Synthetic oil. Advice please
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Synthetic oil. Advice please
Tomorrow morning, i'm planning on swiching over to full synthetic oil.
I don't know very much about synthetic oil, but I hear nothing but good things.
I would greatly appreciate advice as to what type to go with, ie; brand name, 5/30 or 5/50 or how ever it comes.
I don't know very much about synthetic oil, but I hear nothing but good things.
I would greatly appreciate advice as to what type to go with, ie; brand name, 5/30 or 5/50 or how ever it comes.
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From: so cal djmota=oscar
Rep Power: 324 i would go either with amsiol...www.amsoil.com or royal purple 5w-20. these are 2 of the best in synthetics.
Yes, it's an Acura EL
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I've been running with Motul Excess 8100 for the last week, and my car is running real well. It's really expensive oil though, and I was lucky to get a decent deal on it. I have friends with Acura EL's (same as EX sedan BTW) who run on Amsoil and swear by it, so go for that if you like. I haven't heard too much (good OR bad) about Royal Purple myself, besides what people have posted on the board.
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Rep Power: 0 All syns are better than dino. Don't waste your money on blends.
RP, Amsoil, Redline are good oils and I'd feel comfortable with either and wouldn't lose a wink of sleep.
Just to make it easy on yourself, I'd recommend Mobil 1 5W-30 or 0W-30 just because it's a good oil and can be had at Wally World for less than $20 for 5 qts.
Please get a good filter such as Mobil, Amsoil or K&N. Others are also good with great filtration and nice flow rates but just stay away from the orange ones. Nice jazzy marketing but if you cut one open it's not among the best. Spend a couple of bucks more.
If you want to try the Mobil filter AutoZone has them in stock. They have some K&N but Civic filters have to specially ordered.
RP, Amsoil, Redline are good oils and I'd feel comfortable with either and wouldn't lose a wink of sleep.
Just to make it easy on yourself, I'd recommend Mobil 1 5W-30 or 0W-30 just because it's a good oil and can be had at Wally World for less than $20 for 5 qts.
Please get a good filter such as Mobil, Amsoil or K&N. Others are also good with great filtration and nice flow rates but just stay away from the orange ones. Nice jazzy marketing but if you cut one open it's not among the best. Spend a couple of bucks more.
If you want to try the Mobil filter AutoZone has them in stock. They have some K&N but Civic filters have to specially ordered.
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From: Daleko, Illinois, US
Rep Power: 0 Originally posted by djmota
i would go either with amsiol...www.amsoil.com or royal purple 5w-20. these are 2 of the best in synthetics.
i would go either with amsiol...www.amsoil.com or royal purple 5w-20. these are 2 of the best in synthetics.
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Rep Power: 0 My understanding was that you are not "switching" to synthetic the first time you change your oil. The Civic comes with a factory fill of synthetic oil. Anyway, make sure it is a "real" synthetic like Amsoil, RP, Redline, or Mobil. Beware of Castrol Syntec which is a Base III oil (based on mineral oils and converted to synthetic molecules).
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From: Bay Area, California
Rep Power: 0 I use Mobil 1 exclusively in everything except my race car. Amsoil has too many additives (less synthetic base) and too many trace compounds that can lead to sludge buildup.
Change it at the recommended interval. The oil doesn't go bad, but the additives do.
Change it at the recommended interval. The oil doesn't go bad, but the additives do.
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Rep Power: 0 Along with SMX, I too like Mobil 1. I also like German Castrol Syntec 0W-30 which is different than the the US produced version.
I know that syns can easily go beyond 5k but for me, cost isn't a factor in buying or changing my oil. I do it every 5k because it's easier to keep track of on the odometer. No other reason than that.
I know that syns can easily go beyond 5k but for me, cost isn't a factor in buying or changing my oil. I do it every 5k because it's easier to keep track of on the odometer. No other reason than that.
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From: LA, CALi
Rep Power: 405 i change my motul synthetic every 3000 miles... its cost alot but its worth it, i also put synthetic tranny fluid in at 30k, no tranny problems what so ever and i gotz 45k. every shift is beautiful
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From: milwaukee, Wisconsin, US
Rep Power: 0 so. .... what are we saying is better? Mobil 1, or Amsoil... i know amsoil tests slightly better in some things... but is it worth the price difference? im seeing about $2+ a quart for this everywhere online.. anyone got input on this.. and has anyone found a place that will actually order us K&N oil filter cases?
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From: Bay Area, California
Rep Power: 0 They're all good. If you swap at 5,000 there's probably no difference between brands unless you have some really wacky driving habits (like lots of really short trips) that accelerate additive breakdown.
Folks whom I respect (and who work in the industry) steered me to Mobil 1. I believe them enough to take them at face value (after a little research of my own). You can probably do just as well with the synthetic blend sold by WalMart. It's all better than dino oil. Pick one you can get easily and you're good to go.
Folks whom I respect (and who work in the industry) steered me to Mobil 1. I believe them enough to take them at face value (after a little research of my own). You can probably do just as well with the synthetic blend sold by WalMart. It's all better than dino oil. Pick one you can get easily and you're good to go.
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It's never too late to switch - you'll enjoy the benefits right away. They only time I would tend to shy away from a syn is if your engine burns oil or you have a leak.
You will still receive all the good that syn has but it's a waste of money if you're losing it through a leak or high consumption. For your car I'd suggest M1 5W-30.
It's never too late to switch - you'll enjoy the benefits right away. They only time I would tend to shy away from a syn is if your engine burns oil or you have a leak.
You will still receive all the good that syn has but it's a waste of money if you're losing it through a leak or high consumption. For your car I'd suggest M1 5W-30.
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Rep Power: 0 No truth that I'm aware of. Syns would tend to be better in forced induction motors because the oil is very stable and offers great protection in little motors that are seeing hard driving and high RPMs.
High heat tends to do goofy things to oil such is thining it out and through other chemical reactions, it thickens up again. Heat also causes oil to lose some of its volume.
Syns can be, and are, engineered to account for these things and overall they have less of the negative characteristics of dino oil.
Syns can easily handle the demands of a forced system.
High heat tends to do goofy things to oil such is thining it out and through other chemical reactions, it thickens up again. Heat also causes oil to lose some of its volume.
Syns can be, and are, engineered to account for these things and overall they have less of the negative characteristics of dino oil.
Syns can easily handle the demands of a forced system.
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From: V to the izz~A {Va Beach}
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No truth...Just dont run syn on a new or rebuilt engine for the first 1500 to 3000 miles....After that you can run syn...
I read this review before where NASA engineers tested various oils, one of them being MOBIL1. It stated that conventional oil starts breaking down in less than a 1000 miles, where MOBIL1 never broke down even after 10,000 miles. Which means synthetic oils offers A LOT more protection over conventional oils.
I read this review before where NASA engineers tested various oils, one of them being MOBIL1. It stated that conventional oil starts breaking down in less than a 1000 miles, where MOBIL1 never broke down even after 10,000 miles. Which means synthetic oils offers A LOT more protection over conventional oils.
Last edited by pogi2k1ex; Oct 11, 2003 at 06:38 AM.
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Rep Power: 0 Well I went ahead and got the synthetic oil change done.
Wow the car runs much happier.
Strongly recommend you do this if you havnt yet.
Went with Mobil 1 5w50......$65 with al the taxes.
I want to thank all of you for the help.
Wow the car runs much happier.
Strongly recommend you do this if you havnt yet.
Went with Mobil 1 5w50......$65 with al the taxes.
I want to thank all of you for the help.
Thanks for the info guys... wasn't sure if switching to syn was safe for a FI car... might get a turbo or run NO2 soon... I might go ahead and run syn on my car next oil change.
i heard you shouldn't change over to synthetic til about 10,000mi so i have 5,xxx and im gettin my oil changed again at 6k i think at my 9k or maybe i'll jus wait til 10k and switch over then, i'll either do amsoil or royal purple or redline
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