Oil recommendation for Subaru with Turbo

[legacyguy]

1. 2005 Subaru Legacy gt, 52k miles, modded stage 2 turbo
2. manual says 5w-30 GF-3. for a modded turbo the concensus on subaru forums is an OCI of 3750.
3. Minneapolis MN
4. Mostly drive easy 20min freeway to work and back but i do like a spirited drive and hit high boost several times a day. never redline or anything though.
6. no problems.


Alot of subaru guys run rotella t6 and like that. I currently have amsoil 5w-30. The guy before me ran castrol edge in it when it came out it was really dark and very fluid, is this bad? interval was on time. Id like to stick with a synthetic but i feel like with the amsoil the engine rev does not feel as smooth like the oil is more like water? if that makes sense.

thanks

 

[Hollow]

You can't really go wrong with T6 in that engine, there seem to be some pretty good UOA's with it.

Bang for the buck, I'd say QSUD and PP are hard to beat.

 

[Rand]

you want at least a thick 30wt in it. Those turbos heat the oil up fast. in the summer I'd go with a 5w40.

Winter a premium 5w30 should be fine in MN.

 

[thr_wedge]

Is this a stock turbocharger? Have the banjo bolts been cleaned or better yet cleaned with the screens removed?

I used PP or M1 on my 2005 LGT, 3000 mile OCI.

 

[legacyguy]

stock turbo, banjo filter is out yes. Pretty sure the M1 is a no no with the subarus

 

[Bandito440]

Rotella T6 for sure.

 

[legacyguy]

im thinking ill try the t6. Should i go for the 5w- 30 or 40?

 

[73 BGT]

Another for Rotella T-6. T-6 only comes as a 5W-40.

 

[joaks]

T6 or amsoil signature series.

 

[legacyguy]

has the signature series now. Will the t6 feel smoother/a little heavier so to speak? i also dont like paying $11 per quart

 

[SubLGT]

Mobil1 0W40

 

[Bandito440]

Originally Posted By: legacyguy
has the signature series now. Will the t6 feel smoother/a little heavier so to speak? i also dont like paying $11 per quart


It may, or you may not notice a change. It's a stout oil though, and loved by the turbo Subie clan.

 

[thr_wedge]

I had mine for 77k miles, never an issue with oil or turbo on M1, but then again I also kept my OCI short due to fear of turbo and engine failure. Some saw issues with M1, some didn't. Both PP and M1 I saw 1/2 quart in 3000 miles use.

 

[joaks]

It is extremely unlikely the t6 will do anything the amsoil does not. The t 6 might be a little less expensive and is still a good oil. I would stick with the amsoil if it was my car but that is just my unprofessional opinion

 

[squareznboxez]

posted this up a few times around here, below is my thread asking about oils for 2.0L and 2.5L subaru motors - got quite a few good responses here;

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2721537&page=1

Delvac 1 5w-40 (Group IV PAO base) & Shell Rotella T6 5w-40 (Group III semi-synthetic) seem to the oil of choice for those looking to go with a diesel oil

Shell's Rotella T6 has been getting outstanding results for Subaru motors;

a few UOA's in various Subarus

08 WRX STI

http://www.iwsti.com/forums/2-5-liter-litre-factory-motor/199888-uoa-7626-miles-rotella-t6.html

07 WRX STI

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubb...;gonew=1#UNREAD

03 WRX

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2147196

02 WRX motor in a 99 RS

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1933342&page=1

03 WRX

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2147196

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1980964

08 WRX STI

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1992976

11 WRX

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2652600

07 WRX STI - moved from a 5w-30 > 5w-40

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2078804

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1937230

03 WRX w/ 175,000 mi - track driven

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2776113&#Post2776113


as your engine is fairly modified, Shell Rotella T6 5w-40 or Delvac 1 5w-40 are great choices

another WRX with 350hp got some good responses re; oil choice here;

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubb...082#Post2777082

Motul 8100 x-clean 5w-30 has also provided good analysis results for the track, Castrol Edge 10w-60 or Motul 300v 15w-50 provide good protection in extreme conditions

with change intervals well under 4000mi, you should see no side-affects of using a group III oil which offers very good protection in that time frame


not sure whether to add this but i did get to speak to one of australia's premier subaru tuners / engine builders he was of the oppinion that due to the small clearances of the bearings in EJ motors - especially the 2.5L

a mineral oil is actually more ideal than one that is group IV/V with friction modifiers - anything slippery like a 100% PAO or Ester base can cause the bores to glaze and possible spun bearings

he is convinced that subarus boxer motors speak a different language oil wise which is why i am considering changing from Delvac 1 (group IV) to Rotella T6 (Group III)

can anyone with inside-out knowledge of EJ motors internally verify / confirm these conclusions?

he has built many bulletproof subarus over the years - including a GC8 22B which sees track time and reccomends eith Mobil Delvac 15w-40 (group II/III) and Castrol Edge 10w-60 SN (Group III/IV)

cheers,

dan

 

[bluesubie]

Originally Posted By: legacyguy
stock turbo, banjo filter is out yes. Pretty sure the M1 is a no no with the subarus

M1 being a no-no in turbo Subaru's is from knuckleheads that modify their cars, don't check their oil regularly, and think that the only Mobil1 available is Resource Conserving 5W-30.

M1 0W-40 is a good choice for winter in your location IMO. I have a uoa on it to post if I stop being lazy. If I ran Amsoil, it would be HDD 5W-30 or the new high SAPS 5W-40. Basically have a look through the above uoa's and run anything that is not Resource Conserving.

I will add that there are some very good new uoa's in newer WRX's running Resource Conserving oils (even regular Mobil1 5W-30), and you may be fine running them if your two AVCS and the one turbo screen are all removed, but there's no sense in being a guinea pig.

-Dennis

 

[SubLGT]

Originally Posted By: squareznboxez
.................not sure whether to add this but i did get to speak to one of australia's premier subaru tuners / engine builders he was of the oppinion that due to the small clearances of the bearings in EJ motors - especially the 2.5L

a mineral oil is actually more ideal than one that is group IV/V with friction modifiers - anything slippery like a 100% PAO or Ester base can cause the bores to glaze and possible spun bearings

.................................


Slippery oils cause spun bearings??? Doesn't make sense to me.

 

[Thermo1223]

Oil only has to do with spun bearings if like Dennis(bluesubie) said they were knuckle heads and used the crudiest 5w30. It would lose it's boundary layer of lubrication under the heat & stress.

I used Mobil AFE 0w30 regularly and never had a problem but I believe it was because
1. it is better oil all around, base to additives.
2. Even with a lower HTHS number it didn't falter from it's grade like a lesser 5w30 would.

I am running Synpower 5w30 now because it was all I could get, thinking about trying Subaru's 5w30 just because next time. I am also running the extended/larger filter.

I don't like T6, it left the last Forester sluggish in cooler weather especially on the top end. Don't doubt it probably does it's job great but I felt a difference right away.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: bluesubie
M1 being a no-no in turbo Subaru's is from knuckleheads that modify their cars, don't check their oil regularly, and think that the only Mobil1 available is Resource Conserving 5W-30.


This should be a sticky on every Subaru forum.

 

[Seventh]

I'd probably go with a stout xW-30 or M1 0w-40 as Dennis suggested. I also experienced sort of "doggy" behavior and some noise before the oil was up to operating temp while running 5w-40 HDEO in my Subaru. If the car is driven nicely and/or not heavily modded then a good 30wt may be better for MN. JMO

The only reason I'm not running a 30wt oil now is, I'm not quite sure how having fuel injectors 2x bigger than stock pouring E85 into my engine and having the boost turned up 6psi is going to affect my oil. I'm pushing my luck already on the factory motor, and I don't drive it slow!