preparation to switch to synthetic oil

[Bill R.]

available, we can't get the 5w50 mobil one that you guys in Oz can get. If i could get it thats what i would be running. In my mind the 0w40 was the closest thing to 5w50. For some reason mobil chose not to sell that oil here in the US.

hello, I am going to switch from minerial to synthetic engine oil at my next oil change, can i just plonk the synthetic in and run for 2-5k then change to clear the sludge out? and also what grade of synthetic would you recommend for a mild queensland winter (similar to winter in Florida or california i suppose)

[rob101]

we even have a 10W-60 castrol oil forgive my ignorance but isn't 60W a bit too thick for most engines

[Tiger]

Depend how hot it get down there... consult the temperature chart to see if it matches what you need... but 0W40 handles just about everything.

[E34 530]

I switched to synthetic around February 6, 2006. Before that I had a drop of oil on the floor of the garage about once every two weeks. I just replaced the pan gasket in May of 05, so leaks were very rare. I now have an oily mess under my car in the past 3 weeks. I realize that the switch from regular to synthetic causes this, but how long does it take for the seals to adjust to the synthetic oil?? Hope this helps a little. I was planning on changing it about 6-7k from my current 61k miles. Does this sound accurate, or did I blow all my seals?

[rob101]

Depend how hot it get down there... consult the temperature chart to see if it matches what you need... but 0W40 handles just about everything.

winter's coming so perhaps 0W40 or 5W50 would be best.10W60 would be for summer as it routinely gets up around 32 and mid summer often 35ish celsius that is

[Zeuk in Oz]

winter's coming so perhaps 0W40 or 5W50 would be best.10W60 would be for summer as it routinely gets up around 32 and mid summer often 35ish celsius that is

As far as my understanding goes, unless you see many days over 40C in summer, 0W-40 will do the trick nicely.
My independent mechanic first told me about 0W-40 (admittedly he is in Sydney which is cooler than Brisbane), but he first pointed out the different claims in the literature for 0W-40 compared with 5W-40.
I think the important thing is to do changes at 10 k km and so never let the oil get to the point where it is at the end of its life.
I must admit I was amazed at 0W-40's consistency the first time I poured it - it is like canola oil !

[rob101]

Mobil 1 5W-50 has the following builder approvals:

Daimler Chrysler 229.3
Porsche Approved
Volkswagen 505.00

where as

Mobil 1 0W-40 has the following builder approvals:

BMW LL-01
Daimler Chrysler 229.3/229.5
Opel Long Life Service Fill GM-LL-A-025
Opel Diesel Service Fill GM-LL-B-025
Porsche Approved
Volkswagen 502.00/505.00,503.01

hmmm this leads me to believe that 0W-40 may be a superior mobil one grade to 5W-50

I also like to point out that castrol edge 0W-40 also meets BMW long life standard

Castrol Edge 0W-40 surpasses a wide range of specifications and has numerous manufacturer approvals and suitable where the following requirements are called for:
• American Petroleum Institute (API) Service Classifications:
Petrol : SM, (SL, SJ, SH and all superseded classifications).
Diesel : CF
• Association of Constructors of European Automobiles (ACEA):
o A3 (Stay-in-grade, extended drain intervals for high performance petrol engines).
o B3 (Stay-in-grade for high performance indirect injection diesel engines).
o B4 (Stay-in-grade for modern high performance direct injection diesel engines).
• BMW Longlife 01.
• Mercedes Benz 229.3 approved.
• VW 502.00, 503.01 and 505.00 approved.

[632 Regal]

your gaskets are cooked, find out where and replace.

I switched to synthetic around February 6, 2006. Before that I had a drop of oil on the floor of the garage about once every two weeks. I just replaced the pan gasket in May of 05, so leaks were very rare. I now have an oily mess under my car in the past 3 weeks. I realize that the switch from regular to synthetic causes this, but how long does it take for the seals to adjust to the synthetic oil?? Hope this helps a little. I was planning on changing it about 6-7k from my current 61k miles. Does this sound accurate, or did I blow all my seals?

[Evan]

Hey did you ever find out which gaskets are leaking after your switch from dino to synth? Did you change them?

Evan

[laguner]

I own a Miata and a BMW and this topic is huge on miata.net. Everybody always refers to this site for questions on oil on miata.net. http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/
I used Mobil 1 on my Miata with 100K miles on it and no problems at all. I did notice a quieting of my notoriously tappy Miata engine but at about 3K miles the tap returns, so the advantage was minimal from that standpoint. NO LEAKS THOUGH! If your gaskets are going anyway synthetic may make it more apparent but I'm not convinced.