Is VW 506.01 oil fine for a DPF Diesel?

Short version:

My B7 A4 2.0 TDi 170 DPF was serviced and filled with VW 506.01 oil instead of VW 507.00. Specialist says it is perfectly fine, manual says only VW 507.00 will be fine for DPF, what does everyone here say?

Long version:

After reading a few posts about how you might be better off going to a VAG specialist to get your vehicle serviced in terms of money and quality, I built up enough courage and thought I’d give the local Guildford one a go.

I called a couple of times with questions on price and the points covered in this service (36,000 miles, so brake fluid, oil and filters). They said they do everything to manufacturer specification and that they only use approved oils and original parts, all from same suppliers as Audi garages themselves, they just do the work at a lower cost. So thought fine, I’ll give it a go.

I got the car back on Thursday from being serviced by the specialist and thought that was it. My next job was to put the remaining oil they gave me into the bottle I already have at home, I then noticed that the oil they used was VW 506.01 as opposed to the VW 507.00 I have been topping up with. The manual says only use 507.00 for engines with DPF fitted.

Audi round the corner say they only use 507.00 across the diesel range, but failed to give me any explanation as to what the difference is between the oils, and what the harm would be using the non-DPF recommended longlife oil. They said “this is what we get sent, this is what we use”. So if Audi only use 507.00, then I thought the specialist, who conforms to manufacturer standard, should have used the same oil.

I drove down and asked the head guy why the car was topped up with VW 506.01 instead of 507.00 as the handbook says. For the next 15 minutes of arguing, he insisted that VW 506.01 was fine and that was it. He said VW 507.00 had more detergents in it to clean the engine but would subsequently throw all the dirt out and clog the oil and DPF sooner than the VW 506.01 would. He said he would never put anything in the car to damage it, if there were any issues, I would be the first person ever to have had something go wrong because of this, and that the oil difference makes absolutely no difference and will not harm the vehicle in any way.

After some more discussion I ended up making him write down the oil specification on the service sheet if he was so sure nothing would go wrong, I told him I did not want to get stuck in a situation where my car has seized up somewhere and subsequently have him and his garage deny this “mistake” and deny this conversation took place, forcing me to fork out for their negligence. He assured me there would be no issues and that if there was any hint of anything going wrong, to bring it straight back to him and they would sort it out. He gave me a small tour and showed me some engines and explained to me why it would be fine and what difference they made etc… He can see the Audi-sport.net sticker clearly on the car, so he can be sure if he is wrong, a lot of people will know, he seemed VERY confident and assured me it was a perfectly safe oil to use.

The oil number is now written on the sheet, but the oil is still in the car. What do you guys think? Will it be fine? Was he right to say Audi only print VW 507.00 across the range to simply supersede the old oils and replace them? What is the risk of having this oil in there for the next 18,000 miles (as per the display)?

I have never posted a query before, and over the weekend I logged on to this site to ease my worries, but got a “database error”… needless to say, some sleep was lost… now I feel in control again...

Thanks in advance
J

I can't do anything about the CC payment as it has already gone through.

When I initially requested they change the oil to match the manual spec, that's when the whole argument started. He insisted there was no point as 506.01 was perfectly fine. He then rested his elbows on the desk and said nothing with a big smile. Basically it didn't matter what I said, he wasn't going to change the oil.

As a specialist, I would think he'd know better of the two of us, the only argument I had was "Audi manual says" and "Audi garage use". It was getting a bit frustrating when he kept insisting it was fine instead of saying "no problem, you want 507.00 we'll put 507.00".

Is there any way of protecting myself if this does cause problems further down and he "shrugs" and denies the conversation and advising me to stuck to this oil?

Does anyone know the long term effect of using 506.01?

Is there any way to persuade him to change it without causing trouble? I have a feeling he will simply say no and smile, or tell me "no problem" and charge me for an "unnecessary" extra oil change.

Is there an entity that he has to register with to be a VAG specialist, because I could call them up and ask what their oil opinion is, and tell them he's not complying if it is indeed harmful to the engine?

Ok, I've called up Audi and they said they will email across the following points which were mentioned over the phone:

- The vehicle has a DPF and VW 507.00 is the ONLY oil used for this engine type and is the only oil used in for Audi Servicing
- VW 506.01 produces a higher ash content that will clog the DPF and will not allow it to regenerate as fast or at all depending on the type of driving
- If the Specialist claims to comply with Audi servicing standards, Audi do not use VW 506.01, only VW 507.00
- Any problems caused by use of incorrect oil will invalidate the warranty (engine warranty I guess in this case)
- 0.5 l of 506.01 can only be used in case of emergency

Called the CC people and they say they cannot withhold it as it had already gone through.

Once the email comes in, I'll drive down and kindly request they change it for my peace of mind/ to comply with manufacturer specifications as they advertise to people.

If this doesn't go smooth, I'll just post the name of the place so people know what to expect from this specialist. I think I'll be looking for a different one now anyway.

Thanks for your help, I'll post an update when this is (hopefully) over and done with!

Ok, the specialist took my chasis number and made a few phonecalls to his suppliers to see what engine oil they should be sending him, and they said they would provide either, which sounds more like they are washing their hands on the case as opposed to supporting one or the other.

Either way, we had a good conversation about this and the guy is geniunely nice and supportive. He said the oil would be fine and that he would get it changed if I noticed any problems or in 5000 miles anyway to 507.00, which I said was fine with me. Everything is in writing from Audi and on the receipts so I have myself covered.

On a related note, Audi have said they would not be able to prove the incorrect oil was used if anything happens to the engine, so it would be difficult to void the warranty.