I am changing the oil tomarrow in my 87 300E and the 94 E320. I am currently running Mobil 1 in both cars. I was reading that Mobil 1 is not completely synthetic and Amsoil is. Should i switch to Amsoil or should i stick to Mobil 1??
Your comments will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Adam

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Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
68 18' Donzi Marine
06 GT i-Drive7 1.0 Mountain Bike (with GPS!)

PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

If cost is not an issue, use Redline or Amsoil. 10W-40 would be ideal in WI.

Just for reference, some of the latest MB approved synthetic oils available in the US are:

Mobile 1 Tri-Synthetic 0W-40 and 15W-50
Castrol Syntec 10W-40 or 5W-50
Vavoline Synpower 5W-40
and a few others.

Note there is none that is of the 5W-30 or 10W-30 viscosities.

I know that Mobil 1 does not use the same 'pure base' as Amsoil, but the price difference is so great and Amsoil is so inconvenient to purchase, that I'd go with Mobil 1.

Besides, even though oil change intervals can be extended with synthetics, I've never felt comfortable doing it.

The benefits of using Mobil 1 compared to conventional motor oils are obvious, but the incremental difference between Mobil 1 and Amsoil is probably not that great.

I'm not an oil-ologist, so please don't rain on my parade if you disagree. Oh Lordy, I don't want to get in the middle of one of the 'infamous' oil discussions.

I'm a convert of Larry Bible's methodology. He's so convincing and never backs down in the face of unbelievable pressure "change it hot, change it often".

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

The quick of it is this. I have NEVER seen an enigne failure that was directly related to the breakdown of the oil. If the oil is changed frequently and you run a good name brand, you will fare well.

We use the approved Valvoline oils.

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Benzmac:
Donnie Drummonds
ASE CERTIFIED MASTER AUTO TECHNICIAN
MERCEDES SPECIALIST 11 YRS

Agree with most that if one changes oil frequently enough, any oil of the right viscosity will protect the engine. But for people like to read about oils, here is a new twist.

Saw the new Mobile 1 SL oil today at Wal-Mart and I was shocked.

Apparently Mobile decided to cheapen the formulation even further by using less and less PAO base stock in the SL formulation than the SJ formulation. Remember the original Mobile 1 was all PAO then to Tri-Synthetic, and now to another Tri-Synthetic. How do I know?

The new SL 5W-30 and 10W-30 oil's pour point increased more than 15 degrees. It was -65 deg (SJ) and now it is -49 deg (SL).

People all agree that the true synthetic base stocks like PAO has a very lower pour point. This increase in pour point indicated that the PAO content is lower in the new formulation.

BTW, the 0W-40 oil still has the same old -65 degree pour point and actually its kinematic viscosity at 100 degree Celsius has increased a bit for better high temperature protection. Also the Energy Saving rating has disappeared in the 0W-40 (according to the Mobile 1 Website as I cannot find a bottle for this). See it your self at

https://dallnd6.dal.mobil.com/GIS/MobilPDS.nsf/26b7c4b33367a4a086256665004e4266/9337c5cedcf5e32e852567b60056db77?OpenDocument

There are some errors in the viscosity section (more numbers than the column heading indicates).

Hi guys,

There are so many discussions regarding different type of oil to use in our MB, but it seems to me no matter what we do, a 103 or 104 engine will need head works, a 119 engine will need its timing chain and guard rails replaced.

Do you think MB mis-engineered these engines?

PS My company truck ( Ford 460 ) still has no leaks and no engine work after 280.000 km

Just wondering,

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Peter Chu aka PIKACHU
08 C300 Premium Pkg, MM Pkg, Sport Pkg, Keyless Go
86 300E soon to be E36 with Euro Headlights
400E front & rear brake upgrade
16" CLK wheels with Michelin MXV4 plus Green X

<<
Do you think MB mis-engineered these engines?
>>

Yes. You know it; I know it; many others on this forum know it; and the MB technicinas know it.

But MB does not know it; MBUSA does not know it; MBNA does not know it.

I dunno, I have seen MB engines with no major work done because of frequent oil changes and proper maintenance.

Any car, will last a long time if maintained properly.

Most people do not maintain cars properly, because most just see it as transportation.

I see a car as a precision piece of equipment. Take care of it or it will break, plain and simple.

Alon

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'92 300CE - Sold
2004 C240 - 744 - C7 Wheels - Android Radio
2002 C320 - 816 - Sport Wagon

Alon:

Do I remember right that your car has a small engine oil leak?

Do you think that is due to maintainance or MB design?

Thats right!! I only want the best for my babys!
Since oil seems like such a big deal to many of us in Mercedesshop maybe we should do a science experiment or something. Like, do an oil analisys on MB engines with a brand that has been consistantly ran for 2 or more years and has been changed at regular intervals. we could do the four most popular brands to determine which one is really the best. You could disqualify my car. I have had every brand in there plus some ATF by accident OOPS!
Adam

My mech pointed out the small leak of the head gasket when I bought the car, and yes I believe MB did have a flaw with the gasket, but updated it later on. Now remember the previous owner of my car most likely did not maintain it well, so it could have been the culprit.

Take a look at Don swinford's car, he has 178k on the odo, and engine has never been opened. HE religiously changes his oiil and fluids. Look at Larry bible and his oil changes. He has gotten great mileage out of his cars before having to open them up to do some repairs.

My brother's 85 380SL has been maintained horribly by him as far as I am concerned, and the car still drives great and has needed next to nothing. He had a new timing chain rolled in, and some ilifter work done and the car keeps going strong with no major engine work ebing done.

My motto is if it hasn't caused any problems its ok. Should I go and change it if I don't see any noticable worsening of it or loss of oil? I would do it if oil was getting in my coolant or vice versa or if I was losing that much oil, but I haven't lost one drop during my 3k oil changes.

But my car has not used any oil between oil changes, so the leak must have sealed itself, because I have measured my oil loss, and I haven't noticed any loss more than a few drops.

The only time I lost some oil was when I spilled some...

Every car I have ever seen always had some kind of leak from somewhere, thats just the nature of a mechanical part that needs lubrication.

My jeep had a valve cover leak for years, still does, but car still never used more than a few drops of oil between changes.

When I talk about maitenance, I talk about just changing the fluid for new fluid and fixing things as they break. Thats maintenance. Anyone who thinks oil can last for more than 10k miles needs to have their head examined. and those who never change oil, need to wake up and smell the coffee. I change my oil every 3k and filter regardless of driving habits, cleanlinesss of oil, or any other reasons.

I don't consider changing the head gasket if its a minor leak maintenance. because when it does become time, I'll do timing chain, valves, and all that is needed as long as its open. but until that time, An onnoticable loss of oil is no biggie to me.

Should I change my wiring harness knowing it may very well go out at some point due to a flaw in materials used or should I tough it out until it happens? Either way it will cost me the same money to repair it right?

If I wait to do the head gasket, and it goes on me, will it cost any less to repair then? I doubt it, unless I try to drive the car with no oil and coolant... That would then cause the extra damage.

Look at people who eat breath and sleep health, some die you some die old. Now look at someone who eats anything and everything. again, some die old some die young. Even with proper maintenance you can't predict the life of anything. Let alone an engine.

If My head gasket goes out after 100k miles, or the timing chain, I still consider it a useful lifesapen. 100,000 miles. thats a long distance. If you were to calculate how many engine revolutions it takes to reach 100,000 miles, you'd probably be surprised at that number too.

I'm merely pointing out that the reason most choose synthetic is because it is suppsed to extend the change interval, but regardless of synthetic, dino, or other oils, I wold always change at 3k, so for me there is no need to use synthetic oil. pull my oil filler cap and you will see, its pretty darn clean in there. Would I suggest anyone use any brand over another, nope. Use what you feel comfortable with, just keep changing the oil on a regular basis, and try to not rack up a huge amount of miles before doing so.

Alon

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'92 300CE - Sold
2004 C240 - 744 - C7 Wheels - Android Radio
2002 C320 - 816 - Sport Wagon

Amsoil & Redline make some of the best lube on the planet and I insist on using them exclusively in axles, trannys, t-cases, and for packing bearings (any "long service" item). I would love to use it in my engine as well, but feel that its just not worth the extra $ on a daily driver, there are lots of less costly "almost synthetics" available that will be just fine, Mobil 1 is good, but I personally won't use it because they keep cheapening their formula to create a higher profit margin, they don't seem to reduce their price with the cheaper formula do they...

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Thanks,
Dave

1998 BMW 540i Sport
1995 E320
1992 400E
1989 BMW M3
1979 Triumph TR7 (1st car)
1986 BMW 735i (Sold)
1980 BMW 320i (Sold)

kowached:

That is exactly my problem with Mobile 1. They sued Castrol for not using PAO based stock in their Syntec. Then they came out with Tri-Synthetic with less and less PAO every time they reformulate it.

Mobile 1 used to have the lowest pour point among the popular synthetic oils that you can buy in stores. Now this new SL has a higher pour point than Havoline, Vavoline, and Penzzoil, in the 5W-30 and 10W-30 grades.

here is a great link for you
http://www.synthetic-solutions.com/comparison.htm

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Must you see his nail scared hands to believe

Oh, oh, .....another Amsoil dealer ?

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2007 C 230 Sport.