Oil Brand

[SilentRacer]

couldn't find this topic in search,

I'm about to change the car to full synthetic oil and I was wondering what brand of oil do you use? Some people claim the more expensive oil like royal purple doesn't make a difference, what do you think?

[blackgtbeauty]

couldn't find this topic in search,

I'm about to change the car to full synthetic oil and I was wondering what brand of oil do you use? Some people claim the more expensive oil like royal purple doesn't make a difference, what do you think?

i've run mobil 1 but right now i'm running amsoil, and i don't see a difference, both work great.

[deadlydave]

I'm using quaker state full synthetic, seems like it's working better then the generic oil i had been getting before i did my own oil changes. Plus it was 50% off when i bought it.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Don't worry about the brand, just buy synthetic, and buy it wherever there is a sale. I go with Mobil1 or Castrol Syntech, they're frequently on sale at Wal*Mart or K-Mart.

I'd reccomend 5W-30 oil, although some people like to go thicker. Subaru says 5W-30, and it's been the nicest running when I run that.

[rallysam]

I run Mobil 1 Synthetic.

Consumer Reports said that it doesn't matter what brand. Even synthetic didn't make much a difference. They said no nead for 3k miles, just change it when your owner's manual says. This was tested on NYC taxi cabs, which is torture, and they measured the results by tearing down every engines and measuing wear and tear very precisely.

[SilentRacer]

thanks for the responses

rallysam, would you have a link to the article cause it sounds like a good read?

[belladonna]

I run Mobil 1 Synthetic.

Consumer Reports said that it doesn't matter what brand. Even synthetic didn't make much a difference. They said no nead for 3k miles, just change it when your owner's manual says. This was tested on NYC taxi cabs, which is torture, and they measured the results by tearing down every engines and measuing wear and tear very precisely.


+1 for mobil 1 synthetic

[fsuskppy]

+1 for mobil 1 synthetic

[supra90turbo]

Mobil Delvac1 5w30
Shell Rotella T synthetic is amazing as well.

[badbasser98]

Not trying to jack the thread, but is there any real difference in going to a synthetic oil besides it costing three times more to change it?

[Huffer]

A synth oil traps more particulates, and suspends it better than mineral oil. Also, synth oils resist heat degradation better than minerals.

You have to be very careful about oil now - very few places are selling 5w30 or 10w40 in 5qt containers, which naturally raises the overall price.

I used to use Castrol Syntec Blend 5w30, but now I'm using Shell regular 5w30. No difference.

I am thinking of switching to Mobil Delvac because I have heard testimony that it quells the piston slap issue, and it's rated for use in gasoline vehicles as well as diesels.

End of the day, it's not what you use, it's how you use it, and how frequently you change. Even the best synth oil is no good if you run the car hard without warmup/downs, and without breaks or changes.

[Wiscon_Mark]

What huffer said. A good filter is just as important though. If you like staying out of the shop, synthetic oil and a good filter (purolator, wix, OEM Subaru) will keep you happy on the road.

[badbasser98]

I've been using Mobil 5w-30 and usually buy it by the case ($18) with a SUBARU filter. Changed every 3000 miles but should I go over a bit, definetly before 3500 miles. I had the short block replaced approx. 15,000 miles ago, the car is just shy of 70,000miles. Think I am ok to switch to synthetic? I have heard that its not good to switch after a while becuase it will cause leaks. Is this true, or maybe just to high mileage engine?

[Wiscon_Mark]

Old wives tale. People probably did it for their older cars and experienced problems and blamed it on the oil.

The Outback (when it was new) ran regular oil for a 4 changes (12k) and then a super-cold snap hit, and a plug in the block blew out. Subaru replaced the plug, there was no damage to the engine (my dad didn't drive it as he saw a leak (luckily) when it was idling). He started using synthetic, because it's more temperature resistant, and the car still isn't burning oil @ 182,407 miles :D

I would say go for it.

[Huffer]

I would still switch to full synth at below 100k. Above 100k I'd be a little more reluctant as some of the seals can be disturbed by the higher levels of detergents in synth oil.

I did run semi-synth for awhile, but now I just buy major brands, at their cheapest levels, and just make sure not to hammer the car or miss an oil change.

I use Bosch filters - I go by how clean the filter metal is cut, and what the rubber seal looks like.
By far the nicest after market one I've used is a Napa Gold, I won't use Fram, and I have used AC Delco. OEM are always good.

FWIW, the same filter on a 98 Subaru Legacy GT will also fit a 97 Honda Odyssey Minivan. :D

[Wiscon_Mark]

It'll fit a 1999-2004 Odyssey as well :D That's why we buy 'em bulk :cool:

Hastings is also good.

Avoid Fram.

[badbasser98]

I've been using BOSCH recently until switching back to OEM filters. I figured that was the safest since so many people state problems with other filters on the boxer engine.

[Wiscon_Mark]

nah, it's only FRAM :lol:

More seriously, some filters don't have a feature that keeps oil from running out of the engine and into it when shutoff, causing "dry starts"

[jey]

+1 for mobil 1 synthetic

[Huffer]

I've been using BOSCH recently until switching back to OEM filters. I figured that was the safest since so many people state problems with other filters on the boxer engine.

If you compare the manufacturing quality of Bosch & OEM filters, they're pretty close.
Compare FRAM and Bosch, euwww, Fram and OEM, blargh...

Fram spend more money on their packaging and advertising than their products.

[Wiscon_Mark]

To their credit, FRAM did used to rank highly in testing, but they were bought up and totally skimped on quality to make money.

[Manarius]

To their credit, FRAM did used to rank highly in testing, but they were bought up and totally skimped on quality to make money.I have fram filters thank you. They work perfectly fine. My engine drives the same as it did 30k miles ago and it's only had Frams in it.

I use 20-50 dino because it doesn't leak. Synthetics tend to leak in older engines.

[Reason]

I use mobil 1 and a K&N oil filter. Engine is more quiet with synthetic. Be fore I switched I used a synthetic blend then went to a full synthetic. Why? Not sure, just did it.

Not sure why people say full synthetics in older cars leak. I ran Mobil 1 in in my 89 CRX and no leaks. Maybe Honda builds better engines than Subaru :wink: Check out this link http://people.msoe.edu/~yoderw/oilfilte ... study.html (http://people.msoe.edu/~yoderw/oilfilterstudy/oilfilterstudy.html)

Fram and Pennzoil is the same (extraguard) Motorcraft and purolater are the same, Wix and STP are the same and so on.

[2.5GT]

I've used Mobil 1 full synthetic on the subie with 108k and never ran synthetic before. it work just fine, cept theres a little leak on the filter and oil pan :razz: ..thats just the crank seal tho :roll:

[Wiscon_Mark]

I have fram filters thank you. They work perfectly fine. My engine drives the same as it did 30k miles ago and it's only had Frams in it.

I use 20-50 dino because it doesn't leak. Synthetics tend to leak in older engines.

We ran FRAM for quite a while too. Well, my dad did. But the car was experiencing dry starts, and as soon as we switched to Hastings, it started up a whole lot nicer (same oil weight & brand) and was much smoother when cold. No leaks @ 182k with full synthetic oil either.

Compare the weight of a FRAM filter and a K&N (Purolator) or Wix or Hastings. The FRAM will be very light (cheap feeling). Sure, your oil might flow a little better, but there's less filtering material there.

And Fram has changed a lot since they gained a good reputation. They're not nearly as good as they used to be.