thoughts on synthetic vs. conventional oil?

[Guillermo]

what are you guys' thoughts on synthetic vs. conventional oil?

i've been running conventional oil for my whole life, and in my current car am changing it every 8000 km or 4 months, whichever comes first. I usually pay about $60 for an oil change, and the same place charges $90 for full synthetic.

However, I've been reading that synthetic lasts about 1.5 times longer than conventional oil, which means that in reality, synthetic and conventional oil cost the same...

so, i am thinking of switching to synthetic on my next oil change. what are the advantages of running synthetic over conventional?

[Xtrema]

Synthetic give you better winter starts especially if you don't have an garage.

[Kloubek]

This has been covered; not sure if you did a search.

Many do not suggest switching to synthetic for older cars as it may end up causing leaks.

With that said, Synthetic is generally accepted to be the better product, as it lasts longer and provides better protection.

[crapstixs]

Originally posted by Kloubek
This has been covered; not sure if you did a search.

Many do not suggest switching to synthetic for older cars as it may end up causing leaks.

With that said, Synthetic is generally accepted to be the better product, as it lasts longer and provides better protection.
there are soo many myths about synthetic oil. more leaks being one othem. yes the molecules are smaller but the oil is designed to be compatible with all other GF ratings, that includes seal and gasket ratings. synthetics are the wave of the future. give it 10 to 15 years and you wont even be able to buy conventional oil.

[Kloubek]

It isn't that synthetic technically "causes" a leak by itself. I believe when synthetics were first introduced, they did not contain enough additives to keep seals swollen enough - which was an issue at the time, and imo is largely why people still feel that it causes leaks.

These days I understand that synthetics generally provide the same, if not more protection to seals which all but eliminates that issue.

Where the problem lies though is that over time, conventional oils will leave deposits. Since deposits grab hold best in creases and corners, this means it will often build up around seal points. Synthetic oils are not only cleaner in their operation, but also tend to include stronger detergents which have the possibility of cleaning these deposits away. Now, should any of these deposits have been situated in a place of a seal which is less than tight, removing it *could* potentially expose the seal and develop a leak.

[crapstixs]

oil dose not swell seals, what is to stop the seal from growing so big and poping out. that is what those stop leak additives do, and thats why they only work for a short time. then the seal swells so big and just pours. the oil in the engine dose not pervent slug and varnish formation. there are additives in the oil that grab on to the carbon/dirt particals and hold on to them so they get flushed out of the engine when you change the oil. conventional and synthetics both have these anti slug agents in them. there is billions of dollars that is spent in oil research every year. half of the problem is you have to make everything compatible. the new gm dexos 1 and 2 oil that they developed this year has to be compatible with gf-1 oil from like 1970. so yes synthetic is the best way to go and you cant go wrong getting the latest and greatest.

[davesparky6]

Here we go again...
:rolleyes:

[revelations]

Originally posted by Guillermo
what are you guys' thoughts on synthetic vs. conventional oil?

i've been running conventional oil for my whole life, and in my current car am changing it every 8000 km or 4 months, whichever comes first. I usually pay about $60 for an oil change, and the same place charges $90 for full synthetic.

However, I've been reading that synthetic lasts about 1.5 times longer than conventional oil, which means that in reality, synthetic and conventional oil cost the same...

so, i am thinking of switching to synthetic on my next oil change. what are the advantages of running synthetic over conventional?

I went to synthetic primarily for this reason - convenience.
With the amount I drive, annual changes are all thats necessary.

I prefer FULL synthetic (base) and make sure you get a GOOD filter as well.

[Mar]

I use synthetic on my car religiously, mostly so when I sell it it will look more attractive as the car really is well taken care of.

Why are you paying $90? I get mine done at T&T Honda for $72, just did one a few days ago.

[Guillermo]

Originally posted by Mar
Why are you paying $90? I get mine done at T&T Honda for $72, just did one a few days ago.

cause i'm LAZY, and there is a Mr. Lube right near my house. :D

[Guillermo]

so - i've read that you can run longer (about 1.5x longer) on synthetic than conventional oil... is that true?

[Kloubek]

Typical vehicles - probably. But on a turbo engine (still have no idea what you drive) I'd change it at regular intervals. It can still cook.

[Goodfella]

oil changes every 12k ftw :clap:

[Toma]

Keep in mind most generic synthetics are NOT real synthetic.

Redline, Royal Purple, Amsoil, yes.

GERMAN Syntec is, 99% of Syntec on the shelf here isn't.

Not sure about Mobil 1, but the 0w40 with the Porsche/Mercedes spec is excellent

[Toma]

10,000k+!!! :eek: LOL.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

I use synthetic Castrol 0W-30 and change every 5000km on my stock Subaru. As soon as I add more boost that interval will drop to 3000km. If I had a highly modified forced induction car it would probably be every 1000-1500km.

[crapstixs]

I belive conventional of will start to break down around the 10 000km mark in a healthy engine. amsoil apparently says you can run there oil for 30 000km. you can run full synthetic longer. on new vehicals the oil change light dosent come on due to mileage, but due to service conditions. on my nissan all change the oil every 3000km with 5w40 synthetic in the winter and 15w40 rotella T in the summer. thats on 20psi of boost and a super rich ass tune. in my sunfire 5 to 6000km on bulk penzoil.

[vtec260]

I do 8-10 000km between changes on my 2 Acuras with OEM filter and CT brand synthetics. No problem for past 10 years and that usually equals 2 oil changes per vehicle per year. Once in spring and once in fall. I cannot imagine spending $90 for an oil change at a quick lube place. DIY all the way, if possible.

[know1edge]

Originally posted by Guillermo


cause i'm LAZY, and there is a Mr. Lube right near my house. :D

Just wondering... I remember you mentioning you lived in acadia or something, do you go to the one on macleod by southland?

[msommers]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
I use synthetic Castrol 0W-30 and change every 5000km on my stock Subaru. As soon as I add more boost that interval will drop to 3000km. If I had a highly modified forced induction car it would probably be every 1000-1500km.

It's not an F1 car haha. 1000km? Seriously?!

Conventional vs. Synthetic has been discussed to a disgusting length. If you want real information, go to here (http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/cms/).

[J-hop]

Originally posted by Toma
10,000k+!!! :eek: LOL.

yea what the hell, I change my synthetic every 8000km, I wouldn't ever try pushing that out of dino juice OP so I don't know why you are doing that either? is your oil dark when you change it?

Oil changes are so freaking cheap I don't know why people consider maximum time between oil changes as a factor when buying oil. Go for the best possible oil you can and change it regularly, don't consider buying an oil just so that you can squeeze an extra 2000 kms out of an oil change, that shouldn't be your main concern but rather a by product of the oil you choose and should just be there as a safety blanket.

[Toma]

Originally posted by msommers


It's not an F1 car haha. 1000km? Seriously?!

Conventional vs. Synthetic has been discussed to a disgusting length. If you want real information, go to here (http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/cms/).
Our highly modified drag cars get oil changes after every race weekend, oil filters cut open and examined after every run or two.

[msommers]

What numbers you guys throwin down Toma? At the strip and at the dyno..

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by msommers


It's not an F1 car haha. 1000km? Seriously?!

Conventional vs. Synthetic has been discussed to a disgusting length. If you want real information, go to here (http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/cms/).

Im talking 1000-1500km if I was making 800+HP and was throwing a lot of boost in.

[Toma]

Originally posted by msommers
What numbers you guys throwin down Toma? At the strip and at the dyno..
Can't dyno these cars. Destroys the tires. Somewhere north of 2000hp.

Almost sixes at ~200mph.

Tranny fluid after every 2-3 runs, and thats the best/toughest fluid we have found after trying everything under the sun (Mobile 1 ATF, or Redline D6).

On my personal "street" cars, conventional oil thins noticabley after only a week or two, I cannot see letting it stay in the motor the 'reccomended' 5000km.

On my street-stirp Mustang that ran low 9's and 850 hp type thing, I changed the oil every second weekend, and that was good synthetic.

Maybe overkill, but an oil change, and a filter cut and inspect can save your engine.

[msommers]

:eek: Impressive!

[crapstixs]

Originally posted by Guillermo


cause i'm LAZY, and there is a Mr. Lube right near my house. :D
why dont you go to the shop your family owns, out of curiosity?

[Speed_69]

If your car is at a certain mileage, should you not switch to synthetic? My car currently has 56,000kms and I'm thinking about switching from conventional to synthetic because I'm going to start doing my own oil changes when my warranty is up. I currently get free oil changes done at Honda.

[J-hop]

I switched mine at 100,000 kms as I don't think the PO ran synthetic, No leaks and oil stays golden between changes

[Guillermo]

Originally posted by know1edge


Just wondering... I remember you mentioning you lived in acadia or something, do you go to the one on macleod by southland?

nope, i go to the one on macleod near crowchild. :thumbsup:

[Guillermo]

Originally posted by crapstixs

why dont you go to the shop your family owns, out of curiosity?

because it's a 2 day drive away, in the USA, as i told you before

[crapstixs]

Originally posted by Guillermo


because it's a 2 day drive away, in the USA, as i told you before oh, i see. i didnt realize it was in the states.