[Midnight00SE]

This stuff really works. Get the Castrol synthetic. One thing though, make sure on the back, it says that it's made in Germany. Not in New Jersey. The German stuff is the best. Flows so much better than 5W-30.

 

[shifty]

ummm.. last time I checked...oil was oil, no matter where it was refined.

PS stpidhoser just isnt a clever name than is it?

 

[Midnight00SE]

The name is from a movie. Strange Brew. But, there are differences in the two refineries. The NJ stuff is normal colored. The German stuff is almost antifreeze colored. Which I like because I can tell how dirty the oil really is. But, the German stuff works better in my mind.

 

[Kermit]

Castrol has a zero weight synthetic that is supposed to be the equivalent to 5W20 weight oil too, I guess that's why 5W20 synthetic is hard to find.

 

[Reinhart]

Originally posted by stpidhoser@Feb 15 2004, 09:51 AM
This stuff really works. Get the Castrol synthetic. One thing though, make sure on the back, it says that it's made in Germany. Not in New Jersey. The German stuff is the best. Flows so much better than 5W-30.

Castrol Syntec isn't something I would want to use, IMO. Too many modifiers.

Mobil 1 and Amsoil are the synthetics I would recommend.

And, Mobil also has a 0W-30 oil as well. They even sell a 0W-20.

But, I would rather play it on the safe side and use the grade that was recommended for my car. I have Mobil 1 5W-30.

http://www.mobil1.com/index.jsp

- Reinhart

 

[Damon]

Originally posted by stpidhoser@Feb 15 2004, 10:51 AM
This stuff really works. Get the Castrol synthetic. One thing though, make sure on the back, it says that it's made in Germany. Not in New Jersey. The German stuff is the best. Flows so much better than 5W-30.

This is an issue that has been debated at many a site (bobistheoilguy comes to mind).

There are formula differences between german castrol and the american stuff.

General consensus is the german stuff is better.

Personally I use mobil 1 5w-30.

-Damon

 

[mom2loralei]

There really isn't too much difference between 0W30 and 5W30. both oils end up being a 30 weight oil after the engine get warm. The 0W30 starts off lighter to lubricate the parts a little faster when you start it. At least that's what the Mobil rep taught us when I was selling aftermarket parts.

Personally I used to use the BMW synthetic oil 5W30 which is made by Castrol and noticed it worked really well in my high mileage Saturn (I got it for free here at work

). Now I will have to pay for oil since my Taurus takes the 0W20 like those pesky Hondas. Very lightweight oil; and they have it at Walmart around here for somewhere around $1.73 or so a quart.

Tina

 

[diesel600]

hell if you can still get BMW 5W30 for free I would use it. The 5W20 thing is really more for gas mileage reasons (not that the gains could be that great). 5W30 won't hurt anything. If I had to choose between 5W20 part synthetic and 5w30 full synthetic, I'd take the full.

 

[Jumex]

I think I blew it. Is Mobil1 15W50 accepted? I couldn't get the regular Mobil1 I use (10W30) and had to use the other one.

 

[ffvulcanpowah]

Originally posted by Jumex@Feb 16 2004, 06:11 PM
I think I blew it. Is Mobil1 15W50 accepted? I couldn't get the regular Mobil1 I use (10W30) and had to use the other one.

whoa! thats some heavy stuff! I used that weight oil on my old turbo diesel suburban.

Im not sure if there are serious problems running thick oil like that on our cars? Input would be appreciated. And dont worry, I use 5-30 mobil one on mine. peace!

 

[jason8225]

I run Valvoline full synthetic 5w30 and LOVE it!

 

[saerandy]

Oh geeze! Another oil thread. Lots of opinions so I'll throw mine in to the mix.

The GC (German Castrol) does have a different formulation then the American Syntec. It does not shear down as easily as other 0W's including the USA Castrol.

15W50 is thick, but not end-of-the-world kind of stuff. I run (and have been running) a 15W40 fleet mixed use/diesel oil in my taurus for quite a while now (including all of this very cold East Coast winter) and everything's been fine. This low weight stuff is very american. In Europe, it is still pretty much the norm to run 15W40 and (as I used to run in my Civic) 20W50. They are beginning to move more towards the 5W's though.

Your mpg does suffer a bit, but it's a very small amount - Half a mile per gallon or less.

In my Duratec I'm running a synthetic 5W40.

You may not remember this, but as we moved away from 10W40 as the 'standard' for oil, many people believed that it would damage the engines. Don't get me started on CAFE.

 

[dant98]

Mobil 1 5w30 synthetic here IIRC

-Dan

 

[cincyses]

Always Mobil1 5W-30 in my 2001 Vulcan.

 

[Jumex]

I have another question. In Mexico where I live car parts, oils, etc., are not always available and having them shipped from the US is expensive. We don't have Pep Boys, Autozone nor any other decent car parts supplier in this Godforsaken place.

So in the event that people run out of Mobil1 5W30 which was my oil of choice, what should I do?

1.- Switch brands but keep the viscosity at 5W30 synthetic (use of Exxon Ultron or Pennzoil and even Quaker State).
2.- Use dino oil 5W30.
2.- Don't switch brands, keep Mobil1 no matter what the viscosity is.

Thanks!

 

[cincyses]

My 2nd choice would be to us a synthetic 5W30 of a different brand. Synthetic flows well at higher and lower temperatures than does conventional oil.

I saw a demo on MotorWeek a few years ago where a sample of each was put in a freezer and the synthetic still flowed well, while the conventional really didn't flow at all. Both were also put in frying pans and the conventional quickly burned to the bottom of the pan, while the synthetic flowed smoothly!

 

[Racer X]

I'd stay away from the Quaker State if I were you. I've seen it carmelize something serious on engnies where it was used extensively.