# Type of oil required for 2002 Jetta with 71,000 miles

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [December 7, 2008, 9:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088 "2008-12-07T21:57:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![bharagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bharagan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bharagan)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2008, 9:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088/1 "2008-12-07T21:57:09Z")

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Do I really need a type of oil that costs twice as much as the regular grade oil? The lube guys claim that I should be able to go 5 months between oil changes as a result.

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**Author:** ![mshugna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce73a5/32.png) [@mshugna](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mshugna)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2008, 9:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088/2 "2008-12-07T21:59:15Z")

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follow owners manual…oil is cheap compared to cost of replacing engine…

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**Author:** ![jayhawkroy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/jayhawkroy/32/33_2.png) [@jayhawkroy](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jayhawkroy)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2008, 10:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088/3 "2008-12-07T22:28:06Z")

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I suspect these guys are talking about changing to a synthetic oil vs conventional. While that may be a good option, you need to carefully read your owner’s manual and make sure that the oil you choose is in compliance with the proper VW spec. Some VW engines are known to become sludge monsters without the proper spec’d oil. I don’t know if yours is one, but it pays for be extremely careful in this matter and do the research yourself, to make sure you are using the right stuff.

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**Author:** ![genex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/898d66/32.png) [@genex](https://community.cartalk.com/u/genex)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2008, 10:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088/4 "2008-12-07T22:53:25Z")

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The lube guys try to sell what they have . VW spec 502 which is what your car requires is synthetic .

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**Author:** ![bharagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bharagan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bharagan)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2008, 10:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088/5 "2008-12-07T22:55:42Z")

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Thanks to all!!

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**Author:** ![jayhawkroy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/jayhawkroy/32/33_2.png) [@jayhawkroy](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jayhawkroy)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2008, 11:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/type-of-oil-required-for-2002-jetta-with-71-000-miles/23088/6 "2008-12-07T23:17:42Z")

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Let me also add that you need to stay inside the max oil change interval specified by VW. That may or may not be five months, based on your driving habits and mileages accrued. It appears extended oil change intervals with VWs don’t do very well.