Hi there...I am a little peeved...I brought my newly acquired 2002 Subaru WRX Turbo Wagon in to Jiffy Lube for an oil change and since I had never been to one, was caught unaware when I was asked to choose an oil - reg, prem synthetic and then the "top of the line" stuff aka most expensive. Without any help from the "order taker/cashier", I chose the Premium Synthetic. I do not know what the previous owner used. Now, am I obligated to use this same oil each time I get an oil change or can I switch back to the regular, lease expensive stuff? Or is it good to alternate between the two? I don't want to harm the engine. I have heard conflicting info on whether Turbos benefit (or not) from using synthetic oil. Help! Thank you!!
Oil Change - does type matter?
- Thread starter jcatcab
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Synthetic oil is very good, especially for turbo engines. I'm not sure I know the difference between premium syn and "top-of-the-line. Be sure to get the correct viscosity for your engine. You do not need to stay with sythetic but, I would. I also would not have my vehicle serviced by any fast oil change place but, that is just my opinion. good motoring. ed
Most modern turbo cars that I know of come from the factory with synthetic oil. I probably woudn't use the "regular" conventional oil on a turbocharged engine.
You can save a lot of money [to spend on good quality oil and filters] by changing your own oil. You can save about 50% compared to many of the quick lube places. I can't comment on how easy it is on your car.
How much did they charge you for that oil change?
You can save a lot of money [to spend on good quality oil and filters] by changing your own oil. You can save about 50% compared to many of the quick lube places. I can't comment on how easy it is on your car.
How much did they charge you for that oil change?
I's stick with synthetic in the turbo, and run for the full oil drain interval in your owner's manual. If you don't have a manual, any Subaru parts counter can get one for you. Synthetic oil has much higher resistance to oxidation, so will survive better and protect better in the very hot bearings of the turbocharger.
Your engine will probably benefit from an internal cleaning using Auto-Rx. I know my turbo Volvo engine is smoother, peppier, and gets better gas mileage and lower oil consumption after the A-Rx cleaning.
Instead of IffyLube, you might find a quality repair shop that also does oil changes. Sometimes Iffylube's workers are overworked, undertrained, undersupervised, and undermotivated.
Ken
Your engine will probably benefit from an internal cleaning using Auto-Rx. I know my turbo Volvo engine is smoother, peppier, and gets better gas mileage and lower oil consumption after the A-Rx cleaning.
Instead of IffyLube, you might find a quality repair shop that also does oil changes. Sometimes Iffylube's workers are overworked, undertrained, undersupervised, and undermotivated.
Ken
Thanks Eddie & Terminaldegree! They charged me $44.99! I guess I was use to the $29.99 oil change in the past,so it was a bit of a shocker to see the 50% increase with the higher quality oil. I just wish I was more handy and able to do it myself...
FYI-
It would cost you about $23 to purchase your own synthetic oil and a decent filter, at regular prices, if you shop around.
If you watch this site and keep track of the sales, the same purchase could cost you less than $10!!
For the cost of one $45 oil change, you could easily get a set of ramps, a used oil container, and the proper size wrench to do it yourself-- and, an oil change. There are many people here who could walk you through it; I've seen many WRX owners here.
I know the prospect of changing your own oil in the winter isn't exactly appetizing, but if you time things right and changed it in the late fall, you probably wouldn't have to worry about it all winter [unless you drive 30,000 miles a year].
It would cost you about $23 to purchase your own synthetic oil and a decent filter, at regular prices, if you shop around.
If you watch this site and keep track of the sales, the same purchase could cost you less than $10!!
For the cost of one $45 oil change, you could easily get a set of ramps, a used oil container, and the proper size wrench to do it yourself-- and, an oil change. There are many people here who could walk you through it; I've seen many WRX owners here.
I know the prospect of changing your own oil in the winter isn't exactly appetizing, but if you time things right and changed it in the late fall, you probably wouldn't have to worry about it all winter [unless you drive 30,000 miles a year].
Chances are they put Pennzoil Platinum in there. So...it's cool.
Shell owns the Jippy Lube and Pennzoil franchizes.
Their oil filters suck, but they don't mind you bringing your own.
You might just love the Pennzoil Platinum. What does your receipt say?
Sometimes we can stumble into something good without knowing it. It does happen. The computer at the shop probably recommended the oil based on the VIN and the turbo.
The pricing is normal as synthetic does cost more. I personally would not run anything other than a syn in a turbo. You did not get ripped off. Just the price of owning a fun turbo.
[ August 01, 2005, 05:12 PM: Message edited by: haley10 ]
Shell owns the Jippy Lube and Pennzoil franchizes.
Their oil filters suck, but they don't mind you bringing your own.
You might just love the Pennzoil Platinum. What does your receipt say?
Sometimes we can stumble into something good without knowing it. It does happen. The computer at the shop probably recommended the oil based on the VIN and the turbo.
The pricing is normal as synthetic does cost more. I personally would not run anything other than a syn in a turbo. You did not get ripped off. Just the price of owning a fun turbo.
[ August 01, 2005, 05:12 PM: Message edited by: haley10 ]
Listen to Terminaldegree
Very good advice.
Very good advice.
You never know what they will use at Jiffy Lube. I have seen them use Pennzoil, Exxon, and Mobil 1. My guess is regular would be pennzoil, the midline would be Pennzoil Platnum, and top of the line is Mobil 1.
That actually doesn't sound like a bad idea. But then again, how are their techs? Before doing the oil changes myself, I took my 2002 Nissan Altima 2.5L to the dealer and 1989 BMW 325is to an independent "German" shop for oil changes. Both places overfilled by >0.5 quarts (they just put in 5 quarts-- the Bimmer uses 4.25, Nissan 4.5) and overtightened the filter by about 1/2 turn or more.
Is WalMart more competent? I wouldn't mind spending $10 to save 1+ hr of work. Plus, I get to shop around in WalMart and look for some toys!
Depends on the location. Many "Iffy Lubes" are independently operated and I suppose free to order whatever they want.
As for the WRX.....
There is no mandate to use a synthetic oil. The Subaru factory recommendation is for an API SL/GF-3 5w30 motor oil. The WRX has an oil cooler, which helps a bit with oxidation and breakdown. There's a water-cooled turbo which reduces the chance of turbo coking, by keeping the bearings from overheating when the oil flow is shut off. The factory installed oil is a conventional 5w30 with some mystery (breakin?) additives. The powertrain warranty is 5 years or 60K miles, which includes the turbo.
Now I personally use Mobil 1 5w30 in my 2004 WRX. I also ran Mobil Drive Clean 10w30 for a few thousand miles before using Mobil 1. I aim for a cool down time of about 30 seconds when shutting down. It works in practice because I back into the garage through an inclined driveway in idle.
JHZR2
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rule 1: dont go to jiffy lube... eventually theyll drain your transmission and overfill your engine, or drain your oil and forget to refill it... then claim they have no responsibility.
rule 2: turbo engine = use synthetic oil... maybe more specifically, use an oil with a high HT/HS or an ACEA A3 rated oil
You can figure it out from there, it draws some limits around what you ought to use.
If the lube place doenst know the terms HT/HS or ACEA A3, drive away.
JMH
rule 2: turbo engine = use synthetic oil... maybe more specifically, use an oil with a high HT/HS or an ACEA A3 rated oil
You can figure it out from there, it draws some limits around what you ought to use.
If the lube place doenst know the terms HT/HS or ACEA A3, drive away.
JMH
Not trying to hijack the thread or anything, but I had a quick question. My '05 WRX, (the one that used to burn a lot of oil, but doesn't anymore) has had synthetic so far. The car is located in Greece so just the oil for an oil change costs about $70 in US prices. At work here, I can get tons of 15w40 really cheap, and that stuff is both diesel and gas rated. Would it be ok to run that stuff instead (probably with a shorter oci)? I am saying that if that 15w40 is good for 500 hp turbocharged truck engines, why wouldn't it be good for that little engine? Btw it rarely gets below 32 here, so cold starts would be ok. Any opinions?
Thanks!
Thanks!
I don't see why not. Granted it might make for interesting discussions with the dealer should you need warranty work. Sometimes dealers can be pigheaded if they find out you didn't follow the owner's manual recommendations to the letter.
In the US, (the oddball) 20W-40 is listed as an acceptable oil weight for towing use or high ambient temperatures, but 15w40 is not. 0W-30, 0W-40, or 5W-40 aren't listed either, but have been used successfully by some WRX owners.
The only problem is that you can't be certain how warm it has to be to use 15w40 without a manufacturer's recommendation. Shell states that Rotella 15w40 should be used above 5 deg F and that their 10w30 version should be used at lower temps.
http://www.rotella.com/answer/october2004.html
Generally speaking- most of the "diesel" rated oils, are made from slightly better base stocks that conventional anyways. The biggest difference-is the detergent package. Diesel engines are prone to soot/carbon problems more-so that gasoline engines. Diesel oils meet the gasoline engine specifications, and actually exceed them in some areas (mostly detergency)... I would suspect, that running a 15w40 diesel oil would actually just keep your engine cleaner, with no ill side effects over running other options. Only problem would be confronting the manufacture if a warrenty issue with the engine were to arise.
Yes, the car is a stick, and it gets run pretty hard. It is like 100 degrees here and I was doing 180-200 km/h on the highway, traffic permitting. What is amazing is that the car starts consuming oil (Shell Helix Ultra 5w-40 and Motul 10w-40 so far) as soon as the severe service OCI ends. i guess Fuji know their engines...
In terms of warranty work, that should not be an issue, cause the warranty is voided already. See, in Europe, if you don't do scheduled maintenance at an authorized dealer, there goes the warranty. The local dealership is using cheap 20w-50,
so I don't think they know what they are doing. The oil in question is bulk dual rated 15w40 that we use in our semis. Nothing too special, but it can hold for 20k kms in the trucks, so i figure 5k kms on the WRX should be safe.
It even says in the manual that you can use straight 40 weight if the temps are hot... Maybe the australian members have something to add?
Probably I'll get myself a drum of D1 and not worry anymore, but I can't find it here.
In terms of warranty work, that should not be an issue, cause the warranty is voided already. See, in Europe, if you don't do scheduled maintenance at an authorized dealer, there goes the warranty. The local dealership is using cheap 20w-50,
It even says in the manual that you can use straight 40 weight if the temps are hot... Maybe the australian members have something to add?
Probably I'll get myself a drum of D1 and not worry anymore, but I can't find it here.
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