High mileage oils...

[coffee]

Hi All,

If I am interested in trying a High Mileage oil on my next OCI which brand would be my best option? There is an HM variety from all the major brands and I will be using a Supertech filter and 5k-7500 OCI so I want to pick wisely. Thank you.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Valvoline Maxlife appears to be the most popular here. But from posts I've read, Castrol High Mileage seems to alleviate the most engine issues.

If I were looking for a high mileage dino, I would seriously consider the five quart jug of Supertech High Mileage for something like $7.69 at Chinamart. That's a tough one to pass up at around $1.60 a quart.

If you desire a synthetic, there's only two on the market.... Valvoline and Mobil-1. Again, try Chinamart for both of those.

 

[coffee]

Thanks for the info, Triple! I saw the HM Supertech tonight and wondered if it was a good oil and for 5-7k OCI's it is probably as good as any big name brand.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Quote:

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Thanks for the info, Triple! I saw the HM Supertech tonight and wondered if it was a good oil and for 5-7k OCI's it is probably as good as any big name brand.

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I would stop that Supertech OCI at 5K. For that price, you still get a great bargain. The only missing link to all this is the unknown on how good the high mileage Supertech works.

Do you have engine issues - or are you looking for a simple maintanance OCI because it just has alot of miles on the odometer?

 

[coffee]

Well, I enjoy changing the oil and looking to save money and stick to around 5k OCI's. With the Supertech oil filter at $2.42 at Wal-Mart and the HM Supertech at $7.69 that is a $10 oil change and fits very nicely. I hear that the SM oils are so good nowadays that you can use any dino for 5-7k OCI's and there is no sense in spending more money for a Blend/Synthetic with such low OCI's.

 

[hominid7]

Just FYI, the Supertech HM oil is one of the few (or perhaps only) HM oils that is also energy conserving and carrys the API starburst in the 10w30 grade. While it is no longer advertised as a "synthetic blend" it is still a group II/III blend oil, so technically still a synthetic blend.

Dont think of it as "thin" though, the 10w30 is 11.09 cst at 100*C which is pretty stout yet it also has a pour point of -42*C which is very respectible and in synthetic territory.

So if you do decide to go with supertech HM oil, considering the price and performance, it's a very decent choice. Almost the best of both worlds, a little extra beef for hot operating temps, and excellent low temp flow, with conditioners to help control seal leaks.

I'm not knocking any of the other HM oils, they are all decent, but for the price, its hard to beat.

 

[hominid7]

Another interesting HM oil fact, i noticed the other day that the Quakerstate HM oil offering doesn't even carry the API donut on the back. I'm assuming that is because it is advertised as including "Slick 50" so perhaps the API considers the oil as a "additive" and not actually an "oil". I'm uncomfortable with that though, as not having the API donut means their 10w30 or 5w30, etc doesn't have to meet any particular specs at all. I think this is a huge mistake for SOPUS/Quakerstate. I have confidence in their other products, this one being the thorn in an otherwise impressive product line.

 

[coffee]

Thanks, Hominid7! I will probably go with the ST HM 10w30 as I live in Phoenix, AZ area and it gets quite warm here.

It sounds like a great and inexpensive option for me.

 

[Vilan]

I just put in Castrol HM 5W30 last weekend. My first impression was that the engine seemed a bit quieter and smoother than before. I noticed it even though I wasn't thinking to listen to it, so I doubt I was imagining it. But maybe any fresh oil would've done the same. Otherwise all seems the same so far.

 

[coffee]

Thanks for the input, Vilan!

 

[Merkava_4]

Yeah I hardly ever hear anyone talk about HM GTX Castrol for some reason.

 

[vronline]

I've used Castrol HM oil and it seems to work well. It's somewhat thicker, but I am unable to notice any big differences since it's running in a V-8. I have also used the MaxLife and Pennzoil HM product as well.

This car has a small leak, and the Pennzoil didn't seem to help as much as the Castrol and/or MaxLife to control that.

 

[coffee]

My 945 wagon has a small front seal leak and I am hoping it can remedy it with an HM motor oil. If there is not a huge difference in price I may go with a name brand HM over Supertech. I am just a little nervous using such an inexpensive product that we know so little about and doesm't even have a website to view product info.

 

[parkertown]

I have a 96 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 87000 miles on it. I'm on my first run of Supertech HM 10/30 and the Jeep feels more pwerful and is actually getting 1 to 1.5 mpg better fuel economy than it ever has. This vehicle saw nothing but Havoline 10/30 the first 10 yrs of it's life. Switched to Castrol GTX 10/30 about a year ago, and was very satisfied with it. Decided to try the ST HM on a whim as I had no leaks or any other problems. Going by the old butt dyno, the ST is performing better than either of those previous dinos.

 

[coffee]

That is great to hear, Parkertown! I may just need to give it a try.

 

[vronline]

If you're looking to stop a leak, the only ones I've heard any success stories on are MaxLife and Castrol HM.

 

[coffee]

Well, it is part of the reason but mainly looking for overall better engine protection for my HM vehicles.

 

[Curious Kid]

On my 12yr old 850, Castrol's HM 5w-30 seems to be putting some function back into the seals. Currently have something like 7mo/4000k miles with HM oil and the rear main's leak is down to leaving a quarter-sized deposit on the driveway after sitting several days...and I have not had to add oil (which was something I've only had to do over the last OCI or 2).

Cheers.

 

[Ken E.]

I trying Castrol HM in the wife's wagon. Went from the normal 15w-40 to 10w-40HM. The engine didn't blow up, valves didn't even rattle a little bit. Autozone had the stuff on sale for a 1.20 less than the competition so I thought I'd give it a shot. The M50 BMW engine seems to like slightly thinner oils probably due to the hydraulic lifters. The car ran poorly on the 20w-50 the previous owner used.

 

[coffee]

Thanks, Curious and Ken! Castrol may be a good option for me.