We have a 93 940 with the same engine..32,000 miles, and he are running Mobil 1 10W30.
Those with 150,000 miles or more, check in
- Thread starter Patman
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Patman
Staff member
Very nice! Where is Freelton Ontario anyhow? I've never heard of it.
Hey, Happy Chinese New Year, it's the year of the Oil Monkey!
97 F150, 5.4L, 4x4, 180K miles
First 100K miles done personally, 3K OCI w/ Castrol GTX 5W30 & MotorCraft Filters.
Last 80K miles done at quickchange, 5K OCI w/ reg. Mobil 5W30 (Winter), 10W30 summer w/ whatever filter they are using.
Burning 1/2 qt. oil every 5K miles.
First 100K miles done personally, 3K OCI w/ Castrol GTX 5W30 & MotorCraft Filters.
Last 80K miles done at quickchange, 5K OCI w/ reg. Mobil 5W30 (Winter), 10W30 summer w/ whatever filter they are using.
Burning 1/2 qt. oil every 5K miles.
Patman
Staff member
Wear numbers don't always tell the whole tale though.
Picture this scenario. You have two identical engines both running the same type of driving conditions and one runs synthetics, one runs dino. Both show equal wear numbers in UOA throughout their entire lives. But the dino oil is leaving behind a tiny bit more of a mess with each oil change, even if you're doing oil changes every 3k. Popping the valve cover and seeing a clean upper section doesn't always tell the whole tale either, since you can't see the rings obviously.
So because the dino oil left behind a bit more of a mess, it's performance is going to suffer in the long run.
I'm not saying this is 100% true in all cases, but it is much more likely to happen. Why do you think so many people see such an improvement when they use Auto-rx? If the engines were perfectly clean, then Auto-rx would have nothing to clean, and people wouldn't see any improvements. But yet a lot of people on here who use dino oil have reported improvements with RX, even those who change their oil frequently.
'87 F250 460 with a carb(!), 175K+, 3,000 OCI & 10W-30 Chevron Supreme, about 600 miles into Auto-Rx 1st application
'73 450SE, 270K+, right in the middle of the 1st Auto-Rx rinse application, using Chevron Supreme 10W-40, typically will use a dino HDD 15W-40 @ 3,000 OCI
'91 420SEL, 140K (cheating, eh?) & Auto-Rx'ed twice, using Pennzoil LongLife 15W-40 @ 5,000 OCI
'92 Subaru SVX, 108K+, twice Auto-Rx'ed, 10W-30 Chevron Supreme @ 3,000 OCI
'73 450SE, 270K+, right in the middle of the 1st Auto-Rx rinse application, using Chevron Supreme 10W-40, typically will use a dino HDD 15W-40 @ 3,000 OCI
'91 420SEL, 140K (cheating, eh?) & Auto-Rx'ed twice, using Pennzoil LongLife 15W-40 @ 5,000 OCI
'92 Subaru SVX, 108K+, twice Auto-Rx'ed, 10W-30 Chevron Supreme @ 3,000 OCI
Synthetic oil can leave deposits as well (although dino likely leaves more). I'll postualte that frequent (~4k) dino changes and the occasional Auto-Rx treatment will go a long way in keeping the performance at synthetic levels.
Based on wear numbers, I do not think synthetic offers any tremendous advantage, unless you are looking for long drain intervals. This is particularly true for "old school" engines like the 5.0 Ford and LT1. I've seen too many Chevy 350's running strong after 150k miles to think that a dino will not work well over the long haul (and I am talking about engines built when SF oil was "state-of-the-art"). Just my opinion though.
Patman
Staff member
Ah, that's a good point that I overlooked! Someone who runs dino oil could always just do an Auto-rx treatment every year or two in order to rejuvinate the life of their engine! Or run the 3oz maintenance doses with their dino oil to keep things clean.
But when all is said and done, some people just sleep better at night knowing they've got synthetics in there, especially people like me who love to put the pedal to the metal!
No offense, but we've seen that Mobil 1 doesn't always leave a perfectly clean engine as well. People have posted pics with Mobil 1 varnish. Also, I've seen on a Nissan message board, a torn down sr20de that ran Mobil 1 at 5,000 mile intervals, and it had just as much varnish/light buildup as any other motor I've seen or taken apart. It also had a very common symptom of Nissan sr20s, clogged up oil return ports from the cylinder head.
I saw the lifter valley in my Dad's Blazer when it was opend up for the intake gaskets to be fixed, and it was basically spotless/no sludge with 3,000 mile pennzoil changes. This at 130,000 miles on the clock. Also, the oil return ports on the top of the heads were clean as a whistle. I couldn't exactly see any pressure galleys, but I'm sure they would be cleaner than any other part of the engine as they constantly have fresh oil going through them.
WHY?!?! We have seen over and over again through UOA's that dinos provide wear numbers equal to a syn oil when the dino is kept to a short drain interval. I see no reason why a dino engine would run worse that a syn engine at 250k miles, provided the OCI for the dino engine is ~3-4000 miles.
89 Chevy Celebrity, 172k miles, Iron Duke 2.5 4 cyl. Started life as a govt vehicle, heavy duty everything but brakes. Started on dino, moved to synthetics from 65k to 155k, now back on dino. Typically uses cheap oils, Group III synthetics like Quaker State (Kmart sold me a couple cases at dino prices) and Wallyworld. Now back on cheap dino's like closeout Target Havoline and Kmart motovator, and Wallyworld S-tech. Still holding together, have lifter noise and pre-detonation pinging.
Yeah, I've BEEN running 15-40 in it. Pennzoil long life or Castrol GTX (depending on what's available).
The real problem I think is the rear main seal. I mean, hell, the thing is up to a quart every 200 miles now!
My mother also has a 98 V70 cross country with the 2.4, but turbo'd. It's almost as bad as my girlfriend's car. No matter what oil I use in it, it always builds up a rust colored sludge on the dip stick, the oil cap, and all over the valvetrain thats visible through the filler hole. It's kind of chaulky in consistency, and will wipe away with a rag.
I'm scared to even do a UOA on that car, who know's what I may find!
Well then...you've been running 15w-40 in it with the MA temperatures???? A 5w-40 at max my friend!
I must say that every vehicle I've ran 15w-40 that had a dirty engine definitely showed a great deal of improvement after a short period of time.
If your moms car keeps building up a sludge/varnish, then something is not right...a 15w-40/5w-40 HDEO or even regular synthetic oil will not allow this to happen.
Considering you're in MA, If I were you, I'd run Rotella-T 5w-40 in both of these vehicles...unless their is something else going on with these vehicles that you're not telling us (or just don't know about), Rotella will keep any new sludge/varnish from forming while "cleaning" up what is already there.
And get that main seal fixed.
I must say that every vehicle I've ran 15w-40 that had a dirty engine definitely showed a great deal of improvement after a short period of time.
If your moms car keeps building up a sludge/varnish, then something is not right...a 15w-40/5w-40 HDEO or even regular synthetic oil will not allow this to happen.
Considering you're in MA, If I were you, I'd run Rotella-T 5w-40 in both of these vehicles...unless their is something else going on with these vehicles that you're not telling us (or just don't know about), Rotella will keep any new sludge/varnish from forming while "cleaning" up what is already there.
And get that main seal fixed.
Really, it doesn't usually get below freezing even during the winter on Cape Cod. This winter has been quite different, so I filled her up with Pennzoil 5-30 last time around. But, yeah, 15-40 most of the time.
Where can I find some 5-40? I've searched everywhere, and have yet to see that weight in any brand. None of the autoparts places, K-Mart, Walmart. The only place left is the John Deere tractor supply place!
Did your transmission break within those 300k some miles??
Geek,
Search your local Wal-Mart's...better yet, call them up before hand, and see if they have Shell Rotella-T 5w-40 (all "Super" Wal-Mart's I've ever been too carry this oil). At current, I believe it's going for $12/gallon.
Search your local Wal-Mart's...better yet, call them up before hand, and see if they have Shell Rotella-T 5w-40 (all "Super" Wal-Mart's I've ever been too carry this oil). At current, I believe it's going for $12/gallon.
JB,
I NEVER said one HAD to run synthetics to get long engine life. In fact, I said exactly the opposite.
Posted by myself (Last_Z)
Anyway, I hope after reading this thread you are finally convinced that American engines do last well past 150k miles with regular maintenance and regular fluids......instead of it being just a fluke like you stated somewhere on this board.
I agree that American engines last longer than 150k miles. My parents although now own Japenese (90 Toyota 4runner & Subaru Forester) in the past have owned the following that were maintained:
1988 Chevy Suburban 3/4 Ton 4wd - rotted out in 2000 with 198k on clock, never any major mechanical work transmission or engine. average 5000 mile oil change interval on dino
1985 AMC Eagle AWD - Sold with 202,000 miles on clock, motor never had internal work, just transfer case (oil never changed, missed) for $100 due to broken gear. 7500 mile oil change interval on dino prescribed by manual
1989 Buick Century 4cyl - Company car made it to 160k in two years, my father (salesman) missed a few oil change times and some intervals stretched 15k-20k on dino! Motor was replaced and car given to another person at company.
1996 Honda Civic 16Y7, 155K miles. Every 6K miles w/5W30 Mobil 1 every change since break in oil was drained. Currently Mobil 1 filters, previously AC.
1977 Mercedes Benz 240D 250K miles, 1981 Mercedes Benz 300SD 180K miles. Both changed at 10K miles with Delvac1 with Hengst or Mann filter. Before Delvac1, Castrol 10W40.
1977 Mercedes Benz 240D 250K miles, 1981 Mercedes Benz 300SD 180K miles. Both changed at 10K miles with Delvac1 with Hengst or Mann filter. Before Delvac1, Castrol 10W40.
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