Best oil?

What's the best oil to use for the VW engines? I have a 1776cc.

Oh- and how often are you guys' changing the oil/filter on these?

It's my first air cooled engine. And my first VW engine. They really are a whole different breed. I was born into a Ford family and I have had nothing but Ford/ Mercury classics myself.

John, this topic has been discussed ad nauseum here and everybody has a favorite oil, 20 W 50, straight 30W, mineral, synthetic and on and on and on, if you get my drift. Try a search of the forum and if you need more info, post again.

Many of the guys do routine service at 3,000 mile intervals including the oil change. I suspect that your car does not have a filter per se, but rather a screen in the sump that should be cleaned when you change the oil.

I suggest that a good primer and reference for taking care of your car is the John Muir book, How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive. It covers what to do and when; it is written an illustrated so well that even a feckless tuner like me can follow it. You may also want to keep a copy of the Bentley's manual on your bookshelf. Good information is to be found in both.
Hoss
ps. If you go to the "Library" tab at the top of the page, you will find links so that you can obtain either or both.

Along with John Muir's book, the Bug Me Video (VW Maintenance, etc DVDs) series is a great collection to own.

Great. Thanks you guys.

I used the search function and in the discussions I looked at I could not seem to find an answer that most agreed with. Does the Muirs Manual have information on Oil?

Yes, old school. 30W seems to be what John liked. Many would not agree with that answer. I use 20 W 50 Castrol in summer and 10 W 40 in the winter in our bug. JMHO.

VW recommends straight 40W for hotter/tropical climates. That's what I use in mine. Others swear by synthetics that offer some advantages too. Since I've read some articles by some of the most knowledgeable VW folks question the appropriateness of synthetics on air cooled engines I've chosen to just stay with petroleum based. Also, if you change your oil every 3,000 miles (like you're supposed to) it doesn't make sense to spend that much extra money on synthetic.

I would only add one other thing concerning synthetic oil: My motor (2175cc) runs significantly cooler on synthetic oil than on mineral oil. If you have concerns about high oil temps, synthetics can give you peace of mind in that regard. I've used Amsoil, Mobil 1, and Castrol and believe my motor has lived longer (15 yrs) because of the synthetic oil.

Tom

Thank you for your opinions. What do the engine builders use?

In my case it was Valvoline 10W for the first few miles while breaking in. In fact, even prospective synthetic oil users should use regular 10W, and if possible non-detergent oil while breaking in. Then switch to whatever you'll use eventually.

Even as a loyal synthetic oil user, I absolutley agree with Ricardo as to using regular oil when breaking in a new or rebuilt motor, even if you plan to use sythetic, This has been demonstrated in many tests since the appearance of synthetics on the market.

Tom

Buy what makes you happy.