One more thing . . . there are usually a lot of rebate offers from oil companies for synthetic oil . . . this oil change I got a $7.00 coupon for Quaker State, dropping my oil & filter change cost to $16, the rebate is on-line so I don’t even have to buy a postage stamp. $16 for a DIY full synthetic oil & filter change is a deal in my opinion. To the OP . . . some folks seem to think that switching to full synthetic after a bunch of miles will clean the insides of the engine and possibly cause leaks, I’ve never witnessed it personally. Any comments folks? Good luck OP! Rocketman
I had one of those Quaker State rebates a number of years ago. They required me to mail them a copy of the oil change receipt from the dealer to get the rebate. They refused the rebate because they didn’t like the wording on the receipt. I don’t recall the details, but I photoshopped the receipt to change the wording, mailed them the new one, and got the rebate.
The service manager got a good laugh out of that when I showed him the mod.
Synthetic oil is better but do you plan to keep the truck forever? If so, it isn’t a bad idea. I would stay with the original suggested viscosity. If the truck is about the fall in two because of rust or the transmission is about to go out but the engine still runs great, use the cheapest oil that meets the required spec.
I have put synthetic into some pretty neglected engines and yes, it will remove a lot of sludge and other crud and suspend it into the oil. The oil will look pretty dark and nasty quicker on the first change. I would suggest a change sooner, possibly as soon as 500 miles, if your oil turns dark very fast.
I normally wait for the synthetic to go on sale and buy several changes at once. It is often no more expensive than another name brand conventional oil when you do it this way.
I changed to synthetic in my old BMW 2002 and found that after about 10,000 miles it leaked heavily through the oil pan and valve cover gaskets, which were made of a cork-like material. Changing back to regular oil fixed the leaks, but I needed to replace my oil pan gasket. Perhaps my oil pan gasket was the cause of the problem, but if you switch, or if you change to a lower weight oil, make sure you check your oil levels frequently and watch your driveway in case the engine develops leaks. I am sure that newer gasket materials are better than the ones in my '70’s vintage car.
I know it has only been five days since this thread was started but it would be interesting if the OP posted their decision on changing oil and why. Maybe they will see this and do so.
I’m looking for a play in Canola oil. Could it be the new liquid gold? Who/which company’s have the largest share growing rapeseed and making/marketing Canola as The New Motor Oil of the Future? As a car focused community, using/advocating a lubricating product less harmful to the air we breathe and our water is where it’s at.
There’s absolutely no way I’m lubing my engine with veggie oil.
If you do so, let us know how you make out.
that’s what i was going to say, mountainbike. tell me how you like it! but, but, but, it has been tested? no?
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As a car focused community, using/advocating a lubricating product less harmful to the air we breathe and our water is where it's at.Sorry, but I don't see the "less harmful" angle.
Remember, the current motor oil is only “hazardous waste” AFTER being run through the engine. As benign as “virgin” rapeseed oil is…by the time you’ve formulated it, added detergents, dispersants, ZDDP, borates, viscosity index improvers, etc…and run it inside an engine for 5,000 miles(!), whatever comes out–let’s just say I won’t be cooking MY French fires in it.
@meanjoe75fan, did you read the excerpt from the book posted by @circuitsmith? The Cano-lube does not have the additives you listed. The authors did not explicitly tell us what additives were used, just that they are bio-friendly. Feel free to help me understand what that means. I would like to see the tests repeated to determine if the results repeat as well. My main concern at this point is the Ethanol Effect. Rapeseed prices are bound to go up and possibly price Caola out of the food stock market. They we will have to use regular old vegetable oil (soy bean oil) again. Well, I use soy bean oil anyway because it works and is less expensive than Canola.
I’ll be curious how they modify viscosity for temperature, and for different engines. That’s a 14 year old report, wonder what the status is?
Okay, I’ve read it NOW. It seems that bio-oil has additives, too, just different ones: mostly anti-oxidant/anti-polymerization ones. I do not know the relative toxicities of them, though, and defer to those that do.
My point is threefold: first, the EPA requires similar handling and disposal of mineral and vegetable oils; second, that vegetable oil spills do result in “kill-offs” of aquatic life (referenced a cooking-oil spill somewhere in WA state that killed 4 miles’ worth of fish); third, that waste (bio) motor oil would have similar disposal protocols, and at least somewhat similar toxicities, as compared to mineral oil lubes. (I WILL grant that bio-oils will likely persist less time in the environment, due to being more readily bio-degradable–however, mineral oil is at least slowly bio-degradable in the environment; it’s not PCB transformer oil, after all.)