freeman

As we all know, Audi changed their recommendation for the S4 to 0W30 (from 5W30 I think). Is 0W30 the factory fill then? And did we ever figure out if it was synthetic? Frankly, I've never seen 0W30 in non-sythetic form.

This whole thing with *not* using synthetic for the first 10K miles -- legacy oil theory that doesn't apply to the S4, or no? What would be the tell-tale symptoms present in a car that was filled with synthetic from mile-0 and never "broken in" with conventional oil?

Thanks!

G. Freeman

fairenough

...and I certainly don't claim to have the answers, but he owner's manual says something like "the engine comes from the factory with a special oil that is good for breaking-in the engine." I believe it also says that if the engine needs oil before the first scheduled maintainance, to use 0W30 synthetic OR petroleum based oil. That not being available, 5W30 is supposedly acceptable. That kind of confuses me because I always thought you didn't want to mix the two, and since they don't tell you which the factory put in, there's a big chance you'd be mixing synthetic with regular. It seems like most people on AW recommend 0W30 Mobil-1 synthetic for all oil changes. They claim it's better for the turbos etc. I'm only at 3300 miles, but I'm trying to decide if I should make the dealer put 0W30 Mobil-1 in at the 5K service. I don't think I've heard about this waiting till 10K for synthetic rule. Can anyone else shed some more light on this subject?

George Burdell

my manual, 2001, says it comes with 0W30 from the factory...

fairenough

...my car is in the shop so I can't go out and get the owner's manual, but I swear that I remember this being a big question of mine because the manual was not clear about what oil was in there. So did you put in 0W30 Mobil-1 at the 5K service and every oil change since?

golddog

OW30 Mobil1 at my 5K service, and just did 5W30 Mobil1 at my 10K.

fairenough

Why the switch? Seasonal? I thought 0W30 was OK to run year-round?

DAP@EPL

I'm at 13K now.

-Dave Pramanik

VonK :: Retired

.... microscopic protrusions from the machining process remain even on the smoothest finishes of its sliding surfaces. Braking in means to polish those protrusions away. That causes added frictional heat, and is the reason for going easy (low revs, low load, etc) for the first 1,000 miles. 15W-40 Mobil 1 is "too good" for break in, and would prolong the process, resulting in higher oil consumption at first. So, a light weight oil is filled at the factory, and it's really not relevant whether it is synthetic or not, because synthetic oils are compatible with whatever comes in the engine. Besides, the first fill of oil is replaced by the oil of your choice (Mobil 1 for me) at the 5k service.

BTW, braking in is not to sissy the car, but should be done lively through the gears with momentary bursts to higher revs under low load. It doesn't matter whether this is done with synthetic or conventional oil.

golddog

that they would install for the price diff of dino oil vs. the Mobil1. So I went for it. In the summer, the diff between 0W30 and 5W30 is very very small. In the winter months, it might make a slight diff (here in Minnesota). I plan to change in 5K miles to 0W30 anyway.

VonK :: Retired

The second value is for driving conditions. If you just commute, 30 is fine. For the track, I use 15W-50 in the summer.