Should have listened...synth made NO difference!

[Doug Hillary]

Hi,
flinter - You said this:

"Synthetics seem to be REALLY overrated...at least in my case!"

Yes, for many Owners they are overrated and an unneccessary expense - unless the Manufacturer mandates them and then of course they are needed!

IMO for the average Owner it is simply best to follow the engine/vehicle manufacturer's specifications. Todays mineral PCMO are great products

 

[sciphi]

For the folks who put lots of miles on quickly or go an extended period of time on an oil change, synthetics are great. And for extra insurance they're nice too.

 

[glum]

Originally Posted By: electrolover
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I use them just to keep my engine`s internals clean. I just feel a clean engine will last longer/run better longer.


+1 synthetics offer unsurpassed cleaning and remarkable anti-wear properties. you spend more for a better lube and thts what you got. no more griping

Exactly--the kind of benefits that are (1) important if you plan on keeping the vehicle a long time, and (2) not something you'd notice immediately.

Calculating MPG is not easy. Where you get gas can make a big difference (ethanol, no ethanol). Temperature/weather differences matter. Different pumps at the same gas station may differ in the gallons they report or the point at which they shut off.

 

[ChiTDI]

The op is using a syn/blend as a base for comparison. How much improvement (if any) is expected when going to a pure syn?

 

[ltslimjim]

Wow, no increase in fuel economy?! *gasp* I suppose that is the only thing we base our choice of oil on.

Come on...

 

[Josh48065]

Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I use them just to keep my engine`s internals clean. I just feel a clean engine will last longer/run better longer.


+1, I seem to easily believe good advertisement "extends engine life" blah blah blah...

I guess synthetic can help me better sleep at night

 

[ottotheclown]

If you would have bought Quaker State Synthetic at $19 and then bought Motorcraft the difference would be about five dollars. You should have listened you are right. The mileage difference you were looking for at those weights??? You should have listened.

.
Originally Posted By: flinter
Hi,

At 39700 miles on my MINT 2005 Hyundai Elantra GLS sedan, I decided to switch over to synthetic and used Pennzoil Platinum
5w30, with the OEM Hyundai oil filter.
Well, after 2 weeks now I can report that there is absolutely
NO improvement in mileage whatsoever.

I should have listened to you guys who told me this would be
a waste of money. Since 5 miles on my Elantra, I have been using
Motorcraft Syn Blend 5w30, with the OEM filter and doing 5000
oil changes faithfully. Is has been working perfectly for the
engine, as it is SUPER smooth and quiet.

I guess I will just run the Pennzoil I have for 6000 miles, than switch back to the MC and save my money.

Synthetics seem to be REALLY overrated...at least in my case!

 

[05ChevyI5]

Originally Posted By: flinter
Thanks Brons2

Yes, my 2005 manual states to use EITHER 5W-20, OR 5w30.
But my mechanic tells he really does not yet trust 5w20
weight and feels it does not provide as much protection as 5w30.

But that is just one man's opinion, I realize that.

Lots of good mechanics out there, but few know little about oil.
0w-30 in our Chevys and 0w-20 in our Hyundais

 

[steve20]

possibly you should consider doing what many of us do. Wait for sales/rebates on syn oil which makes it almost as cheap or sometimes cheaper than your usual fill. I stocked up on PP when it was on sale in Strauss Auto for 2.79/qt. 12 cases. I mix it 50/50 with Pennzoil conventional (on sale) for my Accord


Steve

 

[HyundaiGuy]

Let it go people. The OP argued with us on the OCI for his car. He made up his own OCI (nowhere close to factory recommendation for a vehicle covered under factory powertrain warranty) and argued when we pointed out what Hyundai actually specified.

Just as his mechanic apparently knows more about oil that the multi billion dollar corporation that designed the car in the first place.

I think my new signature will be "When in doubt, RTFM!"

As in Read the Freaking Manual!

 

[wiswind]

Motorcraft Synthetic Blend is a well respected oil and should continue to serve you well.
As mentioned above, a synthetic "can" give you a 2-5% improvement over conventional oil, which is pretty hard to measure.
Even changing to a lighter grade, 5W-20 from the 5w30 will not give you a huge improvement in fuel economy.....but should help fuel economy slightly.

 

[stenerson]

His vehicle is in "Mint" condition and he expected some miraculous event
from using synthetic for 2 weeks? Expected it to run mintier?

 

[glum]

...Well, I don't know about the OP's Hyundai, but my Hyundai manual advises 3,000-mile/3-month intervals, which seems rather low to me if synthetic is used. But of course, Hyundai not only doesn't recommend synthetic, they come close to recommending against it. I shot off an email to them once, for fun, and got this response:

Quote:
Regardless whether conventional or synthetic oil is used, the maintenance interval for oil changes specified in the Owner's Manual remains the same.

If it is determined the use of synthetic oil was the cause for engine damage or failure, the associated cost for repairs will not be covered under warranty.

Hilarious!

 

[flinter]

Guys...
Pay attention, please!

I said I agree with you about the oil, its no big deal!

And I also said my mechanic who's opinion it is that 5W-20 is
too thin and does not provide long term protection is just one mans opinion, and not necessarily mine!

 

[HyundaiGuy]

Originally Posted By: glum
...Well, I don't know about the OP's Hyundai, but my Hyundai manual advises 3,000-mile/3-month intervals, which seems rather low to me if synthetic is used. But of course, Hyundai not only doesn't recommend synthetic, they come close to recommending against it. I shot off an email to them once, for fun, and got this response:

Quote:
Regardless whether conventional or synthetic oil is used, the maintenance interval for oil changes specified in the Owner's Manual remains the same.

If it is determined the use of synthetic oil was the cause for engine damage or failure, the associated cost for repairs will not be covered under warranty.

Hilarious!


Wow. My dealer offers Castrol Syntec 5W20 as an upsell. Maybe they are trying to shield themselves against oils that advertise "Up to" 15,000 miles or more OCI. It seems to me that some would ignore the "up to" part and just see the big number.

The Hyundai specified OCI does seem to be unnecessarily short, but their warranty is very long, so I'll take the trade off.

 

[A_Harman]

OP, you're expecting too much improvement in gas mileage with the syn oil. API test specifications only require a maximum improvement of ~2% to qualify for the Energy Conserving endorsement in the service symbol. You're trying to pick ----- out of pepper to tell the difference.

 

[ChrisD46]

PP versus MC Syn Blend :
- Better for extremes in temperature
- Better start up wear protection
- Better cleaning

Still , MC Syn Blend is a great oil and it has worked well for you ...

 

[flinter]

ChrisD46....

Better, ok, by what percentage is the question?
Im sure its VERY marginal to really justify to price
difference.

 

[shrooms]

2 weeks is nothing to come to this conclusion. On the next OCI, try a 0W30, inflate the tires a few PSI less than the rated max, try to find Ethanol free gas.

 

[flinter]

shrooms,

Thanks for the advice, but there are NO Ethanol free gas stations
in NJ! They all moved to ethanol blend. Its nothing to do with
tire pressure either.