Synthetic Oil Lesson - Page 3 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

gsxr · #31 01-15-2003, 04:57 PM

Yep, and for $18.xx you can get a FIVE quart jug of Mobil-1, which is a better product than the Rotella. Too bad the only suitable M1 for our diesels is 15W-50, which I have only seen ONCE in Wally World. I used to think it didn't exist, but nope, it's just extremely rare. They normally carry the 5W-30 and 10W-30 weights in the 5-qt jugs but those won't work for our diesels...

:p

#32 01-15-2003, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Bill DeWitt
Wally World did raise their prices this past week-end.
It was $12.xx?. and now it is $18.88 a gallon.

The price went up, but I am sure that it will come back down again. I have noticed that they do that with a lot of products.

gsxr · #33 01-15-2003, 05:44 PM

Yes, but at 12.xx for 4 quarts on inferior product, vs 18.xx for 5 quarts of superior product, the M1 is the better deal (since price per quart is almost the same).

rwthomas1 · #34 01-15-2003, 06:53 PM

Hey, I've said this before so I'll say it again: Chevron now makes a SYNTHETIC Delo400 5w-40. I can get it at a local distributor for $13.98/gallon which makes it a good alternative to Rotella synthetic. RT

gsxr · #35 01-15-2003, 07:04 PM

Wow, really? I heard they make it, but hadn't heard the price. Might have to check into that. I wonder if it's hydrocracked dino like the Rotella, at that price it would almost have to be...? Hmmm....! Thanks for the tip though. Sorry if I missed it in a previous post.

JHZR2 · #36 01-15-2003, 08:40 PM

Here's the MSDS:

http://library.cbest.chevron.com/lubes/chevmsdsv9.nsf/f2f12b5992bba20488256b4c0074a415/4c58e9ef66ea8a3788256712006b3040?OpenDocument

The oil has 1-decene, which is PAO (group IV) oils... However, it says 'or isosyn base oils' which I believe are hydrocracked group II highly refined hydrocracked base oils (comprable in quality to group III 'synthetics') or Group III (isomerized, hydrocracked slack wax)oils, which are more or less the same as Shell's XHVI base oil, which is the base stock of the rotella synth, and are used (with mixed in PAO) for high performance oils like shell helix ultra, the ferrari f1 race oils, etc.

So it loks like a PAO oil with some high quality balance... Gives the benefits of the PAO with the cost savings of the Group III oils. I believe group III synths cant rreach as low of viscosities as PAO stocks, which is why rotella synth barely squeaks in as a 5 weight oil... But thats a story for another day... WHo knows the amouts of each though, it might only be a tiny bit of the PAO oils, with a lot of group III, or vice-versa, or a 50/50 mix. Who knows, MSDSs can be written pretty sneakily, I bet.

Sorry for the babbling, hope this helps though.

JMH

Dana B. · #37 01-15-2003, 10:12 PM

In addition to better engine protection, I have switched to synthetics because I'm lazy. And 'cause I'm (quasi) cheap.

Swapping the oil on my diesel MB or VW is a major hassle on account of the belly pans. At 3,000-mile intervals, driving 1000 miles a month just for work means I must change oil every time I turn around for roughly $30 a shot at the local convenience lube.

Going synthetic means I can safely wap oil at between 5K and 10K miles, costing between $26 and $40 in oil, plus $25 for filters and labor at my MB mechanic (Enrique) -- a savings up to $40 every 10k miles.

Many folks fret over oil (the wars go on, here and at other forums). Not me. Dino has lubed autos for 100 years. Synthetics are simply more practical. Hey, point and shoot.

BTW, I tried finding synthetic Delo 400, but the stuff's even rarer than Delvac 1; you wonder why they even bother making it. I wonder if Mobil 1 -- without its soot retaining abilities -- is as good as syn-Delo, or Rotella T.

gsxr · #38 01-15-2003, 10:21 PM

Dana, Mobil-1 has good soot suspension abilities, just not to the extreme that the "heavy duty" diesel oils will (Delvac, Delo 400, etc). I wouldn't worry about it until you consistently get over 2% soot via analysis, or plan to push the change interval to 15k+. One analysis at a 10k change wouldn't hurt just to get an idea of what your car produces.

Dana B. · #39 01-15-2003, 11:13 PM

GSXR -

Thanks. Now that I'm forsaking Rotella T (at two gallons per change, sure liked that $13 price), I may go for M-1. Also jotted down the Delvac oil analysis number. Gr8 idea. Plan to limit changes to 10K, but with clean data may go longer.

:p

JHZR2 · #40 01-15-2003, 11:37 PM

See my post on delvac1 at CAT dealers (which was due to my reading this thread)... Depending upon where you get your M1, you might be better off going to a caterpilliar dealer or finding a place to get delvac 1 for around $21/gal. I know a lot of places(even most wal-marts) sell m1 for nearly $5 a quart (one that I shop at has it for ~$3.50/qt). The 5qt specials at wal-mart are rare and hard to find, especially in the 15w-50, so for if youre going to pay nealry $5/qt, you might as well splurge and get the delvac1... m1 is a fine oil and will do great in diesels, but if youre paying the same, might as well get something that is superior and designed for diesel operation.
IMO

JMH

lrg · #41 01-15-2003, 11:55 PM

Since I am a fan of RedLine stuff I called them and got the name of my local distributor. He sells me 15W-40 that is specifically made for diesels. It's not cheap at $6.50/qt but I'm pretty comfortable going 10,000 miles between changes. The point is sometimes you can look up and call the local distributor of something and they will sell it to you as long as you are willing to by at least a couple of cases.

#42 01-16-2003, 09:00 AM

http://avlube.com/automotive.htm sells Mobil Delvac 1 full synthetic 5W-40 diesel engine oil. Shipped in a case 4 one gallon containers for $81.39 a case, plus shipping.

They also sell Fuel Analysis kits and Oil Analysis kits.

NC240D76 · #43 01-16-2003, 07:10 PM

I have been following this thread and like what I hear concerning the syn oil for starting and length of oil changes but I seem to be getting a mixed story on older 240ds and nothing specific on the 115's.

I have a 1976 240d w/auto trany and unknown mileage (although I suspect a bunch). See "no kickdown on 240d auto trany" for more details.
The car has a little smoke on start-up (sometimes a good puff) and smokes a little going down the road but the harder and more it is run the better it runs and the less it smokes. It has been harder to start in the mornings since the temp has been below freezing and I have had to use the block heater over night but will start easily after work if the day has been at all warm 40-50 degrees.
I would like to switch over to all synthetics (motor, transmission, rearend, ps?) but would this be wise and what should I use in this old and misused (but coming back) diesel?
Thanks

psfred · #44 01-16-2003, 09:33 PM

The old 615/616 engine will soot up far faster than the newer ones.

I'd check the soot level after switching for a while (every 3000 miles or so) before running extended changes. I suspect you will find that you need to change it due to soot more quickly than at 6000 mile intervals.

Certainly, if you use more than a quart in a thousand miles I'd not bother to change to synthetic simply due to cost!

Slow starts and running better when hot sounds like tight valves to me -- have you checked the clearance lately?

Peter

NC240D76 · #45 01-16-2003, 11:06 PM

The odometer is dead but in the last estimated 400 miles it has used no oil at all.
I have not checked the valves and was going to wait until I had a manual beside me before trying it but it is on the "to do" list.
What about the other fluids, transmission and so forth, would you switch and what would you use?