betsy Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 Hello folks, Am going to service my 2010 3 litre Ducato later in the week. It's a left-hooker and came with German owners manual that only seems to give the name of the oil Fiat recommends rather than the type and viscosity. Another thread in this forum recommended the use of a fully synthetic 5W 40 and that's what I have been using. This week, however, GSF (German Swedish French) my usual and trusted supplier, looked the vehicle up on their computer and are adamant that it should be a fully synthetic 5W 30. GSF say the change came from 2009 onwards. Remembering the recent experience of a pal of mine who got through 3 turbos in his Audi A3 which was later traced to a slightly different oil being used by his "Audi" specialist ( ie not main dealer) I thought I 'd try to get it right Thanks in advance for any advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geeco Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 Multi grade oils are blended from a base oil , say an SAE 20 or 30 with additives to cause the lubricant to take on the characteristics of the rating at the upper & lower temperatures. In the case of a 5W-30 it takes on the characteristics of a 5W in low temperatures, say first thing in the morning then when the engine is running at elevated temperatures the oil takes on the characterises of a SAE 30 grade oil Ie it will only thin down to what an SAE30 would be at that temperature. The same with a 5W-40 except this time it will have the viscosity characteristics of an SAE 40. Thus the 5w-40 does give you a marginally wider coverage than the 5W-30 in terms of operating temperatures. The use of the 5W-30 could be recommended for overall colder climates, however the main issue is at the low end where both are the same 5W. On first start up it is essential to have oil dispersed around the engine as quick as possible especially the turbo. The 5W would achieve that faster than an SAE 10 for example. Bottom line from my experience is use a good quality fully synthetic 5W-40 and you will be fine. Cheers, Gary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 Betsy What GSF has told you is apparently correct... Fiat handbooks are available on-line and handbooks for the Eur 4 Ducato (which your vehicle is) have publication dates stretching from 2006 to 2013. The original 2006 handbook recommends Selenia WR (a 5W-40 oil) while the most recent 2013 handbook recommends Selenia WR P.E. (a 5W-30 oil). It’s quite likely that, when the X250 Ducato was introduced in 2006, Selenia WR P.E. was not yet on the market and 5W-40 WR was considered by Fiat to be the most suitable oil from the Selenia range. I’ve also looked at on-line German-language Ducato handbooks that ought to be appropriate to your 2010 vehicle and they recommend Selenia WR P.E. and specify the 5W-30 viscosity in the "FLÜSSIGKEITEN UND SCHMIERMITTEL” section. So, if you wanted to follow Fiat’s advice, it appears that you should be using oil with a 5W-30 viscosity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 If they have to recommend one oil for use in all climates they have to give the widest viscosity range. For the same engine the Citroen Handbook gives a graph showing the viscosity recommended in our more restricted temperature ranges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
betsy Posted August 10, 2015 Author Share Posted August 10, 2015 Gary ( fromOz! ), Derek and Peter, Thank you gentlemen for your posts ref the best engine oil for my Ducato. Since reading it I have been back to GSF and bought 10 litres of their best synthetic 5W 30. It never ceases to amaze me how wonderful this forum is in obtaining help/answers to the various problems/queries that I have had over the years. Once again, many thanks for your help. Regards Dick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 ....the subject has been discussed on the forum a number of times. The following thread gives some good background (and input from Nick (Euroserv). https://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Ducato-X250-2-3-130HP-Oil-leak/35531/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mentaliss Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 betsy - 2015-08-09 12:46 PM Hello folks, Am going to service my 2010 3 litre Ducato later in the week. It's a left-hooker and came with German owners manual that only seems to give the name of the oil Fiat recommends rather than the type and viscosity. Another thread in this forum recommended the use of a fully synthetic 5W 40 and that's what I have been using. This week, however, GSF (German Swedish French) my usual and trusted supplier, looked the vehicle up on their computer and are adamant that it should be a fully synthetic 5W 30. GSF say the change came from 2009 onwards. Remembering the recent experience of a pal of mine who got through 3 turbos in his Audi A3 which was later traced to a slightly different oil being used by his "Audi" specialist ( ie not main dealer) I thought I 'd try to get it right Thanks in advance for any advice. Castrol Edge 5w-40 used it for five years, not cheap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 mentaliss - 2015-08-10 6:04 PM Castrol Edge 5w-40 used it for five years, not cheap Thats because you are paying for the brand name. Its the specification that matters, not the brand name!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 11, 2015 Share Posted August 11, 2015 It’s commonplace for vehicle manufacturers’ handbooks to recommend a particular oil, with a defined technical specification also being mentioned. For the latest Ducato SELENIA WR P.E. is recommended and the technical specification is "SAE 5W-30 ACEA C2 grade synthetic base lubricants. Classification FIAT 9.55535-S1.” This GOOGLE-search on "FIAT 9.55535-S1” https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=fiat+9.55535-s1 shows that certain 5W-30 viscosity oils from Shell, Castrol, Total, etc. conform to the FIAT 9.55535-S1 specification. The Castrol product that matches the advice in the Ducato handbook is “Magnatec 5W-30 C2”. http://www.castrol.com/en_gb/united-kingdom/products/cars/engine-oil/castrol-magnatec-brand/castrol-magnatec.html This is another relevant forum discussion worth reading https://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Which-Selenia-Oil-for-Fiat-Ducato-Multijet/29454/ Enough Selenia WR P.E.5W-30 for a Ducato 3-litre motor ioil-change is likely to cost at least £70 retail. It may well be practicable to save money by choosing an equivalent oil from another manufacturer, but no oil that complies with the FIAT 9.55535-S1 specification will cost pennies. I notice that - in the link above - Nick Fisher mentioned that his company used Exol lubricants and an oil conforming to the Fiat specification http://www.exol-lubricants.com/data_docs/TDS%20M397%20Optima%20LSP%205W-30%20-%20Iss%207.pdf is offered on amazon/e-bay at what seems a good price for 5 litres. http://www.amazon.co.uk/EXOL-OPTIMA-5W-30-SYNTHETIC-ENGINE/dp/B00FDV8IUA http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EXOL-OPTIMA-LSP-5W-30-LOW-SAPS-SYNTHETIC-ENGINE-OIL-ACEA-C2-5-L-LITRE-M397-/290875035873 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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