Who else has a car that needs Dexos motor oil?

[Peted]

Originally Posted By: chevrofreak
http://www.gf-5.com/gsuniverse/sitetemplates/gf5/images/spider diagram color.png

An oil meeting both Dexos1 and GF-5 will be an outstanding oil.


Thank you. I thought dexos1 was primarily for Mpg & Cafe reasons. Not protection & wear.

 

[71Chevyguy]

Originally Posted By: sciphi
Originally Posted By: dwendt44
The non-D.I. engines probably don't need the Dexos but GM calls for it so dealers don't have to carry yet another type of oil.

Also, it's an upgrade from the usual conventional oil that most GM owners used up to this point.

If you use synthetic oil, don't worry about it, most any quality synthetic will surpass the Dexos specs anyway.


Considering the car in my driveway is both DI AND turbocharged, I 'm going to use at least a Dexos marked oil. Preferably one marked Dexos and GF-5.


I was pretty sure the new Cruze 1.4 was not DI???

 

[sciphi]

Originally Posted By: 71Chevyguy
Originally Posted By: sciphi
Originally Posted By: dwendt44
The non-D.I. engines probably don't need the Dexos but GM calls for it so dealers don't have to carry yet another type of oil.

Also, it's an upgrade from the usual conventional oil that most GM owners used up to this point.

If you use synthetic oil, don't worry about it, most any quality synthetic will surpass the Dexos specs anyway.


Considering the car in my driveway is both DI AND turbocharged, I 'm going to use at least a Dexos marked oil. Preferably one marked Dexos and GF-5.


I was pretty sure the new Cruze 1.4 was not DI???


http://www.chevrolet.com/cruze/features-specs/

According to Chevy's website it's DI. That's where I got my information from. Chevy's Web site is wrong, at least for right now. DI is planned for the 1.4t at some point, but it's still port injected for the time being.

My mistake on using incorrect information that wasn't vetted first. So my car is turbo, and still port-injected! Yay! No gunky intake valve crud from DI!

Please ignore what I posted before about this car being DI. It's NOT DI, at least for now!

 

[Sunnybono]

Originally Posted By: dwendt44
The non-D.I. engines probably don't need the Dexos but GM calls for it so dealers don't have to carry yet another type of oil.

Also, it's an upgrade from the usual conventional oil that most GM owners used up to this point.

If you use synthetic oil, don't worry about it, most any quality synthetic will surpass the Dexos specs anyway.


Good day everyone. First time poster, but long time observer.

I'm currently running into this issue, within our fleet of vehicles, of whether or not to use dexos1. As per GM's handbook (2011 Equinox; 4cyl), it cleaerly states "In the event that dexos-aproved engine oil is not available at an oil change or for maintaining proper oil level, you may use substitute engine oil desplaying the API Starburst symbol and of SAE 5W-30 viscosity grade. Use of oils that do not meet the dexos specification, however, may result in reduced performance under certain circumstances."
So what may be the worst thing that could happen?? Maybe slightly lower MPG but there shouldn't be engine failure!! Personally this is just a cash cow for GM, as I read somewhere that oil companys that want to display dexos1 must pay GM $1000 for every grade that they produce + $0.09/L for the oil manufactured. I also read somewhere that Valvoline told GM to take a hike. Whether this is true or not, I could not tell you.

Your thoughts on the matter please as I'm confused and need to settle this issue with my drivers.

 

[sciphi]

If it's a DI or turbo engine, I'd use dexos1. Otherwise, a SN/GF-5 oil should do nicely. Like another poster stated, a dexos1/GF-5 oil is about the best of both worlds for engine protection.

My manual says "Use dexos1 or equivalent. AC Delco dexos1 semi-synthetic oil is recommended." I'm going to be using a dexos1 oil at least until the powertrain warranty is up due to the turbo.

 

[71Chevyguy]

I personally do not see any reason that the GM engines REQUIRE a specification aside from using synthetic in the 1.4 turbo and possibly the DI engine for fuel dilution protection. VW is famous for this but they actually do have a reason for it because their engines do have some internals that are different than anyone else's. Such as the high pressure diesel injectors run off of the cam on the older PD TDI. In the case of GM engines I really do not think that most of the engines actually require it. OTOH I do not think it was a bad idea because if people actually followed the recommendation I think in the end the vehicles would last longer and not have as many issues. But seriously does the 2011 2.2 Ecotec really need that oil compared to the 2010 Ecotec? Probably not. I think GM is pushing the long intervals just as hard as anyone else with their oil life monitor to attract customers who do not want to do oil changes. I guess in the long run it is best to be using synthetic oil in your car if your OLM is going to allow 15k between changes. And these types of posts always lead back to the same argument. If people are going to ignore their oil and you know they will. Isn't it best to do it on full syn oil?

 

[wapacz]

Originally Posted By: Sunnybono
Originally Posted By: dwendt44
The non-D.I. engines probably don't need the Dexos but GM calls for it so dealers don't have to carry yet another type of oil.

Also, it's an upgrade from the usual conventional oil that most GM owners used up to this point.

If you use synthetic oil, don't worry about it, most any quality synthetic will surpass the Dexos specs anyway.


Good day everyone. First time poster, but long time observer.

I'm currently running into this issue, within our fleet of vehicles, of whether or not to use dexos1. As per GM's handbook (2011 Equinox; 4cyl), it cleaerly states "In the event that dexos-aproved engine oil is not available at an oil change or for maintaining proper oil level, you may use substitute engine oil desplaying the API Starburst symbol and of SAE 5W-30 viscosity grade. Use of oils that do not meet the dexos specification, however, may result in reduced performance under certain circumstances."
So what may be the worst thing that could happen?? Maybe slightly lower MPG but there shouldn't be engine failure!! Personally this is just a cash cow for GM, as I read somewhere that oil companys that want to display dexos1 must pay GM $1000 for every grade that they produce + $0.09/L for the oil manufactured. I also read somewhere that Valvoline told GM to take a hike. Whether this is true or not, I could not tell you.

Your thoughts on the matter please as I'm confused and need to settle this issue with my drivers.


That sounds like the first model they proposed. To my understanding there have been changes to the licensing fee model since then.

 

[71Chevyguy]

Originally Posted By: sciphi
Originally Posted By: 71Chevyguy
Originally Posted By: sciphi
Originally Posted By: dwendt44
The non-D.I. engines probably don't need the Dexos but GM calls for it so dealers don't have to carry yet another type of oil.

Also, it's an upgrade from the usual conventional oil that most GM owners used up to this point.

If you use synthetic oil, don't worry about it, most any quality synthetic will surpass the Dexos specs anyway.


Considering the car in my driveway is both DI AND turbocharged, I 'm going to use at least a Dexos marked oil. Preferably one marked Dexos and GF-5.


I was pretty sure the new Cruze 1.4 was not DI???


http://www.chevrolet.com/cruze/features-specs/

According to Chevy's website it's DI. That's where I got my information from. Chevy's Web site is wrong, at least for right now. DI is planned for the 1.4t at some point, but it's still port injected for the time being.

My mistake on using incorrect information that wasn't vetted first. So my car is turbo, and still port-injected! Yay! No gunky intake valve crud from DI!

Please ignore what I posted before about this car being DI. It's NOT DI, at least for now!


Not trying to pick on you Sciphi, just that I have been watching these cars because I am interested in getting one. I thought maybe I missed this change. I figured it was too soon for them to make a change like that on a new design. Just does not seem cost effective on their end so soon that is why I asked. At this point I think I prefer port injection till they get their DI figured out. Why not use an extra injector in the manifold for running in rich mode when the engine is cold? This would get some fuel in there to rinse the valves off. I always wondered why they didn't do that?

 

[dwendt44]

The 4 cylinder engine seems, from what I've been reading, is a particularly 'dirty' engine. The oil comes out black as opposed to dark amber/brown. That's not with extended drains either.
A rash of 'fuel in oil' complaints are making the costs of warrantee claims climb.

With the 4 cy. engine, Dexos as a minimum.

And yes, I know that the color of drained oil doesn't indicate much. But on every GM engine I've worked on or changed oil on, the oil came out dark brown/amber unless the driver was going extra long on OCI's. Some engines seem to turn oil black (Chryslers?), others only darken the oil to dark brown.

 

[sciphi]

Originally Posted By: 71Chevyguy

Not trying to pick on you Sciphi, just that I have been watching these cars because I am interested in getting one. I thought maybe I missed this change. I figured it was too soon for them to make a change like that on a new design. Just does not seem cost effective on their end so soon that is why I asked. At this point I think I prefer port injection till they get their DI figured out. Why not use an extra injector in the manifold for running in rich mode when the engine is cold? This would get some fuel in there to rinse the valves off. I always wondered why they didn't do that?


Hey, thanks for helping me correct my information on this engine!

Agreed that DI isn't something to fully embrace just yet, especially on a commuter car like the Cruze that most non-BITOGers are going to care for indifferently at best.

dexos1 won't present a challenge for me. However, the average owner is going to get sticker shock when they get their first few oil changes before they read the manual.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted By: dwendt44
A rash of 'fuel in oil' complaints are making the costs of warrantee claims climb.




Please do explain. Sounds like another internet "fact" that is not.

I've not seen any warranty claims indicating fuel in oil. I wonder how many drivers actually know or even care if there is fuel in the oil.

 

[dwendt44]

I follow the Nox/Terrain forum. A large number of complaints are from the 4 cylinder engine. Many for 'fuel in oil'. Some are for start-up noise.

http://www.terrainforum.net/index.php?topic=2834.0;topicseen

The 'fuel in oil' comes from the owners 'smelling' gasoline when they check the oil level.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted By: dwendt44
I follow the Nox/Terrain forum. A large number of complaints are from the 4 cylinder engine. Many for 'fuel in oil'. Some are for start-up noise.

http://www.terrainforum.net/index.php?topic=2834.0;topicseen

The 'fuel in oil' comes from the owners 'smelling' gasoline when they check the oil level.



Interesting, thanks for the link.

 

[sciphi]

Any of them pulled a UOA to prove their assertion? Or is that the "sniff test"?

I'll be pulling a UOA on the second oil change on the Cruze to make sure everything's ship-shape.

 

[Blokey]

My car ('09 Pontiac G8 GT) is pre dexos1 but I just changed its oil and put in CAM2 dexos1 5W-30.

 

[johnachak]

Quote:

So what may be the worst thing that could happen?? Maybe slightly lower MPG but there shouldn't be engine failure!! Personally this is just a cash cow for GM, as I read somewhere that oil companys that want to display dexos1 must pay GM $1000 for every grade that they produce + $0.09/L for the oil manufactured. I also read somewhere that Valvoline told GM to take a hike. Whether this is true or not, I could not tell you.

Your thoughts on the matter please as I'm confused and need to settle this issue with my drivers.



I have to say it depends on the engine. Since dexos1 replaced BOTH 6094 and The Corvette / DI (4718) spec., If you use a regular or synthetic oil (6094) on a car that used to require 4718 (Corvette / DI spec.) You could have problems. If your engine would have only required the 6094 (regular good ole Chevy) spec. , then it won't be a problem.