kreativ

Synthetics...man, are those expensive or what. I was at Costco and the Mobil1 there is still $$$$. I could change my oil with conventional oil 3-4 times for the price of one synthetic oil change. So even in temps that never drop below 40, a synthetic oil change every 10,000 miles (with filter change in between) would beat a dino oil change every 2500 miles?

///MDex

Can anyone think of a reason not to use 0w-30?

Or

0w-40 for that matter?

Going to do my summer change soon.....

Mean Gene

K - Think about the long term protection of the syns over conventional oils when U calculate costs. Syns won't break down as easily ( if at all in normal hard street driving ) so there won't be any deposits building up in your engine which could necessitate an earlier rebuild. Also, syns have a lower "pour point" so that it'll start flowing faster than dino oil when U make that first morning start ( remember the SAE & API wear results? ). Besides, if ya stock up on M1 when Wal Mart has it on sale in their 5 quart jugs ( $17.95 ), won't the cash outlay be firly close? Let's see - U can do three conventional oil changes ( w/filter & let's assume the M-102 Mobil One filter ) in the same time frame as the 10k change interval I recommended. So that's roughly 15 quarts of oil for 3 changes ( $1.60/qt seems right = $24 plus three filters @ $7/each = $21 & the grand total for dino changes ( w/o labor ) is $45. Now for the syns - 5 qts M1 ( $17.95 ) plus a filter ($7) means U spend $24.95 to get started then another filter at 5k miles brings us up to $31.95. At 10k we start over again so add in another $24.95 for a grand total of $56.90. If ya figure that U'll keep the Gs for 100k miles then it's gonna cost ya an extra $119 to run synthetic over that time frame. U be the judge but for me & my baby, it's money well spent. Of course, I've also see many instances offshore where synthetic lubes have saved us from major engine damage so maybe I'm partial to them but I KNOW they work!! Lastly, syns are good ( in theory ) for 25k miles but dirt is their main enemy. I wouldn't worry about oil going bad over 6 months of steady driving unless U don't change the filter. The option of "X" months or "Y" miles comes from the old school but can still apply. If U don't drive the car long enough to get the oil hot then U won't burn off the moisture ( from condensation ) & therefore slowly contaminate the oil & reduce it's effectiveness - that's the theory behind a set change interval based on time. As most of us drive our cars regularly, I'd stick with the mileage-based intervals.
Dex - Nothing wrong with 0W-30 but I like to keep the range of the multi-viscosity as narrow as possible ( because of the reason that mG gave in an earlier post ). I used to run a 10W-40 in the summer ( for the extra high heat protection of the 40 weight ) & switch back to a 5W-30 for the winter as the 0 weight flows easier at cold temps. But since Louisiana's mild I stick with the 5W-30 year round. Since U're in Carolina, maybe the 0W-30 might be better for you.