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1st Synthetic Oil Change new owner engine flush STP before change?

4K views 9 replies 8 participants last post by  Emry 
#1 ·
Hey, purchased my Passat B5.5 a few months back now I am going to have my first synthetic oil change since I have owned the car. I did have a quick oil change after I bought the car but I know it was not VW spec oil. Should I have a Flush additive before the change? I want to be sure to start off as a clean slate and maybe if there is any build up this would be a good idea??
 
#2 ·
If there are issues with your engine, an additive like that won't make a difference. You should refill with proper oil asap. Without hooking up an oil pressure gauge, you can't really know if there are any issues. If a non-synthetic oil was used for a longer period of time, you can safely bet that you do have a sludge issue. One improper oil change? I would think you're ok. Are you experiencing any rattling inside the valve cover? Or any other issues? If there are issues, the only proper way to start with a "clean slate" is to drop the pan and inspect/clean the oil pump pick up screen, but that's a lot of work and may not be necessary.
 
#3 ·
Well I have no idea what the previous owner put in either synthetic or regular oil. The car has 102K and was well maintained, I have no SEL or other lights on the dash as far as low oil , The car runs very well at this time. If this additive wont make a difference then I guess it will be no harm to add this unless you recommend a different additive, and then start replacing at regular intervals with synthetic. No rattling inside the engine compartment that I can hear and I have been driving with windows down and have listened to the engine at idle and it seems very smooth.
 
#4 ·
There is no way you can run this engine for 100k on non sythetic oil and not have oil pressure issues. So I would assume it was serviced properly. No, that additive probably won't hurt, but if there is some oil crud inside the pan, it won't dissolve it. Some will argue that products like, if they actually do work and do help break off some build up, it will actually cause the pick up tube to suck in those deposits and plug up the screen. I think that's a valid point to consider.
 
#5 ·
If you are worried have the oil pressure checked by a shop . You want real numbers , not just it's OK !
If the idle and 20000 rpm pressures are good there should be no problem .'If you want to know what the pressures should be search this forum . The question has been asked many times .
 
#6 ·
So, you are relying on a video in which the guy doesn't even know the correct jacking points on the Passat? And he had to stop and restart his video to correct his procedure a few times. Not to mention all of his tools are spanking new except for his ratchet, so how many oil changes has he done??
Synthetic oils generally do a good job of cleaning with the additive package the manufacturers include. Will they clean coked on sludge? No, but neither will the engine flush.
 
#7 ·
Just leave the additive out.

The only "flushing" regimen that has any sort of reputation here is AutoRx. It has a very specific cleaning procedure and it involves more than just adding a bottle of stuff and changing in 5k miles.

Do your next change with the proper full-synth 502 00 5W40 oil and call it a day.


Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
 
#9 ·
This is not essential, but many of us use the Mann-made Purolator L40316 or a similar oversize oil filter because it increases the oil capacity by about 10% and the increased surface area makes the oil run about 5 degrees cooler. It is a bit of a pain to remove and replace, but not bad once you get the hang of it. (For whatever reason, my son's B6 generation A4 with AMB 1.8T has more filter clearance than my B5 generation Passat with AUG 1.8T.) Remove the air hose from the throttle body, remove the mounting screws to move the coolant recovery tank, and throw a plastic bag over your old oil filter before putting on the band wrench to unscrew it.

Regarding your question about STP, when you drain the oil watch for oil coke pellets, which we affectionately call "turbo turds" around here. You can also do a postmortem on your old oil by cutting the old filter open and checking for coke pellets in its internal paper element. If the oil looks discolored but otherwise clean, don't bother with any additives. Otherwise, consider using Auto-RX and following the instructions. If you have a lot of pellets, get the oil pressure test mentioned above. (That last item is probably a good precautionary idea, anyway.)
 
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