Synthetic Oil?

I bought a new 2003 Honda CRV, and now it's time for an oil change.
(8,000kms are on the odometer)
Is synthetic oil a good idea? What are the advantages and disadvantages of
synthetic oil, and is it worth the extra expense?
If I do install synthetic oil, do I have to flush the engine first?
What's a good brand name of 5-20w synthetic oil to use?

 

Your motor will last LONGER without any need for overhaul (given intensity
of use is moderate). Oil change intervals are THE SAME. You may get a way
with a few miles more, say 100-200 more before oil change, but it is a myth
that synthetic oil extends your intervals in 2 times.

It is worth extra expense if you are going to keep the car for 5-0 years at
least with planned mileage over 150-170,000 mi and if you use "oil change"
shops.
Otherwise put cheaper mineral, change it more often than your service manual
says (say, use only Severe Conditions), change it yourself, and save on oil
and labor.

I dont think so. Today most of the oils are compatible, at least within the
same brand or manufacturer.

Mobil oil and filters are the best and pricey. You may use Valvoline (my
preferred), Castrol. Personally, I'll try to avoid Pennzoil, Quaker and
their oil filters together with Fram evil of the industry.

 

It is not a myth, but Honda may deny your warranty claims if you double your
oil change intervals and something non-oil related goes wrong with the car,
so it is not adviseable while you're still under warranty. Also, time is a
factor, not just mileage. FYI, here's a Camaro that did 18K miles on Mobil
1.

http://oilstudy.spacebears.com/

If a big ole American engine could do it, I'm sure a well-engineered Honda
engine can do it as well.

Cheers,

Pete

 

Everything you ever wanted to know about oil you can find right here:
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi

No.

Cheers,

Pete

 

just another synthetic oil BS
Pretty funky that the warranty may be affected by an extra oil change. No
logic in it, though. Time IS a factor on a "whichever comes first" basis. In
my experience, mileage was a signal for an oil changes, not the elapsed
time.

 

Which part is BS according to you?

Huh? I did not say to do extra oil changes but to double the oil change
interval, which means change the interval from let's say every 5K miles to
every 10K miles.

I'm afraid you have difficulty reading.

IMO, while it may be OK to go from 5K mile changes to 10K mile changes with
synthetic, it is not OK to go from changing oil once a year to once every
two years. If it takes you 2 year to hit 10K miles, it means you don't
drive much or do mostly short trips in which case you should not wait so
long to change your oil.

Cheers,

Pete

 

Isn't it a bit early... unless you've done lots of short trips?

There's no single answer here - the controversy continues... and it does
depend on your driving habits whether it's worthwhile. If you do lots of
short trips you need to change the oil more often anyway, which a mineral
oil will handle fine. No point in wasting $$.

No need to flush and I wouldn't worry about the 5W/20 recommendation too
much. Choose the oil based on performance and if it's only available in
5W/30 use that. There's no doubt IMO that Mobil1 is the best freely
available off-the-shelf synthetic oil. Valvoline and Castrol synthetics
are not real synthetics anymore. See the Castrol "confession":
http://www.castrolusa.com/syntecresponse.html.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

 

I read the articlel you posted. It clearly states that "Syntec is indeed
fully synthetic". So why are you saying it isn't?

Bill

me??

 

So you believe them - I don't... in fact IMO they're lying. I don't know
how deep you want to get in here but I can go all the way - I know the
chemistry. Before the Grp III hydrocracked base stocks came along,
"synthetic" meant an oil which was made with a two step polymerisation
process and starting from the very simple ethylene molecule - IOW it was
synthesized. What Castrol is selling is a highly processed (hydrocracking
and/or hydro-isomerisation) mineral oil - not the same thing at all and IMO
not "synthetic". The fact that NAD of BBB says it is is irrelevant and the
fact that Castrol charges synthetic prices for it is fraudulent.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

 

The biggest advantage is resistance to temperature extremes. Whether or
not that means anything depends on how and where you drive.

 

I have a '96 Integra GS-R with 94k miles on it. I have had the oil changed
with name brand 5w-30 motor oil every 3k miles since I owned her. The car
drives better now then when I purchased it in '96. Fuel economy has increased
by at least 3-5 mpg. I don't race the car but I do make regular trips to 8k
on the rpm guage (hey that's why I bought the GS-R). I have taken serious
consideration
about switching over to synthetic. ( It is nice not having car payments )
But it seems like a waste of money to me. I plan to keeping the car for at
least
3-5 more years as I save up to buy a TSX with cash. Maybe then I will trade
the
Integra in. Maybe not. Until then I still plan on regular oil changes using
name brand 5w-30 motor oil.

To me, switching over to synthetic will make you feel better but I don't think
that it will increase the life of your engine. Regular oil changes and
inspections
will guarantee that. My dad had a '87 Chevy Astro minivan that he accumulated
over
400,000 miles on. I ain't kidding here. The transmission was dying and the
interior
was falling apart but the engine purred like a kitten. Raising 4 kids, he
never
could afford to change his oil with the expensive stuff. So if my dad can keep
a Chevy 4.3L V6 for 400,000 miles using Exxon Superflow 10W-30 then I think
that you
can see at least 200k miles on your CRV with regular motor oil and regular oil
changes....

my two cents...

 

That synthetic oil allows more miles b4 oil change. Big time BS.

On this one I had difficulty reading. I skipped "intervals" word when
reading. My bet.

 

Which part is BS according to you?

What do you have to support your statement? I showed you a link to the
study that proved just the opposite. Plus a link to the forum where
hundreds of other analyses of synthetic oil are posted clearly showing that
extended intervals are easily and safely achieved.

Pete

 

Do not waste your money on synthetic oil, unless you live in a nordic
weather, with temperatures often below -25 deg.

There is a LOT of bullshit about synthetic oil. No, it won't make your
engine last longer (was NEVER proofed), take less oil or gas, or run
smoother. All illusions. You can bet that if those attributes were the
least true, the synth oil company would make big advertising on those
reports.

Up to the end of warranty, I did change my oil every 6000km as per Honda
recommendation on 'severe' conditions. Now I have 110000km and change oil
each 10-12000km, roughly twice a year. Bother for something else more
important, like rust-proofing, washing your car in winters and waxing it 4
times a year.

If maintained, it is rarely the mechanical parts that give up first, it is
more the body in salted area. After 10-12 yrs.

 

It's good for deserts too. There are places along CA's I-5 where the
engine's temperature gauge will run up near the red on a perfectly
healthy car. If it's 120F in the shade, you can imagine what it's like
over a 4 lane black asphalt highway. Commute over that every day and
synthetic will probably make a difference.

As for the overall life of the car, I agree that the engine isn't worth
babying. Give it just what it needs to run normally.

 

This is why a coolant system is for! In a era of aluminium engines, bad
things will happen to the engine before a regular oil will start cooking at
very high temperature.

 

As long as you do regular oil changes at the recommmended intervals there is
no need to waste the extra money on synthetic oils. The synthetic oils are
not any better for you engine (unless you drive a Ferrari or other top end
car).

 

Why would you stay away from Quaker State.... you do realize that QS
manufactures the oil filter for Honda Co.

 

Do *you* realize Quaker State doesn't make oil filters?

 

Get your facts strait before you speak, Honda filters are actually made by
Purolator, which is owned by Penzoil.
All Quaker State makes is oil (shit oil at that).