One of the benefits of sythetic oils are that they do not readily coke the bearings in your turbo as does mineral oil. I probably will continue to use 15w40 delo 400 in the MB with a 3000 mile drain interval. My 2000 VW Jetta get Caterpillar 5w40 synthetic diesel engine oil, changed at 10,000 mile intervals per VW's reccomendation. I don't know much about amsoil but I can assure you Caterpillar Tractor does not abuse thier engines.:)

Mercedes never did recommend 3K oil changes. They always said 5K, under ideal conditions. Should you drive in alot of stop and go, extended idling, towing, etc. change every 2500 miles. Since most people have a comdination of both, 3K seems to be a safe bet. Synthetic oils have been around for 20 plus years. Why is it only now they, MB, recommend synthetic oil. Is it their sponsorship from Mobil, to cover up the flawed FSS program, or to make it appear that the cars cost less to maintain by stretching the oil change intervals. Even VW recommmens 10K oil changes and that is using regular oil. The OEM oil filters for VW, made by MANN and Mahle are "30,000 KM long life" filters. I still change the oil and filters in both the Benzes and the VW at 3K.

Leather,

I just like cars, especially MB. I also have some antique Chryslers.
I also have a 240D in excellent running condition but I don't use it anymore. I got spoiled by the turbo engines.

I drive the winter 300SD in the summer too for every day use, saves a lot of wear and tear on the good MBs when I'm hauling something or taking the dogs someplace.

I use the good 300SD every year for a trip to the west U.S. The 300SDL is in mint condition and used for special occasions.

P E H

1) 5W-30 is NOT an approved oil weight by MB. Don't use that in any MB diesel engine. You want 15W-40, 5W-40, or for SuperSyn, 15W-50.

2) Amsoil uses Mobil base stock. Amsoil is excellent quality oil and I would use it in a heartbeat. However it is easier & cheaper for me to buy Mobil-1 (or Delvac-1, which I use in my 2 newer cars.)

3) The stock MB filter DOES NOT REMOVE SOOT. Only an aftermarket bypass filter can do that. The oil is supposed to suspend the soot.

4) The soot level in the oil, which determines how long the oil "lasts", will be different for EVERY engine. The person who found 10k is the max for his 240D is only the limit for THAT engine. My 87's show less than 1% soot in 10kmi, meaning I could go 30kmi before changing (Delvac-1).

5) Synthetics are good insurance for turbocharged engines where the heat load on the oil is massive.

6) I change my Delvac-1 at 10kmi and will extend to 15kmi since the oil anaylsis has been coming back squeaky clean and draining at 10k is wasting money, according to Delvac Accutrack. Changing synthetic at 3k is really wasting money. Why not change it at 300 miles? The engine will last indefinitely. Better yet, change it after every time you drive the car. :rolleyes:



Regards,

Thank you for answering my original question. Now another. How do I add a bypass filter to my 1983 300SD?

Gulf Coast Filters sells bypass filter kits that you can add to your engine if you want. However, after reading reports of people who have done this, I don't think it's worth it. Here's why. You need to replace the bypass filter element every 2000 miles, AND add a fresh quart of oil (to replace the oil removed in the saturated filter). While the oil stays cleaner longer, there is almost no cost savings, since you are continually adding oil at $5/quart. And you have the nuisance of replacing the filter (messy) and a REAL nuisance chopping into the engine lubrication system to install the silly thing. I think using extended drain intervals (10-20kmi) with full-synthetic oil designed for that use (Delvac-1), plus oil analysis to back it up, is cheaper and MUCH easier (less maintenance). However if you are the anal type that insists on clear, golden oil in your diesel, a bypass filter is the only way to achive that goal. :D


Good luck,

Thank you

DPBrowne,

You already have a bypass filter in your engine. If you ever look at the filter for MB Diesel engines, you will see that it has 2 parts. One is a full flow and other is a bypass filter.

So why add another?

P E H

The aftermarket "bypass" filters remove sub-micron (?) particles and remove soot, which the stock 2-section filter will not, and was never designed to. Just a little semantics on the naming. They are neat but IMO not really worth the hassle. ;)

I know it is HERETICAL...
 

...for a "gasser" to post on your Diesel Board, but...

I've been using a Dino 15W-40 in my MB's (450SE & 420SEL) for years, now. Usually Delo or Pennzoil LL, sometimes whatever HDEO is on sale at the time. With 5k OCI's in the ' 91, 3k OCI's in the ' 73.

I have used AMSOIL AMO 10W-40 in my wet clutch motorcycles for years, and really noticed an improvement in shifting immediately over conventional JASO MA oils.

Had the opportunity to pick up a case of gallons of their AME 15W-40 Synthetic for about $65. This will soon represent two projected 1year/10,000 mile OCI's on the 420SEL as the BobistheOilGuy oil forum boys have convinced me that a 100% synthetic HDEO can EASILY do that in a heartbeat in a well-maintained gas engine with an 8+ (?) quart capacity.

The newer Dino HDEO's are so much better than they were even 10 years ago that it took some convincing for me to (finally) see the light! Dino oils that meet both the most current gas and diesel spec's just HAVE to be superior $2 per quart oils, IMHO.

I wonder if the CH-4+rated 5W-30 & 10W-30 Dino & synthetic HDEO's are truly NOT appropriate for some MB diesels as gsxr has previously opined? I would imagine that in terribly cold climates they may be the ticket for winter operation?

Cheers!

Norm

I drive 150 miles a day back and forth to work each day in my 1980 300TD wagon which is mostly highway miles. Thus every 4 weeks or so I would need to change my oil if I changed it every 3,000 miles. I have been using the synthetic Rotella 5W-40 oil and I have been going 5,000 miles between changes. The engine uses about a quart of oil every 800 miles, so over that period it gets at least 5 new quarts of oil. This is the same routine I use on my gassers and I have had good luck over the years.

Oh no another oil thread! :eek:
Let's wait for 240Joe to chime in. :rolleyes:

LE Monolec Motor Oil
 

I found an awesome parts shop in Raleigh NC. The owner used to be the parts and service manager for the local dealership which has an excellent reputation around here.

Lawsons Quality Imported Parts. Almost every Indy in the metro area uses him for parts. Well, he has Lubrication Engineers - LE MONOLEC ULTRABLEND MOTOR OIL. His rep goes 25,000 miles between oil changes. He does change the filter more often.

Mr. Lawson uses it too in his Mercedes diesel and goes 10,000 miles between changes. It comes in 15W-40 and is $6.25 per quart.

Have any of you tried this oil??

"Let's wait for 240Joe to chime in."

You rang?

I've got my 300D with mobil 1 and I change it once a year, which is between 5 and 10k miles.

I've got my 240D with Walmart super tech 88 cents a quart(cheapest I can find locally), plus a little penzoil diesel rated oil mixed in. I also change this once a year and put about 12 kmiles on it. However, during that 1 year period I have to add about 12 to 15 quarts to keep her filled. I hit 85 mph every day, which is it's top speed.

Joe

Look who's back! :D I have to say I never expect that.