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My TDI is now at 5000 miles, and per my personal preference I changed the oil. This thread is a DIY on how to change the oil, not when to change the oil. It is very simple with an oil extractor. Start to finish will take less than 20 minutes. This is a fast and simple way to change the oil and stay clean. I have tested oil extraction versus draining from the oil drain plug on my .:R32 and less than 1/2 ounce of oil remains in the pan on that vehicle after extraction and then draining through the pan.
You will need:
VW 507 approved oil 4.3 litres (4.5 quarts) per the supplement to the owners manual
Oil extractor (Griot's, Pella or similar)
Proper Oil filter and new O ring
Torque wrench
32 mm 6 sided socket (Pep Boys, $9.99, made in America, if you care)
Socket extension and wratchet wrench
Flat surface on which to park the TDI
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First, unless you have mechanics gloves, let the car cool for 30 minutes after driving. The oil filter housing is down in a hole with metal surroundings that get HOT.
Remove the plastic engine cover. It just pops off. Nicely done. You will see this:
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The oil filter housing is located just above the fabric cover hose to the lower right of the above picture. Closer up it has a 32 mm 6 sided bolt head:
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Once loosened the filter comes out with the housing. I suggest covering the hose with a towel/rag to keep the dirty oil from messing up the off white woven heat shield.
Here's the old filter in the housing:
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Note the small O ring on the filter extension. VW uses this same filter on a number of engines (including my .:R32). There is debate about whether to leave it on. It won't hurt anything to leave it on. Note that it came on the extension, installed from the factory. But it really is there to be used on housings that are underneath the engine and is used to replace a small O ring on a separate drain plug in some filter housing covers (those that hang under the engine, not on top). The hole that the filter extension goes down into has a bottom and no entry/exit point for the oil. The oil from the engine enters the filter housing from the side above the tip where the O ring is on the the extension. And the extension is solid, so no oil goes throught it anyway. Oil goes up through the center of the filter, gets filtered, and goes out the larger hole in the outer concentric ring in the bottor of the TDI metal filter housing. Here's the filter housing in the TDI. Note the deep well on the left side in the bottom where the oil goes to the engine. It holds a few ounces of oil:
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Here's the very similar metal filter housing in an .:R32 (from under the engine). The right side is where oil returns to engine in this example:
![]()
See that the hole the filter tip extension goes into is indeed, a dead end in both metal oil filter housings. That hole is 3 cm in diameter and the filter tip extension is a bit more that 1 cm and fits loosely in there. The O ring doesn't contact anything. The 3 cm hole contacts tightly the horizontal flat plastic "disc" on the end of the paper filter where there are 4 holes to let oil percolate up through the filter.
End of dissertion on why small O ring is not necessary (but certainly not harmful to leave on).
Now, continue the procedure:
Use oil extractor to suck out the oil from the filter housing. Wipe out any remaining oil with a disposable rag. Then put the oil extractor hose down into the dipstick tube:
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I removed a bit more than 4 liters with the extractor (each ring shows a liter on the extractor). When it is finished draining, the extractor makes a noise similar to sucking the last bit of a milkshake through a straw. Very satisfying.
![]()
Each line on the Griot's extractor (made by Pela pumps) is one liter. Pela makes a smaller one, too.
Change the large O ring on the filter housing. Then coat with clean oil. Some like to pour oil on the new filter after putting it in the housing to minimize oil starvation after starting the car. Reinstall the filter housing and torque to 25 Nm. It's stamped on the housing.
Refill with 4.3 litres of VW approved oil and check the level on the dipstick. My dipstick showed exactly full using the 4.3 litres. Note that Mobil 1 ESP 5W30 and the Castrol come in 1 litre bottles, which is different from typical American oil containers that are usually 1 quart (900 mL).
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When done, snap on the engine cover. Replace dipstick and oil fill hole cap. Don't forget to check the oil level after starting the engine, then turning it off and checking the level at least 3 minutes later (per the Bentley). I like to wait 15 minutes, or better for me, check it the next morning.
Take the used oil to your local recycling center. I am going to take it to a BP station. For years after the Exxon Valdez spill I took my oil to Exxon stations to have them dispose of it.
Hope this helps some folks, at the very least after your free routine maintenance expires.
Mobil 1 ESP 5W30 is available at Pep Boys.
You will need:
VW 507 approved oil 4.3 litres (4.5 quarts) per the supplement to the owners manual
Oil extractor (Griot's, Pella or similar)
Proper Oil filter and new O ring
Torque wrench
32 mm 6 sided socket (Pep Boys, $9.99, made in America, if you care)
Socket extension and wratchet wrench
Flat surface on which to park the TDI
First, unless you have mechanics gloves, let the car cool for 30 minutes after driving. The oil filter housing is down in a hole with metal surroundings that get HOT.
Remove the plastic engine cover. It just pops off. Nicely done. You will see this:
The oil filter housing is located just above the fabric cover hose to the lower right of the above picture. Closer up it has a 32 mm 6 sided bolt head:
Once loosened the filter comes out with the housing. I suggest covering the hose with a towel/rag to keep the dirty oil from messing up the off white woven heat shield.
Here's the old filter in the housing:
Note the small O ring on the filter extension. VW uses this same filter on a number of engines (including my .:R32). There is debate about whether to leave it on. It won't hurt anything to leave it on. Note that it came on the extension, installed from the factory. But it really is there to be used on housings that are underneath the engine and is used to replace a small O ring on a separate drain plug in some filter housing covers (those that hang under the engine, not on top). The hole that the filter extension goes down into has a bottom and no entry/exit point for the oil. The oil from the engine enters the filter housing from the side above the tip where the O ring is on the the extension. And the extension is solid, so no oil goes throught it anyway. Oil goes up through the center of the filter, gets filtered, and goes out the larger hole in the outer concentric ring in the bottor of the TDI metal filter housing. Here's the filter housing in the TDI. Note the deep well on the left side in the bottom where the oil goes to the engine. It holds a few ounces of oil:
Here's the very similar metal filter housing in an .:R32 (from under the engine). The right side is where oil returns to engine in this example:
See that the hole the filter tip extension goes into is indeed, a dead end in both metal oil filter housings. That hole is 3 cm in diameter and the filter tip extension is a bit more that 1 cm and fits loosely in there. The O ring doesn't contact anything. The 3 cm hole contacts tightly the horizontal flat plastic "disc" on the end of the paper filter where there are 4 holes to let oil percolate up through the filter.
End of dissertion on why small O ring is not necessary (but certainly not harmful to leave on).
Now, continue the procedure:
Use oil extractor to suck out the oil from the filter housing. Wipe out any remaining oil with a disposable rag. Then put the oil extractor hose down into the dipstick tube:
I removed a bit more than 4 liters with the extractor (each ring shows a liter on the extractor). When it is finished draining, the extractor makes a noise similar to sucking the last bit of a milkshake through a straw. Very satisfying.
Each line on the Griot's extractor (made by Pela pumps) is one liter. Pela makes a smaller one, too.
Change the large O ring on the filter housing. Then coat with clean oil. Some like to pour oil on the new filter after putting it in the housing to minimize oil starvation after starting the car. Reinstall the filter housing and torque to 25 Nm. It's stamped on the housing.
Refill with 4.3 litres of VW approved oil and check the level on the dipstick. My dipstick showed exactly full using the 4.3 litres. Note that Mobil 1 ESP 5W30 and the Castrol come in 1 litre bottles, which is different from typical American oil containers that are usually 1 quart (900 mL).
When done, snap on the engine cover. Replace dipstick and oil fill hole cap. Don't forget to check the oil level after starting the engine, then turning it off and checking the level at least 3 minutes later (per the Bentley). I like to wait 15 minutes, or better for me, check it the next morning.
Take the used oil to your local recycling center. I am going to take it to a BP station. For years after the Exxon Valdez spill I took my oil to Exxon stations to have them dispose of it.
Hope this helps some folks, at the very least after your free routine maintenance expires.
Mobil 1 ESP 5W30 is available at Pep Boys.
