Lifespan of the VW TDI engines

glovesave33

New member
Joined
Dec 4, 2007
Location
Anaheim Hills, CA
TDI
none yet
Greetings all. I am considering a TDI VW Jetta or Beetle 99-2004. I was curious what is the expected lifespan of a properly maintained VW TDI? I know the Benz is touted at several hundred thousand miles, but I have not been able to find any posts regarding the VW. Thanks in advance.
 

Bob_Fout

Oil Wanker
Joined
Sep 5, 2004
Location
Indiana
TDI
2003 Jetta - Alaska Green (sold) / 2015 GTI 2.0T
300,000 + miles.

Even then the motor isn't dead, just some wore out parts need replaced, then keep on motoring.
 

K5ING

Mega-Miler
Joined
Apr 18, 2001
Location
Krum, TX
TDI
Silver 2001 Golf GL TDI 5-speed
There are dozens of threads on here concerning high-mileage VW TDI's. Mine is going strong with no major parts replaced (including the clutch, turbo, injection pump) at 338,000+ miles. Many more here with even more miles.

How long it (and the rest of the car) will last depends on how you drive it, and what kind of driving you do. Short story is city driving=short life, highway driving=long life.
 

Lug_Nut

TDIClub Enthusiast, Pre-Forum Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 1998
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Sterling, Massachusetts. USA
TDI
idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
The expected lifespan of a TDI shouldn't be any different than any other engine, gasoline or diesel, which has been properly maintained.
Why do diesel or M-B engines last so long? Because owners expect them to last that long. It's a self-fulfilling prophesy.
Better maintenance practices are used on engines that have the expectation of lasting longer, less maintenance is expended on 'disposable' engines. Treat a TDI like a disposable and it will BE disposable.
 

jasonTDI

TDI GURU Vendor , w/Business number
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Location
Oregon, WI
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20' RAM 3500 CCLB dually HO/Aisan. 2019 Cherokee 2.0T
Couldn't have said it better myself!
 

Drivbiwire

Zehntes Jahr der Veteran
Joined
Oct 13, 1998
Location
Boise, Idaho
TDI
2013 Passat TDI, Newmar Ventana 8.3L ISC 3945, 2016 E250 BT, 2000 Jetta TDI
Lug_Nut said:
Better maintenance practices are used on engines that have the expectation of lasting longer, less maintenance is expended on 'disposable' engines. Treat a TDI like a disposable and it will BE disposable.
Quaker State conventional 5w30 = 130,000 miles before the engine is shot

vs

VW505.01/VW507.00 = 1,500,000 miles before it lacks enough compression to continue proper operation

There is a difference between "proper" servicing and "overmaintaining".

People that replace air filters every 5,000 miles instead of every 40,000 (or based on actual restriction) end up with more damage to the engine due to lower filtering efficiency.

People that change oil every 5,000 miles have 4 times the wear due to the oil additives never becoming stabilized/activated where as the engine would have benefited from 10,000 mile intervals with all around better protection.

Keeping the fuel system operating at peak efficiency, fuel filters replaced by the book (20K), If you see soot or smoke...get it fixed! Excess smoke is your first indication something is not right, soot will kill these engines in short order not to mention put at risk the high pressure regions of the motor (cam and lifters).

The best thing any owner can do is COMPLETELY read the owners manual and the maintenance manual that came with the car.

DB
 

Lug_Nut

TDIClub Enthusiast, Pre-Forum Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 1998
Location
Sterling, Massachusetts. USA
TDI
idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
Drivbiwire said:
The best thing any owner can do is COMPLETELY read the owners manual and the maintenance manual that came with the car.
DB
...and then FOLLOW the instructions.
I've read the bible. That doesn't mean I'm bound for glory....
 

ieracer

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 6, 2007
Location
CA
TDI
2000 Jetta GLS TDI
My 2 cents:

Diesels generally last longer than comparable gas engines because they are built stronger for higher compression, run at lower rpms, and where gasoline destroys lubrication in engines, diesel fuel doesn't. Cold start-ups are also a negative for gasoline engines because of all that extra gasoline needed to start.

On the other hand, GMC "attempted" to convert gasoline engines to run diesel which weren't worth a sh#%, they were the old ToroFlow engines. Other than these engineering embarassments, diesels do last longer in general.
 

ymz

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 12, 2003
Location
Between Toronto & Montreal
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI Wagon, 2003 Jetta TDI Wagon
Drivbiwire said:
The best thing any owner can do is COMPLETELY read the owners manual and the maintenance manual that came with the car.
Except for the times that the owners' manual contains gross errors: such as the early 2004 VW manuals that specified the use of 505.00 oil... there were quite a number of those reported...

Yuri.
 

dieselfueler

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 19, 2003
Location
Greater Jenkinsville, SC Metroplex Area
TDI
04 PD100 Jetta Wagon
Ive got 215,000 miles on a '04 PD motored wagon the only thing i've had to replace is an alt. pulley, intake hose and a MAP sensor and of course 2 timing belts. The thing still has it's original brakes, clutch and shocks(they are going away soon). Though someone stole my EGR valve a few months ago I guess they sell well at the flea market at least they blocked off the manifold holds....

Make sure the car your looking at has had the belts replaced per the service book and oil and filters changes. Use the search function on this forum. It's saved me alot of money on my car.
 

n1das

TDIClub Enthusiast, Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2002
Location
Nashua, NH, USA
TDI
2014 BMW 535xd ///M-Sport, 2012 BMW X5 Xdrive35d, former 3x TDI owner
With "only" 259k miles currently on my 02 Golf TDI, it's still way too early to tell what its projected "lifespan" will be. :cool:

I plan on logging at least another quarter million miles on top of the quarter million miles already on it. :cool:
 

n1das

TDIClub Enthusiast, Veteran Member
Joined
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Location
Nashua, NH, USA
TDI
2014 BMW 535xd ///M-Sport, 2012 BMW X5 Xdrive35d, former 3x TDI owner
Drivbiwire said:
The best thing any owner can do is COMPLETELY read the owners manual and the maintenance manual that came with the car.
R. T. F. M. ! :D
 

Dimitri16V

Top Post Dawg
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Jan 30, 2005
Location
DE
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01 Golf, 04 Golf
dieselfueler said:
Though someone stole my EGR valve a few months ago I guess they sell well at the flea market at least they blocked off the manifold holds....
:D :D
 
Last edited:

John96895

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 10, 2004
Location
RI
TDI
Jetta, 2002, Black
I have a simpler formula calculating the life of a TDI engine.

300k
O1m = 2.2/3.7, easy enough. (Translation: 2.2 to 3.7 O1M automatic transmissions/300,000 miles):eek:
 

KROUT

persona non grata
Joined
Aug 26, 2005
Location
JAX FL
Drivbiwire said:
Quaker State conventional 5w30 = 130,000 miles before the engine is shot

vs

VW505.01/VW507.00 = 1,500,000 miles before it lacks enough compression to continue proper operation

There is a difference between "proper" servicing and "overmaintaining".

People that replace air filters every 5,000 miles instead of every 40,000 (or based on actual restriction) end up with more damage to the engine due to lower filtering efficiency.

People that change oil every 5,000 miles have 4 times the wear due to the oil additives never becoming stabilized/activated where as the engine would have benefited from 10,000 mile intervals with all around better protection.

Keeping the fuel system operating at peak efficiency, fuel filters replaced by the book (20K), If you see soot or smoke...get it fixed! Excess smoke is your first indication something is not right, soot will kill these engines in short order not to mention put at risk the high pressure regions of the motor (cam and lifters).

The best thing any owner can do is COMPLETELY read the owners manual and the maintenance manual that came with the car.

DB

With all due respect half of this is bs. Show me proof that my engine will wear faster if I change oil every 5,000. These statement are your opinion and nothing more. My first engine lasted 285,000 miles and still looks good inside. No unusual bearing wear,cylinder walls in great shape.
 

greenskeeper

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 10, 2003
Location
USA
TDI
1998 Jetta TDI
I agree, changing the oil early is not going to hurt. It may become a problem of diminishing returns on the cost of oil, but it will not make the engine wear out faster!
 

Drivbiwire

Zehntes Jahr der Veteran
Joined
Oct 13, 1998
Location
Boise, Idaho
TDI
2013 Passat TDI, Newmar Ventana 8.3L ISC 3945, 2016 E250 BT, 2000 Jetta TDI

approx engine run time for sample 1,000 hours

RNT (Radionuclide Test) says otherwise.

The highest rates of wear (generation of fe) occur immediately after an oil change.

Increasing the frequency of the activation cycles of the oil in a specific engine increases the total amount of wear over the life of the motor.

Brand new oil as a rule is creating iron at the rate of 5-10ppm per 1000 miles, at 2000 miles thru 10,000 miles that wear rate drops to anywhere between .5 to 3 ppm per 1000 miles. Only when the oil has 15,000 - 20,000 miles on does the wear rate increase to what the oil was permitting when new. This is based on an engine operating in optimal condition.

Engines with issues such as excessive soot formation dictates more frequent changes in order to keep the soot levels as low as possible.

Reducing the frequency of changes improves the stability of the additive protection within the motor. Also it allows the additives to become fully active by virtue of heat and pressure as well as to place the additives at the high pressure regions of the motor.

High pressure additives require as much as 1,000 to 3,000 miles to become fully active and stable in the motor before they provide optimal levels of protection. This is partly due to the longer life expectency of modern lubricants in extended drain intervals.

Oil additives because of the relative low concentration require multiple passes and running cycles to fully activate in the motor. This period of time depends on running time and cycles that result in the motor reaching full operating temperature.

DB
 

KROUT

persona non grata
Joined
Aug 26, 2005
Location
JAX FL
283,000 MILES and there is zero soot anywhere in my engine. 3000 to 5000 miles oil changes. Oil used the most rottea t white bottle. The oil pan was clean. I put it right on the pd150 block and did not even clean it. I wont hesitate to use the same blcok with out even rebuilding it in my next car. Still in great shape but the head wasn't.lol

The extra wear if it is true will be so minimal you will never notice. I see alot of hype in the post above. If this is true then even at 10,000 mile intervals its still bad on the engine.lol
 
Joined
Oct 31, 2007
Location
Knox, In
TDI
04 Golf 1.9 TDI
I have been alternating bio-diesel & diesel in my 04 golf & noticed it wasn't starting too well. took it to my mechanic. he changed the filter that was almost blocked w/green stuff. "Use straight diesel" he said. Well , yesterday it stopped & wouldn't start at all. Do I need to flush my tank ,use an additive or just add more diesel, or what?
 

greenskeeper

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 10, 2003
Location
USA
TDI
1998 Jetta TDI
Brand new oil as a rule is creating iron at the rate of 5-10ppm per 1000 miles, at 2000 miles thru 10,000 miles that wear rate drops to anywhere between .5 to 3 ppm per 1000 miles. Only when the oil has 15,000 - 20,000 miles on does the wear rate increase to what the oil was permitting when new. This is based on an engine operating in optimal condition.
The graph means nothing without a scale. Kinda like the commercials that show things with no scale they are meaningless but the average consumer sees a big swing and thinks "oh my!"

Even so we are talking a range of .5 to 10 PARTS PER MILLION per 1k miles. Thanks for the info but I'll keep changing at 5k intervals in both our vehicles.

The extra wear if it is true will be so minimal you will never notice.
Agreed.
 

BrianCT

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Location
USA
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TDI
greenskeeper said:
Thanks for the info but I'll keep changing at 5k intervals in both our vehicles.
It's hard to read something from Drivbiwire and not believe it to be true. I have every intension to follow the guidelines of the driver's manual -10k intervals and to read the oil testing sample threads on those who've pushed into higher-longer duty cycles.

I think it just makes sense from what reading done over the past couple years that the 5,000 mile oil change went out with cassette decks in a car dash board.

Why couldn't a great synthetic protect your engine 10,000 miles?

Anyway, whatever

BrianCT
 

KROUT

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Joined
Aug 26, 2005
Location
JAX FL
BrianCT said:
It's hard to read something from Drivbiwire and not believe it to be true. I have every intension to follow the guidelines of the driver's manual -10k intervals and to read the oil testing sample threads on those who've pushed into higher-longer duty cycles.

I think it just makes sense from what reading done over the past couple years that the 5,000 mile oil change went out with cassette decks in a car dash board.

Why couldn't a great synthetic protect your engine 10,000 miles?

Anyway, whatever

BrianCT
Yes but how offten does he think out of the box. Just because vw says do this, doesn't make it gods word. I understand he is a numbers and statistics guy,but 5000 miles oil changes wont hurt a damn thing. He will also say the oil I use is not fit for his lawnmower but yet hundreds of people here use rottela t without problems, over hundreds of thousands of miles.
 

WB9K

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2007
Location
Near Detroit, MI
TDI
2002 Jetta GLS TDI
BrianCT said:
It's hard to read something from Drivbiwire and not believe it to be true.
Factually true, very likely. Presented with a lot of spin, also quite likely.
 

Bob_Fout

Oil Wanker
Joined
Sep 5, 2004
Location
Indiana
TDI
2003 Jetta - Alaska Green (sold) / 2015 GTI 2.0T
Mr. Audie Gates said:
no pressure from the fuel pump now, 0. Merry Christmas,huh?
You should post your question in a separate thread so it gets the most visibility.
 

Drivbiwire

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Joined
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Location
Boise, Idaho
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2013 Passat TDI, Newmar Ventana 8.3L ISC 3945, 2016 E250 BT, 2000 Jetta TDI
Mr. Audie Gates said:
no pressure from the fuel pump now, 0. Merry Christmas,huh?

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DB
 
Joined
Oct 31, 2007
Location
Knox, In
TDI
04 Golf 1.9 TDI
Bio-diesel & diesel mix-up

I had to learn my lesson the hard way. jammed fuel filter &fuel pump replacement, no more bio-diesel for me!:eek:
 

BrianCT

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Location
USA
TDI
TDI
Mr. Audie Gates said:
I had to learn my lesson the hard way.:eek:
Many members here only run bio-diesel without any issues. Maybe it was your supplier or their lack of quality filtration?

Don't give up on bio-diesel. Just be cautious of the supplier, perhaps.

BrianCT
 

bmwM5power

Veteran Member
Joined
May 3, 2007
Location
Rochester NY
TDI
15 GSW TDI S 6MT / 02 JETTA TDI GLS 5MT 15 GOLF TDI 6MT
Drivbiwire said:
People that change oil every 5,000 miles have 4 times the wear....

DB
not to bag on your post, but Im gonna have to disagree with this statement
 
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