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I would tell your friend to just keep  running the synthetic oil it is far better than conventional oil, I have in the past seen 385,000 miles on my toyota and never had a problem.I recommend synthetic oil to all my friends and more and more new cars are now coming with synthetic oil. I have found that Walmart is the least expensive place to get the oil changed using mobil one.  

I run Amsoil in all my vehicles (5) and have been using it since 1975.  I always change once a year no matter the miles and change the Amsoil filter then also.

Here are my vehicles using Amsoil (all bought new);
2006 Honda Rincon ATV
2005 Cadillac CTS
2004 GMC Z71 E. Cab SLT
1993 Chevy Lumina sedan
1992 Chevy 4x4 PU (snow plow)
+ various small engines

Anyone running synthetic oil and changing per the owners manual is throwing money away, you can easily double the OCI in miles and time.    If you are afraid to do that, then do it gradually till you gain confidence.  If you change at 5000 miles, go to 6,000 or 7,500 next time BUT do not use the cheap oils filters the are prevelant on the shelves of the discount stores.  To those stores, oil filters are just a commmodity and the cheapest filter yields them to most profit.


My 2005 Cadi CTS came factory filled with Mobil and at 7100 miles the oil life monitor said there was 40% lifer remaining.  Since I was going to store the car for the winter, I changed it to Amsoil and will now change once per year, every Nov when I park it and drive my GMC 4x4 to combat the 200+ inches of snow we see here in upper Michigan.  

I agree with what you say I use both Ams oil and Mobil extended I always uss the ams oil filters due to how they are made. They use fiber with a nylon filter and a steel inside to hold in the dirt probably better than any other filter on the market. Ive have found on my cars I use a transmission cooler with mobil one synthetic transmission fluid and have gotten 400-000 miles plus from the tranny I also change my power steering fluid using mobil one trans fluid and never had a problem all the fluids in my lexus in mobil one and my 06 camry is amsoil due to the new type of transmission fluid by toyota type iv the amsoil synthetic transmission fluid work fine in the new toyota's. What ever synthetic fluid you use your motor,trans,rearend,power steering will last years and miles longer. if you live in the coldest and hotest climate synthetic oil is the one to use if flows to 60 below 0 and to 450 degrees above 0 that is why all the new european car manufactures use a synthetic oil now from the factory.  

Hello,

I drive my '89 Volvo 240 about 400-500 miles/week.  It's currently got 266K miles on the clock and going strong on the original engine and auto tranny.

I found this when researching synthetic oil use.
http://www.pfmmag.com/summer03/summer03oilchangeintervals.htm

Have a look at this article in Police Fleet Manager.
It's essentially a review of studies of synthetic in police fleets and answers many of the issues discussed here.  Those guys drive many cars many miles - and also have the ability to document costs and engine failures.  Lots of good information here.

http://www.pfmmag.com/summer03/summer03oilchangeintervals.htm  

when changeing your oil wheher you use synthetic or regular oil you must still follow the maintenance schedule as set forth in your owners manual.  It would be best to use the synthetic filter if you use the synthetic oil.  and  the MYTH that u can't use the synthetic right away in your new car, is just that MYTH.  although if you have a brand new car, i think you said you were considering a honda, with hondas you needn't do your first oil change until the first 7500 to 10000 miles in order to allow the seals to be broken in (the manufacturer has a special formula in the oil that's purpose  is just that, to break in the seals.)  after the initial 7500- 10000 miles, you can do your first oil change, with synthetic, which is the best way to go because synthetic oil has no wax or additives in it, whereas regular oil doess and thats how you get buildup in your engine.  so just use synthetic from the get go  and your engine will stay brand new...also change your air filter every 9-12000 miles, clean your injectors every 15000 miles and you will be much better off.  

Interesting,

When synthetic belnds first were introduced, many were skeptical, but having had the long term experience with both synthetic blends and pure synthetic, there is no longer a question in my experience, go with 100% sythetic if you plan on keeping your vehicle for long term or high mileage, you won't regret it.

I have put over 200K on two vehicles and they inside of engine was as clean as it was when new. Amazing difference, and best of all, you are not using foreign oil, so not only is synthetic good for your vehicles, it is good for the environment and will help end foreign oil dependency, so go synthetic by all means, even at the higher cost, it really does save you as you can extend intervals between changes.

Good luck, Mike  
www.Free-Extended-Warranties-Distributorship.com

A key point that may want to be considered is "how" the oil gets dirty.  In a mechanically sound engine, the oil plays an important part of controlling soot.  The air filter prevents contamination from getting into the engine, and the oil filter removes contamination from the oil.  There are synthetics that can run for 100,000s of miles between changes, but these situations require quality air filtration and oil filtration (typically single and dual bypass filters)

I run 15w-40 HD Diesel oil in my car, and change at 10,000 intervals, replacing my oil filter every 5,000 miles.  Oil analysis confirms that the oil and filtration is doing its job.

Suggest you consider spending a bit of money on better oil and air filters, because if you keep the oil clean, whether dino or synthetics, it will last longer.  As others have posted, synthetics, being manufactured, do not deteriorate the way dino oils do, and cannot last as long between changes.  

I just bought a 99 Mitsubishi Mirage with 99K miles, and would like to use Amsoil in it, but not totally sure if it's a good idea.

I've used Amsoil for several years in my 99 Toyota 4Runner, changing it every 25K-30K miles.  Runs great at 192K miles, so I'm sold on synthetic.

The Mitsubishi runs nice and smooth, and I've seen no evidence of leaks or oil burning, but the end of the dipstick is coated with a hard brown film (which took steel wool and some elbow grease to remove).  Does this indicate the engine overheated at some point, or simply that it ran a long time with dirty oil in it?  The current oil appears relatively clean, no grit or sludge on the dipstick.  Do you think it's safe to switch to synthetic?  

Synthetic oil is produced in the lab, which means the only stuff in its is what they put in it. Despite the high-tech refining of crude oil, there are still contaminants in the oil that can build up and eventually damage an engine. Changing your oil and filter removes any loose particles that form, but often the build-up occurs in an isolated area of your engine, usually where it gets really, really hot. This build up can clog oil passages and valves, which can eventually lead to reduced engine life.
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The mechanic for my 1985 Citroen 2CV says that for the 2 cylinder air-cooled engine synthetic oil is highly recommended. He also says that Royal Purple is THE best out here. Comments? Also, my 2000 Nissan Frontier has 91K miles. Could or should I convert at this stage to synthetic?  My Nissan mechanic says no need to. ???
BTW, I live in Phoenix where the temps are horrendous in summer.  Steve in Phoenix  

I have A Jeep Sahara Unlimited.  I use Castrol Syntec and change oil every 25,000 miles.  At 200,000 The Jeep runs fine and needs no added oil between changes.  I also drive about 20% of the time for off-roading.  I have used synthetics for many years without a problem in various types of vehicles.  I am a "hard" driver.  I really believe in synthetics!  

Hi all,

I have a question for those of you that have been in the Jeep know for awhile.  I have a 94 Jeep Cherokee Country of which I have done the small work, ie oil, filter, plugs, rotar, battery, etc. for 15 years. Mechanically it's in excellent condition. It does mostly local city travel, however, once a month I may have a four hour trip at 80mph. For the last year I have been unable to change my own oil, therefore I brought it to a local shop and insisted on organic oil, not synthetic. I thought the shop had no problem with this request. I am now just finding out that the last oil change was a diesel oil, Rotella 15w-40, which my Jeep did extremely well on this oil.  However, I have just found out that there is no Zinc nor Phosphorus in it, so bad for my Jeep. Now there is the Rotella 15w-45 with XLT that has the Zinc and Phosphorus but I can't find any.  I am going back to doing my own work and will start with an oil change this weekend and not sure which direction to go with oil, diesel, semi synthetic, synthetic, or back to organic? I have always run a 10w-40 for at least 8 months out of the year only because I am in 90+ degree heat for at least 7 months of the year, yes welcome to Florida.  The Jeeps from this era run hot too! I'm completely lost!
I just read that the 10w-40's are no longer recognized for the additives are so high in concentration that they dissipate too fast and the oil is considered worthless.  The less the point spread, the better. So a 15w-40 would be perfect. Any suggestions?
Thanks!  

Hi -

I have read through much of this thread which dates back several years. Face it, we are guys... and we (ME included) have this desire to make the mechanical stuff of our lives run the best and better than best as we can, to the microscopic level.

I have a 93 Chevy Lumina APV Van with the 3.8L V6 Engine. 167,000 miles. Changed the oil every 3000-5000 miles. (I let it go longer in Winter, cuz its just too damn cold to go out there and change it, so I wait until it gets warmer...which could be MUCH later in Spring). I live in Cleveland, so Winters routinely have single digits and sub freezing for extended periods.

I have used conventional oil the entire time and have done most of my own oil changes from day one when I purchased it. Through the years, I used to use Valvoline for years with AC Delco Filters, The I used Pennzoil with Fram Filters, then Valvoline, Then Pennzoil High Mileage for the last few years. (During the time I have owned the vehicle, I lived overseas for a few years and the car sat for three years.  didnt knwo Id be gone that long... my stay kept being extended and so the car sat). No special engine treatment before I left, just StaBil in the gas tank and ran it for a good long while)... annyway, the car sat for a Looong time.

My wife drove the car for years, as a stay at home Mom in kids mode. So it was not driven a long distance to work every day. It had years and years of short hops and low mileage jaunts with the occasional long haul and everything in between.

I never have had an internal engine problem, or wear related. It doesnt burn a drop. I never have to add oil betweeen changes.

Now of course this is not a high performance engine. But (again.. me included, cuz I want to know and want the best too... but) Does it really matter?... or do we like to just have the best of the best at the microscopic level, just becasue we want to and be able to discuss it in forums like this?

Dont get me wrong, I am an engineer.... and I thouroughly enjoy discussing the details to death, and I want my stuff to last forever.

Thanks guys.  

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