Oil Suggestions for a new car

[MaxdOut]

Hi, long time lurker looking for some advice.

Going to go in for my first oil change really soon on my 2020 Infiniti Q50 Red Sport which is a turbo direct injection at 1K miles and planning on a OCI of 4-5K miles. This is my first turboed and first direct injection car so wanted to make sure to use the right oil to minimize the carbon deposits on the valves. I will be doing the Blackstone oil analysis at every change to monitor the engine, something I have never don before.

My driving habits are usually short <30 miles drives with a little hard driving on occasion. Normally less than 10K miles per year.

I was looking at using Valvoline Modern Engine 0W-20 (viscosity recommended by manufacture and they do not provide an alternative weight). Valvoline is stating that they will be discontinuing this oil and there will be a replacement but have not announced what.

Any thoughts on the Valvoline Modern Engine oil? Is there a better alternative?

I keep my cars until the wheels fall off so trying to pick the best oil that I can.

 

[Zee09]

Many Valvo lovers here
Castrol Magnatec seems to do well in Turbo applications

 

[PimTac]

Valvoline Modern Engine has been discontinued. You might find it online still.

Are you changing the oil or taking it in to be changed?

Any major brand of 0w20 will run fine. Look for the latest specs GF6/SP.

 

[jurko]

Mobil 1 ESP X2 0W-20 with 6 months OCI would be a good choice for your Infinity and driving habits.
You like occasional hard driving, but do that only after your oil temp reaches at least 180°F. Till then don't go much over 2,500 RPM.
Do few longer trips where oil reaches operating temperature of at least 212°F to burn off contaminates and moisture.

 

[MaxdOut]

Many Valvo lovers here
Castrol Magnatec seems to do well in Turbo applications

I'll looking into Castrol, never had them on the radar.

Valvoline Modern Engine has been discontinued. You might find it online still.

Are you changing the oil or taking it in to be changed?

Any major brand of 0w20 will run fine. Look for the latest specs GF6/SP.

I would have to order it and maybe buy enough for a few oil changes.

I am planning to bring it in to the dealer to get service and will be providing the oil, the one they offer is Mobil Super Synthetic. Wanted to provide them with something better.

I'll look into the GF6/SP specs, still not familiar with any of them yet.

Mobil 1 ESP X2 0W-20 with 6 months OCI would be a good choice for your Infinity and driving habits.
You like occasional hard driving, but do that only after your oil temp reaches at least 180°F. Till then don't go much over 2,500 RPM.
Do few longer trips where oil reaches operating temperature of at least 212°F to burn off contaminates and moisture.

I'll check out the Mobil 1 ESP X2, it's definitely different, it's green.

Good to know about the temps, but will be difficult to figure out, no oil temp guage. I do drive a little more on the weeks ends so that should cover the burning off part. Should I add additional tests on the Blackstone analysis to confirm? Only planned for the standard oil test.

 

[BrandonT]

I'll second the Mobil ESP X2. I like everything about it, detergent is made to prevent LSPI, has both Moly and Boron, and Noack is decently low. Typically these VW508/509 oils also use some PAO to make the standard.

 

[blufeb95]

Why ESP x2 over say Mobil1 EP which is much more commonly available and seems to use PAO as it's primary base oil compared to ESP x2 which seems to be about 2:1 GTL and PAO as the base oils, Mobil1 EP is up to the latest API SP/ ILSAC GF-6A standards and Dexos1gen2 so it should be good at combating LSPI.

 

[MaxdOut]

The Mobil ESP X2 seems to be marketed (based on the Mobil web site) toward European vehicles, does that matter?

And what does LSPI mean?

 

[PimTac]

The Mobil ESP X2 seems to be marketed (based on the Mobil web site) toward European vehicles, does that matter?

And what does LSPI mean?

Low-speed pre-ignition - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[blufeb95]

The Mobil ESP X2 seems to be marketed (based on the Mobil web site) toward European vehicles, does that matter?

And what does LSPI mean?

It should be fine in any other make, but personally I don't see what makes it so great unless you need something that meets certain VW approvals for VW warranty purposes or DexosD for certain GM diesel passenger car engines. I don't see what makes it superior to mobil1 EP for most applications, since ESP is generally hard to find and comes at a price premium, whereas EP can be found on the shelves at most retailers.

As for LSPI:

 

[MaxdOut]

It should be fine in any other make, but personally I don't see what makes it so great unless you need something that meets certain VW approvals for VW warranty purposes or DexosD for certain GM diesel passenger car engines. I don't see what makes it superior to mobil1 EP for most applications, since ESP is generally hard to find and comes at a price premium, whereas EP can be found on the shelves at most retailers.

As for LSPI:

Wow thank you for that, very informative. And now I have another reason to not like direct injection...

I use the Mobil EP in my 2009 G37, never had a problem with it and it never need a topping off before my oil changes.

 

[celicaxx]

I kind of have a partiality to Valvoline but did also like Mobil 1 when I was younger.

Personally, I think if I had a brand new relatively high dollar car like yours, I would run the manufacturer suggested grade in Mobil 1 EP. Not even that I think Mobil 1 is necessarily "the best" but it's certainly never bad, and if any warranty issues come up, it's probably the most popular and well known synthetic on the planet, whereas potentially with other brands they'd have slightly more excuse to screw around with you. This is not based on best, but more "Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM" with some amount of FUD in the thought process.

Nissan Oil Change, Oil Filter & Nissan Oil Change Service – Nissan USA Service & Maintenance

Here you will find Nissan oil change, oil filters replacement & Nissan oil change service you can have at your local Nissan dealership as part of the Nissan USA service & maintenance site that offers all the service & maintenance your Nissan needs, from oil change to regular maintenance or...

www.nissanusa.com

In more FUD, Nissan themselves endorse Mobil 1, so yeah.

 

[Averroes]

Why ESP x2 over say Mobil1 EP which is much more commonly available and seems to use PAO as it's primary base oil compared to ESP x2 which seems to be about 2:1 GTL and PAO as the base oils, Mobil1 EP is up to the latest API SP/ ILSAC GF-6A standards and Dexos1gen2 so it should be good at combating LSPI.

HTHS. ESP 5w30 is at 3.5. M1 EP can be from 3.0 -3.2 HTHS. Don’t know for sure since it’s not listed.

I would go with: M1 ESP 5w30, PP Euro LX OR L or I’d go with Motul 8100 Xclean EFE. Personally I’d go with M1 or PP since they do go on sale.

Also, I’d pump ethanol free gas if available. I mean not sure how much it helps with the LSPI, but it has more energy that ethanol blended gasoline and who doesn’t like non ethanol gasoline? For oil filters of you can, stick with Fram ultra synthetic, best bang for the buck. If not then Napa/Wix Gold. Happy cruising and enjoy the nice machine. Oh, get some good tires for it to. Michelin pilot sports, Firestone Indy 500 Firehawks or Continental DW are some solid choices.

 

[blufeb95]

HTHS. ESP 5w30 is at 3.5. M1 EP can be from 3.0 -3.2 HTHS. Don’t know for sure since it’s not listed.

I would go with: M1 ESP 5w30, PP Euro LX OR L or I’d go with Motul 8100 Xclean EFE. Personally I’d go with M1 or PP since they do go on sale.

Also, I’d pump ethanol free gas if available. I mean not sure how much it helps with the LSPI, but it has more energy that ethanol blended gasoline and who doesn’t like non ethanol gasoline? For oil filters of you can, stick with Fram ultra synthetic, best bang for the buck. If not then Napa/Wix Gold. Happy cruising and enjoy the nice machine. Oh, get some good tires for it to. Michelin pilot sports, Firestone Indy 500 Firehawks or Continental DW are some solid choices.

This car specs 0w20 as the only viscosity that should be used, ESP x2 is a 0w20 oil. I would not deviate from the specified viscosity since it's a new car under warranty, and the manual explicitly says "Damage caused by the use of motor oil (or engine oil) other than as recommended is not covered under INFINITI’s new vehicle limited warranty. "

 

[john_pifer]

Since you said you want to drive that car "till the wheels fall off", I definitely wouldn't run a 20 grade, unless you're just going to be putting around town, never redlining it or driving it like it was meant to be driven.

20 grade oil is spec'd by Nissan ONLY to increase their corporate fuel economy average.

If it was mine, and I lived in IL, I'd run a low to mid-SAPS Euro 5W-30 with an HTHS of at least 3.5.

Mobil 1 ESP 5W-30 or Motul 8100 X-Clean+ 5W-30.

 

[ZedzAmg]

Motul 0w20 Ecolite. 2.6 hths and dexos.

 

[Averroes]

This car specs 0w20 as the only viscosity that should be used, ESP x2 is a 0w20 oil. I would not deviate from the specified viscosity since it's a new car under warranty, and the manual explicitly says "Damage caused by the use of motor oil (or engine oil) other than as recommended is not covered under INFINITI’s new vehicle limited warranty. "

Opening post by OP states nothing about warranty hence my suggestions. If it's under warranty you're correct, use the viscosity that's listed. After warranty bump up to a 5w/0w-30 oil which has a HTHS of 3.5 or more.

 

[blufeb95]

Opening post by OP states nothing about warranty hence my suggestions. If it's under warranty you're correct, use the viscosity that's listed. After warranty bump up to a 5w/0w-30 oil which has a HTHS of 3.5 or more.

They did say it was a new car and they're doing the first oil change, so I guess it's sort of implied that it's under warranty.

 

[MaxdOut]

This car specs 0w20 as the only viscosity that should be used, ESP x2 is a 0w20 oil. I would not deviate from the specified viscosity since it's a new car under warranty, and the manual explicitly says "Damage caused by the use of motor oil (or engine oil) other than as recommended is not covered under INFINITI’s new vehicle limited warranty. "

Agreed, the Owners Manual and Factory Service Manual indicate what you just quoted, they provide no other option on viscosity. Seems like they wrote a way out of warranty work.

Since you said you want to drive that car "till the wheels fall off", I definitely wouldn't run a 20 grade, unless you're just going to be putting around town, never redlining it or driving it like it was meant to be driven.

20 grade oil is spec'd by Nissan ONLY to increase their corporate fuel economy average.

If it was mine, and I lived in IL, I'd run a low to mid-SAPS Euro 5W-30 with an HTHS of at least 3.5.

Mobil 1 ESP 5W-30 or Motul 8100 X-Clean+ 5W-30.

I would love to run heavier oil but do not want to risk any issues regarding warranty plus I purchased the additional warrant to 100K miles. I've never been a fan of turbos.

Motul 0w20 Ecolite. 2.6 hths and dexos.

Opening post by OP states nothing about warranty hence my suggestions. If it's under warranty you're correct, use the viscosity that's listed. After warranty bump up to a 5w/0w-30 oil which has a HTHS of 3.5 or more.

I need to research this , I am really new to all of this so not really grounded in terms and numbers yet.

Opening post by OP states nothing about warranty hence my suggestions. If it's under warranty you're correct, use the viscosity that's listed. After warranty bump up to a 5w/0w-30 oil which has a HTHS of 3.5 or more.

They did say it was a new car and they're doing the first oil change, so I guess it's sort of implied that it's under warranty.

Only have 800 Miles on it, waiting until I get to 1K to change the oil but was looking for the best to use going forward on a TGDI (I think that's right). I heard about the deposits forming on valves so wanted to prevent that.

Its going to be a pretty long time before my warranty is up so will be using the 0W-20 but will do OCI of 4-5K miles instead of the factory recommended 10K.

I really don't believe the manufacturer has the consumers best interest in mind, I think the 0W-20 is a bit thin. A prime example would be "lifetime transmission fluid", it lasts the life of the transmission which is usually just a little bit longer than factory warranty. But completely understand, a company would be out of business if their product lasted forever, so planned obsolescence.

 

[kschachn]

Does your owner’s manual or the warranty booklet state that the new car warranty will be voided if you use a different grade?