Synthetic oil or not?

[VetteOwner]

i know someone who has over 300K on his s-10 and he only uses walmart dino oil and filters, BUT he changes it religiously every 3K.

Yes any modern oil is way better than what they had 20+ years ago...and as long as you keep on top of the oil changes and maintenance any engine will last for a very long time no matter what oil you use.

What usualyl ruins an engine is to little of oil, so keep it topped off and it shouldnt have any oil related problems unless the oil pump craps out. It also takes a very logn time to build up sludge if you change your oil and filter...

[bkrell]

Originally Posted by Mark

Oil is intended to both lube and cleanse. Synthetics may hold up for 10,000 miles, but essentually dirty and/or contaminated oil is being run in a motor for that much longer of a time. Is it logical to believe that everything that has gone into an engine in 10,000 miles is/was contaminiate free?

Oil is not intended to clean the engine in pure terms. An oil is expected merely to keep an engine as clean as it was when you put it in. The oil with its associated additives keeps in suspension the contamiants and netralizes them up to a certain point. Synthetic oils use better quality base oils in conjuction with premium additive packs that are not broken down as quickly by combustion byproducts and engine heat. In effect, you can think of oil as a sponge, soaking up contaminants until it gets to a "saturation point." And with high quality synthetics, that point is at a much higher mileage than with a basic dino. Until it gets to the point where the oil or additives become compromised, it will lubricate just fine.

[JanGeo]

You forget that the sludge is from the oil breaking down. I so do not have to worry about any of this stuff with Synlube.

[bkrell]

Negative ghostrider. Sludge formation is a multifaceted chemical process that is much more involved than "oil breaking down." As I said, when a synth is run and changed at proper intervals, there is going to be little to no effect on the engine. Of course, there are documented cases in recent years of folks following the manufacturer's recommended intervals and ending up with sludged intervals, but these have largely been manufacturer issues and routine oil breakdown.

And by the way, not that it matters to you and not saying it in a condescending way, since I'm sure you're a devoted fan, but Synlube is not a highly regarded oil by the tribologists and formulators that post over at bitog. Do a search. I'd urge you, if you keep the oil in much over 15k to get an analysis and have it professionally interpreted by someone not associated with Synlube such as Dyson Analysis.

[R.I.D.E.]

bkrell;

I have read through many of your posts and find your imput to be valuable.

When it comes to oil I tend to be very conservative since a mistake could be costly.

My VX with just over 31k actual miles is currently having 3k oil changes with the regular Wal Mart dino juice.

Experience has proven to me that this is a safe means of achieving my goal of another 200k from the engine. To me this car is irreplaceable.

If this was your car would you maintain the status quo or take another course.

I would truly appreciate your advice.

regards
gary

[slurp812]

Originally Posted by VetteOwner

i know someone who has over 300K on his s-10 and he only uses walmart dino oil and filters, BUT he changes it religiously every 3K.

Yes any modern oil is way better than what they had 20+ years ago...and as long as you keep on top of the oil changes and maintenance any engine will last for a very long time no matter what oil you use.

What usualyl ruins an engine is to little of oil, so keep it topped off and it shouldnt have any oil related problems unless the oil pump craps out. It also takes a very logn time to build up sludge if you change your oil and filter...

I ran my 94 accord on Castrol GTX dino oil. At 179,000 miles, I traded it in still not burning more than 1/2 quart between changes. I didn't always drive it nice either.

[SL8Brick]

Originally Posted by bkrell

And by the way, not that it matters to you and not saying it in a condescending way, since I'm sure you're a devoted fan, but Synlube is not a highly regarded oil by the tribologists and formulators that post over at bitog. Do a search. I'd urge you, if you keep the oil in much over 15k to get an analysis and have it professionally interpreted by someone not associated with Synlube such as Dyson Analysis.

Amen.

[bkrell]

Originally Posted by R.I.D.E.

bkrell;

I have read through many of your posts and find your imput to be valuable.

When it comes to oil I tend to be very conservative since a mistake could be costly.

My VX with just over 31k actual miles is currently having 3k oil changes with the regular Wal Mart dino juice.

Experience has proven to me that this is a safe means of achieving my goal of another 200k from the engine. To me this car is irreplaceable.

If this was your car would you maintain the status quo or take another course.

I would truly appreciate your advice.

regards
gary

Probably so. If you wanted to be a tad bit more conscientious on cleanliness you might move up to a basic mass market synth like Mobil1. With it, you could still be VERY conscientious by extending to at least 5k miles. But if you like 3k, Supertech is a great API SM dino oil for the price with that interval. One bit of advice that would save you even more money is, if you aren't using them already, to switch to Wal-Mart's Supertech filters as well. They are head and shoulders above the basic orange can Fram filters and cheaper, too. They are made by a reputable company (Champion Labs) that makes filters marketed under many names.

I'm by no means an oil guru. I've just spent waay too much time on bitog trying to make sure my SAAB 9-5 doesn't die an early death due to sludge. The 99-02 9-5 is a known oil destroyer right from the factory! 135k miles and a-ok though. I have no choice but to use synths although I ocassionally run 15W40 diesel oil for short intervals just for giggles.

But beware if you veture over to bitog. You might end up investing all your hard saved money into the closeouts everyone finds on oil and end up with a nice oil stash.

[VetteOwner]

Originally Posted by slurp812

I ran my 94 accord on Castrol GTX dino oil. At 179,000 miles, I traded it in still not burning more than 1/2 quart between changes. I didn't always drive it nice either.

same with my s-10 thats got 142K on it, its only ever seen regular dyno oil and changed religiously at 3K. i fill it up with the same stuff, castrol GTX 5w-30 and doesnt burn any between changes (well a tad but goes down maybe an 1/8" on the dipstick lol)

[8307c4]

If you're the kind that runs the oil black does it even matter?

I reckon it does, but if you already run your oil black then do NOT extend the intervals beyond where they already are, please... I get so tired of this....

I never run black oil, I change it long before it gets to that.
I do run synthetic, in everything, even the lawn mower.
Yes, it is better, but you can still seize an engine with it.

The one thing I can confirm is synthetic can SIT in an engine for a long, long time.
That is, so long the engine never runs... With regular oil after 3 months of sitting the oil has deteriorated, you don't see it until that engine runs up to Standard Op.Temp but then it turns black on you... Synth doesn't appear to do that, I've let synthetic oil sit in an engine that didn't run for a year and now it's as good as new still (after I ran the engine up to SOT).

But if you run that engine then the normal intervals apply, I change mine every 3k miles.
Yes I know some folks let it go longer, but they did that with regular oil too and for many years most people never change their oil on time, but just because someone else does it doesn't mean you can, because it is not good for the engine, you take your chances.