Wrong oil

[HustleRussell]

I serviced my friend’s car at the weekend, it’s a MkIV Ibiza with the ‘higher output’ 100bhp 1.4 16v engine. The handbook suggested a 5w-30 or 5w-40 oil and being that my friend is on a budget we opted for Shell Helix H7 part synthetic 5w-30 and as we were preparing it for an MOT retest I suggested that he might be best advised to change it annually at the same time as the MOT from now on (sooner than the handbook recommendation).

I have now noticed that all of the online lookup tools call up fully synthetic oils only for this engine. The grade we’ve used is correct, but it isn’t approved to VAG standards and it appears no semi synthetic oil is. I presume this enables VAG to extend service intervals?

How concerned should I be? If it were my own car I wouldn’t worry about it but being that it’s somebody else’s car I’m paranoid that there is some inherent reason why there is no manufacturer approved part synthetic oil for this engine?

[E-bmw]

I suspect you are correct in that it will not comply with the long life standards due to their expected longer service intervals.

I am sure it will be fine, especially if (as you said) he will be changing it annually anyway.

[George111]

HustleRussell said:

I’m paranoid that there is some inherent reason why there is no manufacturer approved part synthetic oil for this engine?

There is. Marketing and profit.

[HustleRussell]

I can see the point of fully synthetic if it's supposed to be an interval which equates much more than a year's motoring at average mileage. Typically I'd have no qualms about using semi synth otherwise. I just wondered if engines are somehow different these days requiring nothing but synthetic. Guess not.

It's reassuring to know though anyway, they're average mileage motorists so my recommendation of annual changes and good semi synthetic aren't 'wrong'.