been M1. My S6 just crossed over the 90k mark.


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[gk1]

FWIW I'll be doing my 12th oil change today. (Only the first one was free dealer Castrol.)
After that Motul Specific 502 50501 and now the closely equivalent mid-SAPs ACEA C3 8100 x-clean (not gen2)
https://d23zpyj32c5wn3.cloudfront.ne...pdf?1492017081
https://d23zpyj32c5wn3.cloudfront.ne...pdf?1502098053
I had checked my turbos at about 35k miles and not a hint of play (Stage 1 for 20k+ miles at that point), so I will continue with this path.
I may cut and inspect my filter this time like qcrazy just for giggles, but I had poured some of my drained oil through a lab grade filter last time and there was nothing of note.
https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...ter-Inspection

[Valpo A7]

I see there is a blue and green bottle for the Liquimoly. Sorry I don’t remember the difference between them, can anybody provide that info?

[Alabama]

I see there is a blue and green bottle for the Liquimoly. Sorry I don’t remember the difference between them, can anybody provide that info?

In 2018 on AZ somebody wrote the following:

"What is the diff?

From the data on the ECS website the green is about $5.00 more for the 5L jug. It has a friction modifier added to it and the oil is green. Both cover the VW 502 and 505 cert but the green carries a few more certifications for other applications. "

[JWebb_C7_Comp]

Thanks. I am going to stick with the 502 spec 5W40 weight oil for my engine. At 209,000 miles a thinner oil might result in more oil consumption.

I’ve run and tested Castrol, LiquiMoly, and Pennzoil. Blackstone said they’ll all fine, to push next interval out to 7500 miles and test again. The only difference I’ve noticed is I did not need “make-up” oil with Pennzoil, but did with the others. If NAPA keeps offering 40% plus discounts, I’ll likely stick with that give that it doesn’t “burn off” as much.




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[JWebb_C7_Comp]

I’ve run and tested Castrol, LiquiMoly, and Pennzoil. Blackstone said they’ll all fine, to push next interval out to 7500 miles and test again. The only difference I’ve noticed is I did not need “make-up” oil with Pennzoil, but did with the others. If NAPA keeps offering 40% plus discounts, I’ll likely stick with that given that it doesn’t “burn off” as much.




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[paul-g]

I’ve run and tested Castrol, LiquiMoly, and Pennzoil. Blackstone said they’ll all fine, to push next interval out to 7500 miles and test again. The only difference I’ve noticed is I did not need “make-up” oil with Pennzoil, but did with the others. If NAPA keeps offering 40% plus discounts, I’ll likely stick with that give that it doesn’t “burn off” as much.




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i never get burn off on my car (surprisingly) Motul is one i was going to try but they have so many variations ...Liquid Moly was also another i was going to try but just didn't give me the warm and fuzzy feeling after reading up on it.

which Motul are you guys using?

[choy188]

i never get burn off on my car (surprisingly) Motul is one i was going to try but they have so many variations ...Liquid Moly was also another i was going to try but just didn't give me the warm and fuzzy feeling after reading up on it.

which Motul are you guys using?

I'm using xcess gen 2

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[A665]

I know that many owners have their own favorite oil that they swear by. What I don't know is if there's any meaningful difference between the many brands of motor oil. Yes, I'm sure some tiny differences can be detected upon scientific lab testing----but what's the real-world difference? I suspect none, or so very little that it is effectively no difference.

[Alabama]

What I don't know is if there's any meaningful difference between the many brands of motor oil.

This has been discussed in other AZ threads. My memory is that no one presented data showing one brand markedly superior to all others. The consensus opinion seemed to be to use whatever is available at the best price that still meets the appropriate Audi standard, and change it before it deteriorates.

[paul-g]

i think, just my 2 cents, that if you use a good brand of oil and change your oil according to your usage of the car you won't have any issues with any brands....know your car, if it seems to consume oil with one brand change it and see if that fixes it, change the oil weight they always give you 2 options. for me personally i do a lot of highway driving so i change my oil every 7,500 miles no matter what and personally i don't go beyond that i don't think oil filters can do enough past that point but that's just me and i have no proof otherwise it's in my head and that why i'm ok with it lol. if you live in texas or somewhere like that and it's blistering hot and you do all city driving...ya 3k would be my max. thats what i mean by change according to your driving.

[A665]

Yeah, I change oil at every 5k miles. Not because I know for a fact that the recommended 10k interval is bad, or too long, but just because I feel that it's a simple enough action for me to take to give myself peace of mind, no matter what oil is in the motor.

[JWebb_C7_Comp]

Yeah, I change oil at every 5k miles. Not because I know for a fact that the recommended 10k interval is bad, or too long, but just because I feel that it's a simple enough action for me to take to give myself peace of mind, no matter what oil is in the motor.

Guys, I know this may be controversial and personal. Like politics, running shoes and wine, we all need to make our own choices.

That said, I tried to let science guide me here. I don’t treat my tuned A6 well in that it’s often short-tripped, tuned and sometimes pushed really hard, but not tracked. That said, I think nothing of shifting at 7k rpms.

Dealer fill Castrol proved fine at 5k intervals, but needed”make-up” oil. LiquiMoly was fine at 6k miles but needed make-up oil. Pennzoil was fine at 6k and didn’t need make up oil.

I’m lazy and “frugal”. If the Pennzoil holds up to 7.5k miles without make-up and blackstone says wear metals and TBN are good, I’m not messing with oil choice any longer. My primary motivation is that (1) Napa sells it about once a month at 40-45% discount, (2) it doesn’t burn off and (3) the “science” says it’s OK.

Give my wife, son and soon, daughter, drive that car on occasion, my primary concern is NEVER being low or close to low if the car is pushed.

I suggest thinking about oils that don’t burn off on your personal cars and having them tested..

That said, I’ve broken tons of stuff on cars and they’ve never been due to oil. I just feel like if the car is short-tripped and sometimes beaten, I want oil that proves itself out to 7.5- maybe 10k miles.

Changing it a home is so inexpensive, however, my main concern is that the oil could be low and sone other driver will ignore that!!!


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