Z dude

1. what type of synthetic oil do you use?
2. what weight?
3. what are you paying for it and for how many quarts?

just curious as to what people are paying and for what type and amount...

ede

M1, 18 dollars for 5 qts 10w-30
m1 5 dollars qt for 15w-50

snakeskinner

I used to use Mobil 1 because it was cheaper but it also leaks worse because of the smaller molecules. When I bought my 89 TTA hardtop from the original owner, he had been using Castrol Syntec. Average life of one of these turbo engines isn't too long (probably 50-75k miles). I bought the car with 153k miles on the original engine so I decided to keep it up with the same oil. I'm at 197k miles and counting and the engine's never been out of the car. I'm sold on castrol syntec. I use 10w30 but it really depends on your location, engine and vehicle usage. My cars get all around abuse (daily driven and raced) and we have a temperature range of below zero to above 100 so 10w30 is the normal around here. Climates that are colder or hotter will use different weights. Normally the owner's manual will have a chart to decide. If you only race the car, a single weight oil is probably what you'll use since you won't likely be running it in cold weather.

92RSFivePointSlow

I used the walmart brand supertech Full Synthetic
it was 10w-30
I believe it was $2.97 a quart, and I always ran 4 quarts in a stock 5 quart oil pan to reduce drag.

when I had my car and was taking it to the track I got it up to 300hp, 350ci, 8.5:1 compession.

Z dude

oh yeah I know not everyone is using the same weight...Im trying to finger out pricing for there different weights and types used,because even though it may be the same comp. alot of times the weight in oil is also a $$ difference like how "ede"
put it.

Dewey316

M1 10w30 -- $18.80 for 5quarts at wally world

joshwilson3

What would be the difference of running M1 5W-30 vs. 10W-30? I live in Tennessee and I use M1 5W-30. I have a 1989 firebird v8 305 AT. What benefit would you see running 10W instead of 5W?

92RSFivePointSlow

you won't see a benefit where you live. If you have over 100k miles I wouldn't use the 5w, I'm not even sure the motor was designed for 5w- see what your oil cap says. Rule of thumb is use the thinnest oil you can get away with, that way when you start to get oil pressure drop or engine noise or smoke, you can bump it up to the next viscosity. I believe the 5w caught on for emissions purposes. Not exactly sure how they figure it though, one would think there'd be more blow by. Maybe the only reason is that it puts less strain on the motor.

Z dude

5w-30 is better protection at first start up,

Vader

Base upon what information? Mobil 1 10W-30 has a pour point of -71°F, and a pumping point of -48°F. Mobil 1 5W-30 has a pour point of -76°F. Unless you are planning to start your engine below -48°F, there is no practical advantage to a 5W-anything synthetic (PAO based). In fact, the boundary layer protection of a 10W will be better on cold, dry startup, all the way down to about -45°F.

Now if you're talking about oil, that's an entirely different matter. Synthetics don't really comply well with the SAE assumptions about oil, so the numbers are less meaningful. SUS and ISO viscosities are far more realistic in comparing the two products. Synthetic lubricants aren't oil, so the similarities are not as significant as one might assume.

BTW - M1 5W-30, 10W-30, or 15W-50 are all $17.99 for a "fiver" at Wally World. As much as I hate going there, I will drag myself in to stock up on Mobil 1.

Z dude

The answer is that ANY one can be used regardless if your vehicle owners manual says to use, for example, a 5W-30. "W" means winter. In winter weather the 0W oil will flow like a 0W oil, and the 5W will flow like a 5W oil and a 10W will flow like a 10W oil just until the engine warms up.

thats what I thought we was talking about......

MechCD

Somewhat off topic, but where do you guys get this Mobile 1 for such low prices? Last time I checked, a case of Mobile 1 was like $60-$70. That is for 12 quarts. My cheap Pennzoil was $30-$40 for a case of 12. Both were 5W-30

Z dude

I was wondering the same thing...

AMSOIL I sell is 5.50 a quart and the XL-7500 is like 4.75 a quart
and people tell me all the time they paid 35-40 for AMSOIL to change there oil......

but hell M1 for that chaep price you guys say you get it for cant be beat!

OMINOUS_87

Walmart!!!

Z dude

damn walmart....maby we're all in the wrong buisness and should at least have stock in "WalMart"

OMINOUS_87

Costco also has great pricing on M1. They sell 5w-30 and 10w-30 in the 6qt box, 6 individual qts. 24$ for the box.

Costco also has 2 gallons of prestone for 9$, if anyone cares.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

I've been struggling to determine the "tech" point of this thread. I'm not getting there. I'm as big a synthetic and AMSOIL fan as anyone out there, but this isn't leading anywhere.

The info that's being discussed has been hashed over many times. Search and ye shall find.

Lock, and it shall not be open unto you...

Vader

You said "synthetic" in the topic. That opened the door.

Put a quart of 5W-30 oil in your deep freezer alongside a quart of 5W30 and 10W30 synthetic. Wait a few days for the temperatures to stabilize at about 0°F. Take them out, and pour them into clean containers. Time the process. That will give you an idea of the viscosity stability of synthetics, and why rating them with the antiquated SAE system is innaccurate. Perform the same tests with the oil at 250°F. The oil will run like water, while the synthetic will still have some viscosity. Get a Saybolt cup and time them if you like.

Yes, a 5W30 will flow just like plain 5W and 10W30 will flow just like 10W for a very good reason. Multigrade oils are in essence a base stock of mineral oil with the "W" viscosity. Polymers are added to make that base oil perform like the higher viscosity number at elevated temperatures. The bad part is that the polymers are the first thing to wear down and turn to sludge in your engine, leaving you with little more than 5W oil in the sump after a couple thousand miles. That 5W oil in your sump that flows like 5W oil in "winter weather" will flow like helium as soon as your engine warms up - even in "winter weather".

Synthetic lubricants are NOT oil. A PAO-based synthetic rated (erroneously) by the S.A.E. at "5W" is a lot more stable at any temperature than any mineral oil rated "5W". The same applies to a "10W" synthetic versus a "5W" oil. While the 5W oil has a given viscosity at 0°C, the viscosity increses rapidly as the temperature decreases. A 10W synthetic has a viscosity at 0°C that is not much lower than the viscosity at -30°C. 5W mineral oil at -30°C will pour like Jello. A 10W30 synthetic at even -40° will flow far better than a 5W mineral oil at -40°. If the SAE bothered to test viscosity at more than just two random temperatures, they wouldn't be able to even rate synthetics, since every synthetic at -40° would end up being a "0W-something". Take that down to -50° and mineral oils won't even get a rating. The same kind of thing happens at the upper end of the normal temperature range of engine lubricants. If you really want to confuse yourself, consider that an oil with the same SUS, Kinematic, or ISO viscosity of "10W" engine oil is called "75W" by the SAE when used in gear cases. SAME OIL! Give you an idea how irrelevant the SAE scale really is? That's why we in general industry don't use it.

Multigrade synthetics ( a really redundant phrase) are engineered and constructed to have molecular sizes that maintain viscosity over a wide temperature range, so that when cold they have a viscosity like the "W" number, and maintain that viscosity at higher temperatures so that they are still as viscous as a "30" or "40" or whatever the rating might be at the higher temperaure.

Once your engine warms up, the "W" number is irrelevant. When the oil gets to 200°F, it's going to act like 5W with polymers, whereas the synthetic is going to have the same, consistent viscosity. That's why it's used in the temperature extremes of 120° desert airfields and the -40° at 55,000 feet cruising altitude for the same airplane, on the same day, during the same flight. The same reasons they're used in the extreme heat and cold of space.

But you can used what you want.

BTW - "Wally World" is slang for "Wal-Mart". I apologize if I wasn't clear on that in my first post.

And since you mentioned AMSOIL (a very good product), ask the supplier where the polyalphaolefin base stocks come from. I'm just itching to hear their answer.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

That's what I was hoping for 12 hours or so. Although you blessed us with a lot of good tech data (thank you, again), it wasn't part of the original question.

We can unlock and let more contribute, but what else is there to say that hasn't already been said???

(AMSOIL is pretty tight-lipped about their sources. I do know, though, that a few years ago when antifreeze prices went sky-high because of fires at the two major glycol plants in the US, AMSOIL product availability/supplies were tight - although they didn't raise their prices.)