1.8T sludge problems

[JordanVw at aol.com]

fwd from the passat list...

Subj:   Re: [vwpassat] "Oil Sludge" Warranty Extension  
Date:   9/3/04 11:13:39 AM Eastern Daylight Time    
From:   oekawka at engin.umich.edu 
Reply-to:   vwpassat at yahoogroups.com    
To: vwpassat at yahoogroups.com    
Sent from the Internet (Details)    
    


I just wanted to add a few items:

1) I would assume that those of us with the older versions of the B5 1.8T,
i.e. 1998, 1999 and on to ??? with the original 10 yr, 100k mile
warranties should be covered for 10 years (not 8 years) as long as the
mileage is under 100k. On the other hand, as per the 'extended warranty',
even if I have over a 100k miles on the car, as long as it is within the
referenced 8 year period, the oil sludge problem should be covered.

2) What is not clear is what the actual meaning of the 'new oil
recommendations' for only synthetic means.
    a) Does it mean  that ONLY synthetic should be used in 1.8T
engines?
    b) When is it effective? ie. when we receive the letter or when?
    c) If you don't use synthetic from now on, whatever the hell that
means, do you void the 'extended warranty'? How about the original
10yr/100k miles warranty? I would think that the latter would be very
difficult from a legal and practical aspect, since even the dealers were
always filling with dino oil and who is to say that at what point any
'sludge' was actually created.
    d) The actual letter that was received seems to be very vague on
the above aspects. Either it was done purposely so to afford VW the
opportunity to 'modify' its position as necessary to minimize its costs
with respect to warranty work AND/OR they really didn't think this thing
out thoroughly - maybe it was somebody in marketing that came up with the
'extended warranty'  ;-)

Regardless, since I have a 98 Passat 1.8T, I find myself really wondering
what this all means. I have not as yet had an 'oil sludge' problem, but I
only have ~71k miles on it.(I do have the original 10year/100k warranty).
While I had the free maintenance on the car, the dealer always changed the
oil - probably dino/non-synthetic. After that, I always changed my oil and
probably always used a Valvoline SynBlend (blend of synthetic and dino)
10W-30W or 10W-40W, depending on the season, which fulfilled the ORIGINAL
VW requirements for oil. (I have noticed that alot of my receipts for the
oil have faded to unreadable in the years though.) I still have a good
receipt for the VW oil filters that I purchased in bulk, though.

So...(Phil specifcally) what does this really mean for my warranty. Do I
HAVE to use synthetic effective now?

If I don't, does this mean the one or both warrranties will be void?

Even if I do use it now, can VW argue that since my other oil changes were
not synthetic, the warranty doesn't apply?

The funny thing is, if I remember the letter correctly, the synthetic oil
was a RECOMMENDATION, not a REQUIREMENT, but I could be wrong.

Hmmmm....that VW letter does not seem to have been well thought out.

Orest

On Fri, 3 Sep 2004, Phil Teves wrote:

> Hello again Folks,
>
> First, the "warranty extension" is for all B5 1.8T's in the Passat or
> Audi A4. It is 8 years (from the cars "in service" date) with no
> mileage limitations.
>
> The only criteria that needs to be met is that you can substantiate
> doing all of the required oil change services on your particular car.
>
> For those of you who may be the second or subsequent owner of a Passat,
> there are post paid cards in the warranty booklet of your delivery
> portfolio to register you as the new owner. You should send them into
> VW.
>
> To clarify one of my previous posts, the "sludge" appears to be
> generated by the oil coking due to the high heat of the turbo. The
> synthetics have a better tolerance.
>
> If you've had engine repairs (that may have been related to sludge)
> done prior to this "warranty extension", and have paid for them "out of
> warranty", you may be able to get reimbursed by VW for these repairs.
> In my experience these repairs have been covered in/out of warranty, so
> there might not be many folks affected, but I can't speak for all
> dealers. Some are just not very good advocates for their customers once
> the car's out of warranty.
>
> Lastly, there is no immediate need to go to your dealer unless you have
> a problem.  If you want to switch to synthetic immediately, you can.
>
> --
>
> Regards,
>
> Phil Teves
> Internet Sales Manager
> Mattie Imports, Inc.
> 80 William S. Canning Blvd.
> Fall River, MA 02721
> Websites: http://mattievw.com and http://mattieaudi.com
> Phone: 1.508.678.5555 extension 217
> Fax: 1.508.675.5320
> E-Mail: philteves at worldnet.att.net