Change To Synthetic Oil?

[OldsAuroraMan1]

Gentlemen:

Had a fellow tell me the other day that the Aurora came from the factory with synthetic oil. True?

Also, now with 76+ on my 1998, should I go to the synthetic oil? Valvoline now has "Max Life Synthetic" oil, desinged for higher mileage engines.

Is it AOK to go to the synthetic oil at this point?

[newscarver]

certainly ,synthetic ...any brand is just a better product.

[LesGrandsPieds]

Sure, why not? I plan to do the same thing next time I get my oil changed. From what I've heard, synthetic oil can reduce friction a lot better than your average stuff, and as a result, your engine can last much, much longer. Sounds like a good idea if you ask me.

I found something called DuraLube that looks really good. I also heard of something called RoyalPurple, that's what the guys on Horsepower TV always use, so it's gotta be pretty good stuff.

[RAGTPZ]

Synthetic oil is actually recommended to use in the owner's manual. I doubt it came from the factory with synthetic oil in it. Synthetic oil is not good to use in engine break-in miles as it is too slick as to not allow the piston rings to seat properly. Generally, I would switch to synthetic after about 6-7K miles. Some say 2K but I'm just a little conservative on that.

DuraLube is a oil additive which I tend to stay away from myself. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Royal Purple is actually a brand of synthetic oil which is an excellent product. It's dyno shown to also reduce cylinder head temperatures as well as being a great synthetic oil, tends to be pricey (~$6.00) a quart. I use that in my high perfomance Z but use Mobil 1 in my Aurora and that works nicely.

[Drewan35]

Its a good Idea.
I have been using Valvoline "Max Life Synthetic" oil, since 80k Now I have close to 190k in my 1995 Aurora. Seems to be working very well!

[GuMan]

I would recommend you look into a Group 4 synthetic, like
Amsoil, Royal Purple or Redline. Group 3 "synthetics", like
what Valvoline, Castrol and some others are using, are based
on hydroisomerized petroelum oil, which is sometimes called
"hydrocracked". Castrol was recently sued by Mobil for
calling their oils "synthetic" when they were just highly
refined base stocks with additives. One big concern about
group 3 oils is that they tend to be aggressive to seals and
gaskets. Additives are put in to buffer this effect, but by
3,000 miles these buffers have worn down and these components
start taking damage from this type of oil. I agree that they
are more "slippery", as someone put it. But... how slippery
do you need. A less refined oil product is much less
expensive and would actually pose less of a risk to your
engine components than these lesser expensive group 3
products.

That being said, group 4 products tend to have the opposite
effect on gaskets and seals. They tend to cause a slight
swell of rubber seals, which is why this type of chemical works
well in "stop leak" type additives. This type of oil is definately
good for extended duration change cycles. Just remember to
provide proper filtering for the duration. This means either chaning
out the filter every 3K miles, or finding an extended duration
filter. Amsoil and Hastings have good filters for this type of
duration. However, I still think it is wise to change out the
filter every 3K - 4K miles.

I used Redline, and have a local distributor here. I have
changed out my ATF on both my Aurora and my AWD Yukon
to Redline ATF, and have switched my Yukons drivetrain
completely to Redline products. I love them!

Just my 2 dollars worth..

GuMan

[The Rebel]

No synthetic Oil for new engines!

[KJH]

I spoke with a GM engineer a few years ago who indicated that he tested many of the various brands of oil on the market. He said that Redline was the best stuff out there hands down.

[OldsAuroraMan1]

Ok, made the change today to Mobil 1, 10-30. Hopefully some improvement will be made in the mpg and the engine life will be extended greatly.

NEXT:
How long should you leave Mobil 1 in your car engine?

[baron1701]

I recently went with a full Mobil 1 Synth extended mile change and some spiffy filter w/ nice adkitives already on the paper. I also added a synthetic oil aditive, cant remember the name though. The whole thing made a very big difference. My MPG seems a hair nicer and there is a severe reduction in engine noise. I am picky about my N*'s sounds though, most people would never notice. They are used to cavilers or foriegn motors that snap crackle and pop.

I expect that i wont be changing my oil till next summer. The package says 15,000 mile protection. My problem is the filter. I would still need to change the filter, but I dont think you can do that without the whole system drainingg out. I'd feel really bad doing an oit change and putting the oil back in.

[MN Hunter]

I currently have around 108K miles, is this to late to start using synthetic oil??

[frs64]

My personal experience with synthetic is like this.I bought a 02 z28 and switched to mobil 1 after break in. I used it until about 20,000 miles.The thing that irritated me was increased engine noise, like lifter ticking. Switched back to petrolem oil and the noise went away.This 96 aurora I just bought is the same way. Previous owner used synthetic and it has lifter noise.Funny thing is when I took the engine apart , there is no noticable wear and the engine is very clean on the inside.I can still see the honing marks from the factory on the cylinder walls.

[1995oldsaurora]

Originally Posted by OldsAuroraMan1

Gentlemen:

Had a fellow tell me the other day that the Aurora came from the factory with synthetic oil. True?

Also, now with 76+ on my 1998, should I go to the synthetic oil? Valvoline now has "Max Life Synthetic" oil, desinged for higher mileage engines.

Is it AOK to go to the synthetic oil at this point?

i think synthetic may be better then conventional motor oil, but what's the scense if you leave the oil filter on for 15 thousand miles ?? that's 5x longer then the standard 3000 mi. lube,oil and filter...

[BKVic]

If using synhetic oil in a new engine is such a big no no why do the corvette and most of the other high dollor sports machine monsters come frrom the factory with it in the engine?


BKVic

[howdydooit]

I have read that newer engine manufacturing is a lot more tolerant of synthetics. I have a new Rainier, and I am going to switch after the first oil change.

As to the Aurora, I have a 1998 w/106k miles on it. I switched at 102,000. My MPG improved slightly (1-3 MPG, depending upon the tank, weather, etc.) and typically averages about 1+ MPG better than it was before. I did it to solve an oil pressure problem, as low pressure was not fixed by going to a conventional 10w-40. Conventional oils don't retain their viscosity well at higher engine temps.

Anyway - I wish I had been using this stuff all along. Currently using AMSOIL, as that was reccomended by my mechanic (and he doesn't sell it - so he basically talked himself out of my oil change business - but he insisted).