Oil Changing
 

One Thing i have noticed with both of my cars is what i do with my oil chanes. First add a half of a can of sea foam to your engine oil a day before your going to change your oil. second, i reccomend Royal Purple 10w30 (P/N 01130)and a (P/N 1040) napa filter or wix. I garentee you notice your car will run smoother and the oil comes out as clean as it goes in. My 94 cougar 4.6 had 308,000 miles on it when i sold it and the inside of the engine looked brand new. and i never had mechanical engine failure, just the good old 6 transmission swaps(typical ford) is all i spent money on

Ok?
I can't justify the cost difference form mobile one to royal purple.
If you do regular maintaince, oil changes on time, and don't beat on your car it will look good when you dig into it at high miles.

Royal Purple is a scam. It is 7 bucks a quart for 10w30? Sure synthetic oil is good, but with the 3800, not many people run pure synthetic anyway and the motors last over 300,000 not at all unheard of, Even people that dont change the oil nearly as often as they should still have good results with just about any generation of the 3.8s and a lot of other modern engines.

I see NO REASON to run pure synthetic in our cars, For the added price, lets say you pay the average for a normal synthetic we are talking 6 bucks a quart and you buy the walmart stuff for 1.50 a quart. Lets say your motor takes 5 quarts...cost of synthetic is 30 bucks when the cost of regular oil is $7.50.

You want your motor to last 100,000 miles.

You change your oil every 4000 miles.

25 oil changes, you save $22.50 each time, that is over $500 saved by running regular oil, is it really worth it? a low miles 3800 can be obtained at a yard in the $300-$500 range. What if you need to replace your motor anyway at that time for an unrelated failure such as a UIM? I see NO POINT in running expensive oil period. However I do run synthetic blend and I change it about every 4000 miles at the max since most of my driving is in the city. ;)

Moved to General Chat. This isn't a Performance topic.

I agree with the Royal Purple scam call above. Find me a 3800 with an oil breakdown related engine failure. That's a challenge.

I'll keep my Mobil1 at 5000 mile intervals.

By your math, it would take an extra .005 cents to run full synthetic per mile. It is ABSOLUTELY worth that money to get better protection and more horsepower. Yes, you do get more horsepower running synthetic oil.

It is everyone's choice as to what they run in their cars but nothing but Mobil 1 full synth goes in my car. And I change it when my DIC tells me too (somewhere around 5K usually)

EDIT: Royal Purple is not a scam, it is however overkill for street cars. If your running a race car, or drag racing frequently then I would recommend. We run it in both of our Turbo cars.

My scam comment was related to the price in comparison to other synthetics.

I agree with that.... 3800 engines are not hard on oil... Some of the easiest engines on oil I have ever seen...

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I run Mobil 1 full synthetic with a Wix Filter and change it every 3,000 miles. Or atleast try to, I've gone over at most 1,000 miles. For the cost of normal oil versus synthetic, I'll spend the extra cash. But that Royal Purple stuff really doesnt sell that often unless its race season. It's not for a street car.

[OFFTOPIC]

I approve of your choice of Avatar.

Carry on.

[/OFFTOPIC]

Mobil 1 Full Syn and either a Napa Gold or Mobil 1 filter here. 3-4K changes

I pride myself on how clean every engine I've ever owned was when I opened them up for service. While I choose to use Mobil 1 now, it's not for everyone. I used to run dinojuice. For those not using synthetic, I'd suggest sticking to 3,000 miles only on changes. After that I had noticed pressure fluctuations from the oil breaking down.

Basics are.. maintain a motor well and it'll usually treat you well in return. Slack on maintenance, run over on oil changes.. when the oil is dirty, that's when the sludge really starts building. I'm only a slacker on housework..not oil changes.

From my research I decided to try using synthetic and change my oil change interval to twice a year instead 3-4 times. To me the time/headache savings is worth the extra $20 a year.

I've never experienced an oil related failure in any of my cars, since I have always been pretty good at chaning it in the 3000-5000 range. I always used a good quality dino oil, but have been using Mobil 1 full synth for three years now and will not likely go back. I have most definitely noticed a smoothness difference in the engines of both my vehicles and have also noticed that they are both cleaner internally than before.

I won't stoop to argueing with anyone who maintains that dino is good enough, since it really is "good enough". I just choose to pay the difference, since I expect more miles from my cars and trucks than many.

BTW, I buy my synthetic at Walmart. 5 qts for under $23 for Mobil 1. Add a good filter and I still spend less per oil change than the average 10-minute oil change drive-up customer, by doing it myself.

Out of any mentioned in this thread, Mobil1 is the scam, with the new base stocks they've been using. :popcorn: Don't believe me? Try looking around at the forums on www.bobistheoilguy.com.

That said, any decent oil in the proper viscosity with a quality filter will take the 3.8 as far as any of us will ever need to go on an engine.

Would that be the #51040_? :D

Mobil 1 user w/ the AC Delco PF47. I am due for a change Saturday. It will be my first time letting it go to the 5,000-mile interval. I used to change it every 3K.

Ive been running AMSoil because I get an awesome discount on it at work, however...I have been running mobil 1 in the Alero for whatever reason, convience that I dont have to order it in i guess..and I can say, that engine is spotless inside. Just keep up with it, 5000 miles..thats your best bet..I normally run the Delco PF-47c filter as well..
8)

I wonder if running full syn for gas mileage would pay off with-in town driving? :?

I use Napa Premium oil and their Napa Gold 1040 filter. When doing a trip, i.e. WCBF, then defintely full syn.

I have use Vavoline, Castrol and Mobile 1 full syn and I have had no problems with any of the 3.

Just my 2 sense :lol:

I change it every 3 months. If it only has a thousand miles on the oil; I still change it out. I bounce back and forth between regular dino and syn blend. Lately I've been running 3 quarts of 10/30 with 2 quarts of 10/40.

Probably not.

Personally, driving style has more to do with time between oil changes than a hard number. I typically change oil at around 7000 miles. But I drive about 200 miles per day, nearly all of it on the interstate cruising at 75mph, 2200rpm, 15 inches of manifold vac. Never had any problems with oiling on any GM motor ('90 Bonnie included.) using plain old dino oil and a decent filter (no HP oil filters or additives..just a plain off the shelf replacement filter.) Just keep an eye-ball on the oil pressure.

The '90 Bonnie hit another milestone yesterday. It just rolled past 70,000 miles. At this rate, I'll have trippled the milage on the car in one years use.

A 1990 Bonneville being driven 200 miles per day and only having 70,000 miles on it. Something don't add up. :P

MAC, he's only had it one year. ;)

Note his mention of tripling it's mileage in one year?

Previous owner was the proverbial old lady.

Now back on topic......

I garuntee at least an average of 3 mpg if you try royal purple. You will argue, but your car will show a noticable differance on smoothness. Right now we have mobil on on sale at napa for 5.19 a quart and royal purple is 5.69 a quart. not a huge differance? if you see it for 7 bucks they are privately owned..... And yes 3.8 engine do last forever but the way i drive and the -35 below weather we have right now, conventional oil has no chance against synthetic. Napa Oil is identical to valvoline oil just waY cheaper. Made in the same plant of Ashland Oil. You may argue but check it out your self. Also check what oil you use in your car and tell me what temp it can protect your engine 100%.. ;)

Car came to me in Feb 2006 with 24,000 on the clock. It went into service in April 2006 as my company car with about 25,000 on the clock (I'd have to dig out my log books from earlier in the year to give you the exact number.) All the rest of the milage has been racked up over the course of a year.

Which is another suggestion I have for you all. Start carrying a little notebook and record your milage. This may seem like a lot of work, but it helps to keep track of the car's usage. I typically crank the car up in the morning, let it idle up to temp while I fetch a mug of coffee for the trip, then head off to my first call. Writting down the date, odometer, and location when I get there. Oil changes, service items, fuel usage all get jotted down in the little notebook too. Any failures/quirks go in there too. Every so often I compute the gas milage of the longer trips, just to see how the engine is doing in terms of fuel consumption.

Side benefit: Come april, when filling out form 1040 Sched C, I can confidently say "Yes" to the question "Do you have a written record? "

I have never read before that a type of oil could have an effect on HP. Do you have a source I can look at?

The idea is that the synthetic oil (which is typically thinner than a comparable weight dino) reduces drag in internal engine parts.

i.e. it's easier for the metal to move through synthetic than its thicker counterpart.

Source? The Law of Conservation of Energy.

My dad's old 93'. Oil was black as coal after 1000 miles all the time. The last time he ran it to 4500 miles and spun a bearing. Reason was sludge like oil. It was a rare case though. That car had 15K miles on it in 2001. I bought it with 96K in 2003. It sat for a long time and then miles were put on fast.

I currently am running Mobil 1 with a PF47. This is the first time I am running it to 5,000 miles. I usually change it around 3,000. It is due in about....2,500 miles yet. Its nice not having to change it so much. Oh and satisfaction on Mobil 1? My engine runs WAY smoother, especially at high RPMs, I get better gas mileage, and I know my engine will be protected in the severe cold like we're having right now.

I'll take pictures of 2 blocks inside my garage that my idiot brother blew up? 3.8 engines are bullet proof but not invincible?

COULDN'T HAVE SAID IT BETTER " GENIUS" ALSO THE BILLIONS OF LITTLE MOLOCULES IN SYNTHETIC (MAN MADE) OIL ACTS AS BILLIONS OF LITLE BALL BEARINGS TO LESSEN THE FRICTION OF OF METAL TO METAL. SAME THING YOU SAID JUST A LITTLE MORE SCIENTIFICALLY BETTER SAID FOR THE BRAINIACS ARGUEING MY SUGGESTIONS.

CUT OPEN A WIX FILTER AND YOU FRAM THING AND COMPARE..... ITS FRICKEN CONSTRUCTION PAPER? :shock:

You just called your brother an idiot. That makes me diagnoses the failures as human caused, not oil-caused.

We've never had an oil-related failure on this Forum with over 7000 brain-equipped members.

[quote="willwren"]Moved to General Chat. This isn't a Performance topic.

I agree with the Royal Purple scam call above. Find me a 3800 with an oil breakdown related engine failure. That's a challenge.

I'll keep my Mobil1 at 5000 mile intervals.[/quote

iF ROYAL PURPLE IS A SCAM SO IS MOBIL 1 I GUESS? ;) IF THERES NO OIL RELATED BREAK DOWNS WHY NOT JUST RUN VALUE TECH OIL FOR 89 CENTS A QUART INSTEAD OF MOBIL ONE?

Napaman, Royal Purple's PRICE is a scam. Not the benefits of synthetic lubricant, which many of us run.

Please stop using all caps. It's like yelling on the internet. ;)

Im not being a 'brainiac', I just didn't think that since other than the fact that synthetic is man made and has more detergents that it would actually increase HP. And you can tone down the attitude a little bit.

FWIW, I run only AC Delco PF47 or PF52 filters (can be found anywhere, are very reasonably priced, and always seem to do well in oil filter tests). We use royal purple in the '02 GTP and it gets changed every ~5k miles or so. I run the Mobil 1 "clean 7500" or whatever it is in m GT, it is the synthetic blend stuff. I am kinda paranoid so I change my oil every 2500 miles or less (never more) so I don't see the need to spend $5+ a quart for full synthetic, I would run it if I didn't change my oil so much. Plus usually I do work to the engine more often than I need an oil change and I end up changing it before I need to anywas. I used the run the valvoline durablend but the Mobil 1 is cheaper....lol. We use valvoline durablend in the SSEi and have since day one. It gets oil changes when the DIC says to do so and since its all highway miles that is usually every 7-8k or so.

FWIW, I just poured 5 quarts of that no name brand oil in my engine today. But I just had it torn apart and it will be getting a change in like 100 miles....lol

I run Mobil1 for 5000 miles. But the only reason I do is because I had a pair of UOA's run to prove it had less particulates and breakdown than typical dino juice at 3000.

I don't think anyone can truthfully claim Royal Purple produces RESULTS any differently than any other synthetic oil on the market, particularly not enough to justify that price. :lol:

so mobil 1 5000 and an ac delco filter is the way to go? Not my fram filter from walmart and castrolGTX :cry: :D

If you're running a Fram, you didn't do your homework. :?

I don't run Mobil1 5000. I run the traditional Mobil1 FOR 5000 miles.

With a K&N oil filter.

Yea i was just reading about the fram filters looks like they suck bad. I think my next oil change will be k and n filter and mobil 1.

Dudes? all i was doing was making a suggestion that i thought people would like to try and immediately criticized and your telling me to tone down? I never knew i was yelling, im just typing? ;) Royal purple is 50cents more than mobile 1 if you go to the right place and like i said before, i garuntee hp gain and a smoother running engine.