another "Which oil to get" thread...

[DeltaD]

1. What kind of vehicle you have: 09 Altima 2.5S
2. What your owner's manual says -- not just viscosity, but certifications (look for acronyms like API SM, ILSAC GF-4, etc.) and change intervals as well: API - SAE 5w-30 - change interval: 3750
3. Where you live: Dallas, TX
4. How you drive (easy? hard? fast? slow?) slow acceleration; almost always under 2k rpm. I'm an advocate for mpg
5. What your daily drive is like (short trips? long trips? city? highway?) at least 30-40 miles per day, mainly highway. Sometime 100miles on weekend.

6. Whether your car has any known problems: I hope not, it's new!

If you have any preferences -- synthetic vs. conventional,
None; whichever will prolong the life of my engine. I plan to keep this car until it dies.

store-bought vs. ordered online
None; same reason as above. But I need to change it within this week.


how long you'd like to go between oil changes
I'll stick with manufacturer suggestion at 3750


I've rummage through this forum and others reading whatever I can but I get conflicting infos so I guess I have to ask yall here. I've never done an oil change before but I'm learning.

1. Car is still new and under warranty. I read a lot of people said I need to let the dealership do it (or somewhere else where there's paperwork) instead of myself, so there wont be a fight in the future about scheduled maintenance.
I want to do it myself b/c I like to but I'm afraid of any chance voiding the warranty... any suggestions?

2. "synthetic oil is good for "new" engine b/c they help prolong the life of the engine" -- is this statement correct? I also saw a lot of people using it at 100k+

3. I already purchased a mobil 1 extended w/e for $12 and 5quarts of Synthetic mobil for another $36. Total about $54 or so... That's a hefty bill for an oil change (I'm used to $20 oil change on my Corolla) but I plan to keep this car for a long time so I don't want to skimp on anything.
If I'm doing synthetic, can I extend the period between oil change or still do it at 3750?

Planning to do the oil change Mon or Tues. Thanks for reading.

 

[Herz]

If you want to maintain your warranty stick with the 3700 OCI. Use any API certified dino that is cheapest. I like Valvoline and Chevron Supreme 5-30s. For that short of a change time you can basically run store brand oils and it will be more than fine. For filters use OEM if you can get them cheap or NAPA proselect or Supertech filters are good.

ANY OIL will get your engine over 200k miles you dont need to blow 20+ on oil every 3750 for a imagination of superiority. A dino will serve you just as well and a lot cheaper.

Keep your receipts for the filter and oil and even staple the filter box to it with the mileage and date written on it.

Good luck.


EDIT: M1 filter is great but not worth the extra money in such a short OCI IMO.

 

[calvinnnnnnnnn]

3750 on any oil is a waste of money.

Castrol Edge or Pennzoil Platinum/ultra is what i would use in your vehicle if you want good gas mileage, protection and long oil changes.

Mobil 5w-30 is a thick 30weight, and from the oil analysis i've seen, its average at best.

 

[Herz]

He doesnt want long oil changes, he wants to maintain his warranty.

 

[hardcore302]

My friend uses Valvoline in his 2.5 Altima and likes it alot.

 

[sicko]

For under 5k mile oil changes, conventional will protect your engine just fine unless you're abusing it in some way (extreme heat, cold, severe driving, etc). But it sounds like your driving is ideal for oil, so pick your favorite conventional oil and go with it.

If you've got a Costco membership, you can get a case (12 quarts) of Chevron Supreme or Formula Shell oil for $20 with their monthly coupon right now. Both oils will easily go 3750 miles with your driving style

 

[DeltaD]

Originally Posted By: defektes
He doesnt want long oil changes, he wants to maintain his warranty.


right. but I'll take a good mileage and protection too =)

someone did mention to staple the oil/filter receipt and take pictures as proof. I'll be doing that too just to be sure.

anyone know how much an OEM cost? I'll probably go for the Bosch filter for about $6 then.

 

[Bill in Utah]

Your engine will be just as well protected with any conventional oil as it would be with syn.

I've been WELL below zero and WELL above 100 F with conventional oils over the years. Taken many engines past 200k with ease and even one to almost 400k miles. It would have made 400K (was only 6k away) when it was hit by a drunk.

MPG will be the same with either type of oil.

With 3750 miles per OCI, don't worry and enjoy the car!

Take care, bill

PS:

PPS: THANK you for answering all the questions for your first post!

 

[sunfire]

IIRC the manual states 3750 miles is for severe service. Found this in the Nissan manual. Save yourself some money.

SCHEDULE 1 (more severe operating
conditions), every 3,750 miles or 3
months, whichever comes first

SCHEDULE 2 (less severe operating
conditions), every 7,500 miles or 6
months, whichever comes first

 

[Bill in Utah]

He could run any oil up to 7,500 miles. Personally He could split the difference and do 5k oil changes (with ANY oil) and *IF* he had any problems Nissan could not have anything to question.

That would be the best value out there.

Bill

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: DeltaD

5. What your daily drive is like (short trips? long trips? city? highway?) at least 30-40 miles per day, mainly highway. Sometime 100miles on weekend.


You should follow normal schedule: every 7,500 miles or 6 months, whichever comes first.

 

[DeltaD]

Originally Posted By: sunfire
IIRC the manual states 3750 miles is for severe service. Found this in the Nissan manual. Save yourself some money.

SCHEDULE 1 (more severe operating
conditions), every 3,750 miles or 3
months, whichever comes first

SCHEDULE 2 (less severe operating
conditions), every 7,500 miles or 6
months, whichever comes first


I've read this as well. I'm surprised you found it.

So I guess synthetic is for those with V6 and supercharged with aggressive driving?

does anyone know what kind of oil the dealership use? or do they have their own special "Nissan" oil...?

Thank you all for your input. You guys saved me tremendous headaches~!

 

[hominid7]

Congrats on the new car!

Nissan of McKinney has a 24.95 oil change special coupon on their website. They also wash the car.

The dealership likely uses a name brand regular dino oil (Mobil, QuakerState, etc...). There is a Nissan branded synthetic oil, but that's for use in Z and Infiniti engines i believe.

If it were my new car, i'd use any name brand 5w30 and an OEM Nissan filter. If you decide to change the oil yourself regularly, you can likely fine OEM filters online for much much less than at the dealer. Look for Nippon or FULL brand filters online, they can be purchased for about 3.50 each. If you buy the filters online, also buy some extra crush washers for the drain bolt. They are about 50 cents each.

Mobil Clean 5000 5w30 changed every 5000 miles would be perfect for your car. You can get a 5 quart jug at Walmart for around 12-13 dollars.

 

[Bill in Utah]

I'd bet they use Mobil drive clean (not 5000) out of bulk drums. If not that then possible Valvoline bulk.

Most Nissan dealerships that I've seen use the Mobil.

 

[DeltaD]

Originally Posted By: hominid7
Congrats on the new car!

Nissan of McKinney has a 24.95 oil change special coupon on their website. They also wash the car.



Thanks a lot!! Printed the coupon and will do this tomorrow morning. I need to see them for the TPMS Light anyway.

I'll purchase the oil/filter online. Already purchased the washer at the dealership for twice the cost...

So that brings the question to "should I buy it online"?

I mean, if I don't buy in bulk, it's useless since S&H will prob. cost a ton to ship something this heavy... I have a Sam Club (same as Costco) card that I can use. Which oil should I buy from there? Walmart is always a safe bet.

 

[Herz]

Wal-mart is a great place to get filters and oil. Keep an eye in the rebate and sales section too, currently NAPA has a 9.99 after MIR and 15.99 after MIR for synthetic. Both come with 5 quarts and are made by the makers of Valvoline. Pepgirls also has a MIR for 5 quarts of castrol and a filter 11.99 after MIR.

Good deals

 

[hominid7]

Originally Posted By: Delta

Thanks a lot!! Printed the coupon and will do this tomorrow morning. I need to see them for the TPMS Light anyway.

I'll purchase the oil/filter online. Already purchased the washer at the dealership for twice the cost...

So that brings the question to "should I buy it online"?

I mean, if I don't buy in bulk, it's useless since S&H will prob. cost a ton to ship something this heavy... I have a Sam Club (same as Costco) card that I can use. Which oil should I buy from there? Walmart is always a safe bet.


There are a couple of online autopart places that offer free ground shipping with a 50.00 order. If you prefer buying 1 at a time, you can always buy filters from an auto part store. I like WIX filters availbale at OReillys, or their clone generic house brand filters sold at NAPA and CarQuest.

In my experience Sam's typically has Pennzoil, Quakerstate, and sometimes Castrol GTX. I've never been to Costco, so they may have a better supply, i don't know. I have heard that Costco sometimes has Formula Shell, another inexpensive but very good oil.

Any name brand dino oil would be good. If you go to Walmart, their 5 quart jugs of Quakerstate as well as Mobil Clean 5000 are a great value.