Is this stuff worth the $25 a gallon???

Whats so good about it?

Can I go 7500 miles on one change (with the henghst filter?)

Would it be better to use the non synthetic stuff ($8 a gallon), and change it every 3k miles?

tks alot
~Nate

__________________
95 Honda Shadow ACE 1100.
1999 Plymouth Neon Expresso. 2.4 swap, 10.5 to 1 comp, big cams. Autocross time attack vehicle!
2012 Escape, 'hunter" (5 sp 4cyl)

I have been using mobil one for years in all my late model vehicles with no issues. I always change oil at 5000 miles and keep the vehicles for around 200000 before passing them on. I also play around with old motor cycles and started putting synthetic in them and noticed they started seeping oil. I was told that because synthetic is sooooo slippery, the old designed oil seals were inadequate so they had to be redesigned. I don't know when this happened but i have read that anything prior to mid seventies unless it has updated oil seals is better off with good old petroleum based lubricants. I also can't think of any oil based failures when it was changed regularly though with synthetic there doesn't appear to be any wear. Again I repeat this is all based on information I have been told or read on line but not based on anything backed up by any real research that I have seen.

Nate, this is one of the best diesel engine oils out there. It's a true syn product (API Group IV/V blend) and is entirely suitable for extended drain intervals.

I'd perform UOA to determine how far you can safely travel without over-loading the oil with soot.

Can you really buy it for $25/gallon?

[QUOTE][Can I go 7500 miles on one change /QUOTE]

You can...but do you really want to? I have a grand am that I haven't changed the oil in, well, probably a year now. Runs fine, but down the road, who knows...I wouldn't risk it.

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1989 300E 144K

Yep, the farm&fleet that I work at has it on sale (we dont get a discount though)

Is that a good deal? We've got a pallet of it, at this price... We dont seem to sell too much of it, so if any body needs it, i can get it.

How much is that test?


I dont drive very far, because this is my summer car (wont risk it in the school parking lot... thats what the f150 is for)

Work, and the occasional 4 hour joyride of 16 miles (according to my odo ) Might go up- to the cabin... but in 3 months of driving it, I doubt I'll go 7500 miles...

Damn ODO, I'll fix it after I get my truck running again (blown radiator... burnt transmission fluid)


Tks alot, I appreciate it.. I'll change the oil on saterday
~Nate

__________________
95 Honda Shadow ACE 1100.
1999 Plymouth Neon Expresso. 2.4 swap, 10.5 to 1 comp, big cams. Autocross time attack vehicle!
2012 Escape, 'hunter" (5 sp 4cyl)

There are 2 major reasons to change engine oil:

1) It breaks down over time
2) Contamination

Now, the more/faster contaminated your oil becomes, the faster it breaks down - so these two are intertwined. If your engine oil does NOT become contaminated rapidly, and looks quite clean at 5000 miles, 7500 is safe. If your oil at 2000 miles is thinned by gasoline, dark in color, or feels rough between your fingers, you should lower your oil change interval.

There is no solid, universal oil change interval. Two different drivers with the exact same car will get different oil change intervals. 3-5k is safe for conventional, 4-7k is safe for synthetic - as a MINIMUM. In other words, 99% of cars and drivers will be safe changing their oil at these intervals, they don't need to do it sooner. If you do mostly highway driving, have a very clean engine, and you run a high-quality oil, 15k miles is achievable. I wouldn't do it without examining my oil at LEAST every 1000 miles at the dipstick. If it's getting dark, or thinned, or feels rough in my fingers, I change it immediatley.

My Jeep's oil lasts anywhere from 3k to 7k miles. It depends what time of year it is, how it's driven, what oil I put in it, and probably other things I can't think of off the top of my head. I never say "Ok, it's 5000 miles, time to change the oil" - sometimes it needs changing at 3000, sometimes it's ok at 7,000 but I know it won't make it another 500-1000 miles. Always check your oil viscosity and level warm!

__________________
Current:
2021 Charger Scat Pack Widebody "Sinabee"
2018 Durango R/T

Previous:
1972 280SE 4.5
2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited "Hefe", 1992 Jeep Cherokee Laredo "Jeepy", 2006 Charger R/T "Hemi"
1999 Chrysler 300M - RIP @ 221k

If you're converting from dino to synthetic use cheaper synthetic oil for your first oil change...... It will immediately need another oil change in 2,000 miles after shaking loose the initial layers of buildup. Then change it again at about 4,000 miles - finally working your way up to 6 or 7,000 after the engine has cleaned itself out. Same rules apply for gasoline and diesel regarding the oil conversion. Controversial call is high mileage engines with 250k+

Am now in the process myself w/225k miles 240D, topping it off with sythetic oil when it burns 1 qt each 1200 miles or so. My next oil change will be synth blend shell rotella.

Concur fully with the chaps who recommend checking your oil's condition after smaller 3-5K intervals to sight its cleanliness and feel its viscosity -
Mercedes is having a MAJOR problem with some of the newer cars which went for long factory-recommended intervals on Mobil One - those mechs which have had to work on some which have been let out on the street (after escaping the dealerships) report innards that resemble the La Brea Tarpits, to the point of clogging returns and channels and some destroyed engines.
If you've bought one of those gooey gems, recommend some serious repeated flushing and filter changes, including perhaps some products such as BG MOA to assist in flushing/cleaning, then keeping a careful eye on the synthetics until you know your engine can in fact sustain the longer intervals.
You can buy a LOT of oil for the price and bother of rebuilding an engine!

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stanbabu@3bubbas.com
59 300d
65 250SE/Cpe
70 250/8
72 250C
78 280CE

Tristar, now that you mention it maybe the same thing applies to rear axles? I put valvoline 80-90 synthetic in differential gear oil change a few months ago. God only knows what the old stuff was, it was black as pitch. Maybe i should think about flushing it again. Rear axles can be weak link on w123's.

My service manual (for a 77 450SEL) recommends oil changes twice a year, and at 6000 miles or 3000 miles. The latter mileage figure is for "hard driving," but it turns out that most everyone is a hard driver, as "hard driving" includes frequent starts and stops, and short drives.

From what I've read, regardless of what type of oil you use, you should do a change twice a year. Why? Condensation build-up.

If you are using synthetic, you can go more miles between changes, but you should still change twice a year. Since I only drive about 2,000 miles every 6 months in my 450SEL, I go with oils for high mileage cars, which have additives that help recondition seals. I'm not brand loyal; I buy whatever quality stuff is on sale.

My understanding is that a big reason for leaks when using synthetic oil is that it can clean out sludge buildup better than conventional oils - and the sludge was covering up an old, failing seal. This is why DieselDog is saying you need to do several changes when switching to synthetic (at least I think that's why he's saying it). A down side to synthetics in older cars - from what I've heard - is that it has a tendency to slip past older piston rings and valve guides. I have also read that conventional oils actually move heat away from older engines better than synthetic oils.

Since I change my oil twice a year - regardless of the mileage I've accumulated - I am quite content using petroleum oil.

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Love driving my '77 450 SEL!
124,000 miles

michaeld: Actually, my oil consumption with a synthetic blend is less than 1 quart per oil change. So I doubt that it's slipping by rings moreso than conventional. With a synthetic's better, more consistant viscosity at temperature, it's a safer bet.

Yes, synthetic does tend to remove a lot of that dino sludge. Sometimes said sludge may be keeping a seal from leaking. More often than not though, that sludge is preventing oil from flowing everywhere it should.

The reason for suggested oil changes every "3 months or 3000 miles" according to places like Jiffylube is assuming the car is a daily driver, if it hits 3 months before 3000 miles, you're doing mostly city driving which is a lot harder on the oil (stop and go traffic, not always getting to operating temp, oil can sludge over in these conditions). Condensation buildup burns off once the engine gets to operating temperature.

Synthetic isnt required by everyone and, if you're going to change your oil every 2k miles, most of synthetic's advantages are moot to you. But remember, synthetic has better startup protection, overheating protection, and sludge-resistant properties. These traits are very important to me in an engine with high mileage!

__________________
Current:
2021 Charger Scat Pack Widebody "Sinabee"
2018 Durango R/T

Previous:
1972 280SE 4.5
2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited "Hefe", 1992 Jeep Cherokee Laredo "Jeepy", 2006 Charger R/T "Hemi"
1999 Chrysler 300M - RIP @ 221k

Tomguy,
I've read and admired enough of your posts to know that you know FAR more about cars and engines than I; I can only hope to know as much about cars as you one day! I also know that there are very good mechanics who argue over questions just like this one (I know, because I've read the arguments)!

When I first bought my 450SEL, the oil was old (like a year) but didn't have very many miles on it. I did a fair amount of reading at that time to try to learn whether to change the oil or not (i.e. whether time intervals between changes mattered). I most certainly did NOT get my information from Jiffylube; I would not let those incompetent thieves touch any car I owned, much less trust their opinions.

I don't have the sources before me any more, but my readings were enough to convince me that condensation build up was a genuine problem with oil in an engine; even my 77 Mercedes-Benz owner's manual (which predates JuffyLube, I believe) recommends oil changes every 6 mos. So did my 70 Ford Galaxie 500 shop manual. I wish I'd saved the most convincing articles; but I compiled and then read enough articles to come to a decision, and then deleted the folder.

Having decided to change my oil every 6 months, and considering the fact that I don't put thousands of miles on this car (and further, most of the miles I DO put on the car are 30 mile+ drives, rather than short trips, I decided that I couldn't justify the cost of synthetic.

Regarding the benefits of synthetic, there are no doubts that it is totally superior for most cars. But there are quite a few engineers who believe that synthetic remains too "slippery" to fully lubricate some older engines. And there is certainly a ton of anecdotal evidence out there from everyday people who put synthetic in their cars and suddenly experienced leaks.

I actually will consider Dieseldog's idea of running synthetic a couple of times to help clean sludge out. Heck, it might work better than an engine flush, and be gentler besides. Believe me, I don't want no "dino sludge" either!!!

__________________
Love driving my '77 450 SEL!
124,000 miles