Synthetic motor oil

tamu2002

I'll look and see if I can find the PCV first.

Just called my dealership and they wanted $29.59 plus tax for the part. But I can always get it on ebay for cheaper.

kiawah

try local autoparts chain (pep boys, autozone, there's a bunch of auto parts stores around most locations). You won't pay shipping that way.

imidazol97

Check rockauto.com. Their shipping adds about $5 to their price. But I recently bought a serpentine belt brand name for my Buick at about half what the auto parts stores wanted. There's a 5% discount number available at some auto forums on the web. No sales tax if you're in most states. I earlier had bought struts and shocks at a good discount. Rockauto.com offers various brands.

tamu2002

Darn it, checked the oil yesterday and I overfilled it again when topping off! :mad:

kiawah

They do make a suction plunger, with a long thin tube. You can put it down the oil dipstick tube and draw oil out.

You might want to invest in one, if you are prone to overfilling.

shipo

I don't understand how you can overfill. Wait until you're a quart down (bottom of the "Normal" zone on the dipstick) and then add an entire quart.

tamu2002

It was a tad below the bottom mark and I added less than a quart. :confuse: I overfilled by ~0.2 qt.

kiawah

Just fill in incremental steps, I've never found you can depend on dipsticks lines to be 1 quart.

shipo

That's bizarre, I've worked on hundreds of cars and never once seen one that had a "normal zone" on its dipstick that didn't equate to either a quart or a liter. Go figure.

obyone

The 99-03 Silverado owner's manual says 6 qt. If you follow the dipstick you would end up using 6.5 qt. So do you follow the dipstick or the owner's manual? The service manual also said 6 qt.

tamu2002

Yup, I have the same dsicrepency with my Accord and Nissan Quest. The oil capacity figures in the manuals do't appear to match with the dipstick.

shipo

Pretty much every car I've worked on over the last ten to fifteen years will register a half of a quart "low" on the dipstick when you refill per the manual following an oil change; regardless of manufacturer.

tamu2002

I saw the same thing, hence my tendency to ovecompensate.

obyone

Then if we assume the bottom line to mean "fill" and the top line to mean "don't fill" then using the area in between as "OK" we shouldn't have to top off to the "DON'T FILL" line? As in the case of the Silverado, 6 quarts should be sufficient regardless of where 6 quarts end up on the dipstick as long as it's between those lines.

shipo

Yup, exactly. Of course I top off anyway.

jeffyscott

I think the acceptable range (the cross-hatched area) on our overly complex VW dipstick is maybe about 1/2 quart.

longo2

If you think that VW dipstick is "overly complicated" the one on my 2006 Jetta TDI is downright schitzophrenic! It takes at least a half dozen attempts to get it to tell you what you need to know, "how much oil is in the crankcase"?

They went off on a tangent that makes checking the oil harder than reading tea leaves.

When your TDI oil pan is full of black sooty oil (all the time) why make the dipstick out of shiny black plastic and leave bulges on the thing that wipe oil off the dipstick tube going up and going back down and why only a tiny 1/4 inch of space for the, it's full, to OMG its down a quart?! (maybe)

Who knows, and obvioulsy VW didn't either as they have have re designed it from 2006 to at least give you more room on a crosshatched stick to read the level.

Other maunfacturers have figured out, it's not rocket sience to put in a metal stick with 2 marks on it to check the oil. :mad:

tamu2002

"If you think that VW dipstick is "overly complicated" the one on my 2006 Jetta TDI is downright schitzophrenic! It takes at least a half dozen attempts to get it to tell you what you need to know, "how much oil is in the crankcase"? "

So much for German engineering. Overrated as everything else that's overrated.

By the way, I checked for engine pressure rigth after turning off the engine as someone here suggested and didn't see any pressure build-up. Does this mnea my PCV is good?

xwesx

Not necessarily "good", but it does mean that you should be safe waiting to see how the oil usage goes over the next few months as you had suggested earlier. If your crankcase was pressurizing, you wouldn't want to wait because you would take the chance that a seal / gasket might give out on you, leading to more problems down the road. :sick:

the_big_al

I posted this in the Impala forum a while back but didn't get any responses and so I'll post it here....

Heres a general question for the Impala drivers out there. I have a 2004 with the 3.4 motor. I currently run a 10K oci with Mobile 1 0w30. My question is this. I reset the oil change light a long while back and I think it has been at leat 10K since I reset it. I know the oil monitor is calibrated for standard dino oil and a 10K oil change on dino oil seems really long, for me at least. However, if true, I may just go back to dino oil, or extend my M1 change to 15K miles???

(Also, as I side note, I just changed the oil which had about 12K on it. During that particular OCI, I think I used 2 extra quarts of oil. This is also the OCI that I am referring to with the change oil indicator. I am pretty sure I reset the oil reminder the oil change 12K ago and if so, the car went at least 12K miles with out the change oil light popping up. However I am not sure if I reset it and I don't recall reseting it at any point during the last 12K miles, however I could have done so and just don't remember. I did however remember to reset it at the last oil change and so now I can be sure how long it goes until it comes on... I am still using M1 0w30 with an AC Delco filter.)

I also know that the change oil light will pop up based on some sort of complex algorithm that takes into account your driving style and does not actually "monitor" or test the oil...

obyone

If I were a betting person, I'd bet you had reset the oil monitor within the last 12K miles. I'd reset the monitor again logging date and mileage and paste it where you won't lose it.

the_big_al

you're probably right... when I did the last oil change a couple thousand miles ago, I made sure to go into the settings through the radio and reset it. It's not a laborious process, but it is a process, so I would've thought I'd remember doing it?? But I guess I don't...

So this time around, the mileage (not the date though) have been logged... (Mentally, but it's easy to remember since I change oil on the 10K mark .. i.e 40K, 50K, 60K, next one will be at 70K... well actually 72K since the last one was done at 62K, but I digress... lol)

isellhondas

Jumping in late here, I know...

If your Honda is using a quart of oil every 3000 miles, this is not a problem. totally normal and acceptable.

All cars burn "some" oil. They have to.

And I wouldn't keep "topping it off". There is no need to do this and no benefir to the car.

Just keep checking it to make sure it doesn't get worse.

I once heard a GM rep tell the owner of a Chevy truck that anything over 800 miles on a quart of oil is within acceptable range.

obyone

I once heard a GM rep tell the owner of a Chevy truck that anything over 800 miles on a quart of oil is within acceptable range.

Was that a '56 or '57 Chevy? :confuse:

According to that you would be adding 5 quarts per 4K miles. That can get expensive, well maybe not at that rate you could skip the oil change as it's constantly being rotated. :surprise:

isellhondas

Nope, that was in the mid eighties.

tamu2002

"And I wouldn't keep "topping it off". There is no need to do this and no benefir to the car. "

Thanks isellhonda. I topped it off because it was below the low mark. But I take it you meant there's no difference as long as the level is between the low and full marks. I'd agree with you on that. By the way I checked the oil yesterday and it was a bit above the half full point. Will keep an eye on it.

isellhondas

Yep, that's what I meant.

Just watch it and don't fret it if it takes a quart of oil once in awhile as long as it doesn't worsen.

obyone

Yeah I wouldn't doubt that.

The '57 Chevy was better built than anything GM built in the 80's.

Dad had bought an '86 Cutlass with the 6 banger and 3 speed. I had bought an '86 Maxima with a six banger and 4 speed with the prices about the same. There was no comparison between the two cars. The GM was a dog. Needless to say his next car was a '90 Camry.

Funny thing the Cutlass didn't do anything well. But it didn't burn any oil. No refills between 3K OCI.

Sandman6472

The in-laws bought this for my wife and it was a great car for us. Fit the 5 of us perfectly when our last appeared in '87 and we kept it till the tranny crapped out in '93. After numerous tries to fix it, we traded it in on a Camry & were so happy, we bought a '95 Camry after the '93 was involved in a bad accident. Both great cars, and we've bought foreign makes ever since. We'll be buying a 2012 or 2013 model & the Cruze is definitely in the running alongside the Hyundai small twins on our short list...figure it's time to give an American auto maker a shot at our $!

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

ruking1

1/2 qt OVER is not a bad guess. I'd say no harm no foul up to 1 qt. VW dealers routinely over fill by 84% of one qt (27 oz) with no apparent ill effects. This is despite dire warnings from VW itself. Funny thing is; the VW dealers are the one's who will perform engine warranty work should the occasion arise... due to the over fill warnings. !?

If this sounds disjointed or is duplicated, apologies. The system seems to swallow up or disappear what I write. I type something ... it disappears...

ruking1

The underlying action is oil continues to return to the sump. For me this has necessitated 2 readings: 1. IAW the VW oil dipstick measuring procedure 2. overnight. Once you know where both are, it is simple to triangulate,... if you are short/over or just right. The overnight seems to be more accurate, once you know item #1.

ruking1

Put the date and mileage down somewhere. That should take the doubt and fear out of the equation/s. Also the OLM (oil life monitoring, as GM calls it) can STILL do its own thing. I personally would go to the 15,000 miles OCI with Mobil One synthetic, or as a minimum with the 10,000 miles OCI.

tamu2002

I checked the oil again fter being parked for a few days during the holidays. And this time the oil was ~0.5 qt OVER the "full" mark!@!#$ What is going on with this car (06 Accord)!?

ruking1

Honda Accord is copying VW, GEEEEEEZ.

xwesx

It is going to read higher than it would if you had shut of the car more recently because of additional drain back.

I wouldn't worry about it with that amount of variation, just check it under relatively consistent circumstances and call it good!

tamu2002

I always did the checking after at least 10 hours of sitting. I'd think the oil would be done draining back after 10 hours, no?

In a way I was a bit relieved that maybe my Honda doesn't burn as much oil as I'd thought.

jeffyscott

Independent shop we use for service now uses Amsoil (used to use Mobil 1). He is telling me that their 5W40 meets VW spec 502.00. From past discussions, I believe that Amsoil claims it meets the spec, but they have never actually been officially certified/approved by VW?

Since the car is now 5.5 years old, it is out of all warranties, so I am not too worried about official approvals and all, but I would like to know if those of you here that are NOT Amsoil zealots think this oil is as good as Mobil 1 or at least good enough to use and, say, as good as Castrol Syntec, since if I go to the dealer, that is what they use.

We have a Jetta with the 2.5 engine and change oil at 12 mo/10,000 miles. Usually this ends up being 12 months and about 7000-8000 miles.

I am assuming this: http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/afl.aspx is the oil he is planning to use.

ruking1

In my own mind Amsoil is a superior oil to Mobil One. I must stress than I have not used Amsoil. I have indeed used various Mobil One products in various engine products for an aggregate of 994,000 miles. This is not noteworthy to me, but OCI's have ranged from a low of 15,000 miles to a high of 30,700 miles (03 TDI ALH) There is not a doubt in my mind using competing Amsoil products, (other also such as Redline, etc) that I would have been equally as pleased.

I have also used "conventional oil/s" (different brands for a app 500,000 miles. )

Having said all of that, Mobil One products (I currently use 5w30, 0w30, 0w20,5w20, 5w40.) : 1. offer better price/performance 2. more widespread availability 3. actually submits and maintains their products for the various certifications. 4. have actually yielded UOA's that basically confirm time and time again (anecdotally if you will) what I am saying. Is it a magic bullet? Absolutely NOT !!

So in a back wards sort of way, but true nonetheless, VW 502.00 is a less "STRINGENT" specification than say ACEA B3 (if I remember correctly), but more currently CI-4 (to)on back.

So I would ask if Amsoil products are worth whatever premiums you care to spend ? For me, over 994,000 miles the answers are I am sure you can infer.

shipo

My personal belief is that if Amsoil was 502.00 compliant, then they would have had their oil certified; that they haven't speaks volumes.

Then there's the whole MLM thing, a marketing practice that I abhor. My advice, avoid Amsoil at all cost.

Sandman6472

Why have they not had their oil certified? Seems a no brainer to me, especially if one is trying to compete with Mobil1 or other synthetics? Everytime an Amsoil seller comes here, they have no answer to this question & try to deflect all other questions. Again, a very telling situation!

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

ruking1

I would invite people to review the information presented on the Amsoil.com web site.

When I read it years ago and reread @ various times, the party line was they did not want to pay the fees and "per unit costs fees (I do not remember the correct terminology/ies) in that process, and maintanance. Secondarily, they wanted to use those monies saved, for other purposes: such as their own R& D and testing equal to or better than so called recognized certifications. Admittedly what all this means in practical English is subject to intrepretation, of which not being a party to or practicing law, I as a consumer can misinterprete.

So for example (again subject to a lot of stipulations) in the case of engine warranty demand, Amsoil will gladly write a letter citing the antitrust law on the topic (Magnunsen?) to a oem/dealer denying warranty due to oil use not in keeping with specifications.

Sandman6472

Best to just spend the $, get the people who use the others the piece of mind they require & move on. Due to my low yearly mileage, synthetic doesn't make sense for my particular application, but know plenty of folks who use synthetic oil & use Mobil1 consistently...they just trust it unlike Amsoil. Multiply that by so many others & that's a lot of potential customers.

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

imidazol97

>When I read it years ago and reread various times, the party line was they did not want to pay the fees and "per unit costs fees

Just as the previous poster says, if the oil would qualify for the test, they would have spent the money and gotten it certified. It would pay back in additional customers.

There's a problem here. There's something wrong.

ruking1

There are many robust "conventional" oils that can really make the grade. So for example a 04 Civic has a 10,000 miles OCI with (every other) OCI oil FILTER change recommendation @20,000 miles!!!! (Again on CONVENTIONAL oil, aka 5w20). If I was wanting to do only 10,000 miles OCI's, I would be just fine with conventional oil.

Sandman6472

I change my oil when it gets down to 15% & use a synthetic blend, Kendall I think. Works great for me & now, since my mileage has dropped by 2/3's due to retirement, all I'll need to do is change it once a year. I was driving about 7k/year, so I'll be lucky to get 2.5k miles a year. Probably won't even get down to 15%, so once a year should work out just fine. Plan to keep the car for another 5.5 years which works for me.

For the other cars in our stable, been doing the oil changes at the 4k to 5k. Know I could go to longer intervals, but this seems to work just fine.

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

Mr_Shiftright

which the dealer will promptly throw in the wastepaper basket.

krzyss

VW warranty says any oil meeting VW502.00 spec.
Well Amsoil claims that its oil (Euro spec something) meets the spec but they never passed the test.
Where Magnussen law is broken by VW?
VW provides a list of oils that meet the spec and Amsoil is not on the list.

Krzys

Mr_Shiftright

Exactly -- if your engine suffers the symptoms of oil starvation, for whatever reason...then once the dealer busts your engine apart and sees the typical oil-starvation indicators (nothing subtle about them...every good mechanic can spot them), then your $6000 VW engine is in the toilet and you're paying for a new one.

Sure you can hire an automotive forensic expert to try and prove that VW's engine had an engineering fault, but on a $6000 claim, what is the point of that. You might end up still losing and be $12000 in the hole.

Once you're out of warranty, you can use whatever you want.

ruking1

Congradulations on getting to retirement ! If 2.5k miles is all you do per year, may I suggest (off topic) getting a battery trickle charger, like Battery Tender Plus It would seem that batteries would be a shorter interval casuality sitting most of the time (aka 208 miles per month) Again way off topic my 04 Civic battery just died @ 111,000 miles @ app 67 mo. It's still being used for a 54 miles R/T commute.

For those kinds of miles, I would indeed be tempted to use conventional oil and change it every 4 years (10,000/2,500=). Now I have gone as long as 5 years (in another product and Mobil One 5w30, 4,000 miles per year)

ruking1

Yes, it almost goes without saying that using synthetic oil is not the magic elixir. Again many engines have FAILED for a host of reasons that have used synthetic oil.

This is not a secret, but various oems have marketed and in (lesser) some cases continue to make engine products that have been are and some continue to be prone to cooking engine oil. Indeed VW "settled" a CALS on the 1.8T for sludging issues (coking). http://www.autoweek.com/article/20100928/CARNEWS/100929873

Further the 2.0 engine (non turbo, aka normally aspirated) has been shown to consume oil at a very fast (in my opinion) rate. As probably most folks are aware, oem's consider consumption of 1 qt per 1,000 miles as "NORMAL."

My humble opinion is to due diligence, the due diligence to AVOID the engines made by whatever oems that consume oil at those kind of consumption rates and or "COOK" engine oil, synthetic or conventional.

For those used to danger and opportunity, one can actually buy these MY engines, sans the cost of repairs and if they need repairs make demands on VW. So it is a chance to get a used car FAR cheaper than normal.