Are synthetics really worth the extra bucks?

[Nickdfresh]

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Just went to Walmart, the 5 quart jug for Mobil 1 EP 5w30 cost me $30.00. This same oil last year was around $23. What the heck is going on??? I am contemplating PP.

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That's only $6 a quart...

Mobil needs to make some $$

How long do you run the oil?

PP is Group III they say, like Castrol Syntec.

Take care, Bill

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(flame suit on) I only keep it for 5000 miles due to warranty reasons. Yes PP is group III but i dont think i have seen 1 bad uoa with this oil. The more i read up on PP, the more it impresses me and to boot it can be had for $20.

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Then why use EP? Regular Mobil1 is like $21.+ in a five quart jug near me...

BTW, you won't go wrong for Pennzoil Platnium either.

 

[tweeker43]

having run all sorts of oils (synth, blends, and dino) and having uoa pulled on all of them, i've settled into the blends. i can run slightly less mileage as synth with similar or better wear numbers.

dino was ok as well, and in terms of wear counts per 1000 miles was just as good as synth.

if i had a turbo or ran track days i might go synth, but what i've seen from uoa on my car doesn't even convince me of that.

synthetic is over $6 a quart right now. blend is about half that (or less in some cases). uoa indicates that i can't double my mileage or improve my wear numbers by going to synth, so why pay for it?

run what you want to. i'm going 6000 miles on a change with blend and getting good data. using lc and fp adds to my costs somewhat, but i'm getting good results with this combo.

 

[Nickdfresh]

I've been running a synthetic in my current car, a 1996 Saturn SL2 because that 1.9L engine is notoriously brutal on oil (right now it has GC 0W-30 in it, with a dose of CD2 "oil detergent"). Whether it be the deposit-ridden piston rings, or the varnished timing chain, these engines can burn quite a bit if they've not been babied. And they seem made for synthetic, since this seems to be the common refrain from those that have advice on how to reduce the burning. In my current OCI, I've added 1.75 quarts of GC as top off in about 4500 miles, which is way too much for a $5.50 a bottle oil. However, things seem to be slowing a bit and leveling off. Several long trips, driving about 80mph for six hours straight, over the summer probably contributed to the excessive oil consumption. The car runs better than when I bought it and I was getting around 38mpg on the highway, so I can't complain too much.

 

[acewiza]

No. It's like everything else in life: Generic cereal tastes better, upper deck seats at the stadium are way better for watching the game and of course, consider the cubic zirconia for the sweetheart's birthday - she'll never know the difference!