mobile 1 extended performance or valvoline synthetic

[Nuke]

I've posted this over and over...

My '90 T4R tow vehicle was on a regiment of 3k-4k mile oil changes with dino oil and I sold her at 205,000 miles to a friend. He has been even more lax and now has over 375,000 miles and claims she still uses little to no oil and runs like the day he bought her from me.

My '00 T4R tow vehicle was on a regiment of 8k-10k mile oil changes using Mobil1. I sold her with 152,000 miles (to buy my current '08) and she still ran like a raped ape and used no oil.

My current '08 T4R is on the same regiment as the '00 was except the last oil change was from the standard M1 to the Extended Mileage M1, although I'm sticking with the 8k-10k change frequency. I fully expect to have her well over 200,000 miles with the same excellent reliability and service as the others.

Besides the T4R's, I have had many other high mileage cars that I've used synthetics in and feel confident that even 10k is a bit premature for those that drive mostly highway and put over 20 miles per drive on their engines.

If you don't feel comfortable with those frequencies than spend your money and don't listen to an old fart like me.

 

[GMZ]

No one, and I mean no one should go over 10,000 miles on an synthetic oil change!

To each his own, but always check your oil at least once a week!

Care to substantiate your claim with something other than an opinion?

Totally agree with your last line.

 

[Co.Ag.2005]

I used Mobil 1 Synthetic 15k mile oil in my '02 Tacoma (V6). I would change the filter out every ~7000 miles and the oil around 15k (it typically ended up being around 13k or so). I had no problems with the engine whatsoever. Even when I would drain the used oil, it wasn't dark black or anything... it looked just like my standard 5000k Mobil 1 would look when I drained it. I sold the Taco to my brother at ~120,000 miles and he has had it to about ~160,000 miles so far with no problems. As far as maintenance was concerned for this truck, I only had to do regular maintenance items such as oil, tires, brakes, etc. and a timing belt change at 90k. It is so amazing how trouble free that truck is! My brother still claims it drives as good for him today as it did for me when I first got it around 40k miles....

 

[4RunnerStunner]

GMZ,

I understand your need for an explanation. My deal with lubricants in that over time, they loose most of their protective properties to thermal breakdown. 15,000 mile synthetic oil to me is no different. I know of the TBN and if everything is reading correctly and you want to save money on predictive maintenance, than that what some people do, and I don't knock that if they are low on cash. But halfway through the life of that oil, I would do some analysis checks every 1000 miles and a oil level check weekly. This type of maintenance to me is good for companies that want to save money and increase productivity by not having to shut down production frequently. Not everyone knows how to do this. I know the majority that are on these forums do. That is why I say that, to protect the owner's vehicle. I love the idea of preventitive maintenance on my investment. It gives me a piece of mind and one less thing not to worry about. Predictive maintenance to me is like waiting to fill your gas tank up once you are within 2 miles of running out. You can do it if that is what you do, but I would not recommend it due to the fact that this can overheat the fuel pump on most vehicles. I just think it is just a better practice to not ride that white lightning unless you necessarily have to with the oil. But that is just me. Opinions are like ---holes, and you know the rest!

 

[074.0Runner]

I run Pennzoil Platinum full synthetic with a NAPA Gold filter and change it every 5,000 miles in everything.

 

[GMZ]

Fair enough, Im pretty anal and OCD concerning my 4R so my normal checks are probably very different from others. My commute is tripling to about 50 mi/day so I will have a chance to do some longer OCI testing, which would put it at least 12K/yr which is right in the sweet spot of M1 EP.

 

[4RunnerStunner]

Fair enough, Im pretty anal and OCD concerning my 4R so my normal checks are probably very different from others. My commute is tripling to about 50 mi/day so I will have a chance to do some longer OCI testing, which would put it at least 12K/yr which is right in the sweet spot of M1 EP.

Cool, I would not say you are anal or OCD, I would say you are a person that values your vehicle. It is a lot of money that we spend on having these toys and nothing we over do care wise on our vehicles could never be enough. I am running Amsoil in my Truck now, it was M1 EP before that. I will see how long it goes before I need to change it or if at 7500 miles it still looks good, I will let it ride to 10k.

 

[SkylineGTRracer]

I use Royal Purple in all my trucks (3,000 to 4,000 miles) and recommend it as well. to be honest I think all synthetics are the same but RP has a really good support system and treats their customers very well. I just got some free swag from them. filter wise I use a K&N oil filter every time as well. But if you want me to choose one of the two then go mobile 1. and if you want to really push how long on your intervals you can put on a by-pass oil filtration system so the oil remains as clean as possible.

 

[RonMAIDEN]

RP is decent stuff but not worth $3-4 more a quart no matter how good their customer service is. I've used M1 since '93 and no issues in any car I've had it in. I can get M1 in a 5qt jug for about $23 at Walmart so a full change costs me under $35 every 10 months (8000 miles) and I can't see how things would be better with RP.
I do run Redline in the gearboxes so I do pay a little more for that cause of the 40k changes I do on them.

 

[blackmax]

i was debating about switching from valvoline synthetic to mobile 1 extended performance. according to the website the mobile 1 oil can be changed every 15,000 miles or 1 yr whichever comes first whereas valvoline has to be changed every 4,000-5,000 miles. my question is if it is better to put a cheaper oil and change it more often or if its ok to use the mobile 1 extended performance and change less often. i average 2,000 miles a month

I'd run synthetic for 15k miles. Actually, you can run ANY oil until they turn black. You know who says you should change oil sooner? People who sell oil.

Trust me.....if it's honey colored, you can leave it alone, probably for a long long long time. If you stick to the golden color or 12 months, whichever comes first rule....you'll have no problems.

Of course, things change if you're increasing temperatures, as with superchargers, turbochargers and/or nitrous. But..........that doesn't apply here.

 

[ran]

Time is my main problem. Driving about 5000 a year, all within 30 miles most. I hate to do oil changes with 2000 miles, but that could be 6 months. ??

 

[074.0Runner]

I use Royal Purple in all my trucks (3,000 to 4,000 miles) and recommend it as well. to be honest I think all synthetics are the same but RP has a really good support system and treats their customers very well. I just got some free swag from them. filter wise I use a K&N oil filter every time as well. But if you want me to choose one of the two then go mobile 1. and if you want to really push how long on your intervals you can put on a by-pass oil filtration system so the oil remains as clean as possible.

I stopped using expensive Royal Purple oil after reading this article:
Article from LUBE REPORT
Its all in the marketing!

 

[blackmax]

Time is my main problem. Driving about 5000 a year, all within 30 miles most. I hate to do oil changes with 2000 miles, but that could be 6 months. ??

There is literally NO oil breakdown in a modern car before 12 months. If it's on the golden colored side of black, it's fine for 10k miles or 12 months, whichever is first. If we're talking full-synthetic oil, I'd take that to 15k miles or 24 months.

Like I say, the ONLY people who say to do it more often, are people who make their living selling oil (also those who are passing along advice that originated from those who sell oil).

Again- this doesn't necessarily apply to towing, racing, 11:1 compression or higher or turbo/supercharge applications.....or older vehicles, due to the less precise tolerances, and thus the tendency for gas and other bad stuff to blow-by and get into the oil. The oxidizes and acidifies it pretty quickly.

 

[SkylineGTRracer]

I stopped using expensive Royal Purple oil after reading this article:
Article from LUBE REPORT
Its all in the marketing!

eh... to each their own right? there are so many brands but thats why I said I think all synthetics are the same basically. Me and my friends all run RP, Mobil 1, and Amsoil and they do great on the track however my friends evo 10 seemed to respond very well to RP compared to the Mobil. I'll just stick with what works for me. I might even try a by-pass oil filter kit in my truck. thanks for the reading I hadn't heard of this case.

 

[Ari Gold]

Thats an interesting statement. Is there a difference between dropping your oil at 3000 miles without regard for its condition and analyzing your used oil to determine the longest interval you can safely use it? As long as the oil has TBN retention, is free of contaminants, and stays in its viscosity grade you are not gaining anything, but rather you are wasting time, money, and resources. I used to flip out if I drove 3001 miles without an oil change once upon a time.

Whats interesting is that Europeans have been doing extended drains for some time now and there is no evidence of an increase in oil life related engine failures. Whats even more interesting is that many types of both mid level and extended drain synthetic oils meet the Euro ACEA specs for extended drains, yet only the extended drain oils are marketed as such in the US.

Even the cheapest Wal-Mart brand dino oil is good to at least 5000 miles, which is Toyotas recommended OCI.

But for this guy that changes every 3000 miles the cost of getting a sample analyzed is about the same as an oil change at home using dino and a cheap filter.

 

[MikesToy]

Time is my main problem. Driving about 5000 a year, all within 30 miles most. I hate to do oil changes with 2000 miles, but that could be 6 months. ??

Is your ride just for church? Grocery getter maybe?

 

[Ari Gold]

There is literally NO oil breakdown in a modern car before 12 months. If it's on the golden colored side of black, it's fine for 10k miles or 12 months, whichever is first. If we're talking full-synthetic oil, I'd take that to 15k miles or 24 months.

Like I say, the ONLY people who say to do it more often, are people who make their living selling oil (also those who are passing along advice that originated from those who sell oil).

Again- this doesn't necessarily apply to towing, racing, 11:1 compression or higher or turbo/supercharge applications.....or older vehicles, due to the less precise tolerances, and thus the tendency for gas and other bad stuff to blow-by and get into the oil. The oxidizes and acidifies it pretty quickly.

Sure there is little to no breakdown but there could also be condensation in th crankcase.

In the industry I work in the engines get their oil and filter changed based off of run hours or time, whichever comes first. I'm talking about critical engines that cost up to a million dollars a piece.

 

[DaCakeBeater]

I just used any sythetic oil until I saw this video from Mobile 1

Videos

I've been sold ever since....and yes I change my oil every 5,000 miles. Its just my opinion but I think the oil maybe able to last 10k but the factory oil filter was never able to last that long....just my 2 cents....

 

[M1911]

Sure there is little to no breakdown but there could also be condensation in th crankcase.

In the industry I work in the engines get their oil and filter changed based off of run hours or time, whichever comes first. I'm talking about critical engines that cost up to a million dollars a piece.

I'm surprised that they don't change the oil based on oil analyses.

 

[blackmax]

I just used any sythetic oil until I saw this video from Mobile 1

Videos

I've been sold ever since....and yes I change my oil every 5,000 miles. Its just my opinion but I think the oil maybe able to last 10k but the factory oil filter was never able to last that long....just my 2 cents....

In a modern car, an oil filter should last 25,000 miles mimimum, truth be told. Who says 5,000? Filter manufacturer.

Increased consumption is the life-blood of our economy. No need to be a conspiracy theorist....I'm just saying that people should re-evaluate what they "know" about many things, and ask why? Oil changes at 3,000 is the PERFECT example. Buying a diamond engagement ring for 4 months salary is another..and on and on and on.