synthetic oil bliss

[Bryan Rodgers]

  I've always used synthetic oil, and I always recommend to others others.

I have a friend who's owned a 1997 VW GTI 8V since new, he's always used
synthetic oil. Last oil change he switched from Mobil 1 10-30, to Castrol
5-50 thinking it would be easier on the car a start-up. I would agree. But,
a few weeks ago he started getting lifter noise at idle once the motor
warmed up!? Turns out the oil wasn't think enough when hot... ...he switched
back to 10-30, and the problem has been fixed.

weird huh?

B
1986 Audi 4000s


-----Original Message-----
From: rplines at pacifier.com
To: quattro at audifans.com
Sent: 10/18/00 12:01 PM
Subject: synthetic oil bliss

I've probably heard listers say it a thousand times: "Mobil 1 at every
oil change".

 Well I finally listened.
I am the proud owner of an '86 4kq with 196,000 miles.  I've owned the
car for around

5 years and during that time, I have replaced the hydraulic lifters not
once, but

twice.  Throughout, I have had intermittent lifter noise.  I'm not
talking about

a couple of clicks at cold start.  This was more like someone banging on
the head

with a ball peen hammer!  The noise would sometimes suddenly begin when
the engine

was fully warmed up, but always go away again after several minutes. It
was usually

only one lifter at a time and would move from lifter to lifter.
Needless to say,

this was very annoying...  Especially when trying to convince my friends
about the
merits of "superior German engineering"
Up until a few weeks ago, I figured using synthetic oil was probably a
good idea

for a turbo motor, but not really necessary for a plain old 10V
non-turbo motor.

 I owned an older 5k going strong at 230,000 miles before I bought the
quattro. 

That motor never got synthetic oil.  Although this is probably more a
testament to

the Audi I-5 motor than any difference in the oil.
So I thought, what the heck, I'll put some Mobil 1 in the car and see
(or should

I say hear?) what happens.  Well, I don't hear anything.  NOTHING!
Ahhh... Sweet

silence.  It has been four weeks and I have not heard a peep from the
lifters, not

even at cold start.  My quattro doesn't sound like an old sewing machine
anymore!
 I'm never buying conventional oil again.


-Peter