Oil to synthetic or not

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ZooTech
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#11 Unread post by ZooTech »

Amsoil's own website says synthetic is not "more slippery" than dino oil. As such, Triumph motorcycles and Chevy Corvettes ship from the factory with synthetic in the engines, and they seem to break-in just fine.
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#12 Unread post by TechTMW »

ZooTech wrote:Amsoil's own website says synthetic is not "more slippery" than dino oil. As such, Triumph motorcycles and Chevy Corvettes ship from the factory with synthetic in the engines, and they seem to break-in just fine.
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#13 Unread post by dieziege »

VW also specifies synthetic in at least some vehicles (non-synth oil will void the waranty), ships them out with dino "break in" oil that is supposed to be changed at 1000 miles.... so it varies all over.
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#14 Unread post by ZooTech »

dieziege wrote:VW also specifies synthetic in at least some vehicles (non-synth oil will void the waranty), ships them out with dino "break in" oil that is supposed to be changed at 1000 miles.... so it varies all over.
Sounds like an excuse to buy cheapo dino oil in bulk to ship the cars out the door with, then charge $75.00 for an oil change a month later.
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#15 Unread post by TechTMW »

ZooTech wrote: Sounds like an excuse to buy cheapo dino oil in bulk to ship the cars out the door with, then charge $75.00 for an oil change a month later.
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#16 Unread post by ArcticHarleyMan »

The 'slipperiness' of oil is not the really important thing about oil, although it is one factor in a good oil The operating temperature at which it starts to break down and no longer remove contaminants is. Synthetic oil may not be slipperier, but it does not tend to break down as quickly so it continues to remove contaminants at a higher temperature and removing contaminants better to be filtered out via the oil filter is desired. That is why it is better than a non-synthetic oil. It is the contaminants in the oil which cause wear of engine parts. That is also why you should change to synthetic before you get component wear.

Just one more note. Although you use synthetic, you should continue regular interval oil and filter changes as suggested by your service manual.

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#17 Unread post by Bugg »

ZooTech wrote:
dieziege wrote:VW also specifies synthetic in at least some vehicles (non-synth oil will void the waranty), ships them out with dino "break in" oil that is supposed to be changed at 1000 miles.... so it varies all over.
Sounds like an excuse to buy cheapo dino oil in bulk to ship the cars out the door with, then charge $75.00 for an oil change a month later.

No doubt that's their angle, but I do know that alot of 2-stroke guys will break in their motors with dino oil because the it breaks in faster than with synth in it..it's just too damn slippery!
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#18 Unread post by VermilionX »

im just using semi-synthetic.
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#19 Unread post by Lion_Lady »

I switched to synthetic at the 600 mile service. All the DC/MD police BMWs make the switch at the same service.

I switched all lubes to synth at the 12K (Amsoil).

Synthetic holds up better under high heat conditions - such as sitting in Beltway traffic in July - than dino.

Now they say, that if you're gonna change the oil every 3000 miles, then synth is a waste of money. All you need to do is change the filter every 6K and top up the oil as needed in between.

I noticed that it seems to shift somewhat smoother, but will always have that BMW "clunk" that is just the nature of the beast.

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#20 Unread post by Flting Duck »

Unless your engine is specifically deisgned for synthetiv oils, it's a good idea to run it on dino oil for the first 20k or so. It allows the rings to seat properly.
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