I was trying to do change my oil myself for the first time today and I had a friend help me.

I currently use Mobil 1 5w40 and my friend was surprised to see that it's for turbo diesel trucks. I told him that in the forums most people used 5w40, 5w30 and 0w40. He suggested using 0w40 since Mobil 1 says that it's for their european car formula, except the bottle didn't list Audi on the back, but it did list VW. He also said that it's probably better to stick with the same oil type.

What are you thoughts on switching between oil weights? I know the manual says it can use 0w30, 5w30 and 5w40.

 

My Audi dealer use 5w40 fully synthetic.

 

You can switch to any wieght you want in the same brand with no problems. If you do a 'flushing change' you can switch to any brand or type you want, no problems.

personally I would stick with the Mobil 5w-40. I love this oil. And, its the exact same SH/SM rated 5w-40 that was on the Audi list all the way to 2004-5 or so. Only current EPA regulations prevent them from labeling it 'car' oil, but, if you read the bottle, it still says 'SM' rated.

 

crap, i didn't get a response in time and since it was one of the few times i'd be able to use my buddy's driveway, i went the safe route and switched to mobil 5w30... not sure what a 'flushing change' is though...

i noticed some sludge on the oil cap and a little bit on the dipstick... what can i use to clear up some of that sludge? i change my oil every 5k miles...

oh.. and i keep reading about how mobil 1 isn't 100% synthetic but some of the bottles say fully synthetic... who do i believe?

 

Its synthetic... NO 'synthetic' oil is actually synthetic, just dino oil modified in a lab. There are different levels of modification, and this is whats in dispute.

A flushing change is when you use a very light, high detergent oil like 0w-20 and idle the motor for 20-30mins after its warm then drain. It'll help flush out the old oil, and alot of crap outta the engine.

 

gotcha.

so did i just screw myself by not flushing out the oil and just going from 5w40 to 5w30?

 

Naw... your good. Did you keep it Mobil or switch brands? Just curious.

 

i stuck with Mobil only because Advance Auto Parts didn't give me many choices.

i regularly change my oil every 5k miles but after yesterday i think i can probably push that a bit more... my oil was more brown than black....

 

a... for the most part color doesnt determine the time anyways.

 

yea synthetic oil is weird, it doesnt change color like dino does. the only way to tell is to run a viscosity test which you need a special tester for that. anyway keep in mind your turbos and turbo seals get lubed by the oil and if you dont change frequent enough then is really bad for your turbos and causes premature wear.