Best high mileage oil for 3800
- Thread starter TmanP
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Once a motor crosses the 100K mile threshold, it really comes down to what works best with a 1/2 worn motor. Some engines love Delo400 15w-40 like my Big Bronco 302 (212K and running fine) ...
My Saab 95 (2.3T, 133K) on the other hand hates the stuff and turns it to sludge in 3K ... Rattles like a can of marbles on on Rotella T6, so will try MaxLife next.
My wife Jag (straight six with 188K) likes Rotella the best.
The proof is cold start. All these oils will adequately lube a warmed motor that is running well. But cold start can be a real eye opener with some of these. You need a good filter with a good ADV or you are not hearing the oil (it may have drained off, so Wix, Baldwin, etc.).
With good premium'ish filter you run short OCI's of 3K or so and change the oil around to find what is quietest on cold start. That's the oil the motor is telling you it wants for the various clearances and wear patterns it has established
My Saab 95 (2.3T, 133K) on the other hand hates the stuff and turns it to sludge in 3K ... Rattles like a can of marbles on on Rotella T6, so will try MaxLife next.
My wife Jag (straight six with 188K) likes Rotella the best.
The proof is cold start. All these oils will adequately lube a warmed motor that is running well. But cold start can be a real eye opener with some of these. You need a good filter with a good ADV or you are not hearing the oil (it may have drained off, so Wix, Baldwin, etc.).
With good premium'ish filter you run short OCI's of 3K or so and change the oil around to find what is quietest on cold start. That's the oil the motor is telling you it wants for the various clearances and wear patterns it has established
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I don't think that engine needs high mileage oil -- although it wouldn't hurt.
It just needs that 5W-30 Mobil 1 drained out of there.
My 3800 gets SuperTech full synthetic 10W-30 with a Fram XG3387A.
It just needs that 5W-30 Mobil 1 drained out of there.
My 3800 gets SuperTech full synthetic 10W-30 with a Fram XG3387A.
You say you don't want to fix it but it might be a simple problem like a leaking valve cover, oil fill tube seal or clogged PCV, both are definitely worth taking care of. Some cover leaks on these go unnoticed because it burns the oil off on the manifold.
You may or may not get a faint whiff of oil burning sometimes when its hot. Some of the Gen II engines were known to catch fire with this little issue.
The other problem it could be is slightly sticking rings, these engines are not known to be leakers, a HM oil is sort of useless in them.
What may help is running a can of Berrymans Chemtool, Pro-Tec or 16oz of Kreen in the oil at idle for 15-20 min before changing it then adding a bottle of Rislone concentrate to the new oil.
I strongly suspect your consumption will decrease to almost nothing. HM oils contain a little extra zinc and seal swellers (aka seal conditioners), your engine doesn't need either.
This particular engine uses a lot of silicone seals in the engine, they don't play well with seal swelling compounds. One the other hand something like an older Subaru or Toyota (lots of others also) engine can really benefit from them.
You may or may not get a faint whiff of oil burning sometimes when its hot. Some of the Gen II engines were known to catch fire with this little issue.
The other problem it could be is slightly sticking rings, these engines are not known to be leakers, a HM oil is sort of useless in them.
What may help is running a can of Berrymans Chemtool, Pro-Tec or 16oz of Kreen in the oil at idle for 15-20 min before changing it then adding a bottle of Rislone concentrate to the new oil.
I strongly suspect your consumption will decrease to almost nothing. HM oils contain a little extra zinc and seal swellers (aka seal conditioners), your engine doesn't need either.
This particular engine uses a lot of silicone seals in the engine, they don't play well with seal swelling compounds. One the other hand something like an older Subaru or Toyota (lots of others also) engine can really benefit from them.
I think I'm gonna go the PYB route for 1-2 OCIs (with a Wix filter) and see if that slows. If not, then Maxlife or PHM.
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Originally Posted By: TmanP
I think I'm gonna go the PYB route for 1-2 OCIs (with a Wix filter) and see if that slows. If not, then Maxlife or PHM.
Good choice! Another oil 3800's seem to love is vwb. My gf's dad uses vwb 10W30 in his 140k Olds 3800. Engine runs smooooooth!! I re-read your first post,140k is low miles on a GM 3800. I think if you run pyb or vwb in 10W30 you'll find the oil consumption will disappear.
I think I'm gonna go the PYB route for 1-2 OCIs (with a Wix filter) and see if that slows. If not, then Maxlife or PHM.
Good choice! Another oil 3800's seem to love is vwb. My gf's dad uses vwb 10W30 in his 140k Olds 3800. Engine runs smooooooth!! I re-read your first post,140k is low miles on a GM 3800. I think if you run pyb or vwb in 10W30 you'll find the oil consumption will disappear.
I switched my 96 civic to synthetic at about 145k miles not long after buying it. Consumption was much higher on the first oil change. Went down about a quart after 2000 or 2500 miles. The next oil change with same synthetic only consumed a quart closer to 5000 miles. I changed it at 5k and now I'm over 3k into this one and down maybe 2/3 quart it looks like. Consumption should decrease based on what I noticed. I had also went from 5w30 Dino to 5w20 synthetic.
Hi. Guys, if you still don't know which oil is the best. So just read this article - Best oil for mileage cars
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