My new Forester has a bit over 3k miles and it is almost time for an oil change. I got my hands on some 'Made in Japan' oem oil filters, a new Fumoto valve so I am ready to go with the exception of oil. I usually glance over some of the GC postings for entertainment/knowledge, but my knowledge of the product is not going to surpass pschlote anytime soon. I'm thinking of Havoline SM 5/30 @ 5000k intervals, Mobil 7500 @ 7500k intervals, or GC @ 7500k intervals. My first question is does my Forester benefit from this oil in the same manner an Audi, VW or other European engine that demands the GC specs. Next, I realize GC is thicker than other oils of the same weight. WHat impact will this have on fuel economy, if any? What about the lack of API starburst symbol? Could this impact denial of warranty coverage? Thats about it. If you guys can compare and contrast the 3 oils I am considering, I'd appreciate it.
GC for new Subaru Forester?
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Joe1,
While I have read the report of one of our members that GC made his Subaru sluggish, I would still recommend it over your other choices for the drain intervals you are looking at; the benefits of GC are not limited to German cars; the connection is made because: (1) why not use oil brewed for German conditions in a German car; and, more importantly, (2) because of the emphasis from the thread I started of the recommendation for an HTHS of 3.5cP or higher in German automobiles. The association with German cars should not dissuade you from using it in your Subaru. Now having said that, if the difference I believe you would experience in protection is not that consequential to you, then your best bet would be Mobil DC 7500 because you get Mobil's guarantee for a 7500 mi OCI and at a cheaper cost than GC which does not promote the idea of any kind of guarantee. Regarding the other areas you mentioned, with the credentials that GC carries, the absence of the starburst should not be an issue...from a personal perspective, I would not overweight the practical value of the meaning of the starburst anyway. In my Taurus, my mpg went UP with GC from the M1 0W-40 I was running. As you may know from my other posts, I also run it in an Audi A6 2.7T (twin turbo) with excellent results. There you have it.
[ April 19, 2005, 09:24 PM: Message edited by: pscholte ]
While I have read the report of one of our members that GC made his Subaru sluggish, I would still recommend it over your other choices for the drain intervals you are looking at; the benefits of GC are not limited to German cars; the connection is made because: (1) why not use oil brewed for German conditions in a German car; and, more importantly, (2) because of the emphasis from the thread I started of the recommendation for an HTHS of 3.5cP or higher in German automobiles. The association with German cars should not dissuade you from using it in your Subaru. Now having said that, if the difference I believe you would experience in protection is not that consequential to you, then your best bet would be Mobil DC 7500 because you get Mobil's guarantee for a 7500 mi OCI and at a cheaper cost than GC which does not promote the idea of any kind of guarantee. Regarding the other areas you mentioned, with the credentials that GC carries, the absence of the starburst should not be an issue...from a personal perspective, I would not overweight the practical value of the meaning of the starburst anyway. In my Taurus, my mpg went UP with GC from the M1 0W-40 I was running. As you may know from my other posts, I also run it in an Audi A6 2.7T (twin turbo) with excellent results. There you have it.
[ April 19, 2005, 09:24 PM: Message edited by: pscholte ]
Does your new Forester have a turbo? If so use the synthetic GC.
Foresters certainly do have turbos....2 litre turbo for Japan, 2.5 litre turbo for most overseas markets.quote:
Originally posted by pscholte:
I thought about asking that and then I got to thinking that Forester's don't have them...maybe not the correct answer.
IIRC, Subaru manuals spec 5W-30 or thicker (10W-30, 10W-40, and possibly 20W-50 depending on temperatures and driving conditions) in North America. So yeah, Subaru of America (SOA) *could* possibly deny your warranty based on 0W-30 usage.
In reality, they'd have a hard time proving it wasn't a 5W-30 or 10W-30 (have you ever seen a UOA which shows cold temperature viscosities? Me neither)
If that was my Subaru (I have an Impreza
) I would run Havoline this spring/summer, and then switch over to synthetic (GC, M1, other) in time for winter. That car, at 3000 miles, is *hardly* broken in yet, and you won't do any harm to run a good dino like Havoline while the weather's warmer.
In reality, they'd have a hard time proving it wasn't a 5W-30 or 10W-30 (have you ever seen a UOA which shows cold temperature viscosities? Me neither)
If that was my Subaru (I have an Impreza
Then it is GC..WITHOUT QUESTION.quote:
Originally posted by Losiho:
Foresters certainly do have turbos....2 litre turbo for Japan, 2.5 litre turbo for most overseas markets.quote:
Originally posted by pscholte:
I thought about asking that and then I got to thinking that Forester's don't have them...maybe not the correct answer.
Agreed, I'd get some more miles on the Subie before making the switch over to synthetic. I'll finally be making the switch at the 10,000 mile mark on my '05 STi.quote:
Originally posted by bigpaulo:
If that was my Subaru (I have an Impreza) I would run Havoline this spring/summer, and then switch over to synthetic (GC, M1, other) in time for winter. That car, at 3000 miles, is *hardly* broken in yet, and you won't do any harm to run a good dino like Havoline while the weather's warmer.
But Joe1 didn't mention if he's a 2.0X (N/A SOHC) or 2.0XT/2.5XT (Turbo DOHC).quote:
Originally posted by pscholte:
Then it is GC..WITHOUT QUESTION.quote:
Originally posted by Losiho:
Foresters certainly do have turbos....2 litre turbo for Japan, 2.5 litre turbo for most overseas markets.quote:
Originally posted by pscholte:
I thought about asking that and then I got to thinking that Forester's don't have them...maybe not the correct answer.
My 2000 Forester non-turbo was changed at 2,500 (first Change) to Mobil 1 5w30 which is the recomended viscosity. Engine now has 85,000 trouble free miles and uses about 4 oz per 5,000 mile oil/filter change. If I was starting new again I would strongly consider Mobil 7500 in the 5w30 and continue with 5,000 mile oil/filter changes. I had a UOA done by Blackstone labs and all was so excellent they recomended going out to 7,500 mile oil changes using this oil. eddie
I'd say you are nuts. I don't buy that it takes more than 3000 miles to break in the engine. That is a potent, hot engine and I wouldn't abuse it with dino a second longer than necessary. Especially if you drive it like I know you do (or should
It is killing me to run non-synthetic oil in the car, but at least I'm using short OCI's (2,500 miles) and I've been using semi-synthetics these last two intervals (first Motorcraft Semi-Syn 5w-30 and now Mobil 7500 10w-30). The German Castrol goes into the STi in another 2,000 milesquote:
Originally posted by poison:
I'd say you are nuts. I don't buy that it takes more than 3000 miles to break in the engine. That is a potent, hot engine and I wouldn't abuse it with dino a second longer than necessary. Especially if you drive it like I know you do (or should).
I have the OBW so its a couple of hundred lbs heaiver than the Forester, but has the same engine. IIRC, the times I used oil with Vis@100 > than 11, the car felt sluggish and a slight decrease in mpg. I didn't keep better records during that time thou
.
This is why I don't use st8 GC.
This is why I don't use st8 GC.
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