Red Line for my MY18 Subaru Outback H4. But which one?

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Napi

Napi

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Hey guys.

I recently changed my Saturn Sky for a new Subaru Outback. It is the MY18, 2.5i H4 naturally aspirated boxer.

And the Car is heading towards the first oil change.

Subarus says to use 0w20/5w30/5w40 meeting A3 or A5.

I do want to buy Red Line but wonder which one.
Stock is a 0w20 but I do not care too much for fuel efficiency.
The oil will have to Last for 9.321 miles. or 15.000km.
smile.gif

The Car is used in a part of Germany that has a temperature range from 20 to 90 Fahrenheit over the year.

What do you suggest?
wink.gif
 
Use a 5W30 specified for the VW 502 oil. The VW spec makes it a robust 5W30 unlike the API SN 5W30's of the USA and Canada.
 
I have a Lexus w 6 speed manual that I trash daily in a Mississippi summer, and I use M1 EP. Guarantee German summers cant touch ours
 
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I would lean towards the 5w-40 if only because of the much higher speeds permitted in Germany and your preference for a long OCI(oil change interval).
The 5w-30 would probably be fine too.
The company car I drive is a 2012 C180 and it gets thrashed by everyone and driven around Italy and Germany and yet the MB dealer says 5w-30 is fine and the OLM(oil life monitor)usually tells me it needs a service around 12,000 to 15,000km. So if a little 1.6 liter turbo engine that's taken to redline multiple times a day and driven at top speed as often as permitted is OK with a full synthetic 5w-30(I believe it's Mobil 1 in the manual) you are going to be OK.
Have fun with your new car.
For the ones that have responded before me. The price of the alternative oils recommended are probably very close to the price of Redline oils anyways so why not?
Anxiously awaiting photo of 5L jug of synthetic oil on shelf in Walmart in Germany for €20. Ha ha
 
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Being in Germany, run a 5W-30 or 5W-40 that is ACEA A3/B4 and has some approvals like LL-01 and 229.5. Maybe Fuchs, Castrol or Liqui-Moly? Redline is not worth it in my opinion.
 
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Originally Posted By: Speak2Mountain
I have a Lexus w 6 speed manual that I trash daily in a Mississippi summer, and I use M1 EP. Guarantee German summers cant touch ours

Nope they definiately cannot. However, their autobahn will put strain on engine like no summer in MS.
That same Lexus you have is recommended to be filled with 5W40 oil in Germany.
 
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Originally Posted By: Napi
Hey guys.

I recently changed my Saturn Sky for a new Subaru Outback. It is the MY18, 2.5i H4 naturally aspirated boxer.

And the Car is heading towards the first oil change.

Subarus says to use 0w20/5w30/5w40 meeting A3 or A5.

I do want to buy Red Line but wonder which one.
Stock is a 0w20 but I do not care too much for fuel efficiency.
The oil will have to Last for 9.321 miles. or 15.000km.
smile.gif

The Car is used in a part of Germany that has a temperature range from 20 to 90 Fahrenheit over the year.

What do you suggest?
wink.gif


RL is waste of money.
Use one of the fallowing oils since you have opportunity to get them:
Castrol 0W30 LL04
Mobil1 5W30 ESP (if you want 5W30 I would use this oil).
Castrol 5W30 (ACEA C3 BMW LL04, MB229.51, VW 505.01/502.00).
There is really no need to go with 5W40 in that engine. HTHS of average 5W40 will be within 5-8% of ACEA A3/B3 B4 or C3 0/5W30 oil.
 
Thank you so much for the answers so far!
The Red Line is a bit more expensive than other oils in Germany but Oil is rather expensive anyways so as Long a gallon is 100 USD or less the price is not too important.

I have to admit I was wondering why you suggest low-SAPS Red Line or other low-SAPS oils like the M1 5w30 ESP. Isn't my H4 one of the engines that would benefit from mid- or full-SAPS? (Being a classic gasoline engine without weird particle filters and stuff.
smile.gif
)
Don't get me wrong, I really don't know.
wink.gif
 
Redline is 0w20 should be good for your Subaru for normal driving, if you need to race it on highway often then you may go slightly thicker on 0w30.
I do not see any benefit on running thicker than Redline 5w30 on your case, since the engine is designed to run 20 weight oil.
 
I could definitely live with a 5w30. I could even live with a 0w20, I Just have the Feeling I should Go for a ACEA A3/B4 oil, and afaik is there no 0w20 A3/B4 there.

Red Line is disqualified anyways. I realized they RECOMMEND it as a replacement. But there is no official permission to use what would make me lose my warranty.

Right now I am considering Valvoline oils, as they are easy to find all over Europe.

Any ideas in the SynPower 5w30 or 5w40? Both meet A3/B5 and the VW 502 you suggested.
The 0w20 does not meet the specifications for the car...
 
I agree with Olas but you may wish to ask around to see if other locals may be using Motu l X-MAX, 0-40. Ester-based like the Redline. Full SAPS, A3-B4 and long life BMW. I am a long time Red Line user and still have a now seldom driven Nissan SR-20 that has had Red Line exclusively since new...in 1992, 26 years. Still healthy and never opened after around 250K miles of brutality. So, yes, I'm happy with it too.

Cheers

Larry
 
Originally Posted By: spk2000
Engine is a known oil user so definitely look for low volatility in the oil as well.


No, the later models are not known for oil burning. There will always be outliers, but the FB25 is doing just fine in its later years. Gutless, but fine.
 
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