question for oil...

[markv]

okay guys...i know I asked you before...but what is the best synthetic oil I could use for my legacy gt....

cuz my dealer kept on bullshitting me about how if I put synthetic...i always have to use it. and I think they were screwing me over and just put regular 5w 30 instead of the synthetic kind....

any suggestions besides going to bobistheoilguy.com or whatever it is.....

cuz im not going to send it in to the dealer anymore....I just can't trust them anymore....and its expensive...it costed me like 75 bucks....

[Wiscon_Mark]

75 bucks?!

Mobil 1 or Castrol Syntech 5w-30 synthetic can be had on sale in a 5 qt jug for a good price. Look for sales and stock up.

[markv]

thanks mark - nah i work at the auto part store so i get the good 6.49 bottles for close to 5 bucks.....and get the nice fram oil filter and stuff for cheap...thanks a lot, ima look inot the castrol syntec and mobil 1 and stuff

[Superu264]

cuz im not going to send it in to the dealer anymore....I just can't trust them anymore....and its expensive...it costed me like 75 bucks....

:shock:

do it yourself for ~$25

[SHOfast]

Since Subaru motors do have oil related problems like some other motors do any quality motor oil will do well, regular or synthetic. Since you are choosing to go with the added benifits of synthetic oil you really do not need to worry about anything. I have had great results with both Castrol and Mobil 1. I choose based on price and availability of grade. Walmart brand synthetic is actually pretty good and usually a little cheaper, the 5 quart jugs that they sell of the mobil 1 for ~$21.00 are a deal. Home Depots have been clearing out their Pennzoil synthetic for about $2.50 a quart, but they only have 10w-30 near me.

The best oil I can find locally with out searching out special retailers is the Castrol 0w-30 that autozone sells, german castrol as some call it. I think it is about the best oil you can buy at a regular store.

[SHOfast]

x2

[Huffer]

You work in an autoparts store and you go to the dealer for servicing?!?

PS. Fram sucks. Compare their manufacturing quality vs. Bosch etc.

[Superu264]

Is there a real advantage to using synthetic?

edit: Well from what I found it helps mostly in cold weather, mainly start up, which in itself is worth it.

[Huffer]

Is there a real advantage to using synthetic?

edit: Well from what I found it helps mostly in cold weather, mainly start up, which in itself is worth it.

Not only that, but synthetic oils don't degrade as fast, and true ester-based ones (like Motul) are truly recyclable - they also help keep seals in better condition than mineral oils.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Heat breaks down regular dino oils much faster than it does to synthetic oils as well. Thus, they lubricate better over time.

Don't buy fram! Purolator, Wix, or Subaru OEM are good filters. I've also had Hastings on, and they're ok. Had a lot of dry start issues with the Frams :mad:

[Superu264]

Went out and got some:
https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2006/12/B000ETIKUO01_AA280_SCLZZZZZZZ_V52197892_-1.jpg

it was teh cheap

[2.5GT]

Mobil 1 synthetic Extended Performance oil run $6.98 a quart and a filter cost about $6-7. All together I paid $42 for 5 quarts of oil and a filter.

Expensive, but its the last time I'd change my oil with synthetic. Regular oil is just fine.

There is no better oil then an oil change often...some shit like that :lol:

[StatGSR]

and get the nice fram oil filter and stuff for cheap..

hehe, sorry that made me giggle... :lol:

[Wiscon_Mark]

6.98 a quart? Shop around dude...that's way too much.

My dad gets the 5qt. for 15 bucks on sale.

[2.5GT]

6.98 a quart? Shop around dude...that's way too much.

My dad gets the 5qt. for 15 bucks on sale.

Where at?

I went to Adavance and Autozone, both prices were the same.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Wal-Mart, KMart...look for sales, save a ton!

[2.5GT]

Wal-Mart, KMart...look for sales, save a ton!

Wal-mart has like around $20 something a gallon.

K-mart I've never been in it for years.

This oil is surpose to last up to 15k miles. Better be worth it.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Like I said, check out their ads, wait till it's on sale (that's when you get the good deals) and stock up. 20 dollars for a 5qt is still better than 7 dollars for a single quart.

[Reason]

I been on a Royal Purple kick, so far so good. Plan on using it again.

[markv]

ok ylou guys helped me a lot...one more question though....

is it true that if u go synthetic...that you always have to use synthetic?

[Wiscon_Mark]

You should stick with it yes. You're not going to blow a headgasket, and warp the block if you don't though :lol:

[2.5GT]

But you will leak oil.

I brought the car at 112k and never ran Synthetic oil before. After i dumped in Mobil 1 Full Sythetic, it started to leak at 113k.

The valve cover seals started to leak, no biggie.

[markv]

so basically just to be on the safer side ...just stay with the sinthetic.....cuz them kmarts and walmrts i got up in cortlandt and such are fun to look thorugh!!! yeee hawwww

[Wiscon_Mark]

Well....what he said wouldn't exactly be accurate to you. It's stronger detergents in the synthetic that cause the seals to leak when the seals are old and tired, but you have a pretty new engine. Going back to regular and then going to synthetic wouldn't kill anything if you only did it once or twice.

But switching to synthetic at 112k miles after running regular the for the life of the car will likely cause leakage.

[Superu264]

But switching to synthetic at 112k miles after running regular the for the life of the car will likely cause leakage.

..great :roll:

[warrior]

Synthetic oil is different than regular oil. Your seals develop "gunk" on them which actually prevent them from leaking, what synthetic oil does is; it traps that "gunk" and when you drain it, the gunk goes with it.

This is why you get leaks because it's cleaning your engine from the inside whereas all this time you're engine has been relying on that gunk to stop it from leaking.

If you wish to use synthetic, it's better to use a product like Auto-RX to recondition your seals and bring them back to life before you switch to synthetic.

http://www.auto-rx.com/index.html

[Superu264]

Did you personally use it?

[Reason]

I used Mobil one full synthetic for awhile. I had to switch to Castrol GTX dyno oil for 2 oil changes (hurting for money) I had no oil leaks whats so ever. Another myth just like the intakes. You are talking to people with shitty gaskets.

[Huffer]

Please don't adhere to old mechanics tales of "there's no reverting to non-synth" once you've used synth.

I bought my BD with 130,000miles on it. First oil change used dino. 2nd oil change used semi-synth. 3rd oil change used Mobil 1. 4th oil change used dino. et al.

No leaks, no odd consumption.
I've even used synth as a top-up if i ran out of non-synth.

If you believe the "don't revert" tale, you might as well run water and degreaser before you do an oil change to clean out all the old oil.

What's more important than the flavor of the oil, is the texture. Stick to recommended grades, and you'll be fine.

[SHOfast]

I have also switched between Synthetic and dino oil several times with never a problem. In my BMW I would run Synth during the summer for the track events and regular oil in the winter months. I have done that for years, never had a problem.

Synthetic oil will leak faster, but it doesn't make the leaks. Synthetic oil does have the ability to break up build up in the engine better. If you have a car that has a dirty engine from missed oil changes synthetic can remove some of the sludge, and place it into the pickup screen. I have seen a few engines die from that, but they all had known oil problems.

[markv]

damn!!!!!!!!

i think im just gonna go back to the non-synthetic oil, and then every once in a while throw some of that tech run cleaner in there.....

[Huffer]

Techron is a fuel cleaner. Not an oil additive.
You don't want to touch oil additives, as a general rule.

One other thing that full synth oil does, is it does a better job at decreasing friction in an engine - and that results in less resistance, which gives more power.

It also does a better job at preserving engine internals if it is used continuously over the life of the car - I have friends with 98 RS's (and WRX's) that used Mobil 1 from the 3rd oil change, and they are still putting the car out on the autox track, and driving it daily.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Yep, this 95 Legacy has been maintained with Synthetic since the 3rd oil change and still runs excellent.

[Superu264]

Crap. I cant wait to see what the synthetic does to my engine. :roll:

[Wiscon_Mark]

It's not like you'll start losing oil by the quart or anything dude...

[2.5GT]

It's not like you'll start losing oil by the quart or anything dude...

But you will :grin:

You don't need to do sythetic, it's a waste of money.

Regular oil should do just fine, just change it regularly.

[Wiscon_Mark]

[quote="Wiscon_Mark":1qmdg3b0]It's not like you'll start losing oil by the quart or anything dude...

But you will :grin:

You don't need to do sythetic, it's a waste of money.

Regular oil should do just fine, just change it regularly.[/quote:1qmdg3b0]

What? Valve cover gaskets leaking doesn't mean you'll lose massive amounts of oil. You my friend have a headgasket blown, I'm pretty sure the oil is going all sorts of places. And you don't know how long it's been leaking.

Synthetic is not a waste of money if you are a smart buyer. end of story.

[2.5GT]

[quote="2.5GT":3cx4amit][quote="Wiscon_Mark":3cx4amit]It's not like you'll start losing oil by the quart or anything dude...

But you will :grin:

You don't need to do sythetic, it's a waste of money.

Regular oil should do just fine, just change it regularly.[/quote:3cx4amit]

What? Valve cover gaskets leaking doesn't mean you'll lose massive amounts of oil. You my friend have a headgasket blown, I'm pretty sure the oil is going all sorts of places. And you don't know how long it's been leaking.

Synthetic is not a waste of money if you are a smart buyer. end of story.[/quote:3cx4amit]

Not massive yes, but eventually will leak out oil.

Yes its blown, But it still close to the full mark.

I've ran regular oil and synthetic oil, didn't notice any changes. And this was before my head gasket.

[Huffer]

Not massive yes, but eventually will leak out oil.

EVERY car will eventually leak oil.
Until they can build a serviceable, self-contained one-piece engine, eventually will leak some fluids, somewhere.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Well, then I don't know what you're talking about it leaking 1 quart of oil for...

Don't talk smack about synthetic if you've only used it on again, off again for a little while. All of our vehicles use synthetic (2 hondas and a subaru, all with over 100k on them) and none of them have had any engine problems.

[rougeben83]

Here's my take; unless your engine requires synth, or it came from the factory with synth, I wouldn't bend over backwards trying to find synthetic for a car that doesn't need it. The "gains" if any are debatable, and if you change your oil regularly, your engine will last just as long w/ dino as it would with synth.

Engines that were designed to take synth were made with tighter tolerances and smaller oil passageways from the factory to take advantage of the higher viscosity (5w20 synth is more runny, or viscous than 5w20 dino, if you notice) of the synthetic oil. With that in mind, your older engine may have some wider gaps inside that would allow the more viscous synth oil to leak...it varies. So if yours starts losing oil, then you know you have to switch back to dino, simple as that; you won't be loosing anything significant if you switch back to your old oil (castrol GTX is a good dino oil btw).

In the end, it's all about peace of mind; and Peace of Mind is worth it's weight in gold (or in this case, oil) sometimes.

I use regular oil and I beat the snot out of my car, taking it to events, probably more than most Legacy owners, and it's still doing fine. I change the oil every 3 months/~ 3k miles though.

When the turbo goes on however, I may switch it to full synth, or semisynth.

[markv]

well u see thats the thing...i tend to ride my car reall hard. and I gots the Legac GT so then im most likely ognna just use the synbthetic...

i mean the car is brand new, ive just recently put on 7600 miles, and dont think switching to full synthetic will do much if any damage to the engine or to the turbo...

[blackgtbeauty]

Here's my take; unless your engine requires synth, or it came from the factory with synth, I wouldn't bend over backwards trying to find synthetic for a car that doesn't need it. The "gains" if any are debatable, and if you change your oil regularly, your engine will last just as long w/ dino as it would with synth.

Engines that were designed to take synth were made with tighter tolerances and smaller oil passageways from the factory to take advantage of the higher viscosity (5w20 synth is more runny, or viscous than 5w20 dino, if you notice) of the synthetic oil. With that in mind, your older engine may have some wider gaps inside that would allow the more viscous synth oil to leak...it varies. So if yours starts losing oil, then you know you have to switch back to dino, simple as that; you won't be loosing anything significant if you switch back to your old oil (castrol GTX is a good dino oil btw).

In the end, it's all about peace of mind; and Peace of Mind is worth it's weight in gold (or in this case, oil) sometimes.

I use regular oil and I beat the snot out of my car, taking it to events, probably more than most Legacy owners, and it's still doing fine. I change the oil every 3 months/~ 3k miles though.

When the turbo goes on however, I may switch it to full synth, or semisynth.

+1. I've used mobil 1 the last 6-7 oil changes and i just went back to a regular mobil and don't notice a darn thing different.

Whether or not using Mobil 1 all those times prolonged the enigine any, I haven't a clue.

[Huffer]

well u see thats the thing...i tend to ride my car reall hard. and I gots the Legac GT so then im most likely ognna just use the synbthetic...

i mean the car is brand new, ive just recently put on 7600 miles, and dont think switching to full synthetic will do much if any damage to the engine or to the turbo...

If you have the new LGT, then you should be using full-synth from now on.
The newer engines are built with closer tolerances, and they create more heat, because of the turbo. Use full-synth, unless you don't like using all your horses.

Also, you should consider the up-pipe/down-pipe upgrade and at least a good EcuTek tune (or Cobb AP if you have the inclination to tune more). Doing that dramatically increases the response of the turbo, and decreases the lag time.

[rougeben83]

Yeah, the turbo subies require synth anyway, so you should be using it in the first place. I'm not sure about the new NA engines though (the 172hp ones), but yeah regular dino you can use for NA subaru engines.

I'm not sure if synth was required for the turbo legacy SS's back in the 90's...someone care to chime in?

[Wiscon_Mark]

I doubt it.

[Huffer]

Yeah, the turbo subies require synth anyway, so you should be using it in the first place.

That's not true. All the new models will run on regular oil. They need to, especially for break-in period.

After the first couple of oil changes, owners should change to full synth to maximise the power/decrease engine friction.