Engine Oil FAQ

Started by S204STi, February 09, 2008, 08:03:58 PM

S204STi

I also wonder if being in the break-in stage of the engine might have something to do with it. 

Secret Chimp

I've been using some Mobil Super 10W-30 high mileage in the Dodge since I changed out the 15W-40 Shell stuff I had in it for a thousand miles (which was nazzzzty). I haven't had to top it up yet - I probably added about two or three quarts between May and November on the car's first oil change. Maybe I cleaned some gunk off of the oil rings?


Quote from: BENZ BOY15 on January 02, 2014, 02:40:13 PM
That's a great local brewery that we have. Do I drink their beer? No.

S204STi

I suppose it's possible.  Those High Mileage oils have a pretty robust additive package, which might explain it.  It could also be that the Shell stuff did the actual cleaning (which is why it looked like shit).  When this car was built engine oils kinda sucked.

giant_mtb

Quote from: mzziaz on November 27, 2011, 09:23:00 AM
I filled my snowblower with 10w40 even though 10w30 was clearly specified. Did I fuck up?

I'm sure that as soon as the engine's warmed up, it doesn't really care about 40 vs. 30.

Eye of the Tiger

Quote from: giant_mtb on November 28, 2011, 04:53:26 PM
I'm sure that as soon as the engine's warmed up, it doesn't really care about 40 vs. 30.

Except that it does, since those are the viscoscities at warmed up temp.
2008 TUNDRA (Truck Ultra-wideband Never-say-die Daddy Rottweiler Awesome)

S204STi


mzziaz

Huh?

I've got the same impression Nacar does.
Cuore Sportivo

S204STi

Long story short the difference between 30 and 40 isn't that huge, and with a little engine like that which runs at constant speed you won't notice a problem IMO.

Eye of the Tiger

Yeah, well I like long stories.
2008 TUNDRA (Truck Ultra-wideband Never-say-die Daddy Rottweiler Awesome)

S204STi

Yeah, well it's late.  Do some reading on viscosity ratings.  You'll quickly realize that between brands a 30 or 40 weight can get confused in a hurry.  Take for example German Castrol 0-30.  It runs more like a 5w-40.

Rupert

It's just a snow blower. It should be able to take some abuse.
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mzziaz

Quote from: R-inge on November 29, 2011, 01:00:40 AM
Long story short the difference between 30 and 40 isnt that huge, and with a little engine like that which runs at constant speed you won't notice a problem IMO.


Little?

420 cc of Chinese fury!   :rage:
Cuore Sportivo

mzziaz

So I can keep using 5w-40 for it?

From a logistics viewpoint it would be an advantage.
Cuore Sportivo

S204STi


Secret Chimp

Here's a hot tip - WIX filter discounts across the board thanks to Moparts.com...

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=84099


Quote from: BENZ BOY15 on January 02, 2014, 02:40:13 PM
That's a great local brewery that we have. Do I drink their beer? No.

hounddog

Quote from: R-inge on November 27, 2011, 09:26:51 AM
I guess I missread your post.  I read it as, "I had to change my oil at an 8400mi interval again."

The OLM is fairly accurate, so like Rupert mentioned it's probably best to go with that.  There could be something about your driving habits or the environment around you which triggers a more aggressive response by the oil life monitor.  High humidity, cold starting temps, short trips; etc.

Sorry, my fault for not being more clear.

As I suspected, nothing came as a result of the diagnostic.  :huh:

The dealership lead diesel mechanic, for lack of a better title to give him, told me that if it is break in related the interval should normalize after 10,000 miles.  He suggested I not run the idle bump this winter during breakin, even though my manual suggests it.

We shall see.
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GoCougs

Just a quick note about what looks like slight changes in viscosity..

My old Tacoma stipulated the use of 75w-90 in the manual gearbox. I took it to the local lube shop for service. Afterward on the receipt it said 80w-90 was used. I called 'em out on it and they said it was close enough (read: they didn't stock 75w-90). Sure enough, the transmission shifted like a POS; specifically, the synchros were all FUBAR which led to a lot of grinding. I took it to another shop to have the right stuff put in and problem gone. My advice is always follow the manual.

In case anyone is reading viscosity graphs, I have a comment there too. Typically they are presented in logarithmic scale on the Y axis - this accentuates differences with small numbers and un-accentuates differences with large numbers. Looking at the top graph causally says 20w-40 and 20w-50 are kissing cousins. However, looking at decimal (regular) graph, and in the colder temps, the different is huge, and will only get huger as the temp goes lower.




S204STi

Valid stuff, thanks Cougs.  I stand corrected.

rohan

We are looking for an oil and a transmission fluid for our patrol cars that will help cut wear and let the cars run a little longer.  Our policy has always been to get new cars every 75-85k miles but these Chargers seem to hold up better body and suspension wise but we get knocking in some at about that- we'ld like to try a couple cycles at 110k miles but can't do it with the oil we're using. 

We do lots of long distance hot runs (10-30 miles) where the car can get parked and sits at idle with lights and air running for hours.
They run for 10-20 hours per day without getting shut off (we allow our guys to let them run instead of turning them off and on which I think is a lot harder on them)
Sometimes they get started cold at the beginning of a shift and get no time to warm up and driven WOT to a call many miles away. 

We are considering Mobil 1 because it's the one BMW uses (or used it's in my car) and I don't know much about the synths.
http://outdooradventuresrevived.blogspot.com/

"We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from out children."

~Chief Seattle






850CSi

I went 17k between changes at one point last year.  :mask: I think the normal interval is 15k. The indie shop that I've taken my car to a couple of times told me that even with synthetic it's best to change around every 5-6k. Not sure I buy that.

rohan

#200
I know hounddog tried to use the 15k mile Mobile1 and the 15k filter but he had trouble making it to 10k miles in two of his hemi's.  I go 7500 and change it and I use Quakerstate 5w-20.  So far so good and we're still going strong with about 85k miles on the durango.  Had planned to buy a Sequoia but that went out the window with Adam being sick.  Maybe next year.  Either way I think we're gong with Mobile 1-  5w-20 because mostly I can't find anything anywhere that shows it's not living up to it's promises and all in all gets good reviews- and shorten intervals from 5k to 4k and see how they do. 
http://outdooradventuresrevived.blogspot.com/

"We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from out children."

~Chief Seattle






280Z Turbo

Quote from: 850CSi on January 02, 2012, 11:21:41 PM
I went 17k between changes at one point last year.  :mask: I think the normal interval is 15k. The indie shop that I've taken my car to a couple of times told me that even with synthetic it's best to change around every 5-6k. Not sure I buy that.

Send it to a lab.

GoCougs

An engine will last the longest using the factory-specified type and weight of oil and change interval. Different oils; synthetic or whatever; won't increase engine life. At best synthetic may increase the oil change interval (and only if the engine is designed for it).

Is it known the "knocking" is main or rod bearings going bad? Push rod motors are notorious for lifter noise once they get some hours on them. This is generally not a problem.

S204STi

#203
Don't mess with the viscosity, as Cougs mentioned, and use an oil that meets the manufacturer's spec.  Generally speaking, Synthetics don't necessarily permit a longer change interval.  It's the quality of the additive package, not the base oil, that determines that.  Synthetics do have better cold flow characteristics, and tend not to break down to a lower viscosity as readily as conventional oils.  I'd say that for fleet use, the cost/benefit ratio doesn't play out for synthetics whatsoever.  If you go by the owner's manual's specs, or if equipped an oil life monitor, in terms of when to change the oil you'll possibly prolong the life of your engines.  Another idea is an hour meter, and to determine by use of Used Oil Analysis by Blackstone or similar labs how many hours of run-time is the threshold for changing the oil.

Eye of the Tiger

I have been using exclusively Ford Motorcraft Syn-Blend 5w-20 in my Accent. It may only contain a small amount of syntheticness, but it is noticeably faster pouring at cold temps than conventional 5w-20. It's also the same price, or cheaper. Works for me.
2008 TUNDRA (Truck Ultra-wideband Never-say-die Daddy Rottweiler Awesome)

S204STi

Also, I'd concur with the question Cougs poses regarding the actual source of your engine noise.  In addition to valve-train noise, some piston slap which goes away after a cold start is not uncommon on an older engine.  Constant rod knock would generally degrade to full-on engine failure pretty rapidly.

S204STi

Quote from: Eye of the Tiger on January 11, 2012, 04:59:14 PM
I have been using exclusively Ford Motorcraft Syn-Blend 5w-20 in my Accent. It may only contain a small amount of syntheticness, but it is noticeably faster pouring at cold temps than conventional 5w-20. It's also the same price, or cheaper. Works for me.

I dig Motorcraft oils and fluids.  I don't have any specific reason other than it's designed and produced by Ford for use in their cars, so it's likely not junk, and it's very affordable.

Eye of the Tiger

Quote from: S204STi on January 11, 2012, 04:59:46 PM
I dig Motorcraft oils and fluids.  I don't have any specific reason other than it's designed and produced by Ford for use in their cars, so it's likely not junk, and it's very affordable.

That about sums it up for me.
2008 TUNDRA (Truck Ultra-wideband Never-say-die Daddy Rottweiler Awesome)

rohan

#208
Quote from: S204STi on January 11, 2012, 04:54:46 PM
Don't mess with the viscosity, as Cougs mentioned,
Cougs was talking out his ass I never said we were changing the viscosity I said what we were using.

?Vehicles with the Multiple Displacement System must use SAE 5W-20 oil. Failure to do so may result in improper operation of the MDS.?


The cars also have hourmeters and I said we were reducing the time between changes- not making it bigger.  We're trying to get longer life out of our cars and the knocking doesn't go away once it starts and we end up either getting rid of them quickly or we rebuild the engine shortly after.  That's the second part we're trying to avoid.  The extra cost of synthetics is small compared to a engine jobs every other year.  Besides it's a done deal now that we're switching over on the new 2012 cars starting with every oil change until they're all converted. 
http://outdooradventuresrevived.blogspot.com/

"We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from out children."

~Chief Seattle






r0tor

Lolz... The oil change interval on my jeep is 8k miles according to the owners manual.  Of course my stealership marks it on the change sticker to come in evry 3k miles

-sigh-
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