Oil question

[marklcfc]

I'm getting the message again after 9500 miles that oil needs servicing.
I just wondered would my dashboard display an oil icon like below if it is indeed low as this has never shown for me since owning the car for 7 years


I wanted to wait until July as thats when my mot is due

 

[James_R]

That light in the image you have attached is the engine management light, an indication that there is a fault present, usually related to something that could potentially affect the emissions.

 

[marklcfc]

Does nothing light up on the dashboard for low oil then? All I ever get is the service required message after 9500 miles

 

[James_R]

If the oil level sensor is present, correct and activated then you should see this light if the level drops beyond a certain point.

 

[marklcfc]

How would I know if its activated?

 

[James_R]

Check coding in a couple of modules, also, if the level is below minimum on the dipstick then it'll show on the dash.

 

[serdar_18fr]

How would I know if its activated?

I don't think there's a question of it being activated or deactivated. There's an oil level sensor of course, it's a vital part and its warning light should always be working, if the sensor is not faulty of course. Turn off the ignition, turn it on again and when you see all the warning lights are on for a brief moment, you'll see the oil warning light there too. That's the initial check to see all the sensors and lights are OK.

 

[James_R]

Its the warning that's activated or not, if memory serves me correctly it's something to do with the service regime, I think the instrument cluster adaptation had to be set to "good oil quality" (variable servicing) for it to give the driver feedback on the oil level. When it's set to "poor oil quality" (fixed servicingyou don't get that function on some vehicles, and with it prompting a service at less than 10k miles, I'd say it's set to "poor oil quality".

 

[SRGTD]

Does nothing light up on the dashboard for low oil then? All I ever get is the service required message after 9500 miles

Your car is on VAG’s fixed (annual time and distance) service regime which is why it shows the ‘service required’ message after 9,500 miles. I seem to remember that service intervals on VAG’s fixed servicing regime is the sooner of 12 months or 15k kilometres - converting 15k km’s to miles is 9,320 miles so VAG have probably rounded this to the nearest 500 miles, hence the message appearing at 9,500 rather than 9,320 miles.

As for a low oil level warning light - I find the best and easiest way to know what the engine oil level is is to use the old school method of regularly checking the level on the dipstick. I do this when I clean my car (usually every couple of weeks) and along with checking the coolant level it takes no more than a couple of minutes to do these under-bonnet checks. If my car’s engine oil was getting low, then I’d prefer to know this in advance of a warning light telling me it’s dropped to the minimum level; IMHO proactive is better than reactive.

I’m aware that with VW, some (all?) models of the current Golf no longer have a dipstick (that might also be the case with the latest generation of Seats and Cupras) - owners are expected to rely on a low level warning light on the instrument display; extreme penny pinching by VW IMHO not to fit a dipstick. The dipstick tube on the engine block is still there but VW have decided to fit a blanking cap over the top of the tube rather than provide a dipstick. I’m aware of an owner of a new Golf on one of the Golf forums who’s removed the cap and fitted a dipstick which they were able to buy from their dealership’s parts department, although if doing this it would be vitally important to ensure it’s the correct dipstick for the engine, otherwise any oil readings taken might be incorrect!

 

[James_R]

I'm not sure what the motive is with capping off the dipstick tubes now, those caps are in super tight with a double seal on them. I can only assume it's something to do with the new crank breather system and the dire consequences of leaving the system exposed to atmospheric pressure.

It's been rolled out on lots of vehicles with the new 1.5TSI EVO 2. Thus far I've sent it on Tiguans, Golfs, Terramars and Formentors.

 

[SuperV8]

Oh yes - they have a 'bung'
04E115418B

 

[BillyCool]

Low oil and oil servicing are different things.

Oil servicing is based on time/mileage and does not mean you have low oil.

If you just want to check that your oil level is sufficient, use the Mk1 dipstick ?

 

[marklcfc]

If the oil level sensor is present, correct and activated then you should see this light if the level drops beyond a certain point.

Had a look at my dashboard today but there was no oil light when turning ignition on.

 

[SuperV8]

Had a look at my dashboard today but there was no oil light when turning ignition on.
View attachment 48858

Low oil is a very obvious warning in the central LCD display.