Dino Oil or Synthetic Oil? Does the added cost of syn oil and an upgraded filter make a difference in an engine's lifespan?

Or does changing the oil at recommended manufacture intervals better idea?
Just wondering what you guys/girls think.

Thanks,

I run cenpeco in everything I own that has a diesel in it. Pickup, tractors, semi and 10 wheelers. I think the oil cost is pretty small as compared to the repair cost on a diesel engine. If the the equipment sits for long periods of time without being started and used I think synthetic oil is a lot better protection.

Synthetic oil will stay viscous longer than dinosaur oil. That's especially good if you have vehicles sitting for long periods. However, in an everyday driver, I'd prefer to change the oil every 3-4 thousand miles. You can use regular oil if you're gonna change it often. While synthetic will hold up better over time, the amount of dirt and particles going through your filter into your crankcase will still be the same. Dirty oil is dirty oil and you should always change your oil and filter before it gets too dirty regardless of the type of oil you use. Changing it often is more important than what type of oil you use.

I have to agree with Davey, it doesn't matter if your running synthetic or standard oil, you have to change it on regular intervals to keep it clean. Dirt has ruined many engines.

Synthetic - it doesn't ash, coke & sludge like dino. Dirty oil? nah, just change the filter at recommended intervals.

i run synthetic and i change it regularly...

I'm very anal with my 1995 Toyota Camry 2.2L 4Cyl.

I use ONLY full synthetic (Mobile 1 or Pennzoil Platinum) and I only use K&N or Puralator PureONE oil filters. It is recommended to do oil changes every 3,000 miles or so, I do them at 2,500.

My car runs very smooth and quietly. My engine loves me.

I really think people should pay more attention to their oil filters than their oil. Spending a few extra dollars for a good filter probably does more to help the life of the car than paying more for the oil.

Synthetics will tend to keep the engine cleaner longer, but only slightly longer then conventional oils if changed regularly. Also depends on your vehicle, many newer engines have trouble with the conventional oils as they were designed for use with synthetics. Older vehicles that have never had synthetic in them may develop problems if you switch them over, since the synthetics contain more detergents and can dissolve or eliminate deposits that allow the engine to leak fluids.

I personally use mostly conventional oils in my vehicles and synthetics in my race bike and farm equipment

Almost forgot, Harley has a good point. You can spend a fortune on high quality oil, but using a crappy cheap oil filter with it is counter productive. Never forget to get a good quality filter. I use K&N or WIX filters on just about everything.

Could I use Kendall's affordable Full Synthetic and a Bosch Distance Filter for 5k-7.5k intervals? Probably be less than 35 bucks total when I do my own oil change. I'd do this for both my 2004 Accord and 2006 Sedona.

Quote:

Originally posted by nemisis02

Synthetics will tend to keep the engine cleaner longer, but only slightly longer then conventional oils if changed regularly. Also depends on your vehicle, many newer engines have trouble with the conventional oils as they were designed for use with synthetics. Older vehicles that have never had synthetic in them may develop problems if you switch them over, since the synthetics contain more detergents and can dissolve or eliminate deposits that allow the engine to leak fluids.

I personally use mostly conventional oils in my vehicles and synthetics in my race bike and farm equipment

Good points. It's generally not a good idea to switch to synthetic if you've been using conventional or you own an older vehicle. I use conventional oil in my truck and change it every 3000-3500 miles and I use a synthetic blend 2-stroke oil in my outboard.

I use Royal Purple in my mustang cobra and my 84 toyota, RP suggests
changing the oil every 12k miles and just changing the filter at the vehicle
manufacturers recommended interval, but I do a complete oil and filter change
every 6k or so, but just swap filters and top it off @3k and go..

No matter what car I have I change the oil and filter at 5000K kilometers, some manufacturers recommend an oil change at 10K but 5K ks is my recommendation. It's a small price to pay

I distrust any oil beyond 3000-3500 miles. Not that the oil itself has degraded too much, but all the carbon that builds up in it acts like valve compound on internal parts. No matter how good a filter you get, it and the oil needs changed regularly. These oils that claim you can go 7500-10000 miles between oil changes are insane, the oil itself may still be fine and not lack any viscosity but the suspended particles in the oil may will still wear on the parts.

i change every 5k on my newer Jeep with synthetic, but on my older one thats carburated i use the synthetic blend every 3k. I do also belive alot of newer cars engines will run cleaner, people dont know this but using crappy gas can dirty up your oil quick. On my trailer rig i use synthetic and change every 3 months no matter the miles. it doenst get drivin alot but when it does its under alot of load and has to work damn hard. so basicly i treat each car differently, newer cars id go synthetic every 5 k since they run pretty clean. older ones get dirtier quicker so id change it more often. and if you beat on it then change it more also.

my bros tell me that ( very likely) all filters are made the same. are there any reports out there comparing the different filters, or is one or the other "better" through gossip and heresay ?

88,
All of them have to meet minimum specs for OE. Yes there are better ones. The filtering medium is one and the glue they stick them together is
another.
If you would like I would find the facts.

By my 40yrs. as a mechanic I can tell anyone who wants to listen that "IF" you follow OEM specs for oil and filter changes you might be safe.
(That doesn't take into account defectives)

Sorry for this but, Buy the Best and Cry Only ONCE !