Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives How many of you guys use synthetic oil?

How many of you guys use synthetic oil? and if so what brand do you prefer.

I have used mobil 1 synthetic for some years and have recently tried AMSoil.

Hearing the difference in the way the vehicle cranks in sub-zero temperatures is one good selling point. Increased fuel mileage is another.


What is your experience?

RD

I use M1 in my truck and wifes Blazer. I use 10-30 in the Blazer,and I mix 5qts of 10-30 and 2qts. of 15-50 in my truck. M1 is one of the very best and I can find it at any auto parts store. I used Amsoil for one OCI,but it was too hard to find as well as being $2 more per qt.

I also have M1 ATF in the transmission,and the rear diff carries the GM synthetic gear lube.

I have used M1 in all my vehicles since 1989 and I have never had any engine problems. My 97 Jeep with 112k miles has had M1 10w-30 in it since 3k miles and it doesn't leak, smoke or use any oil.

BTW no problem with sub-zero starts either.

I used in a '87 S-10 Blazer when we lived in Fairbanks. It did work better than dinosaur oil, that's for sure. The truly hardcore ran synthetic in their gearboxes too. When we moved a bit farther south (Kodiak and Sitka) I stopped as it wasn't really worth it, plus I mostly buy older used vehicles.

However, I still run it in my Honda outboard on the skiff. That engine runs 4500rpm for hours, far away from help, and the extra peace of mind is much appreciated.

Straight dino user here, with 3k OCIs.

I use Castrol Syntec 5w-30 but will be switching to Shell Rotella T synthetic 5w-40 next oil change. That way I will have 1 oil for all my engines both gas and diesel. I used Mobil 1 but found my engines used more oil between changes than with the other synthetics. Amsoil is too expensive and not all weights carry the API certification.

None of my vehicles get better mileage with the synthetics than dino oil.

Same here,IMO if synthetics give ANY mileage increase,it would be so small as not to notice.

A great place to buy the Rotella is Wal-mart. They sell 5qt. jugs for about $12.

Switching to synthetic oil in your front and rear differentials will show an improvement in your gas mileage in extreme cold weather. Do you notice a difference in sub zero starts when using dino oil vs synthetic? At 12.5 MPG I'll take every tenth of a MPG I can get.

I use either Mobile 1 or Pensoil Synthetic exclusively in my hunting vehicle.

I got 150k miles out of '91 Explorer and when I got rid of it, the engine purred like a kitten.

My '99 Expedition has been using it since day one.

Tony.

I use M1 in my 2000 F150. I used dino oil for my last change, as M1 was out every where when I changed it last time. It's due for another change, which I will do next week with M1 5W-30. I have noticed easier cranking when it's cold outside, and my differentials are straight synthetic. I did get about 1 mile to the gallon greater when I switched to them.

Hudge

Where I live a REALLY cold day might be 25* For the most part the average winter temps are about 45-50*

I don't know if the front diff carries a synthetic lube,but the transfer case and tranny have M1 ATF,and the rear diff has whatever synthetic GM uses.

I'd take any amount of MPG increase I cound find. In town my 8.1 liter gets about 9-10MPG and on the freeway a good day MIGHT be 14. I've been keeping track of the mileage since I bought it,and IME neither Amsoil or M1 has shown any difference that I can detect. There have been tanks where the MPG was better and where it was worse. I can't contribute any increase to synthetics.

I've used the Castrol Blend for about the last 60k in my 87 Suburban. 140k still going strong. No smoking, no perceptable loss of power. I usually try to change it every 6k. Not because it needs changing, but just because. I use one of the more expensive filters and get double the time out of my oil changes.

It has noticeably more viscosity left at 6k than traditional oil at 3k. I've ran it for over 8k on cross country trips and was impressed at how "good" the oil still was when I changed it.

I'd also admit that I believe cold weather starting is a bit easier.

I am a synthetic motor oil and gear lube believer. Although Consumer Reports did the famous "NYC Taxi Test", see "The Surprising Truth About Motor Oils" in the July 1996 issue, and basically determined that any oil that is "API Certified" is good. Since the majority of engine "wear" occurs when the oil has dropped back into the lower crank case and the upper end in "dry", I want my oil to flow as quickly as is possible and I think that synthetic does that better than fossel oil.

I like Castrol full synthetic and typically runs 4x4s out to around 200K before selling them. I change the full synthetic at 6K. The only full synthetic that I haven't liked was M1 0W40, as it leaked/seeped badly from my wife's 4.0 litre straight 6 Jeep GC Laredo. Although, I must note that all 3 of the 4.0 litre straight 6 Jeeps that we've owned were chronic oil leakers. My current hunting rig is a 1993 Grand Cherokee Limited with 156k on all of the original parts. The 5.2 litre V8 still gets between 15 and 18 MPG and uses about 1/2 quart of oil every 6K.

I do think that synthetic gear lube is a MUST, even if you don't tow anything, particularly anywhere with hot summer weather and significant hills.

Jeff

I use the 5w40 synthetic Rotella in my '97 Cummins .

I don't think I've seen any real difference in fuel milege , but there is a LARGE improvement in cranking ease in sub-freezing temperatures. The instant reading on the oil pressure guage after starting rather than waiting about 2 minutes is reassuring too.

15w40 diesel grade dino oil pours about like axle grease at -0 F .

I've been using Mobil One synthetic exclusively for the past eight years. Currently using it on a 99 Jeep Wrangler and a 03 Dodge pickup. I think it flows more quickly and evenly to engine parts--especially in the Winter.

I use mobil one exclusivley in my vehicles engines and use synthetic differential oil as well.The engine cranks over much faster on our cold -40 days.Since cold starts are a large factor in engine wear the engines lifespan is also increased.The differentials take less power to turn as well.

Mobil1 for both our vehicle's engines and Mobil1 gear oil in my rig's std transmission, transfer case and differentials.

MtnHtr

Front & rear diffs, transfer case and tranny all have synthetic lube in them. Can't say if it improved my mileage or not as I switched to synthetic at the same time I replaced the engine. I stuck with the synthetic in the engine because the sub-zero starts were easier with it. I believe the synthetics in the driveline help tremendously in the cold weather. With the dino lube you could feel the drag of the oil as the truck lost much of its speed between shifts.

I get 12 mpg if I drive it easy and stay at 55 mph. Normal commuting I get about 10 mpg. In the cold weather I get about 7-8mpg depending on how cold and how long the trips are.

Run the RPM's up over 2000 and it gets thirsty in a hurry, but I didn't get a 7.5L for it's fuel economy.

I use quite a variety of motor oils as I several rigs. In the Smudge Pot (1990 Ford diesel 4x4) I am currently using shell Rotella. In both BMW's I run Red Line. In my Polaris Quad and Yamaha out board I use Mobil 1. Mobil 1 will not foam like dino oil in the Quad or outboard. Everything else gets Valvoline 10-30.

Bullwnkl

I have Amsoil synthetic gear lubes installed in diffs front and rear, plus transfer case and 5 sp. tranny. I have used the Amsoil engine oil in the '96 Dodge Cummins diesel, but currently use 10-30 Rotella in winter and 15-40 Rotella from April to November. The Amsoil is pretty good stuff....especially at -30F.

I use Castrol Syntec in my Ranger. It has 235,000 miles on it.

I use mobile 1 in my wife's Accord, and pour it into every hole I can find on my pickup. I've got 147K on my Tacoma, and figure it's about a third worn out. I a mechanic adjust the valves at 130K and he told me there was zero wear in that part of the engine. It's worth the extra money to run good oil.

I used nothing but Pennzoil 10w-30 in a '97 dodge dakota that I had. It was run all day without shutting it off in the gas patch. When I got rid of it it had 160,000 plus miles on it. I had the oil pan off of it once and it looked like new inside the engine. I used to be a believer in synthetic oil but after performance like I experienced with just plain old Pennzoil I don't think the extra cost is worth it for synthetic. The main thing no matter what you use is to change oil often.

Running an engine all day is much easier on it then multiple start stops, especially cold starts.

I use Syntetic in a vehicle after its broken in would not use it on a brand new vehicle.

Why not?

These cars use Mobil 1 full synthetic as factory fill

Aston Martin
Bentley
Chevrolet Corvette
Dodge Viper
All models of Porshe
Mercedes AMG

These are some pretty high end cars. If they think its OK to break an engine in on synthetics It must not hurt anything.

I haven't ever used synthetic oil. Here is why.

Synthetic oil is better oil in terms of maintaining viscosity. It flat lasts a lot longer than petroleum oil. However, all oil gets dirty, and unless you have a bypass oil filter system, you still need to change your synthetic oil at the same interval as regular oil.

Also, there is an important point to consider with a diesel. The recommended grade is 15W40. Synthetic oils usually come in a lower low-end viscosity, like 5W40. This means they are a bit lighter weight, but because of their superior viscosity break down resistance, you can get away with a lighter synthetic oil and reap all the benefits of a lighter oil.

That is all fine and good until you throw a dieasel engine into the equation. Diesel engines run a static compression of around 17-1, and when you add in the turbo you get very high cylinder pressure. This high cylinder pressure puts a lot of "squish" on the rod and main bearings, and if your oil is to thin it will squish too much and can cause increased metal wear.

This is why I run Shell Rotella T 15W40 in my 125 HP chipped DMax and change it every three months. If I ever do go to a synthetic, it will only be after I install a bypass oil filter. I will then run oil analyses every 3000 miles or so to see how long I can run the synthetic before it breaks down/gets too dirty. A friend who did this with Amsoil said, IIRC, he could go about 30,000 miles on the Amsoil with the bypass filtration system, but that did include changing the filter and adding a new quart or so of oil every 6 months or something like that.

Non synthetic changed at 3000 miles every time.

fwiw,
I went a little overboard with my 94' F150 4x4 and installed an Amsoil Bypass Filter Housing AND a Preluber. Never started from a dry bearing after 10,000 miles. Ran Amsoil and Mobil 1 in the engine, Amsoil ATF in the transmission and transfer case, and Amsoil Gear Lube in both Hogs Heads. Tried to take similar care of the rest of the truck. Everyone laughed until I sold it last year for $10,000(without ever putting a for sale sign in the window). Blue book was $6200. Only thing that was nonoriginal were Goodyear EPDM Hoses, 31x10.50 BFG ATs, and the oil system. Drove the truck for ten years and got more than half of the original purchase price out of it...

That said I now use Shell Rotella in my 03' Excursion Diesel. I thought a lot about going with various synthetics, however, my father has five N14 Cummins at 400 HP and up, and one 3406E Cat at 550 HP that all run on Shell Rotella 15-40w. Some of his trucks have a 1,000,000 miles on them without so much as a set of main bearings... That and there's always cases of Rotella T at the shop...(grin)

Regards, Matt.

I was asked why I would not use Synthetic oil on a new engine. I worked on the the North Slope at Prudoe Bay in
the late 80,s. The new Ford diesel pickups that ran synthetic
oil from day one had multiple failures, determined to be improper breakin. The new Ford diesels that were driven up
with regular oil had no problems.

I knew a contractor for Bechtel and Aleska that did engine rebuilds in Fairbanks. I ask him why the engines failed at such low miles? He told me being how none of the trucks where equiped with Hobbs meters no true picture comes clear about mileage, as the engines run 24 hours a day 7 days a week. At that time the oil in use was DN-600, Trade name was Polor Start. I have not seen this oil on the market for many years. I would recommend a good synthetic oil to anyone no matter where they are or what the conditions are! I know for a fact that no high rpm (60,000) engine in this world could live more than seconds without a synthetic oil. If it afords protection at high turbine speeds what will it do for an engine that might hit 7 grand once in awhile? A side note to history I get a kick out of is the statement that the "Germans could never have developed the jet engine with out synthetic oils". One thing you never hear anyone talk about is the moisture content of ash based oils, they are loaded with moisture! Synthetic's, NADA! So if you think pouring water into your crankcase is a help, 'Go for it"

Synthetic is also now used in all BMWs. I have a 3 series, and recommended oil change is 15000 miles.

I had a Mercur XR4Ti turbo and the mechanics seemed split on the issue of synthetic vs. fossil oil when running a turbo. Some claimed that since synthetic was "clean", it would keep those little bearing from getting "dirty". Others claimed that synthetic didn't dissipate heat as well as the fossil and that heat kills turbos, not dirty bearings.

I ran synthetic in it until I found a sucker, I mean enthusiast, to buy it and deal with its idiosyncrasies and parts issues. It was a fast and fun car, but like women of that nature, it required a lot of attention, upkeep, and $$ to make it happy.

Jeff

Bought a surplus cop car from the Spokane Police dept. in 1992 that had used synthetics and I just kept using Mobil 1. I drove it for about 80K and gave it away to a friend of mine who was driving it at about 285K and it was still going strong when it caught fire from a leaking fuel injector. I don't think it had much maintenance after I gave it away with about 190K on it. I talked to the mechanics at the Spokane PD and they had experimented with synthetics doing a teardown of a dino and synthetic engine (Ford 302's). He said the dino oil engine showed some wear and had the typical varnish patterns they expected to find. What surprised them with the synthetic motor was the almost total lack of varnish and virtually no cylinder wall wear.
I use synthetics in the wife's '93 Intrepid and the '83 944. Using Chevron Delo in the '89 Suburban with 200K on it just because that's what was being used in it before I got it. I'll start using the the Wal-Mart $12 jug of synthetic now. Thanks for the heads up on that!
Synthetic in all the drivetrain. My understading the gearboxes really benefit from the synthetics. No sucking water into the mix and lower running temperatures.
When one of my daughters was still living at home we put synthetic in her '89 Mazda RX7. OOPS! Bad move. I didn't know it, but evidently the rotary engine needed dino oil only. It sucked that synthetic oil up in less than 1000 miles. Put dino oil in and no problems.
I do use good filters and try not to go more than 5K with synthetics.

I run M1 in my '94 F250 and my '99 Harley FLHTC.

You could really tell the difference in the Harley! Cut engine noise considerably. Now all you can hear is the rumble of the pipes ! ! ! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

mrmarklin,

not that I'm skeptical or anything, <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />, but BMW changed their oil change maintenance recommendation from 7500 to 15k miles at the same time they started offering free maintenance for the first 4 years or 50k miles. Imagine that! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
Do yourself a favor, change that oil every 5-7 k if you plan on keeping it a while........

badger

I used Mobil 1 in my 4.0 Jeep Wrangler and the rear mainseal leaked like a sieve at 19,000 miles.I know the design of that rear main is a problem but I think the synthetic made the seal problem worse. I have used Pennzoil ever since.

Pour it in a smoker and it stops the smoke long enough to get it sold to some one unsuspecting. So decide if the used car has synthetic before buying. That advise came from an Auto Auction owner.

I use M-1 in three of my newer vehicles, I use a blend in my old cars. I use M-1 10 W 30 and I can see that it does improve fuel mileage, but I have done so many modifications to my vehicles it is hard to say how much of it is strictly oil related. I have a 96 Impala SS that has had a Callaway (sp) conversion before I recived it from the factory it gets in the high 20's mpg with 433 hp. My wife's 98 Navigator has 135,000 miles and uses no oil between 4,000 mile oil changes. I did a few mods to it also. I found the line of code in the software for the 99 mph speed limiter and whacked it, when it was new. The Navigator does not get great mileage, but it is a 4WD with 373's. My Ford truck on the hand gets 22.5 mpg with 355's and is a 4 door that is 4WD, killed the speed limiter in it too. This may stir up quite a discussion, but most of the synthetic oil that is sold in ths country is made in the Mobil Synthetic Oil Plant in Beaumont, TX. I have an old class mate of mine that manages that plant and I went down there a few years ago for the 25th anniversary of Mobil-1 oil and was shown all the different brands of oil that are bottled at that plant. I can't say the brands they bottle, but the only one that has been mentioned in this discussion that is not made by Mobil/Exxon is AMSoil. Although, most of the different brands they bottle have a different blend to meet the stated specifications. I do not follow the recomendations of changing the oil filter every 5,000 miles and replacing 1 quart of oil as Mobil has quietly stated for the last 20 years, I change filter and all of the oil every 4,000 miles, you could get away with 5,000. When M-1 was engineered in 1975 it was tested at one oil change every 25,000 miles with 4 filter changes. Then GM and Ford as well as all of the rest of manufactures fell out and stated that the warranty would be void if this procedure was followed, so Mobil for a time said that you could run M-1 to the longest oil service interval, which is twice as long as the suggested interval that the manufacturer states. Now, Mobil/Exxon loudly states the 15,000 mile interval is in effect NOW with two filter changes. In any case any synthetic oil protects at a much higher temperature and does cut down on wear. You really can't make the claim that it is cheaper to run synthetic oil, but if you're like me you run it as a piece of mind. If you really want to know how the synthetic oil molecules lubricate I will send you a detailed report I wrote about 20 years ago, when I was an engineer. I an not an engineer any more, I am just retired.
Have a good weekend!
Marcus,

I forgot to mention that you should run a filter that is designed for synthetic oils, there are three that I know of. The Mobil-1 and the Puralotor Pure 1 are two that I know of at this point in time for automotive use that are easy to find, along with the AMSoil that is a top notch filter too. The filtering media for synthetic oil is just different, enough said.

Marcus

Marcus,
I've used synthetic oils since 1989 in various vehicles,all new and have had very good luck with them. I did not know you were suppose to use a filter for synthetic oil.I always just used AC or Fram filters.I change the oil and filter every 5000 miles.Will the synthetic filter help that much?
Thanks.

T Turner,
The filter media for synthetics is a finer mesh (so to speak), it will trap smaller particals, so they will be trapped and the oil itself will stay cleaner longer. The down side of this is the oil filter will fill up faster. The Mobil-1 filter for a Chevy 350 for instance has 351 square inches of filter face as the Pure 1 has 400 square inches, as oil filters go in that size that is a lot of surface to pass oil through. To answer your question, I have to ask you a question as well. If your driving includes a lot of pulling trailers and a high mix of stop and go driving as in large cities, then you would be well served to use a synthetic oil specific filter. If your driving is mostly highway driving, then most any high quality filter will work, with one exception; the Fram Double Guard oil filter. This is a very high quality filter that has Teflon particals in the filtering media, which is released into the oil as the oil is passed through the filter. This is an absolute great idea for mineral based oil, but it does have some draw backs for use in synthetic oil. The Teflon additive is not 100% compatible with all synthetic oils, so to be on the safe side I would not recommend the conjunction of the two. Although, if you are using the two together don't run out and dump your new oil, just consider what you may want to use next oil change. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.
Take care!
Marcus,

Teflon is not good for an engine.

If you want the real skinny on oil and such, visit Bobistheoilguy.com

Thanks for the link on air filters. If I hadn't read it for myself, I wouldn't have believed it!

I NEVER would have believed how POORLY the K&N filter actually filtered. K&N claims both superior air-flow and superior cleaning, but it seems that the superior air-flow is over-emphasized and the filtration is actually quite inferior.

Jeff

I'm calling BS <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

I'm calling BS on this one as well. Somebody was feeding you a line of BS. If you expect anyone to believe that Mobil makes oil for all the other manufacturers,you're crazy.

Now if you'd have said that Mobil makes some of the "house" (Napa,Walmart,ect.) brand oils I'd buy that.

I'm on Taurus number 6 right now, most of the others have gone over 180K miles and two over 200K miles before they were replaced. I've never put anything in them except the WalMart $4.88 per 5 quart oil, and a $2.50 fram filter. I've never had an engine failure. I change the oil religiously every 3K.

badger,

On my previous BMW there was no set mileage for oil changes or service. There was a gauge on the control panel that signalled when it was time to do so through a green-yellow-red system. Supposedly, this system "looked" at how many starts were made, mileage, speed and temperature etc etc to determine when the oil should have been changed. On average, I changed aboout every 9000+ miles with this system. BTW the 15000 mile oil change came about with the introduction of the synthetics AFAIK.

I forgot to add that when my mechanic pulled the camshaft and declared zero wear, he also commented on how unusually clean the intake was for the miles the truck had. To my way of thinking, that because the synthetic oil didn't cook off and create smoky gasses that the ERG would then have sent into the intake. Just my theory. To me the extra cost is worth it. I used to change conventional oil at 2500, and now changed Mobil 1 at 4K. I could probably just change the filter and keep going but don't.

OKIE DOKIE........

FWIW, here is the results of the latest, greatest BMW maintenance regimen inflicted on a 1999 528i by the local dealer, using BMW synthetic oil & changing it when the vaunted Service Interval Indicator dictated the the car needed an oil change. (Odometer reading of 88 322 miles at the time it was towed to us with no oil pressure)
Your mileage may vary...........

BTW: All service records were in the service booklet in the glovebox <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

Badger, those are hard photos to look at! Any further details about the type of driving, and actual miles between changes? I've never heard of BMW oil. Who makes it for them?

BMW Full Synthetic oil is made by Castrol to BMW specs. Looks very similar in color to Syntec. I do not know what type of driving the car was subjected to but according to the service booklet, oil & filter were changed at 9-14k mile intervals.

I also believe (& have not had anyone disprove my theory yet, even the local BMW Field Service Engineer) that the use of plastic valve covers, oil fillers, intake manifolds etc aggravate this problem because of their rapid temperature drop when the engine is shut off, especially in low ambient temps. This causes condensation to form & emulsify with the oil making it even more important IMO to change change it more frequently on modern engines than the older designs that use metal valve covers etc.

badger

Thanks for the follow-up. I'll continue to change my Mobil 1 @ 4K until I learn better.

Badger;

I have read recently that Mobil took Castrol to court for claiming their synthetic oil was just that... But Mobil maintained it was not.
It was described that their base stock was just highly refined parafin based oil. I ran a long change of Castrol and noticed slug build up on my oil fiilter and then pulled the valve cover and also noticed that it had quite of bit of slug on the engine head....

I switched back over to Mobil One and that eliminated that problem....

I will post my experiences with Mobil One seperately, but it is HIGHLY contrary to what has been experienced by others here....

cheers
seafire

My use for synthetic oil, mainly Mobil One has been for 25 years or so....My experiences with it was based on doing a lot of research originally and also keeping an eye on the head, taking the valve cover off and looking at the filter when I change it to see if any sludge build up or varnish was on the filter bolt area.....

My experiences have been totally different than those that have experienced failure or bad problems with Mobil One... I base my experiences with strictly Mobil One....

I change the filter every 5K, and use either Fram or Motorcraft fillters I get at Walmart...MY wife does much less driving than I do, so I change her oil every 15000 in most of the cars she has owned....

I change it every 20K to 25K in the vehicles that I drive.....

The most I have ever ran it was 40K.... once again with all filter changes at 5K.
I want to point out that none of these vehicles have the results shown on the BMW pictures.... NONE have had sludge or varnish on the heads, or have had plugged oil galleys...
As far as how long these vehicles have lasted.....

1985 Honda Prelude... 300,000 miles plus ( gave to young kid, friend of family) changed every 20,000
1984 Volvo..... 351,000 miles ( buddy was rusted out, 11 yrs in Minnesota) changed every 10,000
1992 Acura Legend ... 155,000 miles and still own, going strong, no sludge or Varnish.... changed every 10,000
1994 Toyota Camry 4 cylinder..... 185,000 miles and no sludge or varnish.. changed every 20,000
1988 Honda Prelude... bought with 115,000 on it, last oil change had been Pennzoil with only 3,000 miles on the change, but that had been two years since it was changed.... It had varnish and sludge build up,... records show oil changed since new every 3000 miles using Pennzoil 10w30....Ran this car 40,000 miles ( since I got it cheap and sold it recently for what I paid for it) on Mobil 0W 40.... added roughly 3 qts in 40,000 miles... Pulled the valve cover off of it before it was sold..... all the sludge and varnish that had been on there when I got it was long gone!

Final rig; 1988 Toyota 4 Runner, bought new in Sept 1987....
OIL changes every 20,000, filter every 5 k..... Rebuilt engine and tranny in 2002.... engine was getting "tired" , no oil consumption etc.... Mobil's Delvac One ( truck version of Mobil One) 5 w 40....
NO sludge or varnish in engine during tear down..... 430,000 miles on it....Rig now has 473,000 miles on it, and between 440,000 and 470,000 ran 5 w 40 Delvac One, with 5k filter changes..... NO sludge or varnish on engine, as I just adjusted the valves.... engine has 5 W 40 Delvac in it now and I will change it at 500,000 even, .... Engine oil will have 30,000 on it at that time....

Long time ago I got to see the factory test results that made Porsche recommend Mobil One as the factory recommended oil... Maybe Mobil still has that available.... it was some pretty astounding reading.....

IN closing, I will relate a story of two brothers that worked as service guys for a company I worked for....Both were Minnesota farm boys, and both bought Dodge Trucks with the old slant 6 in them....They traded them every 200,000 miles which was a little over every 3 yrs....ONe brother used Mobil One since it came out and never ever changed the oil, only the filter....for the entire 200,000 miles... He never cared as he never got squat in trade for a 3 yr old truck with 200K on it and had a lot of rust setting in....

Of course his brother used Pennzoil and changed his oil every 10,000 miles.... the last 50K or so, he didn't change it at all!!!

But that was on old Dodge slant 6s, and the only got a couple of hundred bucks in trade in on the pickups anyway... so they didn't care....

NO one ever killed a car by changing the oil too much, but I am sure a believer in Mobil One... can't say the same for Castrol's Synthetic oil......

As far as fuel mileage, the only car I ever noticed a difference on was on our Acura.... tried 10w 30 Castrol regular oil once and the mileage was 6 mpg less... changed back to Mobil One and it went right back up...

Recommended Mobil one on my folks car ( they are in their 70s) 1999 Mercury Grand Marquis... they got about 5mpgs more is what they claimed....

cheers to all
seafire

Seafire,

I have been using Mobil 1 for about 18 years on my own gasoline powered cars without any issues whatsoever. However, they all use metal valve covers etc. so I don't know if the "plastic generation" engines would exhibit similar sludging tendencies with Mobil 1 as they obviously do with the Castrol Syntec/BMW oil.

badger

Badger,

Interesting theory....All I know is that I use to have a Volvo that was intended for the Canadian Market and had been made in Canada.... It slipped across the border and I still bought it brand new, but it had the Owners Manual for the Canadian Side of the border.... It told one how to fix a lot of things etc, was very detailed.... then I got a hold of a Manual for the USA side of the border and for almost every problem, it did not explain how to fix it like it did on the Canadian Manual, it just said "Take it to the Dealer " over and over....

I really think in the USA, as opposed to the rest of the world, that the Manufacturers still limit the lifetime of a vehicle by recommendations of " take it to the dealer" .... who knows what the dealer is doing....

I'd go so far as to suspect that I wonder if " BMW" official oil was the same as "BMW" official oil in Europe.....

I am not all impressed with Castrol's OILs at all anymore....

Long drains with filter changes ( good filters!, not the $2.00 Walmart/Kmart filters) have done well for me. Actually my favorite synthetic is Mobil's Delvac Oil meant for over the road diesels... I have seen where it was Detriot Diesel or Cummins that honor warranties using Delvac One with 100,000 mile drain intervals and filter changes every 15K.... but this is with over the road diesels which are ON Running all the time....

Contrary to the knowledge of many, it is the turning the engine off and on and condensation build up that sludges regular oil up ( and evidently hurt Castrol's synthetic claims).... With regular filter changes and and engine on all the time, One would be surprised how long of a time regular dino oil will go without needed to be changed.....Like in Taxi Cab service etc.

But still my favorite quote on the subject has always been " NO one ever destroyed an engine by changing the oil too much!"

People keeping an eye on the valve cover insides and the filter's metal top when they change it can tell one a lot about what is going on inside the engine via sludge and varnish....

Of course I am left over from the generations when you could buy a $100.00 Chevy with a 250 ci Six Cylinder or a 283, AS a college kid: and the way to get another 100,000 miles out of it, was to start using Pennzoil and then never change it! What I later learned to Call Pennzoil..... Vega and Pinto Oil!......

Pennzoil sludge was about the only thing that could keep a Vega engine running past 40 to 50 K! 80 w 90 worked well when their rings were almost shot! LOL!

cheers
seafire

6 mpg difference just by changing oil... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I say untruth. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

Well Swifty, going from Dino oil back to Synthetic..... It surprised me when regular oil DROPPED THE MILEAGE 6 mpgs.... and that was based over a 3000 mile change!

So I went back to the synthetic that it was use to and the mileage went right back up to where it was....Guess the synthetics have a lot more slippery additives than do regular oil...
of course that has been a "selling point" of STP for years......
Slippery additives and increasing the viscosity......

That works out to the car getting about 20% less mileage or so with Dino oil after it had been use to using Synthetic.....

As for my family, we will take the 28 mpg over the 22 mpg any day of the week..... and not question it or call BS at all.....

If you don't believe that gas mileage can go up 20% plus by using a different ( and better) type of oil,.... is it easier to believe that it can drop by 20% instead by using a lesser quality oil???

That is what happened.... whether anyone wants to believe it or not.... Got nothing to gain by feed ya any BS there Swifty....
Just relating experiences.....

cheers
seafire

I run Amsoil and/or Red Line in my vehicles and have for a little over 10 years. On vehicles that have large drivetrain drag (eg my wife's Subaru AWD) and/or are operated in cold weather you can see a significant increase in mileage when switching to synthetic fluids. I can't comment on improvements seen if just the motor oil is changed because I've always switched all the fluids to synthetic. Newer rigs may already have synthetic in some or all of the drivetrain so check that out before you consider switching them. Also, someone up above mentioned Rotella synthetic...you might want to look into it carefully because I read (drat, I wish I remembered where) that it was not a true synthetic but just highly refined dino oil?

Rotella synthetic is in fact a highly refined dino. A few years back Castrol won a court battle that enabled them to call their group III dino oil synthetic. Since then the majority of the synthetic oils on the market are group III oils (highly refined dino oil).

Amsoil,Redline,Mobil 1,Royal Purple are all fully synthetic.

Castrol,Pennzoil,Havoline,Chevron, and numerous others labled as synthetics are group III oils.

Hey Mossy,
Thanks for the info; it echoed what I had read before but had forgotten the details. It's too bad that the court allowed this to happen. I don't know the details of the lawsuit but it seems to me that uneducated consumers are being duped.

I run Mobil 1 in my wife's Liberty (gas eng). I run Amsoil in my F-350 (diesel), Western Star (Detroit Diesel ) and in my Mack. I run Rotella synthetic in a Case backhoe (diesel) I run Valoline syn in the big truck gear box and diffs and Amsoil in the Ford trans and diffs. I but Amsoil by the 55 gal drum and it is $2 cheaper than Rotella syn per gal. However Wal-mart carries Rotella. I have 717,000 miles on the Western Star and plan on getting 1.2 milllion before an in frame rebuild. I change filters and send an oil analysis away evey 15,000miles. I change oil at 95-100,000 miles even though the analysis says it is OK to keep running the oil. In the jeep and Ford I change the oil every 6-7000 miles depending on use (towing driving on dirt roads...) The only dino oil I use is the ATF in a skid steer because syn is too slick and will cause power transfer problems.

I use Mobil 1 in everything...Even my lawn mowers!!! This saved my 14 yr. old Toro when gas got into the crank case. It was pouring out, literally. I rebuilt the carb, drained the crank case and ran dino with Marvel's and changed it.
She's running great.
I also had a new 86 Escort EXP GT that I put 240,000 miles in 5 1/2 years. I got rid of it because I was tired of driving it.

I'm a believer in Mobil 1.

great read!!! i wish i kep my trucks long enough to change the oil <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
woofer

I'm a big fan of Amsoil and Redline products (water wetter). This was until recently. Nothing against Amsoil because I feel they are about the best product out there. I use it exclusively in my RV from the crankcase, transmission, differential, and even the grease.

But the best deal I have run into in a while was when we just bought my wife a 2006 Camry. The local Toyota dealer sold us a package to change our oil and filters, lube the chassis, wash and vacuum the car every 5,000 miles for the life of the car. They use Penzoil semi-synthetic and the whole thing cost us $239. A pretty good deal, IMHO. They even offered to sell us the same package for any other Toyota we have for $239.

I use Mobil 1 in all my vehicle engines and also use synthetic gear lube in the trans and difs. Makes a huge difference when the temp gets down there to -40 or so. Now if they would only come up with a cure for those square tires.