"New" used truck, want to start it off right......

[ChrisJH]

Just bought an 01 Frontier with the 3.3L V6 (not supercharged). Previous owner did all oil changes basically on time (3-4K mile intervals) and all at the dealer (so Nissan oil filters, and whatever oil Nissan uses).

I wanted to switch to synth, mostly to make maintenance a little easier. I dont put too many miles on the truck, its a third vehicle in the family. I do however drive it during the winter occasionally, and sometimes it gets cold here (cold is down to 5 or 10 degrees overnight, but rarely that low during the day). The truck only has 38K miles on it, so its almost "new" in terms of how long it could last.

I was thinking Mobil 1, but then I read the opinions of Mobil at this point

so I was wondering what the best alternative might be (I read Mobil 1 still is good quality, is there anything comparable without lining the already stuffed pockets of an oil giant?)

As far as a filter goes, I read the "who makes what filter" thread. Carquest is nearby my house, so if the red/blue filters from them are still made by Wix, I think that will be my best bet.

I tried searching, but there is just sooooo much information on here, I kinda get lost trying to make an informed decision.

Thanks in advance!
-Chris

 

[ARB1977]

Depending on miles i would auto rx then pretty much any synthetic. I dig Amsoil but im backing it up with a UOA next spring. If it fails then i may ditch synthetic and go with havlone with LC 20.

 

[Rico567]

I'm in a somewhat similar situation, except I've owned the truck since it was new. It's been on a 5-yr. maintenance agreement, Dodge Dakota 3.9L v-6, Pennzoil 10W-30 & Pennzoil filter every 3K. The truck has 47K on it, and I'm going off the maintenance agreement in 6 months. I'm thinking Pennzoil Platinum and maybe go with a NAPA Gold filter, and since I put about 10-11K a year on this vehicle, annual O & F change.

 

[daman]

M1 will serve you just fine....

 

[Rico567]

I'm glad to hear that- our other vehicle has had M1 in it ever since the factory fill....

 

[ChrisJH]

Who was "daman" answering?

I dunno.

Ill probably stick with Mobil 1 I guess. Just that the discussion of the changes was "interesting" to say the least.

Can anyone confirm that Wix still makes CarQuest oil filters? I might pick up everything to do the oil change tomorrow so I can git er done this weekend.

-Chris

 

[double vanos]

You could try German Castrol also. Being in a low temp environment and wanting to stretch the engine life as far as possible, GC seems like good candidate. And from whats being said around here lately it appears to be one of only a handful of oils that are a true PAO based oil. Just my .02 worth.

 

[ChrisJH]

How long can you store un-used oil? I notice German Castrol is probably available at AutoZone and/or Walmart, of which there are plenty around me

Was thinking I would stock up if I could find it.

Frontier takes 3.3 quarts according to service manual (well, 3.0 without new filter, 3.3 with). If I bought 3 or 4 5 quart jugs, would they "stay" on the shelf? Is there anything approved for moving the leftover from the 1st 5 quart jug into so it will "stay" as well?

 

[hillclimber]

Quote:

---

Frontier takes 3.3 quarts according to service manual (well, 3.0 without new filter, 3.3 with). If I bought 3 or 4 5 quart jugs, would they "stay" on the shelf? Is there anything approved for moving the leftover from the 1st 5 quart jug into so it will "stay" as well?

---

Wow, a V6 that only takes 3.3 quarts per oil change? I have a VW with a 1.8 four cylinder and many, many owners (and non-owners) are critical of its "small" 4 quart capacity..

 

[ChrisJH]

Yeah I didnt believe it myself. Did a double and triple take on the service manual (I was slightly off.....with new filter, 3.5 qts. Without new oil filter, 3 qts).

Just wiped out my local AZ of German Castrol.......9 quarts total. I might go to another AZ to pickup 1 or 2 more quarts, so I can get a full 3 oil changes (including filter).

Any recommendations on how long to leave the filter on? I normally change it out every oil change, but it seems there are some really good filters out there that might not necessarily require it.

-Chris

 

[Patman]

Even though the capacity is listed at 3.3 quarts, I wonder what it's actual maximum would be? I know with both of my cars I am safely able to add more than what is listed in the manual.

 

[ChrisJH]

Yeah, havent tried it out to be exactly sure yet. I always just check the dipstick to be sure, but use the manual as a starting point (i.e. I better not have any less than 3.5 qts in there

).

-Chris

 

[AndyH]

Quote:

---

I notice German Castrol is probably available at AutoZone and/or Walmart, of which there are plenty around me

Was thinking I would stock up if I could find it.

---

Only available at AutoZone in the U.S. It is available at Wal-Mart up in Canada however.

 

[Mr Nice]

I wonder why it was designed with such a small oil sump ?

 

[Cutehumor]

It's nissan.

sentra oil sump 2 7/8 qts.

 

[427Z06]

Quote:

---

I was thinking Mobil 1, but then I read the opinions of Mobil at this point

so I was wondering what the best alternative might be (I read Mobil 1 still is good quality, is there anything comparable without lining the already stuffed pockets of an oil giant?)

---

Sure...consider Pennzoil Platinum, Castrol Syntec, Havoline Synthetic, Valvoline SynPower, Amsoil XL, 76 High Performance Synthetic, Schaeffer Moly Bond, fill in your favorite brand, since they're all now made with the same "high quality synthetic fluids" as M1.

 

[ChrisJH]

Well I got a bunch of GC last night, gonna try to get 3 more quarts to give myself a full 4 oil changes and a little leftover.

Should I auto-rx the engine before switching to GC? The previous oil changes were all dino, the current oil is clean but I dont know exactly how long its beeen in there (will dig that out of the service history).

Also, are the Carquest filters still made by Wix? Is there an easy way to tell this myself?

Thanks!
-Chris

 

[TallPaul]

With a 3.3 qt sump I would be inclined to run Redline. For lowest temps of 5 or 10 F, 10w30 would be fine.

 

[Volvohead]

I've owned the Nissan 3.3. Decent engine, but LOUD when pushed hard. Mine had a much larger sump than 3.3 qts, so I don't know where that info is coming from.

I'd ARX it to get the deposits off the seals, then change it over to the full-syn of your choice. Mine ran fine on ca. 2000 M1. I would not go too thick in this engine. GC is a nice pick and about as heavy as is necessary.

 

[ChrisJH]

OK, Ill order up some AutoRX (unless someone here did a large buy to get cost down?)

Every manual Ive read about the VG33E (non supercharged) says 3.5 quarts if changing the oil filter, 3.125 if not. Ive also read that there was an "extended" oil filter available, which bumps the oil/filter change amount to almost a full 4 quarts. Either way, its no where near the just-about-5-quarts Im accustomed to!!! I havent tried to change the oil yet, so the reality might be different, but its odd that *all* of the manuals (even Nissans own factory service manual) would be that far off.

-Chris