MOTOR OIL ?

[Oasisbob]

After learning a certain oil change facility does not always change the oil filter when doing an oil change I went back to doing it myself. Things have changed on the motor oil shelf. So many choices. Synthetic, petrolium, blended. My question is if I go synthetic and need to add oil later can I mix petrolium with synthetic? What is blended? Is "high mileage" oil any different? Howq? Thanks for any info you may share

[Grit_dog]

So what’s the point Scooby? You buy 55gal drums of oil for your (old) gasser every 3 months because you either put on a lot of miles or have OOCCD , obsessive oil change compulsive disorder. (Likely since you through in the snippet about temperature matching the plug to the pan, lol)
But somehow this downplays someone who’s attempting to help by posting a good deal on oil in bulk?
Just cause you’re used to semis, hardly no one else buys drums of oil for personal use.
So why the negativity?

[Cummins12V98]

blofgren wrote:

BenK wrote:
Time to research engine oil filters again.

Wonder what the best/better filters spec is for particulate size they filter down to

IIRC, WIX (Napa Gold) and PureOne were good to >25 microns. Anyone have that data?

We were using WIX at work and had 2 of them leak; 1 very badly that almost took out the engine on the truck. We went back to Motorcraft and haven't had an issue since. I only use OEM on my vehicles (Fleetguard on the Ram, AC Delco on the Yukon, and Honda on the MDX.) I think the peace of mind is worth it for the little bit extra.

If you want an even better filter for your RAM look into the AMZ/OIL - Donaldson Blue. Same filter Made in USA. The FleetGuard Stratapore unfortunately is now made in Mexico.

[Cummins12V98]

"they could not change my oil because the drain plug took a special tool and I would have to go to the dealer to get my oil changed...."

PLEASE do tell what this "SPECIAL" tool is????????

[rhagfo]

blofgren wrote:

BenK wrote:
Time to research engine oil filters again.

Wonder what the best/better filters spec is for particulate size they filter down to

IIRC, WIX (Napa Gold) and PureOne were good to >25 microns. Anyone have that data?

We were using WIX at work and had 2 of them leak; 1 very badly that almost took out the engine on the truck. We went back to Motorcraft and haven't had an issue since. I only use OEM on my vehicles (Fleetguard on the Ram, AC Delco on the Yukon, and Honda on the MDX.) I think the peace of mind is worth it for the little bit extra.

You are so true, I also use Fleetguard on my Ram, and the picture below should explain why.

The filter on top is the one the Ford dealer that I bought the truck from installed, the bottom is the Fleetguard Stratopore that I installed to replace it. notice the difference in the size of the supply holes.

[harmanrk]

JRscooby wrote:
Not to say anything about the oil, but a 5 gallon bucket of oil? I change mine every 3 months and it takes 5 qts. That means from the time I open the jug until I put the last in the engine is 9 months. And another 3 months I'm expecting it to protect my engine. (For a while I would buy a 55 gal drum, leave drum in pickup, put a MT in with it. Could back up to a truck, pump new oil in the engine. Dump drain pans into the MT, and never need to move a full barrel.)

I five gallon bucket of oil is not at all out of the question. Modern Diesels in the larger pickups are 13 quarts (+/-). That's over 3 gallons per change. Also keeps in mind there are markets for oil in tractors and heavy trucks where 5 gallons is not a complete change.

As for oil place horror stories, mine is pretty straightforward. Lived in an apartment for a while and could not change my own so had to use a quick lube. Bought a house, and on the first time changing the oil in my garage, had a the threads from the Aluminum pan attached to the steel plug. I'm not saying the tech (pimple faced highschooler) in the pit CAN'T do it right, just as other have said, at 8 buck an hour, they don't care about my car, as much as I do.

[JRscooby]

jfkmk wrote:

JRscooby wrote:
Change oil on millions of vehicles, likely to have thousands of mistakes. Change oil on 1 vehicle a month or less, easy to do it right, and the mistakes made will be fixed, not reported.

The other differenced is thed kid at the jiffy lube place, who was flipping burgers last week and whose main goal is to up sell whatever he or she can, has no skin in the game when it comes to your vehicle. When i work on my (or a friend's vehicle) I make sure I do everything correctly.

Most people that change their own oil brag about how simple the process is, but you don't think the guy that is paid knows enough to do it right? As to the "upsell" The last time I took my pickup in to the dealer, I pulled in while it was raining. Setting in waiting room, guy carries in wiper blades to tell me how bad I need new ones. I explained if I needed blades I would of seen it. 3 days later, get in dark and rain, turn on wipers, 2 swipes, blade falls off. Yes, the service manager heard about why they would never see my truck for anything I would have to pay for.

PNW_Steve wrote:
I have looked at this as well:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Miles-Lubricants-Milesyn-SB-15W-40-API-CK-4-5-Gal-Synthetic-Blend-Diesel-Motor-Oil-Pail-MSF200103/305238438

And wonder what our oil Gurus think of it?

5 Gallons of synthetic blend for $83 delivered.

Edit: Oops! I got in my head that you had a diesel. This oil is definitely no appropriate for your rig.

I have seen a 5 gallon synthetic blend for gas engines for $52 including freight.

Not to say anything about the oil, but a 5 gallon bucket of oil? I change mine every 3 months and it takes 5 qts. That means from the time I open the jug until I put the last in the engine is 9 months. And another 3 months I'm expecting it to protect my engine. (For a while I would buy a 55 gal drum, leave drum in pickup, put a MT in with it. Could back up to a truck, pump new oil in the engine. Dump drain pans into the MT, and never need to move a full barrel.)
One thing I do not like about paying somebody to change is they want to get done quick. Finger the plug in, grab the wrench. I prefer to give it a few minutes so plug can get to same temp as pan before tighten. Speedco that I have used finger the plugs in pan and gear boxes, then make the driver watch while they torque them, then sign the receipt.

[colliehauler]

I took a company truck to a local quick oil change place in town. They drained the oil and put on a new filter. The guy that did it pulled it out and come into the waiting room and asked if the oil pressure gauge worked, (Truck was only a year old). When I responded yes he backed it back into the service bay and put oil in it. Must have got distracted.

I took a personal truck I just purchased (used) to Walmart to have the oil changed since it was January and cold. I paid extra for 7 quarts of synthetic oil. When I got home and checked it they had only put in 5 quarts.

I usually just change my own oil, doesn't take that long. In fact just changed it in my old green Ford F-250 last Sunday at 200k miles. My greese gun was out of greese so I had to run to the auto parts store to pick up a couple of cartridges. I change the oil and filter every 5k miles in all my trucks and SUV's, very easy to keep track of.

[BenK]

Weird timing...this just popped up and is about a year old that applies to thus thread...going to buy Lotto tickets tomorrow

https://jalopnik.com/heres-the-difference-between-synthetic-and-normal-motor-1826240884/amp

[valhalla360]

opnspaces wrote:
I have a similar story and it's not a myth. In my early 20's a friend of mine had the oil light come on and soon a rod knock in his 1991 Toyota Tercel with 38,000 miles on it. When I tried to drain the oil it seriously came out like chocolate pudding, slow and goopy. He admitted he had never changed it since new.

Long story short we swapped in a used junkyard motor. Being basically a kid I kept some of that old oil in a mayonnaise jar on the shelf in the garage. I used a long screwdriver to carve the date in the oil sludge in the bottom of the jar. Years later when my mother sold the house and we were clearing out the garage you could still see the date carved in the sludge.

This is a story of not changing your oil...there is no mention of oil change places fraudulently charging you for a fake oil change.

But it is likely what happened in the other poster's story. Of course, when sludge oozed out, she didn't admit to going 50,000miles without an oil change, so she claimed she got them every 3,000miles in the hope of getting it fixed under warranty.

[valhalla360]

Mote wrote:
Everyone has a quickie change horror story. I have two friends that had a bad experience. One with Walmart. They drained his transmission instead of the engine and then filled the engine with more oil. He didn't make it to far down the road before the transmission gave out. Walmart did make good on that one. My other friend had his oil changed at a GM dealer. The next day when he pulled out of his garage his saw a large puddle of oil. The tech forgot to tighten the filter. Lucky for him he didn't drive to far after the oil change and was able to tighten the filter and top off the oil.
I realize these occurrences are rare but they do happen.

What you describe is far different from a planned effort to fake oil changes multiple times over years with the same car an no one ever noticed...presumably, it was standard practice and they always faked it on every car that came through....just doesn't add up.

Of course, the fact you included the GM dealer, undermines your premise that it's oil change places...dealer staff typically has the top of the line training and they still made a mistake, so not going to the quickie oil change places isn't the difference.

[blofgren]

BenK wrote:
Time to research engine oil filters again.

Wonder what the best/better filters spec is for particulate size they filter down to

IIRC, WIX (Napa Gold) and PureOne were good to >25 microns. Anyone have that data?

We were using WIX at work and had 2 of them leak; 1 very badly that almost took out the engine on the truck. We went back to Motorcraft and haven't had an issue since. I only use OEM on my vehicles (Fleetguard on the Ram, AC Delco on the Yukon, and Honda on the MDX.) I think the peace of mind is worth it for the little bit extra.

[4x4ord]

My guess is that if the oil level on one of these new trucks dropped below an acceptable level a low oil level warning would come up before any engine damage would occur.

[opnspaces]

We all should check the oil from time to time. But I'll admit that I'm one of those that rarely checks it. But depending on the year of your vehicle you could be setting yourself up for an expensive failure.

Want a real shock call your local dealer service department and ask therm what the manufacturer deems is acceptable for oil consumption during warranty. I worked for Toyota in the 90's and the acceptable consumption was 1 quart a month. I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same today. My kids little Nissan Versa has a 3 quart sump. So if it was burning a quart a month it would be out of oil before the oil change came due.

[4x4ord]

I like the idea of using synthetic and changing oil every 25000 km. I kind of think if my oil level was below the add mark I would end up changing it early rather than adding regular oil to top it off. As it is I never check my oil level so adding is not required.

[4x4ord]

Turtle n Peeps wrote:
OP, I don't know what you tow with but I do know Toyota and Honda (maybe several others??) have a spec in their owners manual to change their filter every other time.

There is a very good reason for this spec. You see, a filter filters better the longer it filters out impurities. All a filter is, is a piece of media with holes in it. The more holes that are covered up the more the filter will filter.

Now I know people are going to lose their shirt over the above statement but maybe the oil change place knows more than you or "some" of the people on this forum.

When I had my turbo car I blocked off the by-pass because I didn't want any unfiltered oil going through my turbo. I never saw any pressure drop after 5 or even 7 thousand miles. That means to me the filter still had a long way to go.

Something to think about.

Full flow filters often have a bypass to prevent pressure drop due to a plugged filter.