Author Topic: Why Go Synthetic? (Read 20171 times)

Rat407 · « **Reply #30 on:** October 14, 2006, 08:31:23 pm »

AMSOIL has had a by-pass system for a while now. There is an individual that ran his rig 409K on the same oil and all he did was run analysis to keep an eye on the oil's health and change the filters according to the analysis. The truck had over 600k on it but the oil had 409k.

Keeping oil clean is really important. It allows the oil to function like it suppose to without having to work harder because of it getting contaminated with all the soot and other burn byproducts/acids. http://www.amsoil.com/StoreFront/bf.aspx AMSOIL's by-pass set up.

Going with Auto-Rx is a good thing if your going to keep your vehicle and switch over to synthetic. Getting the inside of the engine clean helps so that the synthetic isn't in there trying to do the same thing which is natural for a synthetic oil. They clean as well as provide superior protection.

If you run extended drains it is a good idea to have the oil analized. It can tell you so much on how your engine is operating.

The VW dealer here recommends 10k oil change intervals on the TDI. This is with just their oil and filter and no analysis. Depending on how your IDI is set up and fueled you should be able to do that and more.

AMSOIL also has come out with the new CJ-4 rated oil. https://www.amsoil.com/storefront/deo.aspx It meets the requirements of the new 2007 diesels. It is backward compatible and can be used in older diesels but AMSOIL still recommends their AME 15w-40 oil and if the 505.01 is recommended then this http://www.amsoil.com/StoreFront/afl.aspx is what they recommend.

Elf oil is another 505.01 synthetic oil that you can get besides what is at the dealer's. http://www.performanceoilstore.com/compchart.htm

Synthetics are worth considering if you live in colder climates. It really helps on startups. Saves wear and tear on your starter, battery and engine. You don't have to run synthetic. Regular oil will work and there are several on this board I bet that have well over 300k and have run nothing but regular oil. Todays advancement in oil technology it has come a long way from when our IDI's were first produced.

If you do go to synthetic just make sure your getting a PAO group IV, V oil. There are so many on the market today that are not a true synthetic that if your going to spend the extra cash for one you may as well get the real deal. Mobil Delvac, Redline, AMSOIL, ELF have true synthetics. Rotella T is a group III. Here is another interesting thread on this. http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/showflat.php?Cat=0&Board=UBB55&Number=721172&Searchpage=2&Main=721164&Words=Rotella&topic=&Search=true#Post721172

Can someone please explain to me how you put in a different title to a URL you post? Every time I try to post it in a different way it doesn't work. I just end up posting the copied link.

burn_your_money · « **Reply #31 on:** October 15, 2006, 10:09:38 am »

I sent you an IM explaining how to shorten links

Has anyone experienced more oil leaks after switching to synthetic? This is the one thing stopping me from switching

jtanguay · « **Reply #32 on:** October 15, 2006, 05:32:55 pm »

the video on the FS2500 website shows the amsoil filter doesn't get rid of the soot.

I'm pretty much sold on the FS 2500 bypass filter.

one good oil company is www.oilextreme.com - they sell a 'better than synthetic' oil. (not sure if theres much truth to that... but who knows!)

some have reported that they have little to no turbo lag anymore because of the extreme pressure properties of the oil. Calcium carbonate additive package in the oil seals asperities in the metal surfaces to create less friction.

i still want to get my hands on their oil and actually test it out!

1.9blues · « **Reply #33 on:** October 16, 2006, 01:49:42 am »

my friend with the 700,000km VW worked in the same company as i have mentioned used texaco 15w40 which is the cheapest *** out there (brand name). WHY buy it, it's free! the main reason why most of the Heavy duty trucks in the mississauga area used texaco is because Texaco is right next door. we also own all the texaco transport trucks so they are giving us $1 per litre oil. my company don't care if i change my oil very week!!

why is syn. good for the winter time?

?? 5w or 0w is way better than 15W - i don't care about the weight too much in the winter time (40 or 50)...don't care! Yes... i do use syn in the winter time....why??? because i don't use the block heater! and it worked for me. amsoil actually makes a 0w30 oil that will meet VW's 505 rating...u pay for what u get thou.

i'm just waiting for the new mobil1 formula...according to the new emission law. all heavy duty oil will be really hard to burn in the engine and it will clean alot better.

great news if u ask me... can't wait

by the way....love this forum... lots of people have great info and really helpful.

jtanguay · « **Reply #34 on:** October 16, 2006, 07:53:32 am »

two years ago I had a car that would not start in -20C weather with 15w40. It cranked pretty slow. Fired it up with block heater, warmed it up... drained that dirty crap... then put in fresh rotella t synthetic 0W40. Amazing stuff... engine cranked over at -20C at much faster speed, and would start (very rough though... but only because poor compression)

thats saying something right there about synthetic. the cold pour temps are much lower than regular oil. Not to mention that the total base number is much higher than regular oils too. That means that the oil can withstand more of the dirtiness of your engine without becoming too acidic, in which the oil can start to corrode engine components, and lose its lubricity, and ability to clean the engine properly.

Chestrockwell · « **Reply #35 on:** October 16, 2006, 12:47:37 pm »

I've always used the cheapest 15-40 diesel oil I can find and if it's cold I plug in the 600W pan heater. Starts like the middle of summer when it's -30 out.

jtanguay · « **Reply #36 on:** October 16, 2006, 06:55:55 pm »

how long do you need it plugged in for it to start that well? most times there isn't a plug to feed off

Chestrockwell · « **Reply #37 on:** October 16, 2006, 08:39:46 pm »

I leave it plugged in for at least a couple hours if I can. The coolant is usually a little warm by then as well; however, before I got the pan heater I tried synthetic in the same cold weather and it definately made a difference. I'm cheap and so is dino oil. The pad heater was about $100CAD and I think that regardless of what oil you use it's a good plan on a diesel in the winter. I spend some time in AB during the winter. Vancouver doesn't count....

larry104 · « **Reply #38 on:** October 16, 2006, 09:19:25 pm »

Fwiw, the previous owner of my 1992 Eco (I'm the 2nd owner) put 127K on the car and changed oil every 2,500 miles with Shell Rotella. The engine inside is absoutely spotless. No oil usage, smoke, or leaks. It ran perfect. I changed all the seals and gaskets because I had the motor out of the car to do some upgrades. I plan to continue the routine with Rotella because it works.

I'm running Redline MTF synthetic in the transaxle. Daryl at AATransaxle highly recommends it.

addautomotive · « **Reply #39 on:** October 17, 2006, 11:13:53 am »

Some really neat info in here. I run Shell Rotella 15w40 all year round. My car starts fine, even without a block heater.

One thing I have noticed: after ~2500-3000 kms, it starts using oil. I've always found that odd, because it doesn't use any up to that point. Some interesting theories in this thread as to why tht would happen:
-the oil "breaking down" and becoming thinner
-the oil suspends enough soot to "rais the rings" and increase consumption

I'd be interested to gear your theories!

saurkraut · « **Reply #40 on:** October 17, 2006, 11:36:28 am »

I see the same thing running synthetic. 2,500 miles, no oil loss. From 2,500 to 3,000miles, half a quart is gone. I usaually dump it befor it gets to 3K miles. Why do i run synthetic? Its better than Dino oil. Why do i dump it at 3K? Its obviuosly full of soot. Its only a couple bucks a quart more than good dino and I've done a few full rebuilds and their a pain in loss of use, expense in new parts, and some what labour intensive. I've been contemplating a bypass system, but haven't got around to it yet

I don't think the oil is getting thinner. Everything i've seen related to running oil too long in a diesel is oil thickening from soot contamination.

i'm also a little suspicious of the 10,000 mile drain interval on the TDi engines. There is the phenominea of the plugged intake.

From my actual observations:

People that drive them like they stoll them, and change oil at 3,000 miles do not get plugged intakes.

People that go for max milage, change oil at 10,000+ do get plugged intakes.

Whats happening? I'll venture a guess: These engines have EGR. Perhaps, when the oil gets overloaded with soot, these engines start passing oil by their rings, partially burned oil is going out the exhauste port and is making its way into the EGR and back into the intake.

Whats the answer? Change oil, or get a bypass system to remove the soot and analyze often.

jimbrown618 · « **Reply #41 on:** October 22, 2006, 02:34:58 pm »

Yes my TD likes synthetic too. I've been running Shell Rotella T 0W40 (from Canadian Tire...) since June (Amsoil 15W40 before that...). Oil just changed had 6800Km on it with no useage. I did notice that the engine was getting slightly noisier (more clattering from lifters/other engine internals so I decided it was time to change) so I guess I'm in agreement with Saurkraut on not running the oil for long intervals. I also noticed that my old oil filter (Bosch) felt really heavy even after I dumped the loose old oil out of it so I guess it was doing its job. After dumping in some new Rotella & installing new Mann filter, the car seemed to be quieter & smoother than before.

Anyway that's my two-cents....Cheers to all

Jim

_____________________________

1997 Golf TD - GL
351000Km & counting...
Driven hard & put away wet daily... :twisted:
_____________________________

monst · « **Reply #42 on:** October 24, 2006, 11:18:14 am »

So how does one go about getting one's oil
analyzed? This is something I would possibly
do.....
And what about this oil bypass thing....
Is this different than the FS2500 mentioned
above....
Also... how long after an oil change
does the new oil turn black?

for you guys?

burn_your_money · « **Reply #43 on:** October 24, 2006, 05:51:24 pm »

My oil goes black moments after starting my car.

I'm still interested to hear if anyone developed leaks after switching to synthetic on a higher mileage engine (say 500k kms), or is the lack of response an indication that no new leaks delevoped?

Slave2School · « **Reply #44 on:** October 24, 2006, 08:28:09 pm »

My friend Chris tried some ELF 506.01 0W30 in his 1.9TD with 480k+km He found after about 6k he used a bit of oil since it is thinner than water, but other than that he didn't mention any leaks. I can't say for sure what he uses normally, and it may actually be ELF 5w40 since he can get that cheap from work. He got the engine with around 400k on it and I don't think it had synthetic in it until he got it at least.

Author Topic: Why Go Synthetic? (Read 20171 times)

1.9blues

addautomotive