Synthetic or Mineral What are the Benefits?

[oilchangeguy]

For a 5k oci, am I really better off using synthetic over a quality conventional like Pennzoil or Quaker State? Am I really getting any extra benefit?

 

[RooflessVW]

For a 5k oci, am I really better off using synthetic over a quality conventional like Pennzoil or Quaker State? Am I really getting any extra benefit?

It depends.

 

[slimjim2525]

In NC, no.

 

[skyactiv]

If you had an early 2.7 V6 in a Chrysler product, yes, synthetic was a much better choice 15-20 years ago.

 

[wemay]

I agree with slimjim'. A quality Conventional at 5k miles should be perfectly fine if using the appropriate viscosity. NC posses no extended freezing concerns.

 

[Zee09]

Synthetics are so cheap that they are the bargain. I myself like SS oil even though you don't save anything .
Chevron Supreme is my choice.

 

[Snagglefoot]

If you throw in a rebate on the synthetic it becomes a moot point not worth arguing about.

 

[4WD]

Based on the thread title … Is this a real question - or a statement disguised as a question ?

 

[bbhero]

I agree with slimjim'. A quality Conventional at 5k miles should be perfectly fine if using the appropriate viscosity. NC posses no extended freezing concerns.

.Interesting weather in western NC and southwest Va...

In Western NC in Haywood county where the base elevation is 3,000+ feet and numerous places above 4,000 ft....and the most mountains above 6,000 feet east of the Mississippi... It can get quite cold for periods of time... Anywhere west of Black Mt along interstate 40 where there is a higher plateau of elevation it can maintain and get quite cold for periods of time. In January 1985 Mt Mitchell got down to -34°F... Granted that was at 6,684 ft of elevation. . Still even in the valley Asheville at 2,300 ft of elevation got gown to near -20° f in that same event.

I'd bet in the late part of December 2017 into January 2018 it was quite quite cold for about a month out there in western NC... It was here in my area... Quite cold. That snowstorm in early January 2018 in my area was one of the colder snowstorms I have seen... High temps in the low 20s and it stated that way and got colder has the snow came down and ended. As cold as it was in my area during that time... I guarantee it was even colder out in western NC and western Va... For a solid month just about.

In January thru February 2014 that happened as well...

In Western Va and western NC west of the Blue Ridge weather is different than places even like Roanoke or Martinsville....

If I lived in Burke's Garden in southwest Virginia.... Where the base elevation in that beautiful valley is 3,500 ft... That is surrounded by mountains on all sides... I would have a stash of firewood and food supplies and charcoal... Because there's only one way in and one way out of that high valley plateau. It is called the thumb print of the Appalachian mountains... If you ever get the chance to go into that area.. do it. Beautiful area. Amazing to see mountains all around you whether you look north, south, east, or west...

 

[Rand]

overly general question posed by OP gets an

overly general answer: Depends.

In my specific case the answer is yes they are worth it.. and I paid less for syn than most conventional/blend.

At first I thought this was a new bitog troll post but you have been here for 11 years so .. maybe read some posts?

you dont give us any background to give you an intelligent answer... no vehicles, no usage no info whatsoever.

 

[The Critic]

I think the first consideration should be the vehicle manufacturer's recommendations. If their recommends are synthetic, then it should be used.

But if the manufacturer does not require synthetic, then yes, this matter is open to discussion.

 

[Propflux01]

Synthetic is usually considered more 'robust' in keeping its viscosity than conventional.

 

[csandste]

If you have to pay for changes there's a big difference in cost and conventional is no longer conventional.

 

[RDY4WAR]

When it comes to volatility, thermal stability, shear stability, and cold weather startup, synthetic will outperform conventional the majority of the time. The only area where conventional tends to shine is the pressure-viscosity coefficient but unless you're pounding the bearings with a high shot of nitrous, this isn't much of a concern.

Which applies to you? Well... that depends. We know nothing about your vehicle, your driving habits, if race it or drive it spiritedly, if you tow heavy loads around, if you run it off-road a lot, if you live up in the mountains of NC where it can dip down in the negative temps on occasions... we have no idea. A little more information would be helpful.

 

[Snagglefoot]

You’ll always hear stories of high mileage examples with conventional oil, but here is my high mileage story with synthetic oil. My 6.0 Chevy engine has over 200,000 miles using several different brands of 5w30 synthetic. I bought the truck new in 2008. It does not use any oil and the engine has never been opened up. I document my oil changes and did 28 oil changes at an average OCI of 7,000 miles. Assuming an extra 10 bucks per 5 quart jug, I spent an extra $280, over 12 years. Having someone try convince me to use conventional instead is to me almost laughable. Heck, I could take my empties in for a refund to find the extra money to run synthetic. And by the way, much of this oil was purchased with rebates, so some of those jugs were the same price as conventional. So, interesting topic, but in reality, not worth considering to me. For those getting hosed at oil change places, shop around or find a Indy mechanic to do your changes.

 

[chemman]

When I was commuting to suburban DC for work, I was putting 2500 - 3000 miles a month on my TrailBlazer. I was using Havoline Conventional 5W30 and based on used oil analysis, I was able to safely go 7500 miles on an oil change. If I had used a full synthetic, I likely could have gone 10,000 - 15,000 miles, but since I was getting the Havoline conventional for about $2.00/quart and I was comfortable with 3 month/7500 mile oil changes, I just stuck with the conventional oils. Also, I never had to add any oil between oil changes.

I think it all comes down to how many miles/months you are comfortable with on an oil change, what the used oil analysis indicates, and how frequently you want to do your oil change.

If I was putting that kind of mileage on a vehicle today, I would likely go with a full synthetic since the price gap has narrowed even more between conventional and full synthetic oils. Plus, in order to meet the latest specifications, conventional oils are actually a synthetic blend in order to meet those specs.

 

[oilchangeguy]

Someone edited the title of my post and totally changed the wording.

 

[OilUzer]

As the prices converge , maybe in 5-10 years there will no longer be a market for dino and not even cost effective to make and oil companies would market their syn-blend as dino.
Would that cause a reverse syn lawsuit or pre court battle? Recall Castrol vs. Mobil? You can't call this dino, it's a syn-blend ...

I have used lots of Chevron Supreme 5W30 from Costco and the jugs don't say syn-blend. I thought I was using dino before joining bitog and learning that it was a syn-blend.

 

[blufeb95]

As the prices converge , maybe in 5-10 years there will no longer be a market for dino and not even cost effective to make and oil companies would market their syn-blend as dino.

From what I've seen there is no 5w20 or 5w30 conventional anymore under API SP/ILSAC GF-6A they're all considered syn-blend now.

 

[alarmguy]

For a 5k oci, am I really better off using synthetic over a quality conventional like Pennzoil or Quaker State? Am I really getting any extra benefit?

No, for all you know the conventional maybe better at preventing wear in your particular engine instead of synthetic.