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Interesting info on synthetic oil recommendation

52 messages,  Last post on Nov 21, 2010 at 6:00 PM

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What is this discussion about? Subaru Forester, Wagon

Messages Page 2 of 6

#4 of 52 Re: Interesting info on synthetic oil recommendation [aatherton] by bigfrank3

Aug 09, 2010 (11:10 am)

Replying to: aatherton (Aug 09, 2010 5:47 am)
Allan, yeah, I thought I was a significant step for them. I remember back in the early 2000s when synthetic questions were asked on this forum and the answer from Subaru was that it was "OK", as long as it was done early in the vehicle's life, the change frequency was still adhered to, and of course that the oil met the specs.
 
As little as a few months ago my brother was told by the dealership that he couldn't use synthetic because it wasn't approved by Subaru. I pointed out to him that my manual for my 10 Forester said it was "OK".
 
I have always used Mobil 1 in all my Soobs. I thought that the recommendation for 0W-20 in the new non-turbos was also significant. Maybe that is how they get the extra 1 MPG and not the engine redesign.

#5 of 52 Re: Interesting info on synthetic oil recommendation [bigfrank3] by aatherton

Aug 09, 2010 (4:51 pm)

Replying to: bigfrank3 (Aug 09, 2010 11:10 am)
I am concerned that the change 0W-20 is driven by the extra 1 MPG rather than engine longevity. For my 2008, I will stay with 5W-30 until 50K miles when I will go to 10W-30 for the summer half of the year.

#6 of 52 Re: Interesting info on synthetic oil recommendation [aatherton] by xwesx

Aug 10, 2010 (11:26 am)

Replying to: aatherton (Aug 09, 2010 5:47 am)
I caught that, Allan. There are a significant number of owners out there who take their vehicles back to the dealership for all service, etc., using "genuine Subaru" supplies. There is definitely a market for the Subaru-badged synthetic.

#7 of 52 Re: Interesting info on synthetic oil recommendation [xwesx] by aatherton

Aug 10, 2010 (2:06 pm)

Replying to: xwesx (Aug 10, 2010 11:26 am)
I am not sure what I was "caught" at.
A significant number of owners will have their car serviced at the dealer at least through the warranty period.
But many people who change their own oil will buy various brands of synthetic oil from an auto store rather than Subaru oil from the dealer, as it is more convenient and cheaper.
And other people who don't have their oil changed at the dealer, will have it done by the quick change shops using whatever synthetic oil they sell.
I think the purpose of Subaru recommending synthetic oil was not to make a profit from selling Subaru oil, but to protect the engines better with any synthetic oil.

#8 of 52 Re: Interesting info on synthetic oil recommendation [aatherton] by xwesx

Aug 10, 2010 (5:13 pm)

Replying to: aatherton (Aug 10, 2010 2:06 pm)
I am not sure what I was "caught" at.
 
Hahaha, no, I caught this original point that you clarified in a previous post:
 
This is a recommendation to use synthetic oil, not a requirement to use Subaru's synthetic oil.

#9 of 52 Subaru oil change intervals by seppoboy

Aug 23, 2010 (11:09 am)

In 2006 I cross-shopped Subaru Outback with VW Jetta TDI, really liked the Subaru, but the deal killer was 3,750 mile oil change intervals. As a 30,000 mile annual driver, that would have been far too frequent, the TDI uses a specialized synthetic but has 10,000 mile intervals. Time out of service is important to me.
 
In the real world, do you Subaru owners adhere to 3,750 miles, or stretch it out to something a bit less 1960's? Do synthetic oil users have a recommended real world interval?
 
Thanks for any useful comments.

#10 of 52 Re: Subaru oil change intervals [seppoboy] by xwesx

Aug 23, 2010 (11:33 am)

Replying to: seppoboy (Aug 23, 2010 11:09 am)
I have a 2010 Forester with about 16,000 miles now. I am running mine on about an extended schedule, backed with used oil analysis to verify the integrity of the oil. I changed the initial oil at 2,500 miles after arriving home from the dealership (yeah, I purchased it a long way from home!), pulled a sample at 10,000 miles (about six months after the first oil change), then changed it at 14,000 miles (and had it analyzed again). Aside from a couple of high elemental counts due to break-in wear, the oil showed as very healthy (TBN = 3.2) when I changed it. The change in elemental counts between the first and second samples was almost none, which leads me to believe that the initial break-in wear should be over and I will likely see very low counts on my next sample.
 
I will pull another sample at about six months (probably 6-7 thousand miles) to see how it is doing. In general, I plan to do annual oil changes, which will be about 15,000 miles. I use Amsoil Signature Series 0w-30.

#11 of 52 Re: Subaru oil change intervals [seppoboy] by bigfrank3

Aug 23, 2010 (12:15 pm)

Replying to: seppoboy (Aug 23, 2010 11:09 am)
My wife and I have had 7 new Foresters including the 2 10s we now have. I used to drive the miles you do but don't even come close anymore.
 
I am conservative in my approach and recognize I am a bit fanatical about many things, but I do the first oil change at something less than 1000 miles to get out the initial shavings, core sand, etc. After about another 2.5K miles I change over to Mobil1 5WX30 and do oil changes about every 5K to 6K miles, but have gone as long as 7K.
 
As a retired engineer and also a former mechanic I believe that today's oil, both conventional and synthetic, have come a long way and are good for many more miles than what the factories recommend. I see 2 problems though. The first is the small filters which I believe are "done" way before the oil is. If they start to bypass because of filter loading then you are not filtering the oil, and don't know it. The second problem is that while the oil itself is still good at extended miles the additive package wears out.
 
All the additives are important but zinc helps protect against wear. Years ago oil had a lot of zinc but current formulations start out with much less, so as it gets depleted you don't have the best protection. So while I have considered doing 10K to 12K oil changes with the Mobil1 and just do a filter change at 5K or 6K, I generally don't roll the dice with things so I resort to my conservative self and just do the schedule I mentioned earlier.
 
I believe that Subaru still "allows" 7.5K oil changes under non-extreme use, even with conventional oil, and I would have to think that if you do 30K a year it has to be mostly highway and under ideal conditions. If so, I certainly wouldn't be doing 1/2 the "allowed", even being conservative and fanatical.

#12 of 52 Re: Subaru oil change intervals [bigfrank3] by ateixeira

Aug 25, 2010 (10:28 am)

Replying to: bigfrank3 (Aug 23, 2010 12:15 pm)
I was also going to mention the 7500 interval under Schedule B, I think they call it, i.e. light duty or highway miles.
 
If it's a big concern, you're likely to be putting on highway miles, too, so you're exactly the type of person who would qualify.

#13 of 52 Re: Subaru oil change intervals [bigfrank3] by medic481

Aug 30, 2010 (12:45 pm)

Replying to: bigfrank3 (Aug 23, 2010 12:15 pm)
Hi there- Your post tells me that you may know about this- I read in a recent Popular Mechanics an article that talked about new engine break in periods and maintenance. The author of the article stated that the oil should be changed after the first 100 miles, then at 1000, then per the recommended schedule. What do you think? I posted this on another thread and everyone thought this was crazy. I just bought a '10 Forester ( my first Subaru experience ), and I thought there might be some merit to the idea, so I changed the oil at 200 miles (already racked up that many before I saw the article). I used regular oil for this change, and will replace it with Mobil 1 at 1000 and thereafter at about 5000. I'm a city dweller, and don't plan to do any severe driving other than road trips here in Southern CA.

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