Castrol or Mobil one ?

[Fisher]

I have an 2002, F-250 Super duty with the 5.4 liter engine. Wanting to protect my investment, at 5,000 miles I swithed over to castrol syntetic oil. Thinking that Castrol was a good oil so there syntetic had to be good too. Now at 20,000 miles I am told that the castrol syntetic is still a wax based oil and can cause build up like other oils. Did I make a mistake switching to Castrol syntetic instead of Mobil one? Is it to late to switch now without hurting my engine in any way ?

I am sure this has been asked before so please excuse the newby question.

Thanks

[ August 28, 2003, 09:22 PM: Message edited by: Fisher ]

 

[Dan4510]

Fisher,

First,

Second, no you wont hurt the truck changing to something else.

Do a search on the board for types of oil and dino vs synthetic discussions.

Dan

 

[Steve S]

I think it is way late and there is no hope for your truck.You should give it to me as a sacrifice to Bob The Oil God er uh Guy. But really, there will be no problem switching oil as most here would agree that for the price mobil 1 is a very good oil.

 

[Mike242GT]

Fisher:

There is nothing "wrong" with Castrol Syntec, it's just that other synthetic oils are better. The German Castrol Syntec 0W-30 is supposedly as good or better than Mobil 1, depending on who you ask. Castrol gets a bad rap for the way Syntec was marketed/promoted (probably deservedly so) but there is nothing wrong with the oil itself, as long as you understand what it is that you're buying.

If you are planning to do extended drain intervals with your truck, or you do a lot of heavy trailer towing, Mobil 1 is an excellent choice. If the truck sees only "normal" use and you change oil every 3K, you're throwing your money away using Mobil 1, or any other synthetic. Any good conventional oil or blend will be fine under these conditions. Motorcraft 5W-20 blend (which is probably what Ford specs for your engine) has turned in some pretty decent UOAs on this site; it's considerably less than half the cost of Mobil 1. Schaeffer's blend is better yet, and about $2 cheaper than Mobil 1. And if you're worried about "buildup", a maintenance dose of Auto RX will prevent that.

 

[mikemc]

Here is my take on this matter. I think that plain old API/SL dino (Chevron, Castrol, Pennzoil, Motorcraft, etc) is fine for the average driver who doesn't pull trailers or live in an area where the temp is routinely below zero. If you fall outside my over-simplified description of average, a REAL PAO based synthetic like Mobil1 may be a wise investment. I do not care for the group III 'synthetics', which are IMO overpriced for what they are giving you.

 

[Al]

I agree with the above posts. Syntec is just overpriced.

 

[Patman]

quote:

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Originally posted by Al:
I agree with the above posts. Syntec is just overpriced.

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Except for the German 0w30, which is probably underpriced, but shh, don't tell Castrol!

 

[crashz]

Agree with SteveS

- Its over. You've done horribly wrong. You should definately go out and purchase a new truck. I'll take that one off your hands, as I have the room and all for it and I'm always willing to help a site member anyway I can.

In all honesty, the triton motors respond well to the M1, giving smooth operation and good cleaning.

 

[pscholte]

pssst, pssst, Hey Fisher, over here (I don't want everyone to hear; Autozone will run out of the stuff again)...no matter what else you're told...use the German Syntec 0W30...

 

[Fisher]

Thank you for the welcome and the replies. The first thing I noticed while looking through the posts here is that I didn't understand half of them !!!!

Although my truck only does occasional heavy hauling, and here in Ohio the temp. only drops below 0 a few day out of the year. I believe I will still switch to the Mobil one. I'm of the belief that I would rather be safe then sorry. This way my truck is ready to do anything I need it to do at any time. I'm even concidering the the dual oil filter by-pass system. I plan to keep this truck in the family for a long time. So I will give it all the protection I can.

By the way Steve S and Crashz, I think I'll keep the truck for now. If I change my mind I'll let you know.

Thanks again.

 

[Al]

quote:

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Originally posted by Fisher:
I noticed while looking through the posts here is that I didn't understand half of them !!!!

Although my

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Don't be afraid to ask questions. That's what this board is about.

 

[buster]

Mobil 1. Forget about the German Castrol as well. They can keep in Deutchland for all I care. We have more choices that are as good or better here. Amsoil and Mobil 1.

 

[pscholte]

quote:

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Originally posted by buster:
Mobil 1. Forget about the German Castrol as well. They can keep in Deutchland for all I care.

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Buster...Buster,

Sie haben das Schwert tief, mein Freund vergraben, aber ich vergebe Sie, Sie die Wahrheit werden lernen!

Paul