We just picked up a brand new 2022 Crosstrek Limited. Few Q’s y’all

[PF52]

I changed the oil early on my 2021 WRX.... 972 miles if I remember right. I cut open the filter and was surprised by how sparkly the oil in it looked. Did it matter? Probably not.... The other however-many millions of new cars out there that aren't getting their oil changed early somehow manage to survive anyway.

My only regret was that I didn't save a sample to send for analysis. It would have been interesting to see what was picked up.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Yeah this stop/start thing is definitely something new for me I do love the oil filter location

We have a new outback - it didnt survive break in unscathed. It's knocking loudly on acceleration. I did the OC at 2000 miles. Shut off the start stop at least until you got some miles on the engine. My wife has gotten into the habit of shutting it off every time we "boot" the car.
I don't like the new Subaru, having owned 8 over the years. They cheapened the interior - maybe the limited is better but the window switch gear and trim plates is made form thin "thow-away" plastic on the Outback.

In the recent The past subaru CVT didnt want you changing the fluid our 2017 Crosstrek was sold with over 90K on the odo and it ran just like new,

As for oil, If I had it to do again ( with what happened to THIS car) I would have dumped the FF at 500 miles and run a conventional 5W30 like (QS green bottle)
for 2500, then do that again of another interval , and only then go to a good synthetic at 5500miles. I would make an effort to get the quality Toyo Roki oil filters from Mazda. The Service replacement is a Blue painted Fram with a nitrile adbv but it does have a P gasket (or lipped, captured O-ring) that doesn't leak.. The ADBV doesn't seem to work, but with the filter at the highest point of the engine, it probably will never function. I agree also to replace the rear diff fluid after wear in/ 1 year.
Supertech 75w90 synthetic works great. Mobilube HD 80W90 - that the dealers use around here at Nissan and Subaru service centers - is absolute garbage, I had to dump it on my older Nissan rogue and the wife's subaru due to excessive gear noise and loud whine.

Any reason why you didnt go with an Chevy Equinox?

Good luck, have fun

 

[rob1715]

Very nice vehicle. Seems the consensus is to change it at the recommended interval. If it really mattered, we'd see new cars littering the highways and streets due to mechanical failure due to waiting for the first 6k mile oil change. Drive it, be happy, and change it per the owner's manual.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Any links to those threads about the Subaru’s break-in additives

Don't believe what you read in threads. All hearsay. Engine will have some assembly lube that may be fortified, some use motor oil, some HP engine use an Ester oil package.
You can buy assembly lube and add some back if you want during the first coupe oil changes. Don't over treat, I would undertreat by 50%
this or a similar engine builder joy juice:

https://www.amazon.com/Lunati-301-Concentrated-Engine-Additive/dp/B00C7Q5GAY

 

[GR_CoB]

I'm just gonna leave this here... Over 1.1 million miles on this Crosstrek now... Swapped from 5MT to 6MT. I believe first 2.0L lasted ~800k miles, but don't quote me on that. Fun binge read. Your 2.5L so far stacks up as a more reliable engine than 2.0L ever was, but time will show.



https://www.clubcrosstrek.com/threads/long-term-testing.3331/page-18

 

[loneryder]

Whenever you change the oil, take the pan of old oil out in the sun. Metal bits will be sparkling at you. Copper, bronze, and steel. You will see it.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

He has the 2.5 with D.I. the 2.4 n.a. is a pretty nice motor in the BRZ. It's about time Subaru made a fun n.a. engine again.
Last one was the solid cammed 2.2. I've owned them all through the past 30 years from the 3 cylinder 'portable' Justy to the highway rocket flat sixer in an SVX.

 

[Zee09]

Don't believe what you read in threads. All hearsay. Engine will have some assembly lube that may be fortified, some use motor oil, some HP engine use an Ester oil package.
You can buy assembly lube and add some back if you want during the first coupe oil changes. Don't over treat, I would undertreat by 50%
this or a similar engine builder joy juice:

https://www.amazon.com/Lunati-301-Concentrated-Engine-Additive/dp/B00C7Q5GAY

Not going with the 2022 break in oil theme but back in 1981 my brother bought a Subbie wagon and then they required you to bring the vehicle back within 700 to 1000 miles to change the break in oil to the normal oil... Free of charge.
The car was $7400 then and all they would take off was $400.

That car was abused and beaten and sold later at 350k miles..
Minimum maintenance.
Just a tidbit for the younger crowd.
Subbies back then were very funky with the chimes and had horrible radios amongst other things...

 

[SugarMouth]

I'm just gonna leave this here... Over 1.1 million miles on this Crosstrek now... Swapped from 5MT to 6MT. I believe first 2.0L lasted ~800k miles, but don't quote me on that. Fun binge read. Your 2.5L so far stacks up as a more reliable engine than 2.0L ever was, but time will show.

View attachment 89316View attachment 89317

https://www.clubcrosstrek.com/threads/long-term-testing.3331/page-18

I have a feeling had it been a CVT he would be 5 transmissions into it by now.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

I have a feeling had it been a CVT he would be 5 transmissions into it by now.

Same could be said for the trouble prone old Honda Accord AT IIRC.

Unless it's GOOD mid-sixies American iron, I don't get why anyone would want to keep something 250K +

We sure haven't come across any keepers in the past 50++ cars

 

[GR_CoB]

I have a feeling had it been a CVT he would be 5 transmissions into it by now.

Surprisingly Subaru CVTs are quite reliable actually, especially when fluid is replaced regularly. If it was a Jeep/Mitsubishi/Nissan-Jatco CVT transmission though, then he would be on #15 by now.

 

[Zee09]

Surprisingly Subaru CVTs are quite reliable actually, especially when fluid is replaced regularly. If it was a Jeep/Mitsubishi/Nissan-Jatco CVT transmission though, then he would be on #15 by now.

The Ascents didn't even last long enough for a fluid change...lol

 

[CKN]

Good luck with the car! I do the BITOG money flush and dump the factory fill early. I'd rather not have the wear metal crap that shows up in a UOA that a new engine sheds floating around in the oil for a full OCI. Does it matter? What matters is it gives me peace of mind, and in all honesty that matters to me.

The oil filter doesn't work? Anything the filter doesn't catch won't matter.

 

[Nicasio]

I haven’t looked in the manual yet, but I like to do all my OCI’s at 5k mi. (Few cars annually).
-0w20 is recommended, but will using 0w30-40 or 5w40 be better?
-Would using other than 0w20 void warranty?
-I’m guessing I should stick to OEM filters, but would using Supertech void warranty?

 

[GR_CoB]

The Ascents didn't even last long enough for a fluid change...lol

Oh wow... I guess big heavy body, and torquey turbo-boxer-four really chopped that one, huh? In that case let me rephrase it:
"Surprisingly Subaru CVTs are quite reliable actually, in naturally aspirated lightweight applications such as Impreza/Crosstrek/Forester, especially when fluid is replaced regularly."

 

[GR_CoB]

I haven’t looked in the manual yet, but I like to do all my OCI’s at 5k mi. (Few cars annually).
-0w20 is recommended, but will using 0w30-40 or 5w40 be better?
-Would using other than 0w20 void warranty?
-I’m guessing I should stick to OEM filters, but would using Supertech void warranty?

OEM oil filters are cheap, I'd just use them. Or Fram Ultra (has gone through changes recently, but still a stout oil filter). No, using Supertech will not void your warranty. 0W20 and all Subaru engines until now have developed a certain pattern... That combo seems to have higher oil consumption as miles rack up. That pattern is non-existent in Subarus where proactive owners switched to 0w30/5w30/0w40/5w40 synthetic oils. I'd choose any oil that meets the Porsche A40 cert. Not every oil can pass it, so those that do are some stout oils, and will only do good for any engine they go into.

Here is Porsche A40 testing procedure:
This test will last 203 hours. The engine, and the oil, will go through:
- 4 times the simulation of 35 hours of summer driving,
- 4 times the simulation of 13.5 hours of winter driving,
- 40 cold starts,
- 5 times the simulation of 1-hour sessions on the “Nürburgring” racetrack,
- 3.5 hours of “running-in” program
Measurements on the engine and on the oil will be done at regular intervals, and the following parameter
will be taken into account to grant the approval or not:
- torque curve (internal friction),
- oxidation of the oil,
- Piston cleanliness and ring sticking,
- Valve train wear protection. Cam & tappet wear must be less than 10 μm.
- Engine cleanliness and sludge: after 203 hours, no deposits must be visible.
- Bearing wear protection: visual rating according to Porsche in-house method.
One more thing for comparison. Just a rough idea of how the numbers stack up. Take everything with a grain of salt.
Most daily driven cars have an average speed (over the course of an OCI) of about ~35mph. That would make the 203hr test an equivalent to 7,105 miles of driving.
Assuming the average speeds are higher, let's say 50mph, and the 203hrs are now equivalent to 10,150 miles of driving.

 

[dlundblad]

If it was mine, I’d run the oil for 1000 miles, 3000 miles, 5000 miles and then whatever factory recommended OCI after that. Severe service or normal.

What does the manual say to use? 0w20? Does it allow a thicker viscosity? Im curious. I’ve always liked these.

 

[demarpaint]

The oil filter doesn't work? Anything the filter doesn't catch won't matter.

Some filters work better than others. Ever read a UOA done to a new engine that ran a full OCI? If that junk was floating around in a broken in engine they'd condemn it. And yes the wear metal the filter missed can cause wear over time, I want it out early. For $20 or less to a savvy Bitog shopper that junk gets recycled with the oil I drained. I sleep better, and that 20 grade oil gets replaced with something that protects my engine better earlier in its life.

Yes there are millions of engines that lived long lives not dumping the FF early. There are also millions of people consuming excess amounts of booze on a daily basis or eating junk foods living a long life. I'd rather play it safe on both fronts.

 

[FZ1]

The first oil change is due at 6,000 miles. If it makes you feel better, then waste your money and do a 3,000 change. then go back to a 6K change. Ed

This^^^^^^^^

 

[bluesubie]

When I bought my wife's Outback, I dumped the factory fill oil early. But afterwards, a fellow member on the subaruoutback.org forum posted that he had sent a question re. this to Subaru of America.

He reported that SOA replied that they recommended keeping the factory fill in for the full recommended oil change interval. They further explained that the factory fill has break-in additives, and to change oil early to to lose any benefit of these additives.

If you dig up older Subaru factory fill uoa's, you'll absolutely see high levels of ZDDP and moly. Sometime around 2018 or so (maybe earlier), the ff uoa's started showing standard levels of ZDDP and moly (except for the STI which shows high ZDDP and moly). The oil is still a very dark black, which I'm presume is from assembly lube.

That said, I would go to at least 3k miles on the FF. I went to 5k on my FA24DIT.

Just to update, I did find a recent FF uoa on a 2021 2.5 Outback in the oil forum at subaruoutback.org (Gen 6 uoa sticky). Moly = 675;
Phosphorus = 708; Zinc = 814. So maybe they are still fortifying the FF with moly even if not with ZDDP. I know that assembly lube may have moly as well but in the past they were using a FF enhanced with moly.

Another edit because I also found an older Forester FF uoa from when they first went with 0W-20 in Subaru's.

https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/factory-fill-uoa-1-400-miles-2011-subaru-forester.153640/