Oil recommendations for 07 Equinox and 08 Avenger

[RyanCreasia]

Looking for thoughts on what I should be putting in my vehicles.

The first is an 07 Chevy Equinox 3.4L with 180k miles. It has a small oil leak then doesn't leave any spots on the driveway, but I can see a damp spot when I am under it doing a change. It is driven about 90% of the time on the highway with a 2.5hr daily commute. I change the oil when the dash notification comes on, but that is usually between 6k-7k miles. Manual says to use 5w-30.

The second is an 08 Dodge Avenger 3.5L with 80k miles. No mechanical issues. 95% highway driving. Daily commute varies from 20 to 2hrs. Manual says 10w-30. Oil is changed when the light comes on. That is anywhere from 4k-6k miles.

Looking forward to seeing all of your thoughts and suggestions!

-Ryan

 

[CharBaby]

In the Equinox, you may want to try a High Mileage(HM) oil. Valvoline Max Life or Quaker State DEFY are both a good place to start. And yes, stay with 5W30.

For the Avenger, any 5W30 or 10W30 should fit the bill.

I won't talk you out of using synthetic oils but, with the quality of regular motor oils today and the lack of synthetic requirement in your owners manual, make this an easy choice! Any brand name will suffice.

 

[KCJeep]

Chrysler continued to spec some of their engines for 10w30 long after it was common, I can only think it was due to shear concerns with 5w30. The 3.5 was one of those engines as you posted.

With your easy highway miles you could likely run just about any 30 grade in both and be fine. My suggestion however would be a "thick" 5w30 HM oil, like Castrol HM or Pennzoil HM both of which are thicker than a typical 10w30 but still give you better cold start properties. Defy is also a great HM oil on the thick side but it's high in ZDDP which I wouldn't recommend for the 3.5 since they typically use some oil and ZDDP can be hard on your cat.