What oil for new "used" 2002 Acura ?

[luke4321]

Hi,
My dilemma is this. My nephew bought a 2002 Acura Cl 6 cylinder which has run real well. The oil was changed at the dealership consistently for the last few years by the Acura dealer according to the last owner who I believe. Now is time for the oil change. I went in and asked the dealer what kind of oil they use in their oil changes to get a little info here. They said Mobil semi-synthetic. I assume this is probly Mobil 7500. For top up oil my nephew used cheap Valvoline 5w30 mineral base oil. This I assume is safe. What I'm questioning here is whether the dealer really uses the semi-synthetic or whether he really just tells the customer that and uses dirt cheap oil. I dont know whether to go back to him for an oil change or if I dont and change it myself what oil should I use?
Can going to mineral base oil from semi-synthetic be harmful ?
Also I am going to use 5w30 instead of 5w-20 the oil cap says to use. I dont wanna start a thin/thick oil debate here.

Thanks............Bill

 

[Billy_D]

You can switch back and forth between mineral and synthetic oil. You should be fine.

 

[HTSS_TR]

For winter you should stay with recommended 5W20, you may change to 5W30 for summer if you don't feel comfortable with 5W20.

 

[bepperb]

Nobody here will be able to vouch for what the dealer is using. I don't think it's unlikely that an Acura dealer uses a semi-syn.

You can certainly switch back and forth. The J series engine in there can probably do 7500 miles on a conventional, but that's about the furthest I would go. I'm not sure where Bear De is, or what type of driving your nephew does... so take my advice for what it is.

5-20 or 5-30, the difference is very underwhelming. Use whatever you like, which seems to be the 30.

 

[FusilliJerry82]

If he doesn't want to spend the $ on full synth, I'd just stick to API rated dino on sale and change it your/his self every 5k or so. Semi-syn is kind of pointless IMO.