synthetic oil for the north

[phazer]

for those cold north winters what weight of oil are you guys using. is any body using a synthetic oil.

[danpfay99]

As soon as I reach 1000 miles, I'm changing to amsoil 5w30 & switching my front & rear diffs. to amsoil 75-90 severe gear. I have done this with all my trucks & never had any problems.

[phazer]

sounds good but why 5w 30 and it says 5w 20 in the manual why not amsoil 5w 20

[top gun]

Originally Posted by phazer

sounds good but why 5w 30 and it says 5w 20 in the manual why not amsoil 5w 20

Not to jump in here... ok I guess I am jumping in... LoL! Here's what I've been told about synthetic oil from numerous sources. Synthetic is great and is fine for all modern automobile engines once they're broken in (there needs to be a little friction to seat everything in, in a brand new engine). The exception, for some unknown reason is Mazda rotary engines... should not use it). There's only two downsides for everyone else. One... it cost a lot more (but it does last longer) and Two... once you switch over to full synthetic you are supposed to stay on it forever. That's why I usually stick to a super high grade conventional oil like Castrol or go synthetic blend. This gives you better than stock protection and still allows you to go back and forth if you want.
On the 5w 30 vs. 5w 20 question... the 5 is viscosity cold (thin to flow) so 5 is really great and the 20 or 30 is viscosity hot (stronger without thermal breakdown). Once the car is hot the book says 20 is fine... 30 would be too, maybe even better in super hot conditions. Hope this helps explain.

[danpfay99]

I'm not trying to 2nd. guess Dodge or anything it's just I have always used 5w30 & never had any problems ,so with me it's just an if it ain't broke don't fix it thing. other than I just like syn. oil over conventional oil.

[top gun]

Originally Posted by danpfay99

I'm not trying to 2nd. guess Dodge or anything it's just I have always used 5w30 & never had any problems ,so with me it's just an if it ain't broke don't fix it thing. other than I just like syn. oil over conventional oil.

I don't think there's any question... if money is no object... synthetic oil is superior. That's why it comes standard in cars like Corvettes & Porsches... oh yeh and the space shuttle. And here's a personal opinion even though I usually use the syn/blend. I think they should make it a law that all automobile lubricants are synthetic. Can you imagine how much oil that would free up year in, year out, across the country to make gasoline? I'd certainly pay a little more at oil change time for the better product if it helped keep gas prices down.

[danpfay99]

I think the cost is negated by the extended drain interval & the fact that your engine runs with much less friction & cooler. More trouble free for a longer period of time. Even if that makes for a small increase in cost I think it's worth it in the long run.

[Dave@RACEWARE]

Dan your correct. If you follow Amsoils recomendations for 5w-30 you will go 25,000 miles per oil and filter change. In a tipicle 15K driving year you would save between 100 and $125.00 over convensional oil change cost. I have been an Amsoil dealer for years and it's the best oil I've ever used by far! Also make sure the 5w-30 will work in the 3.7 and not spike the oil preasure like in the Fords. Ford has voided warranties for not running 5w-20. Their tollances are so tight that 5w-30 oils reek havok with the modular engines.

[danpfay99]

Thanks I will check on that. But no matter 5w30 or 5w20 it will be amsoil.