Best no BS motor oil/filter comparison?

On Nov 24, 2:02*am, HiC > wrote:
> I see opinions of the "I swear by" type all over the map. Anyone know
> of a good site that shows the truth about which brand/type of oil &
> filter performs the best? Thinking in the passenger car realm.
>
> Thanks

I have been driving cars since I was 15 years old (59) years and usd
to do all my own oil changes until I got too old .

The big thing with oil and filters is to change the oil and filter
regularly and often, regardless of brand.

When I was a poor young lad I used reclaimed motor oil that had been
re-refined and the cheapest oil filter I could get.

Now that I can afford to pay someone to do my oil changes ? I take it
to a Toyota dealer and they change the oil for me for $20.00 Canadian
and change including the filter, but I supply the oil (Mobil1 5W30
yellow cap extended service , $27.00 and change at Walmart for 4-5
quarts.)

In all those years I have never, ever, had an oil related problem with
my vehicles.

In my early years before synthetic oil I changed the oil+filter every
2400-3000 miles because MOST of my driving was severe service (city)

Now with the extended service Mobil1 Synthetic,(yellow cap) I change
it every 5000 miles .Yellow cap is GAURANTEED FOR 15,000 MILES BY
MOBIL.

Since my driving is now about 50-50 NORMAL and severe service(highway
and city)

Like I say , I have never , ever ,had an oil related problem with any
of my cars over the years.

Most of my cars have gone well over 315,000 klms and then were given
to my kids ,and they still ran forever.

The secret is ;change your oil according to your driving conditions.

"SMS" > wrote in message news:3OzXk.8376
> Most any oil can do 10,000 mile in terms of providing lubrication.
> Synthetics become acidic, and eventually become saturated with suspended
> soot particles, just like regular oil. An oil analysis is a good
> investment to determine the optimum oil change interval.
>
> The synthetic base stock is better for low temperature start-ups, and
> high-temperature continued operation, such as is seen in high
> performance and turbo-charged engines.

Claims do not constitute proof...

"SMS" > wrote in message
...
> Ashton Crusher wrote:
>
>> Unless you are servicing large diesel locomotives, and perhaps some
>> large trucks, the only value to an oil analysis is to make money for
>> the company providing the service or to help determine AFTER THE FACT
>> what went wrong. For the cost of the analysis you could just have the
>> oil changed.
>
> Wrong. You get the analysis to determine the optimal change interval, it's
> a one or time expense of less than $20, versus the continued cost of
> changing your oil more often than necessary.

Wrong yourself...as your car ages, you have to keep up the occasional
analysis
if you are going to monitor the indicated status of the lubricant. Wear,
etc,
changes with time. Particulates in the oil are supposed to be very
important in
the wear picture, but the data behind this is lacking and incomplete as far
as I
have seen.

Some of these oil laboratories have rather poor reproducibility in their
analyses.
Interpretation of the results can also be misleading.

Anyone who wishes to do so can spend his money on oil analyses.

"Mark A" > wrote in message news:0clYk.1725
> I also had an edger with a Briggs and Stratton engine and the oil turned
> black after one use. I knew immediately that the Briggs and Stratton
> engine I had then (don't know about newer ones) was not suitably built for
> synthetic oil (in the same way those Chevy Caprice and Crown Vic engines
> used in NYC taxis are not suitable for synthetic oil).

Mine was a B&S too, Mark.. The engine was ruined in short order.

"Ashton Crusher" > wrote in message

> That has nothing to do with what's optimum, it's just what everyone
> already knew, that automakers call for change internals that are way
> too short for today's oil. Nothing is provided showing just what
> mileage is truly optimum. You are right back where you started.


Wouldnt you guess, Ashton, that the automakers are covering their
rears on this? If you tell someone he can run the oil for 15,000 miles,
he may do it, and there can be eventual warranty implications. It
sounds like a policy decision rather than a technical one.

Lots of manufacturers (foods, for example) put "use by" dates on their
products NOT because the products are bad after that time. It relieves
extended product quality warranty questions, I guess.

HLS wrote:
>
> "SMS" > wrote in message news:3OzXk.8376
>> Most any oil can do 10,000 mile in terms of providing lubrication.
>> Synthetics become acidic, and eventually become saturated with
>> suspended soot particles, just like regular oil. An oil analysis is a
>> good investment to determine the optimum oil change interval.
>>
>> The synthetic base stock is better for low temperature start-ups, and
>> high-temperature continued operation, such as is seen in high
>> performance and turbo-charged engines.
>
> Claims do not constitute proof...

These are the claims of the synthetic oil manufacturers, not my claims,
but I agree, their claims don't constitute proof. Take whatever they say
with many grains of salt, since they have a vested interest in making
these unproven claims.

It's always better to believe an unbiased source that has no interest in
selling you anything, rather than unsubstantiated claims from
individuals promoting a products without any supporting facts.

Fortunately, unbiased sources support the synthetic manufacturer's
claims of benefits for low-temperature operation, and high performance
engines.

"Does my vehicle need synthetic oil?

There is little doubt that synthetic oil offers superior engine
protection under extreme operating conditions. However, many owners may
not operate their vehicles in conditions that warrant the additional
engine protection of synthetic motor oil. For most owners,
petroleum-based motor oils are just fine. Change the oil at the
manufacturer’s recommended interval (found in the owner’s manual) and
your vehicle will reward you with a long service life.

If your vehicle is turbocharged, used for towing heavy loads, driven on
the racetrack, or operated in extreme temperatures, synthetic oil may be
beneficial for extended engine life. Each of these harsh operating
conditions demand more from your engine and motor oil, and synthetic oil
can deliver the needed protection."

"http://www.jdpower.com/autos/articles/synthetic-motor-oils"


Unfortunately, there has never been any basis for claims of other
benefits, such as increased engine longevity, better mileage, higher
torque, etc. In fact Redline produced a "test" where they conveniently
showed the differences between 0W30 synthetic, and 10W30 conventional.
The 0W30 synthetic had a slight advantage over the 10W30 conventional in
maximum power, torque, and lower psi, but a 5W30 conventional would have
been about equal to the 0W30 synthetic.

Ray O wrote:
> "WindsorFox<[SS]>" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Ray O wrote:
>>> "WindsorFox<[SS]>" > wrote in message
>>> ...
>>>> SMS wrote:
>>>>> Ray O wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> If removal of a valve cover confirmed that at least the top end of the
>>>>>> engine was as clean as the seller claimed, then continuing to use
>>>>>> synthetic oil is probably a good bet.
>>>>> How often have you removed a valve cover on a high-mileage vehicle that
>>>>> has had regular oil changes with conventional detergent motor oil and
>>>>> seen a gunked up top end?
>>>> Too numerous to count. Do not use Syntec.
>>> Why not?
>> It left crap in my Mustang that Royal Purple had to clean out.
>>
>
> What kind of crap? Under what operating conditions? How many Royal Purple
> oil changes did it take to clean it out?


Normal conditions, mostly highway mileage he had an hour Interstate
drive to work. No modification, no drag racing. The car had about 40 or
50K miles on it. On the first oil change I went to RP and inside of a
week I started seeing what looked like flakes of varnish on the dip
stick. A couple of years later when I replaced the heads and intake I
saw what it was. The non-wear surfaces of the cam looked like it had a
thin layer of shellac on it. Since the previous owner used Syntec since
day one and I changed to RP and it cleaned it, one can only assume the
Syntec left the crap layer behind.after the 2nd or 3rd RP change it had
stopped and somewhere after that I switched to Amsoil. I guess that side
effect of RP can be really good IF you know about it and keep it in
check and if you don't have some sludge/varnish that is plugging a hole.

Oh, the valve covers were horrendous as well, I had to chisel the crap
out with a screwdriver. They looked almost as bad as a 60K mile Pennzoil
set of valve covers used to if you used it in the 70s.

--
"Boy, I've spent my adult life dealing with people like you.
There are few things that intimidate me; and a
post-adolescent, semi-literate cretin ain't one of them." - LSP972

"WindsorFox<[SS]>" > wrote in message
...
> Ray O wrote:
>> "WindsorFox<[SS]>" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> Ray O wrote:
>>>> "WindsorFox<[SS]>" > wrote in message
>>>> ...
>>>>> SMS wrote:
>>>>>> Ray O wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> If removal of a valve cover confirmed that at least the top end of
>>>>>>> the engine was as clean as the seller claimed, then continuing to
>>>>>>> use synthetic oil is probably a good bet.
>>>>>> How often have you removed a valve cover on a high-mileage vehicle
>>>>>> that has had regular oil changes with conventional detergent motor
>>>>>> oil and seen a gunked up top end?
>>>>> Too numerous to count. Do not use Syntec.
>>>> Why not?
>>> It left crap in my Mustang that Royal Purple had to clean out.
>>>
>>
>> What kind of crap? Under what operating conditions? How many Royal
>> Purple oil changes did it take to clean it out?
>
>
> Normal conditions, mostly highway mileage he had an hour Interstate
> drive to work. No modification, no drag racing. The car had about 40 or
> 50K miles on it. On the first oil change I went to RP and inside of a week
> I started seeing what looked like flakes of varnish on the dip stick. A
> couple of years later when I replaced the heads and intake I saw what it
> was. The non-wear surfaces of the cam looked like it had a thin layer of
> shellac on it. Since the previous owner used Syntec since day one and I
> changed to RP and it cleaned it, one can only assume the Syntec left the
> crap layer behind.after the 2nd or 3rd RP change it had stopped and
> somewhere after that I switched to Amsoil. I guess that side effect of RP
> can be really good IF you know about it and keep it in check and if you
> don't have some sludge/varnish that is plugging a hole.
>
> Oh, the valve covers were horrendous as well, I had to chisel the crap out
> with a screwdriver. They looked almost as bad as a 60K mile Pennzoil set
> of valve covers used to if you used it in the 70s.
>

Hmmm, if you acquired the car with 40K or 50K miles, you have only the
original owner's word that the Syntec was used from day one and that the oil
was changed according to Ford's recommended intervals. I think a more
likely cause of the buildup is neglected oil changes, whether using
conventional or synthetic oil, and the original owner switched to Syntec in
hopes of cleaning out the sludge. As far as the sludge in the valve cover,
it was probably there before you acquired the vehicle, but it is
theoretically possible (though not probable) that the sludge came from the
Royal Purple or Amsoil products or some kind or reaction from switching
products.
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

Ray O wrote:
>> Oh, the valve covers were horrendous as well, I had to chisel the crap out
>> with a screwdriver. They looked almost as bad as a 60K mile Pennzoil set
>> of valve covers used to if you used it in the 70s.
>>
>
> Hmmm, if you acquired the car with 40K or 50K miles, you have only the
> original owner's word that the Syntec was used from day one and that the oil
> was changed according to Ford's recommended intervals. I think a more
> likely cause of the buildup is neglected oil changes, whether using
> conventional or synthetic oil, and the original owner switched to Syntec in
> hopes of cleaning out the sludge.


You are incorrect. The original owner is a best friend I've known
since middle school. I was there when he bought the car and told him
that day when he sold it, I had first shot. I was the passenger or
driver for a lot of those miles and I have the service records for the
car and his word it never went more than 5K miles for a change if that.
I was also there the day that he bought the first change of Syntec. He
decided on Syntec because at the time he was a chemist for Ethyl and his
unit was responsible for making the additives package for Castrol Syntec
and I used Syntec at the time as well in my 85 Toyota truck. I'm not so
sure he'd want to admit that now.


> As far as the sludge in the valve cover,
> it was probably there before you acquired the vehicle, but it is
> theoretically possible (though not probable) that the sludge came from the
> Royal Purple or Amsoil products or some kind or reaction from switching
> products.



I'm sure the sludge was there before I bought it, and I'm also sure
that the RP remove some of it too. What was left was hard and too far
away for the oil flow to reach. In the years that have past since I made
the mods to that engine, the valve covers that are on it now remain as
free from gunk as they were when I put them on. You may use Sytec if you
like, but after my experience I will steer clear of it and use a real
synthetic oil.

--
"Boy, I've spent my adult life dealing with people like you.
There are few things that intimidate me; and a
post-adolescent, semi-literate cretin ain't one of them." - LSP972

"Dick R." > wrote in message
. ..
> This is one of the longest threads I've ever seen.
> Maybe someone should start a new newsgroup for oil/filters?
> :-)
> Dick

Oh, dont even whisper that...This sort of thing happens just about every
time
someone wants to talk oil and filters...And nothing is ever resolved.