BHPian @ppy.tbhp recently shared this with other enthusiasts:Fourth Service Experience – My Kia Seltos 1.5L T-GDI 2023 IMT, A Mixed Bag After One Year And Eight Months Of Ownership.Disclaimer -I’m not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsing any of the brands or products I mention here. Everything I’m sharing comes from my own experience and what’s recommended in my vehicle’s owner manual. I’m writing this purely to help fellow owners and enthusiasts make more informed choices for the longer run.It’s been over 19 months with my 2023 Kia Seltos 1.5L T-GDI, and the recent fourth service – my first paid one – turned out to be a mixed experience. Not terrible, but not what I expected from a car in this class in India. Unexpected Service Reminder: The first surprise came when a service reminder popped up barely 7,000 km after the last service on my car’s instrument cluster for the very first time since I owned it, despite Kia ASC’s verbal assurance of 10,000 km or 1-year intervals. My previous engine oil and oil filter changes easily stretched to 8,000 km, without service reminders being thrown on instrument cluster by the car, but this time the alert appeared early and repeatedly – for reasons the service advisor and service manager couldn’t explain. For reference, the 3rd free service was done on January 2025, at 19,465 km included, a new engine air filter and cabin AC filter, new engine oil – ACEA C5 and oil filter, IMT actuator oil was replaced along with brake service that included brake discs and pads cleaning, brake calipers cleaning and re-greasing, tire rotation, wheel alignment & balancing – all done at the Kia ASC. Decision to Stick with Manufacturer-Recommended Oil: After extensive reading, 27,000 km of driving experience, and reviewing technical data, I’ve decided to strictly follow the manufacturer’s recommendation mentioned in owner’s manual. I went ahead and bought two 3L packs of Kia TotalEnergies Quartz 9000 Future GF6 0W-20 API SP – ILSAC GF-6A BSVI compatible fully synthetic engine oil. I plan to keep it in for the full 10,000 km or one year interval, whichever comes first, and monitor the engine’s behavior throughout. Kia Seltos 2023 owner’s manual clearly mentions that the recommended engine oil should have an API certification mark. What’s confusing is that the Kia ASCs- not just in my city, but even in several others across India – are using ACEA – C5 grade engine oil instead. That’s not what the manual specifies. I really don’t understand why Kia’s own service centers aren’t following the manufacturer’s recommendation. If the manual calls for API-certified oil, why switch to something else? It makes me wonder if this could have any long-term impact on the engine or even cause issues with warranty claims down the line. Has anyone else noticed this or raised it with Kia? Engine Oil Experience So Far: Since buying the car in February 2024, I’ve followed Kia’s service schedule at Kia’s ASCs. Kia ASC’s have repeatedly used 0W-20 ACEA C5 engine oil in my cars 1.5 L T-GDI engine, saying it’s meant for 10,000 km or 1 year change intervals. However, around the 5,000 km mark after each engine oil and oil filter change, I noticed a drop in engine smoothness – NVH increased, and throttle response dulled. The oil simply lost its “fresh” feel too soon. Despite my repeated requests since the second free service, the Kia-recommended engine oil and approved additives for 1.5L T-GDI engine have never been available at any Kia ASC – surprising, considering these are the very fluids specified in the owner’s manual by vehicle manufacturer. Why the Recommended Oil Matters: Kia’s manual allows three oil standards – API, ILSAC, or ACEA C5, all in SAE 0W-20 full synthetic. However, ACEA C5 oils are optimized for European conditions: cleaner fuel, cooler climate, and long highway run. In India’s hot, dusty, and stop-go traffic conditions, these oils degrade faster due to higher oxidation stress. In contrast, API SP / ILSAC GF-6A oils are specifically designed for modern BSVI turbocharged petrol engines like the T-GDI. They protect against Low-Speed Pre-Ignition (LSPI) – a serious issue in turbo engines under low-speed, high-load driving. They also resist oxidation better, maintain viscosity longer, and keep engines cleaner – crucial in Indian conditions. My Switch to Kia TotalEnergies Quartz 9000 Future GF6 0W-20: For this fourth service at Kia ASC, I insisted on using Kia TotalEnergies Quartz 9000 Future GF6 0W-20 API SP – ILSAC GF-6A with a new OEM filter as it’s specified by vehicle manufacturer Kia in owner’s manual. This fully synthetic oil provides LSPI protection, thermal stability, and longer-lasting smoothness. It’s also the only oil officially approved and recommended by Kia for the T-GDI. Fourth Service Experience: In my car’s fourth service, the engine oil, oil filter, and brake oil were replaced. The battery health test was conducted with load tester, The engine air filter and cabin AC filter were cleaned with air pressure and refitted. Some spray lubrication was done on windows. I had expected the sunroof track to be cleaned and lubricated during this service, but it wasn’t even touched-there’s still a lot missing in Kia’s after-sales service. The service team also inspected the underbody and torqued the suspension. However, the brake bleeding didn’t go quite as expected. I just hope it doesn’t cause any issues in the near future. Battery health test report New Oil filter Kia brake Oil Kia brake Oil Before engine oil change After the engine oil change, notice how the new oil is almost clear in color. The oil was filled up to the dot marked “F” on the dipstick. Fourth service, first paid service invoice, vehicle serviced at 27592 Km in the month of October 2025, next paid service marked seven months apart by ASC. PMS service charges applied as per 30000 Km service. I’m sharing a video of my Kia Seltos 2023 1.5L T-GDI’s first cold start of the day, before heading to the ASC for fourth service. I recorded the video on my phone. Watch it with headphones to hear the engine clatter clearly. There was some construction nearby, so ignore the background noise. The last ASC engine oil change was with ACEA C5 oil, and you can clearly hear worsened NVH in about 7000 Km of use. I’m sharing a video of the first cold start of my Kia Seltos 2023 1.5L T-GDI, which I recorded on my phone. Watch it with headphones to hear the engine clatter after the changed engine oil to TotalEnergies 0W20 Quartz 9000 fully synthetic. There was some construction going on nearby, so the microphone picked up a bit of background noise-just ignore that. I’ve also kept a cut-away bottle with water to show the engine and body vibrations after the new oil. You can see that the body vibrations are a bit damped on the car body, but not completely gone. I’m sharing a video of the abnormal metallic clatter in my Kia Seltos 2023 1.5L T-GDI, which I recorded on my phone. Listen with headphones to really hear the abnormal metallic engine clatter while accelerating, the noise exists even after engine oil was changed to TotalEnergies 0W20 Quartz 9000 fully synthetic. This noise hasn’t gone away-it’s actually getting worse and is really annoying while driving. Along with it, there’s hesitation, loss of acceleration, and other issues. I’ve been reporting this to Kia Care and the ASC’s since I got the car in February 2024, but all I’m getting are unsatisfactory verbal responses, the car is still under observation as per my latest ASC visit for the fourth service. I’ll now monitor how the engine feels over the next 10,000 km – especially beyond the 5,000 km mark, where ACEA C5 oils started to show fatigue. Given India’s harsher conditions, these GF-6A oils should hold up better. Some critical issues with my vehicle are still pending. I’ve been told my car is under observation, but I honestly don’t understand why Kia is taking so long to fix everything properly. I’ve been reporting problems and asking for solutions for over a year and a half now. For now, I’m sticking to Kia’s official recommendation – Kia TotalEnergies Quartz 9000 Future GF6 0W-20 – and will share a follow-up after completing this cycle. Hopefully, this helps other Kia/Hyundai T-GDI owners make better-informed choices about the right engine oil. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
