What type of oil do you use? (The Mother thread)
03-13-12, 12:09 PM
#241
More important than dino or synthetic in modern oils is the ratings on the bottle. If the oil has an ILSAC GF4 or GF5 rating, and it has a label that says "Energy conserving", then you have an oil that is formulated with more emphasis on complying with [unfounded] EPA concerns about catalytic converter longevity than on minimizing long-term wear in your engine. You will find that High-mileage oils, certain fleet oriented brands, and many Euro-spec oils do not have the "energy conserving" label, while still having the required SL or SM ratings. Those oil have significantly more antiwear additives than GF4 or GF5 "energy conserving" oils. IMO, you are better off to change a less expensive name brand oil more frequently (3-5K miles) than to use expensive synthetics with an extended drain interval (5-10k miles).
08-19-12, 03:07 PM
#242
Are you running synthetic motor oil in your 400?
So, over the years and various cars I have owned I kind of have been back and forth. I do realize that synthetic motor oil does outperform regular motor oil in really every way but from all the research I have done the main benefits are in relation to how much longer it takes to breakdown. In other words, going 10,000 miles between oil changes. The problem is, I have never been comfortable with this. Synthetic or not the oil turns pretty dark by 5,000 miles and I just don't like running dark oil. I also know that color is not an exact indicator in reference to how dirty the oil is but it does say some something about carbon buildup in the engine. I did put in Lucas synthetic in my differential but that is a different story.
Anyway, any comments or experiences? So far, I have been using regular engine oil and changing every 3,000 miles. But I am considering using Mobile One and extending the change to 6,000 miles but I am not convinced it is really worth it.
Anyway, any comments or experiences? So far, I have been using regular engine oil and changing every 3,000 miles. But I am considering using Mobile One and extending the change to 6,000 miles but I am not convinced it is really worth it.
Last edited by Lavrishevo; 08-19-12 at 03:33 PM.
08-19-12, 03:48 PM
#243
I've been doing drain intervals at 10-12K miles using the older 90915-20004 filter. The most recent analysis at 168K miles shows the oil has sufficient additive package left. I wouldn't go beyond 15K miles for the conditions ours is driven. The next will be an 8K interval for a comparison. Ours had an elevated copper reading which concerns me. Otherwise, I'm not about to make any drastic changes because past analysis and comparison with others results, 8-10K is easy on synthetic.
The Mobil 1 in ours by 10K will have taken on a deeper walnut like color. At 5-6K. it looks fairly close to fresh out of the jug. Dino oil will color shift fairly soon, by 2K it is brownish. I've not done any extended analysis on dino since it is recommended to be changed at 3K intervals. I could take a sampling from dad's Corolla at 5K for curiosity sake.
The Mobil 1 in ours by 10K will have taken on a deeper walnut like color. At 5-6K. it looks fairly close to fresh out of the jug. Dino oil will color shift fairly soon, by 2K it is brownish. I've not done any extended analysis on dino since it is recommended to be changed at 3K intervals. I could take a sampling from dad's Corolla at 5K for curiosity sake.
11-13-13, 11:39 AM
#246
Ladies and Gentlemen,
out of curiosity I would like to ask that with higher mileage engines - say 200...300k miles or so - is the oil usage with the 5W-30 still *normal* or does one need thicker oil such as 5W-40?
out of curiosity I would like to ask that with higher mileage engines - say 200...300k miles or so - is the oil usage with the 5W-30 still *normal* or does one need thicker oil such as 5W-40?
11-13-13, 12:22 PM
#247
Lexus Champion
the thinner oil protects your engine at startup better (when most all wear occurs) because it gets to critical areas faster, even at summer temperatures!
Toyota is currently back-spec-ing their engines for thinner and thinner oils, we already have the go ahead for 0W-30 and they are looking at possibly approving 5W-20 and even 0W-20
more great information on oil can be found from the oil gurus over at BobIsTheOilGuy.com - no matter how much you think you know about oil, everyone should take a few minutes and read Motor Oil 101 - I promise you will learn something you didn't know!
from Motor Oil 101: "The greatest confusion is because of the way motor oils are labeled. It is an old system and is confusing to many people. I know the person is confused when they say that a 0W-30 oil is too thin for their engine because the old manual says to use 10W-30. This is wrong."
here is a chart of some of the newer Toyota back specs:
Last edited by LScowboyLS; 11-13-13 at 12:25 PM.
11-13-13, 09:42 PM
#249
Yes, I agree.
What I was after was that when these magnificent engines start to wear do you people still use 5W-30 or go for a step thicker to compensate the wear and possible oil usage caused by worn rings etc.?
What I was after was that when these magnificent engines start to wear do you people still use 5W-30 or go for a step thicker to compensate the wear and possible oil usage caused by worn rings etc.?
11-13-13, 10:51 PM
#250
A lot of brands now offer a high mileage version of hype same oil. Usually has a better additive package for worn engines than the same grade of the brands normal oil.
One thing to consider is temperature. You don't want to be running a thick oil in a cold environment unless you have a sump heater and plug it in every time you stop. A step or two thicker on oil probably won't hurt a guy in Arizona but will hurt guys in the Midwest/north east/Finland com winter time. If you change your oil often enough, you can probably runs a thicker oil int eh summer and then scale it back in the winter.... As long as it's the same brand and you are not switching from Dino to synth and back and forth, you should be five!
One thing to consider is temperature. You don't want to be running a thick oil in a cold environment unless you have a sump heater and plug it in every time you stop. A step or two thicker on oil probably won't hurt a guy in Arizona but will hurt guys in the Midwest/north east/Finland com winter time. If you change your oil often enough, you can probably runs a thicker oil int eh summer and then scale it back in the winter.... As long as it's the same brand and you are not switching from Dino to synth and back and forth, you should be five!
11-13-13, 11:56 PM
#251
Lexus Champion
Pennzoil Platinum and Valvoline SynPower are some other well respected full synthetic oils
11-14-13, 09:21 AM
#252
I use Mobil 1 in my 1991 LS 400 with over 300,000 miles and everything is original motor power steering rear end and transmission . I had a 1991 Toyota Cressida go 529,000 using Mobil 1 in everything and nothing wore out. Lexus and Toyota make great cars just take care of them.
