Switching to Synthetic Motor Oil?

Freakwater · 05-24-2008, 02:41 PM

I recently purchased a 2001 Camry with 58,000 miles and ready for it's first oil change (since buying it). Is there any reason I should NOT switch to full synthetic oil? It's had non-synthetic it's whole life. If it's ok to switch, should I expect to change the oil less frequently?

Thanks,
Freakwater

ET · 05-24-2008, 03:18 PM

Reason not to switch?

How about more money for no payback? Synthetic oil is a waste of money. Save that money for the gas tank.

Oil needs to be changed because it gets dirty. Synthetic oil gets dirty just like regular oil. I run regular oil...change every 5-7.5k miles... four cars now, all on schedule to run 200k plus miles. Our 96 Camry has 164,000 miles... 96 Chrysler went 245,000.... no oil issues and I've used every brand of oil, never synthetic.

My 2008 Honda Pilot has a maintenance minder that tells me when my oil is due to be changed based on driving habits. That is usually working out to about 7k miles with my long trips.

Congratulations on your 2001 Camry. That's a great car. Change with regular oil every 5k miles (easy to remember on odometer) and you'll be fine.

HntnFsh · 05-24-2008, 03:45 PM

Our 97 Camry went 265,000 miles on regular oil.And was still running strong when I totaled it.I wouldnt worry about spending the extra $ on synthetics.Camrys are easy 300,000 plus mile cars.

fishinfool · 05-24-2008, 04:25 PM

Why change oil every 5-7.5K and waste time? Time is not valuable to you? Change your oil once a year! Every April Oil gets changed. UOA says keep on going but once a year is no big deal. My truck once a year for three years now and a friend of mine who does a lot of towing once a year and has 267,000 miles on his truck without issue. Synthetic a waste of money, I think not.

SilverBullets · 05-24-2008, 04:43 PM

As stated before... oil gets dirty. Change every 3,000 and you'll never have issues. Synthetic is great for race cars, but a waste of money otherwise. Save your money for gas! Last truck I bought new and put 300,000 miles on it. Never a problem useing regular oil, changed every 3000. Truck was still running strong when I sold it.

Go_Getter · 05-24-2008, 05:53 PM

Synthetics do have some advantages. 1. they do not break down to heat like Dino oil. 2. they have better additive packages than Dino oil that helps to keep your engine cleaner. 3. they are slicker so you may see a slight increase in fuel mileage 4. they will run longer, while yes oil does get dirty that is usually no the reason for change, it is because the additives are breaking down and they loose their lubricating and cleaning properties and synthetics have a longer life. BMW offers 4 yr 50,000 mile free service and their cars come from the factory with synthetics. their recommended oil change is 15,000 miles or 1 year which ever comes first.

To answer you direct question, no there is no reason not to use synthetic oil if thats what you like. it is a personal preference. I use nothing but synthetics and do not sell or have anything to do with any company who does. I have used Dino oil with great results but just for more peace of mind I use syn. Good luck to you and your new car, I'm sure it will serve you well no matter what oil you use.

cowlitzriverfisher · 05-24-2008, 06:01 PM

the only bummer with a full synthetic is that if your car(which is still fairly new) is older, the syn helps pull all the crap regular oil leaves behind, and that will require a sludge additive and new oil to help clean it out. I run 10W-30 Q power in my cherokee which takes a lot of abuse and has not failed me.... if you switch u should keep running and not go back to conventional.

69scout · 05-24-2008, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishinfool

Why change oil every 5-7.5K and waste time? Time is not valuable to you? Change your oil once a year! Every April Oil gets changed. UOA says keep on going but once a year is no big deal. My truck once a year for three years now and a friend of mine who does a lot of towing once a year and has 267,000 miles on his truck without issue. Synthetic a waste of money, I think not.

Agree!!!! There is no waste of funds here. Chage your oil every three months or 9 months. Its your car and its up to you but, Synthetic will be the way to go.

BalouSC · 05-24-2008, 07:23 PM

I use synthetic (Amsoil) and love it. There is no reason why you should not switch over. Just follow the directions. Balou

EvilD · 05-24-2008, 08:06 PM

My duramax engine oil gets changed every year. Shaeffers in the crankcase, transynd in the trans, amsoil in the differentials. Only synthetics since break in.

D

Cliff D. · 05-25-2008, 05:42 AM

Last brand new vehicle i bought was the first time i tried synthetics. Got better mileage, ran cooler, longer change interval. Makes absolute sense for me. Everything gets changed to synth now.

willierower · 05-25-2008, 06:40 AM

Synthetics pros far outweigh the cons. Synthetic is much more tolerant to extreme temps cold or hot. It is thinner and flows easier. It is and remains much more slippery than petroleum based oils which is good for engine life and wear, but not good for new cars. New engines components have a "mating season" the surfaces of interacting parts that require lubrication need to be "mated" to function best together. Friction and effective cleaning detergents get it done. This happens best with conventional oils and is accomplished with about 10k miles of use when synthetics can then be used safely and effectively.

In older engines with high miles, a significant amount of wear may have already taken place. Since synthetics are much more free-flowing, and the molecules are much smaller than conventional petroleum based oils, this could be a bad thing and result in oil combustion from internal leakage. Often a synth blend will remedy this. Sometimes a full conventional oil can stop internal leakage or a heavier weight conventional oil can do the trick too.

Synth oils are used exclusively in all military aircraft. High performance engines with high compression, intense tolerances and extreme RPMs greatly benefit from synthetics. With the quality of consumer car engines increasing year after year, synthetics are a good choice. If your driving a classic car with an original motor, or a "disposable" (Geo "Metro", Hyundai "Excel" etc) Stick with conventional or a blend at best.

Synths molecules are smaller, therefore the dirt and sludge is filtered much more effectively. But this is the downside to waiting longer between changes. Its the filter that loses its effectiveness quicker than the oil. Use a premium filter with all synthetic oils.

CaughtSteelin · 05-25-2008, 06:20 PM

So I got a question. Should I be using sythetic oil in my inboard 350 Old's? If it helps out the motor that much I would like to be able to get as much use as I can out of it. The motor cost me more than the boat did. Its only got 150 hours on it.

Thanks

jimh · 05-25-2008, 10:39 PM

Do the math for your uses. I get up to 10% better mileage with synthetic, but the oil costs twice as much. The last time I calculated I barely broke even. That might be better now that Diesel is so high.

The main reason why I use it in my diesel is it runs a "lot" quieter.

fishstik · 05-26-2008, 07:31 AM

synthetic

Freakwater · 05-26-2008, 06:19 PM

Thanks for the input. Especially fishstik. Dude... can I call you "The Communicator"? That was awesome and must of taken a lot of time to compose such a persuasive argument. You are my personal hero.

Now.... if I do switch to synth... Do I use the same weight? i.e. 10w30 to 10w30?

Thanks again,
Freakwater

Chrome Bumper · 05-26-2008, 08:57 PM

Letsee, military aircraft goes from -80 up high to 130 on the desert floor. If you do this often then use synthetic. A tribologist for military aircraft once told me motor oil starts measurably going south after 2,000 miles. Fleet usually go 7,000 between changes.

Personally I go 3-5k running any oil. My Honda I troll a lot gets synth. As do all my 2 strokes and gearboxes. The car and truck engines get dino oil at 3-5k miles.

The synthetic really outperform dino oil in two strokes when you consider emissions.

ICHTHYDEMON · 05-27-2008, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freakwater

Now.... if I do switch to synth... Do I use the same weight? i.e. 10w30 to 10w30?

Thanks again,
Freakwater

Yes,10w-30 is still 10w-30.

namu mac · 05-27-2008, 08:04 AM

:lurk:

retaliate · 05-27-2008, 08:06 AM

Our Company went to Synthetic Oil, some of the older rigs with higher mileage were burning 1 to 2 quarts every Gas fill up, so they went back to regular oil, like others have said, if you change your oil every 3 to 5k your motor should go 200k+ no need for synthetic oil.