What brands and viscosities does everyone use in their 4.3 and why ?

Thanks !

What brands and viscosities does everyone use in their 4.3 and why ?

Thanks !

I think that is a 'banned question', but nonetheless I run walmart (quaker state) 10-30 year round. 192K and still has 40+psi at speed

Penzoil all the way! 5W-30, year round. Why? Well because I was raised to use Penzoil and why 5W-30...because that's what's recommended.

I think that is a 'banned question', but nonetheless I run walmart (quaker state) 10-30 year round. 192K and still has 40+psi at speed
Why would this be a "banned question ?"....really I was looking for what viscosity oils people were using and if it was detrimental to using a heavier weight like 15/40 or 15/50 synthetic.

Mobil 1, 5W30. Good stuff, have even seen MPG increase since I started using it.

Why would this be a "banned question ?".....

nothing starts a holy war on the web faster than asking what oil brands are used...

Use the viscosity the manufacture tells you, that is what the engine is designed to use. New cars are pretty much 5w30. I believe that a good synthetic is the best choice.Being a technician I have seen failure in certain engines that didn,t happen with the engines that ran synthetic in them. I was never a believer, I am now.

Valvoline 5-30 , every 3000 miles with a new FRAM oil filter.. I do use 15-40 in my 88 ford ranger with 437,327 it seems to have a little oil consumption problem though it doesnt appear to burn it.. it just uses it, but i guess that is okay for the mileage

5w30 Valvoline Durablend (synth/dino blend).. Year round...

what's the rules in switching from regular oil to synthetic? I run Rotella T 15-40, but I'm on my second set of oil lines to be replaced and now it's looking like the oil press sending unit is leaking too. I'm leaning towards going to the manufacturer recommended to see if I get any difference.

Penzoil 5W30, but every second or third change I add an EOS. (GM)

Mobil 1 SYN...10W/30...best stuff money can buy!

Chevron...what Jiffy Lube is using now ...
How about transmission, does changing, flushing, filter make a difference...
Mine is shifting kind of hard...so I plan to change it a few times this summer...141,000 miles

rotella t diesel oil my bentley loves it clacks away but loves it struggles to get it to the crankcase but loves it

Castrol GTX highmilage in my 87 s-10 w/ a new purolator filter ( the blue one)

Is that vehicles with full synthetics that have avoided breakdowns in the same vehicles without it, or blends? Also, does it matter what brand synthetic, or do they all do the job?

I use whatever brand is cheapest as long as it has the government seal of approval on it. 10 W 30 though, 5w30 is way too thin here in North Carolina and that is probably why my first engine blew up at 100k. This new engine only gets 10w30 every 5k miles.

Pennzoil 5w30 here too.
I have been buying those Fram filters with the grip on them.

I believe the mauals state to use 5w30 unless in high temp areas.
Gregg

hi. speedy muffler does all my oils and the owners hand book and gm they all say to use 5w 30 and they they could care less about brand. as long as the ssi symbol on the back of the jug has the proper rating (sg ,cd ,cf etc.) personally i use whatever is on sale,usually its castrol.good luck jj

Well, I live in the Phoenix, AZ area. So, would it be better if I used 10w30 or just stayed with the man. recommended 5w30?:uhoh:

sorry dude i live in nova scotia canada our weather goes from -28 degrees c to +35 at the hottest for about 2 or 3 weeks in july & aug (celsius degrees metric hooey) our gm cheeze heads say 5 30 later jj

Do any GM techs or anyone know what damage could be caused (if any) if someone were to use Mobil 1 15W-50 in the 4.3 ?

http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi

Lots of good stuff here....

Check out the filter section if you are Fram user...

Well;
I definately use Mobile 1 5W-30 oil.I get better gas milage ,smoother starts in the winter.aproximatly 2 mpg better.I put on 5000 miles between oil changes with a 7000 mile Fram filter. Ive been keepng an eye on the oil to see if it gets dirty putting on 5000 miles between changes ,it stays pretty clean.
Don

If you get 2mpg from Mobile 1...the mpg are in your mind only...sorry this I cannot believe...

Well;
I dont care if you beleive it or not.I was getting 14-15 city driving on regular oil ,now im getting 16 1/2 to 18 mpg with mobile one. I had the truck over a year on regular oil, then switched to mobile one, thats when i noticed that i was getting more miles out of a tankfull. by the way , im getting 22 to 24 highway driving 65-70 mph. if you cant believe that,i have some swamp ground in Arizona that i can sell you Mr know it all

Well I decided to give Amsoil a try today instead of Mobil 1......10W-30 with a new filter....we'll see how this goes.

i use Castrol GTX highmilage 10w-30 every 3000 miles...158,000 miles and still going strong

80/90 gear oil in the motor year round.Runnin 350psi on the gauge.

What brands and viscosities does everyone use in their 4.3 and why ?

Thanks !

About which oil to use: I've researched that and here goes:

I just found out the answer to that question: Chevron Delo 400 Synthetic 0W-30 if you live north of Texas, and Mobil 1 0W-30 if you live south of Texas (southern states only).

Why? Almost half your lifetime engine wear occurs during cranking (confirmed by several engineer friends and also by Mobil Oil Company), so a 0W-30 is the right weight to cut wear down. The "0W" part means the oil gets up and gets going to the bearings the fastest during engine cranking at start-up. Therefore, a "0W" is the best. (A "0W-30" can be used where the manufacturer recommends a 5w-30.)

But why Chevron Delo Synthetic 0W-30 for anybody who lives north of Texas? Taking the "Dragnet" approach, "Just-The-Facts", look at the incredible technical spec sheet at http://bestsyntheticoil.com/dealers...une-17-2003.pdf and notice that Chevron, employing some of the best engineers and having some of the best labs in the world, have come up with a synthetic oil that has a Pour Point of -76 degrees below zero. BEST THERE IS. That low number means that their Delo Synthetic 0W-30 oil resists the bad effects of cool temperatures, indicating that it is going to flow better when the weather is simply below freezing as well. By the way, the Chevron oil's Flash Point is still OK at 419 degrees (any number over 400 is good).

South of Texas (any southern state), its fine to use Mobil 1 0W-30, since its Pour Point is almost as good as Chevron's Delo Synthetic, and Mobil 1 has a slight edge on high temperature Flash Point.

Also, Mobil 1, like Chevron Delo Synthetic, is produced by world-class, well-funded engineers with some of the best labs anywhere. This means Mobil 1 or Chevron synthetic have proper additive packages in addition to having oil that flows at cooler temps and hangs in there at high temps.

One note: If racing or pulling a trailer, you might want to use Chevron Delo Synthetic 5w-40 weight or Mobil 1 synthetic 0w-40 weight. However, the 0w-30 weights in both brands of oil would probably do just fine there too. One more note about racing: Using Mobil 1 0w-20 may be the best for racing, since the lower-viscosity "20" number means it takes less horsepower to run the oil pump, giving you slightly more horsepower available to drive the wheels! Slight horsepower advantage with the thinner "0w-20" Mobil 1 synthetic, but possibly less engine life. Again, the Mobil 1 "0w-40" would make the engine last longer in racing, but it soaks up more horsepower than the Mobil 1 "0w-20" --- you choose which is more important when racing!

Chevron Delo Synthetic 0w-30 may only be available at trucking supply stores. Mobil 1 is available everywhere.

I don't work for Chevron or Mobil. I am an engineer (Mechanical/Aerospace/Computer) and I think you've got to go on the facts without ANY marketing hype.

It may be noted that Chevron sells the Delo Synthetic to trucking fleet managers who they know will see the numbers, so marketing hype is not going to suffice. That might be why Chevron has the best Pour Point while some other more heavily consumer-advertised oils don't.

For higher mileage (more than 75,000 miles) it may be good to go to Mobil 1 0W-40. Again, stick with the "0w", but in this case make the top number "40" to fill the larger clearances in older engines. I'm not completely sure about whether you really have to go to the 0w-40, and if it was me I would stick with the Chevron Delo Synthetic 0w-30 for any car in states north of Texas, and Mobil 1 synthetic 0w-30 for southern states, as in the analysis above, even for older engines.

On oil filters ---- Don't Use Fram --- Here's Why:

I've got some good info: Oil filters that are good are Purolator, AC, Bosch, Wix, Mobil 1, NAPA,... pretty much anything but FRAM. Ban Fram and you'll be fine. The details are at: http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilterstudy.html if you'd like to read all that. By the way, beware of oil filters that merely put a new label on an actual Fram filter. Compare the way the filter looks from the opening end if you aren't sure if it is really a Fram-filter-in-hiding.


good luck

If you get 2mpg from Mobile 1...the mpg are in your mind only...sorry this I cannot believe...

I agree. Gas mileage boosts are almost entirely due to a viscosity DECREASE, meaning that if you switch to Mobil 1 0w-20, you will see a gas mileage boost, but using Mobil 1 0w-30 or 0w-40 will have about the same gas mileage as a regular motor oil of around 5w-30 weight. Higher viscosity means lower gas mileage.

hi guys fram filters DO SUCK. i have just found out about several oil delivery problems with them. but my biggest beeeeef is instead of being made in canada or the US most are made in israel!!! no wonder they are cra* please avoid these parts. i work on atv's as well the fram filters for those are more money than stock o.e.m honda stuff(honda bikes and quads are assembled in the us) they can take out an engine slick as snot. DO YOU THINK ITS THIER PLAN?????????? have a nice day and buy american or canadian, later jj.

hi guys fram filters DO SUCK. i have just found out about several oil delivery problems with them. but my biggest beeeeef is instead of being made in canada or the US most are made in israel!!! no wonder they are cra* please avoid these parts. i work on atv's as well the fram filters for those are more money than stock o.e.m honda stuff(honda bikes and quads are assembled in the us) they can take out an engine slick as snot. DO YOU THINK ITS THIER PLAN?????????? have a nice day and buy american or canadian, later jj.

In 1985, a new Fram filter stopped oil flow on my new pickup truck, forcing me to immediately shut the engine down. But thats not really enough evidence (only 1 incident). Other people have had problems, as shown above, so the jury has returned a verdict. I think the best evidence of Fram's Suckee-tude is at http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilterstudy.html for anybody who wants more evidence.

Ok, no more Fram filters for me.
I usually go with the OE filters, but the past few oil changes I haven't.
I should know better, I work in a dealer.

Castrol GTX 10-30 My first choice
chevron,havoline,Mobil 1 and valvoline are all great oils!

Penzoil IS CRAP LIQUID BALL BEARINGS MY ASS!
penzoil turns in to sludge and leaves your valve lifters/your whole engine with this sludge build up.
"IF YOU DONT BELEAVE ME PUT A TABLE SPOON OF EACH ABOVE A TORCH SEE HOW PENZIOL GUMS UP!"
its chewing gum for your engine!

I too have seen the brown Penzoil crap out in the Bardahl...test from years ago...

Have you heard of Bardall...sp could be wrong...?