FAQ: Engine Oil - What type and change intervals?

I use AC Delco filters. They're affordable and good enough I think. Mobil 1 is supposed to be the absolute best filter there is, and better be for $12 or whatever they cost. Seems like overkill to me.

I also use AC Delco, other I've used to no ill effect are WIX, Honeywell, and yes, the Fram Synthetic one... going to give the K&N filter a try for next oil change just to see how it works out....

i use the acdelco pf52 filter and castrol GTX. always have, and i have yet to have a problem with the filter getting stuck or the paint coming off (seen it on many frams). i drive my car HARD every day, and most of my driving is in the city.

the gtx oil is 100% conventional. i dont know what you have against it. it's just as effective as full synthetic in our motors, it just breaks down faster. (i change mine out every 3k, where as the synthetic could go for longer provided nothing contaminates it.)

look at blackstone labs FAQ page.
they are an independent oil test company who runs tests on all kinds of oil...what do they recommend?
http://www.blackstone-labs.com/faq_gas.html

besides not breaking down as fast, synthetic is supposed to be a better lubricant... although realistically I doubt you'd ever see any difference provided that you always change your oil on time. I've noticed a few people suggesting that if you've used synthetic oil in the past you should stick with it. But your engine does not have a memory of it's own; you can switch back and forth freely and it doesn't hurt a thing. As far as filters, I like Wix and Havoline. Havoline's filter for all 3800s is T26, but if you want a little bit of extra capacity you could use a T27 which had the same mating surface but is bigger.

Nothing agianst Castrol GTX. It was all I used in my Volvo (Sven's seals did NOT like synth at all). Castrol's additive package is unique.

Albertj

Huh, and I sat there explicitly trying to avoid conventional. Damn, did a bad job at that. This pretty much looks exactly like what I have

And that's conventional? I haven't opened it yet, I could still take it back and swap for semi-synthetic. I always thought it was best to stick to what you've been using. I seriously thought it would say Conventional on it if it was. Damn misleading Castrol...

Conventional is another word for "normal", "standard", or "general". The synth will have the special label.

It didn't say any of those things, although I suppose I wouldn't have had to look so hard to find synthetic on it if it were. I think Castrol calls it Syntec don't they? Is it worth the effort to return and swap for semi-synthetic or should I use anyways? I really don't take long trips, my farthest drive daily is about 15 miles (30 miles roundtrip) and a good deal of it is highway driving but with city start stop at the beginning and end. Given the short distance and roughly 15-20 minutes driving time each way give for traffic occasionally would conventional be okay? I have also made trips up to the store 5 miles away or so and then come back on occasion with no other stops in between. I always thought some form of synthetic was good given that kind of driving I do.

I like AMSOIL Signature series full synthetic. I have found it to work better than any other synthetic oil I have used.

Shintsu - given a choice I would not spend a lot of time on this. If you really want synth oil and the store will make the exchange, that's what to do. Make the exchange and don't look back.

That said - Castrol GTX is (very) good conventional oil. When you put it in the motor may sound different than it does with your normal synth oil fill. Depending on car's overall condition you will or will not notice. On my car, I noticed immediately when dealer put in conventional oil instead of the synth I asked for. And since dino oil was *not* what I asked for, they changed it again.

You can learn aboutthe different oils here:

http://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/Oils1.html

Turns out "Synthetic" is by and large a marketing term now. Mobil1 may be the only mass-market synthetic oil that's truly synthetic (hence the price difference) - have a look at the web site for details.

Albertj

There are a lot of 'semi-synthetic' oils, even some from Mobil1, so look carefully at the bottles. Mobil one has a 'high milage' partial synthetic, and some other variations. You want plain and simple, Mobil1 synthetic.

Castrol GTX is an excellent conventional oil, all we run in our 455. We change it's oil frequently and it doesn't see a ton of miles, thus we don't spend the extra for synthetic.

Albert,
Excellent site on oils and good info on motorcycles in general.
Very useful to me as I'm a motorcyclist also.
Have only had info supplied by the various manufacturers and some independent articles on oils, but this so far has been the best source and explanation of various oil types. Makes me want to go out and change my oil right away.!!!
You may have already mentioned it but, what brand and viscosity are you running in your car.?
Thanks for passing this along.

Shintsu: Castrol Syntec is good oil too BUT you can argue if it is really synthetic. From what I've read I gather that It is dino oil refined via hydrocracking, NOT a PAO oil made from natural gas; a court decision lets them call it synthetic because it has superior attributes to oils refined with clay and such. Supposedly Mobil 1 is a PAO made from natural gas.

Rick: I run Mobil1 10W-30. When I change oil myself I put in 3.5 quarts of Mobil1 and a quart of Shell Rotella 5W-40 synth. I run 10,000 miles or so between oil changes with Mobil1 and I often but not always use the long (PF53) filter. I top off oil if needed, with Rotella or Mobil1 depending on what's handy. Might add 1/2 quart between changes. I had car in for other service (that blown strut mount) a few weeks ago and let them do the oil change - they put in Mobil15W30 due to temperatures - I will have to change it again in May. 3000 miles on the synth oil? just wait until I find out who's puting it in their car when they drain it outta mine (LOL)...

That synthetic Rotella is SLIPPERY - Want to see something funny - dip a clean screwdriver into it then try to pick the screwdriver up by the oil-soaked blade... g'wan I dare you... I tried straight Rotella one time and it dripped out the seals...

Yeah, I'd imagine that Mobil One full synthetic would be for people doing 5,000-10,000 mile interval oil changes. So is that 3,000 mile marker oil change for conventional oil then?

3,000 miles is an oft-cited internval - but the only way to really tell what works is to use a service like Blackstone. Minimum would be once a year for various reasons. In mild highway driving (cruising) in a warm climate the OLM might not fire for 11,000 or 12,000 miles.

And for what it is worth, the GM "oil life monitor" is not bad. However, it has a flaw, sort of. It is only software. It does not use any sensors that check oil chemistry, viscosity, level (our cars have an oil level sensor), or what-have-you. So a mechanical malfunction or tampering would not be detected.

I chose my mileage interval based on:

- virtually all my driving is easy highway miles
- Blackstone measurements show in an engine of similar constructionand age, wear metals are greater if the oil is changed more often than every 7000 miles or so, for my kind of driving, due to oil chemistry.
- it is easy to change oil in a Riv, I don't even need a jack or ramps and my grip is strong enough to get the filter on/off without a wrench. (need a wrench for the drain plug, heh heh).
- The $30 for synth and materials is about what a dino oil change costs if I have the dealer or a goos quick-change place do it. There are "$16.95" oil cange places not too far from my travels but they are known to be scheissters.

Albertj

I just replaced my previous mobil 1 full synthetic, with mobil 1 synthetic extended performance. I have been super pleased with mobil 1, I also use 5w30 in winter/10w30 in summer

TType_Riviera wrote:

Every New engine i have been around has been broken in on Dino... then your free to use whatever you prefer...

I have heard the horror stories of switching a higher mileage engine to full synthetic..seals leaking an seeping etc... i have yet to come across this as i have switched a few 100k+ engines to synthetic without any issues..

I have also heard excellent things about shell Rotella oil..big in the diesel market...

I like Rotella too - I think i mentioned in another thread that I tried changing with Rotella and got leaks *everywhere* it seemed - what I do now is put 4quts Mobil 1 and 1/2 quart Rotella Synth. Or the 4 1/2 with Mobil 1 and Rotella to fill the PF52.

Tell you what -- that blue synthetic Rotella oil is slipperier than you-name-it.

Albertj

Hey guys, just wondering if its ok to run 5W-30 full synthetic oil? was told its not a good idea by a few people, whats your opinion? Thanks

Since our Riv's take 5w-30 from the factory, YES 5w-30 synthetic is fine. Why on earth would someone say not to use synthetic?? Anything mythical they may be telling you is wrong.....if I must explain I will

k awesome thanks man, some people are just saying only use 10w30...I picked up 5w30 Q Horsepower today!

You know I noticed that on the oil cap and I was wondering whether or not I should change. Ive been using 10W30 and I didnt know until recently it was 5W30. Im due for an oil change so Im going to switch. I use a quart of Lucas in my oil changes, do you think this will change anything?

Nah, I use the Lucas stuff when I do a conventional oil change. It's great stuff. Don't use it when I use synthetic tho. Honestly, the difference from 5w-30 to 10w-30 is almost nil, and won't hurt a thing, even mixing the two is fine.

does that go for the 95s? it sez only use 10w30...............

There are 0W-30 synthetics also. You can use that too, and I definitely would if I lived up in Canada, or Fargo where the winter temperatures get into negative numbers. There are no downsides to this.

I use Amsoil 5W/30. Been using it for 5 years now.

"They" say to use the weight shown on the oil cap. "They" have come up with this number for maximum fuel economy, coverage for temperature changes, max lubrication, etc. Using 5w-30 is ok. Now if you asked me to put a straight weight or 20w-50 I'd tell you your crazy. Unless you have internal engine mods (pistons, rings, etc) where a heavier or thinner oil is required, stick to 5 and 10w-30.

Now......most of the NEWER cars (2004-ish on) have such tight tolerances on internal engine parts that putting anything but the recommended weight could cause a failure......Ford has been using 5w-20 since the mid-late 90's.

*DISCLAIMER* I'm not saying that "they" are wrong, as I am no engineer....

Larry, they make 0w-50 now too!