Ok.. I'm really starting to wonder.. Am I wasting money on a synthetic when I dont need to?

Stats. 2000 F150 Supercab, 4.2L V6, 5 Speed Manual

I've been running Mobil 1 Synthetic 5W30 since I owned the truck.. I was told I can go 5000-5500 miles before changing it.. But so far I only bare to go 3000 miles..

I was also told that I'm not really using real "oil" but fake oil basically. That I could save money and get the same performance by using a good Mobil 1 5W30 conventual oil.

Then I was told that Synthetic is good to promote longevity on the engine because Synthetic leaves a lubrication in the engine opposed to Conventual oil that all sinks back into the pan. So when the engine is started up there is no oil lubricating the block.

So what is better? Is it the same but saving a few 20s by not using Synthetic?

Right now I spend about $40-45 to change Synthetic at a lube shop, or $30 if I do it myself.

Conventual Oil changes are about $20 at a lube shop and half that to do it myself or close to it.

So what is it?

Conventual or Synthetic?

and what weight? I live mainly in Central Texas between Hood and Austin.. Temps get 90+ here.. Should I run 5W30 or 10W30?

Thanks for all the input I'll get.. I never have understood the difference..

 

Very good question and has been asked many times:

I've worked in lube shops for about 4 years. I've changed (give or take a few hundred) a few thousand vehicles oil, trans, etc... fluid. (BTW this was my old line of work not current) I noticed little to no difference in the oil when they used synthetic and conventional, and they mostly used Mobil 1 synthetic.

I would never buy a synthetic oil...to me it is definately a waste of money. I change my oil EVERY 3000 miles or less.

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO GET:

Regardless of what conventional or synthetic oil you use, don't go over 3000 miles. Will it hurt your truck if you do? Not neccessarily at first, but over time it will, synthetic or not. 3000 miles or less using ordinary oil will be just fine to last your truck the rest of it's life. I use pennzoil 10W30 with a Motorcraft filter every time, and haven't had a problem yet.

Oh yea, and I also like in 90 degree Texas weather.

 

I use redline racing syn........and a k2n filter, 60 bucks a change but I feel better about the way I drive it if u know what i mean!!!

 

Well I changed it.. I went with

Motorcraft 5W20 Synthetic Blend (said recommended for Ford Trucks)
Purator One Microfiber Filter..

I hope this doesnt screw the engine up.. I'm wondering if I should go back to Mobil 1 5W30 and a K&N Filter next time..

Any advice?

 

No, it definately will not screw up the engine.

 

I always go with the what ford recommends.....5w30.....dont think using 20 is gonna hurt but I dont really know for sure????done the exhaust yet???

 

no havent done the exhaust yet.. working on it.. pain in the anykey to manage truck mods and a wedding lol!

 

The Motorcraft 5W-20 is good oil. You should do fine with that.
On the subject of Syn -vs- conventional and 3K -vs- 5K miles, please check this thread:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/s...d.php?t=153899
This is REAL data from the REAL world with OUR engine.

Read as much as of it as you want but here is a summary:

Chevron Supreme conventional 10w-30 for 5,000 mile drain intervals gave GREAT protection and returned GREAT used oil analysis numbers.
The total base number of the used oil sample was 5.8.
Simply put (IMO) you could pay a LOT more but I doubt you could get any better protection for your rengine.

Thanks all!

 

Best point so far.

Oil is oil to me...and it pretty much does the same thing...lubricate stuff!

 

I do not think there is a right answer to the question. It’s all personal preference. I use synthetic oil in all my vehicles and have for many years. I drive lots of miles and I typically drive fairly fast. I do not trade vehicles very often and expect them to run efficiently for a long time. It is my opinion that synthetic’s offer several technical advantages over conventional dino that should contribute somewhat to engine life. From my viewpoint its as simple as using the best available technology as a little added insurance. Compared to the over all cost of a new vehicle, why would I care if my oil costs me an extra $50 or $60 a year? The small difference is inconsequential to the big picture.

 

Yes there are people that have different reasons for Different reasons... Sigma-your thoughts about synthetic oil make sense in how u keep your vehicles for a long time/until they die. But I have to agree with Joe (true4.2) on this one, that oil does one thing--lubricates ur engine

 

Hmm..

Now to decide if I want to stay Conventional or go back to Synthetic..

Hell why'd oil have to be so difficult to choose from lol!

 

I posted a couple times on oil, never really analyzed the synthetic/conventional argument. I would look at it this way, when buying oil what ever it is, I would look at all the other competitive products (IE. all synthetics, or all conventional) and make your choice based on level playing field. Personally I use shell Rotella T full synthetic in my truck, 2002 f-150 4.2. I have over 70K on this truck, and it is running like the day it rolled off the lot. At this point all I know about my oil selection is that it has worked as well as the ford recommended motorcraft oils. only time will tell how good the oil is. on a side note, I do change my oil every 2000 miles, and filter, it only costs about 26 dollars to do it myself, and these 4.2's couldn't be any easier to change the oil on. I do have an e-250 with 500K on it using rotella t conventional, that seems to run nicely. Just my .02

//John

 

My take on synthetic oil: Have used it in every vehicle I own for years. Results:1) Recently sold '93 Ranger SC w/4.0 to a friend after 6 years of use. 166,000 miles and runs like day one--1/2 qt between 5000 mile changes.
2) Recently departed 85 BMW K100 RS Motorcycle after 140,000 miles--uses NO OIL between changes 3) 1993 Plymouth Voyager 3.3 w/ 200K sold to another friend and it still uses about 1/2 qt per change 4)96 Crown Vic w/100K miles Uses NO OIL between changes and runs cooler-Have never had to replace plastic intake manifold and it averages 22 city-27 hwy. Wife drives it daily.
I could go on but suffice to say that I've NEVER had an internal engine failure of any kind since I started using Mobil 1. My cars are usually kept until 170,000 -200,000 miles. Dino juice is fine but I truly believe that Synth pays for itself IF you do high mileage as I do. The superior qualities probably won't show up for the average driver that trades before or around 100K. It may not be cost efficient for them but it sure is for me.
My friends are convinced too- they wait in line to buy my old cars.

 

rreynold, that sounds like some serious mileage, I would probably have to agree with your logic, under normal conditions the average driver probably uses up the wear limits on an engine while using conventional oil, but if you are looking to get insane mileage out of a vehicle the synthetic is probably a more sure fire way of accomplishing this.