Oil changing intervals for w202 220cdi

[Pzd]

Hi!

I would like to hear from you about the oil changing interval sugested by the car (about 20t km / 12.5t mil).

For a diesel engine is it not too much?

Now I'm using Castrol TXT 10w40 but I bougth for next service Mobil 1 Turbo Diesel 0W40.

I want to maintain the car for a long time, what interval should I follow, since my car has 155t km (96t mil)?

Thanks in advance!

PZD

 

[tom7035]

My personal opinion is that the manufacturer knows best. However, I must admit I always change my engine oil a little sooner than recommended. It certainly does no harm to change it earlier rather than later, but it's a personal decision.

 

[turnipsock]

It does sound a lot of miles for a diesel engine. I remember having a diesel company car that had to have an oil change every 6000 miles. Because I was doing lots of miles it was in the dealers every three months!

There is no harm in changing the oil more often, it just means it costs you more in running costs.

I tend to use 5000 miles as my service intervals instead of 6000 miles. It's easier to keep track.

 

[tom7035]

Up-to-date synthetic oils do last much longer than the now old-fashioned mineral oils, but it's difficult to change the habits of a lifetime. I recall my 'Paw' used to change his every 1000 miles, and the engine needed a de-coke every 10,000!

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

Oil change intervals on modern MB models are supposedly governed by the ASSYST on-board ECU monitoring system. With modern oils and high mileage drivers 16K plus miles appears possible before the service indicator prompts a service.

I do a lot of mixed driving and only cover about 8K a year in my 320CDi and have decided that I will change the oil with semi synth at every MOT. I feel more comfortable with this although the service indicator would probably go over 12K with my type of use. If I did high miles and longer runs I would be prepared to go more with the ASSYST system indication.

 

[MW]

OIl is cheap, engine expensive. In the total lifetime costs, you are talking maybe £100 in extra oil. Every 6000 miles I reckon.

 

[Rory]

My C270CDi will have done about 18,500 (pretty well all long motorway runs) before it has it's first service, when it'll be about 15 mths old. I've never even put a drop of oil in it - I'm quite miffed that I bought 5L for topping up and have never opened it!

I rang my local dealer to enquire about getting the oil changed early and they seemed to think I was mad - apparently I'm to obey ASSYST. I'm not too worried as I intend to sell at 3yrs old, but i do wonder what the oil must be like - there isn't even a dipstick now to enable me to feel to oil.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

I had to do about 500 miles over Christmas so I thought I'd check the oil level. The dipstick indicated that the oil level had dropped slightly so I added 0.5 litre. This must have topped the oil up just above the max mark on the dipstick. On the first long run after topping up the 'reduce oil level' warning appeared on the dash. I knew how much oil I had added so I wasn't unduly bothered but it shows how sensitive the level indicator is.

I would imagine due to damage to cats etc that MB have decided in their wisdom that we as owners are better off not topping up the engine oil because of over filling.

The on-board computer now tells you if the engine requires topping up, and by how much, hence the absense of dipsticks. It must be strange to rely on a computer to do this, if it didn't we all know the outcome.

Computers obviously will take over the world, lol!

 

[Rory]

The on-board computer now tells you if the engine requires topping up, and by how much, hence the absense of dipsticks. It must be strange to rely on a computer to do this, if it didn't we all know the outcome.

There is a hidden menu though (at least on my W203) that shows the actual oil level. Last time I checked mine was 5.8L. It's supossed to hold 6.5L, but was on 6.2L when I got it (at 6000 miles). I gather it will tell me when it needs 1L?

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

I think mines got an oil check function when the cars stationary and engine off. As yet I've not used this facility so I don't know what sort of read out it gives. I'll have to give it a try and see if it measures the oil as yours does it takes 7.5l inc filter. Mines an 00 reg so you may have a more sophisticated computer on yours.

Thanks for the info Rory.

 

[Rory]

As normal, it will just display OK, for the oil level.
There's some info on the hidden menu here: http://www.buellwinkle.com/dynomode2003.pdf

Although mine's a 2005 model year C270 the same procedure works. I found it a bit fiddly the get the procedure right - especially pressing the reset button 3 times *before* the SRS indicator goes out. I think you also have to have the display showing total mileage before you start - change the display to that, then take the key out and start the procedure.
This facility may not exist on your car model/year.

 

[tamrsoft]

Give me a good old dipstick everytime, the only time you can make a mistake then is if you are blind. With MB electronics being so unreliable, how do you really know if you have the correct level. Overfilling and ruining an expensive CAT is a real possibility, MB will be telling you next their engines are now 'Sealed for Life'.

 

[Wezzel]

I tend to take my car into my local tyre shop (who often have special offers on oil and filter) half way between services at approximately 6.5k miles.

The last change I had was for Mobil 1 and cost a princely £34.99.

At that price it's silly not to.

 

[Pzd]

Ok, after all this opinions the conclusion I get is "I should follow the ASSYST on-board ECU monitoring system and change the oil when it tell's me to"

Is there any hidden menu on the w202?

PZD

 

[oilman]

It depends on the quality of the oil being used and the TXT is a semi-synthetic.

Fully synthetic = 12000 miles
Semi-synthetic = 6000 miles

Cheers
Simon

 

[tom7035]

Oilman;
I would value your opinion of 'Exol Optima' fully synthetic 5W/40 if you have knowledge of it.
Advertised on eBay at an extremely attractive price!
Many thanks,
Tom.

 

[oilman]

I don't know anything about this product but if it's cheap it's for a reason.

There are no "free lunches" with oils, decent oils are expensive to blend as the basestock costs (non-petroleum) are high. It will be at best a combination of group II and group III petroleum basestock which is not the same as the likes of Mobil, Fuchs etc.

Cheers
Simon

 

[tom7035]

Thanks for your observation. Makes sense really - under £50 for 25 litres, well ...........
Cheers, Tom.

 

[Billinski]

Oil Change Intervals

In my personal opinion car manufacturers are playing games with "service intervals" in order to make it appear their cars are either better built or more relaible when quoting long service intervals.

Its no surprise that modern day cars are far more reliable and corrosion proof than they were 20 years ago, and much of this is down to more accurate automated production methods and use of 'better' materials as well as producing 'sealed for life' parts.

It may be that oil is 'better' than it was 20 years ago too, but if you want to keep your engine in good condition then its worth changing the oil far more regularly than the manufacturer will quote. The cost is insignificant in the longer run, say an extra £50/year, but your engine will thank you for it by running sweetly and smoothly for longer.

Very simply I would say this: check your oil regularly, say every week. As soon as it no longer appears clear or the colour changes then change the oil without delay.

 

[David Pemberton]

Hello

Same car as yours, slightly higher mileage ~18,000 miles per year. I change oil when ASSYST says PLUS about half way between. This works out at roughly every 6,000 miles. New oil and filter cost about £80 (Mobil1 0W-40 fully synthetic). It's quite easy to do it yourself.

All the fluids do an important job of lubricating, cleaning, and preventing corosion -it all adds up to less wear and fewer failures. If you want your car to last a long time use the best and change them often.

A good starting point is using a good quality fuel too - modern diesels like the CDI do better with a fuel that contains good detergents and other additives. I use BP Ultimate which is rather expensive and possibly a bit of an overkill.

Best wishes

David