I need some help! (Servicing)

[mr magoo]

Hi All

Just a month to go now - am waiting for my Edition 30 to arrive.

I expect to be doing about 20k miles per year, but not driving every day. I will be looking to keep the car for at least 5 years (possibly longer as after that time I may just keep it as a 'hobby') so want to look after it well.

Can anyone help me with these questions:

1. Won't be driving it every day but will be doing a good mixture of motorway and A-road driving, plus the odd bit of tootling for shopping etc. Longlife or fixed servicing?

2. Any ideas on how much a maintenance contract for the above with VW would cost?

3. How important / necessary is it to use eg shell V-power over standard petrol?

Cheers

[Hurdy]

20k miles a year!

1. I would probably go for long life servicing, but change the oil every 10k as an absolute minimum, every 6k would be better.

2. I understand VW are doing a £200 fixed price contract for 3 yrs servicing at the moment, so I would contact them and see if it is still available.

3. I wouldn't entertain anything else other than the super unleadeds. I feed mine on a strict diet of V-power, but would use another super unleaded make in an emergency. SU will keep your engine cleaner, allow you to run the car in stratified (more economical and good for the car) mode longer and gives the car more bhp

Hope this helps a little

[JonnyG]

As Hurdy says .. longlife would normally be the better option for 20,000 miles a year, if driving on mainly motorway & A roads.

However, the current fixed cost servicing offer, which runs until June 2008, is really a "no brainer" for you I would have thought  :

http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/new_cars/servicing

It will be on T&D but still the cheapest option.  You can always ask for the better Longlife oil if you really want that.

With regards to superunleaded there is a long thread here, with a couple of links in it. 

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=74848.0

I would have a good read.  Your GTi engine is designed to run on 98RON (or higher) petrol and anything less will be less efficient and less powerful.  Tesco 99 and Shell V-Power seem to be the most popular for the GTi - both being 99RON.   Yes it will run OK on 95RON, but not as efficiently.

[mr magoo]

Thanks both