Preferred oil type and weight...

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php/383410-Audi-oil-reference-all-you-ever-wanted-to-know

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php/429698-Refresher-what-oil-should-I-use-in-my-car

Check out the "VW 502/505" list for approved oils. The oils mentioned in the thread linked above have very good basestocks and are some of the best oils you can buy at neighborhood auto parts stores. Bobistheoilguy also has awesome threads on "best" oils.

Ultimately, it depends on how much oil your engine is consuming and how much you're willing to spend. I've never owned a V8 that didn't guzzle oil, so those always get cheap conventional. I like Shell Rotella T6 or Mobil 1 0w-40 in the S4/4k/V8 that don't burn oil.

EXCELLENT THANK YOU, like you saud, I think all v8q's burn there fair share of oil and mine is no different. But on top of that, I also have a small leak so i end up putting in about a quart every 600 miles or so, in small increments because im always scared of running too low. :frustrated:

this is very good info indeed, I understand the ratings were viscosity related but I did not know the numbers stood for the range of operating temperatures. I will probably start running oil with a greater gap in rating, say a 5w-40 or 5w-50 over a 5w-30 or a 10w-40 and so on.

And as a common/ amateur mistake I've always assumed the "W" stood for weight rather than "Winter" or the cold rating. I have been enlightened.

My 40v V8 and 20v I5 both love M1 0w-50

not v8 specific, but several autoX enthusiasts, also in the engine rebuilding business say they run 20w50 valvolline, and according to them, after a hot day or racing, oil pressure readings read higher than 5w40.
theres another member on here that runs 20w50, i think

Oilman from the S2 forum suggested to me, few years ago:

"With normal use, a good 10w-40 should be fine, for hard use go for a 10w-50/15w-50. Redline are very good oils and from California, so should be easy enough to get hold of."

I took his advice, 10w-40 for hot SoCal

I run 15w50 in the winter, the lifters seem to like the heavy oil. When it gets hot I'll go down to a 10w30. Usually just use mobil 1.

paradox11235 said:

I run 15w50 in the winter, the lifters seem to like the heavy oil. When it gets hot I'll go down to a 10w30. Usually just use mobil 1.

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That was always my regimen for my 20vt Audis. More recently, I tried Rotella T6 5w40 in both my 200 20v cars (one with 145k, and the other with 215k), and both seem to like it quite a bit. I'm not sure this is entirely relevant to the OP though, since my cars are 20vt.

EDIT: Actually, I was mixed up- I used to run 10w30 in the winter, and 15w50 in the summer. I'm sure either is "OK" either season.

Castrol syntec 5w40 all year round + a little lucas oil stabilizer in the winter for the ticky lifters

Where I live, it is very cold in the winter and very hot in the summer. So I'm assuming I should go with a higher spread in operating range. say the 0w-50, I guess I was just wondering if there is a limit on viscosity levels for any specific engine, and if over a certain level was not healthy. But I guess that would only be determined by the max temperature the engine would reach? so the CAPABILITY of an oil to achieve a higher threshold without breaking down would be a win-win, even if your engine never reached those temperatures?

Also, Is there a problem at the low end of the operating range? Should I use a 5w or a 0w in the cold?

Under further reading of the replies Ive came to the conclusion that COLD audis prefer a thicker cold operating temperature?

eurofinder said:

Under further reading of the replies Ive came to the conclusion that COLD audis prefer a thicker cold operating temperature?

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I don't think that's correct. Here's is an excerpt from the thread I linked previously:

So why does this matter? Well, for vehicles driven year round and across a wide range of temperatures, we want an oil that pumps quickly and protects well when it's cold, and still lubricates well when it's very hot. A 0w40 will do much better in cold temperatures than a 5w40, for example. A 20w50 will perform poorly at low temperatures versus a 5w40, but will do very well at high temperatures. A significant amount of engine wear occurs when the motor is very cold so we want maximum protection there.

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ahh i see, so a lower w# is better in the cold, thanks, thats where the confusion came from, i was assuming the lower the number, the thicker it was, but that has nothing to do with it.

you dont want to be putting 0w40 into your engine, the 0 is great for cold starts, but does not offer as great protection for the engine as lets say 5w40

i know there is a tech on here who works with modern vws, and just as an example, when the 2.5l vw came out in late 05, initially they recommended either 0w40 or 5w40, later they made 5w the spec

now another question, as i have a v8 as well, what is motorgeeks opinion of 100 percent sythetics, like motul, vs the synthetics that r not, like mobil 1?

Here's the current list, just for reference.

Oils that make this list can be considered "excellent" oils. You can be damn sure the German engineers are doing their homework.

I like the Rotella T6 5w-40. Sucks that's it's kind of pricey though.

i use rotella t6 in my urs4 too, i dont find it too pricy though. i pay 42.99 for a 5L jug. mobil one is around 55 a jug same with castrol ect. rotella is the cheapest of the syn oils ive ever bought.

Ah. Here you end up having to buy a gallon plus a couple quarts. I'm considering going back to dino oil and just changing every 3k miles.