-- [ From: Kubat * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
> From: Dave_Clement-LDC009@email.mot.com \ Internet:
> Subject: RE: First oil change, and a bunch of other stuff.
>
> From: stei0302@penny.cs.fredonia.edu@INTERNET on Tue, Dec 19, 1995 7:18 PM
>
> >In my previous car, (3000GT VR-4) I used nothing but high quality
> >synthetics (Mobil 1), and I planned to do the same for the Dakota.
However,
> >I have heard that for the first 10,000 miles, you should use conventional
> >oil, because you want the engine to wear a little. What do you think?
> >Should I go with synthetic from the start, wait until 10,000, or use
> >conventional all along?
>
> I have read a number of articles that suggest that you wait several
thousand
> miles before changing over to synthetics. But Chevy supplies Mobil 1 from
the
> factory in the LT1 motor in Corvettes so they do not think it is a problem
. I
> used Mobil 1 from 8k miles on my 85 Daytona turbo and the engine was still
> running strong at 240k miles (no turbo work or internal engine work) when
I
> decided to get rid of it. I am a real believer of in it for highly
stressed
> engines. I have also gotten that kind of mileage out of conventional oils
on
> non turbo engines also. If you decide to use synthetics I would wait a
few oil
> changes, it won't hurt.
There should be no problem using a synthetic from day one. However, if
you're as retentive as I am, you'll realize that it isn't cost effective to
do so. When I bought my Toy 4x4 and my wife's Saturn I ran dino juice at
first. Why? Well, I changed oil the minute I got them home. Then I
changed again at 500 miles, again at 1500, and again at 3000. A few oil
changes is cheap insurance against debris left over in the machining process
(even though you will hear claims that this is no longer a problem, I still
have my doubts, unfounded or not). At the 3k oil change I switched to M1
and there I stay. Do stick to the manufacturers recommended viscosity
ratings, or you can void the engine warranty (thus I use Mobil 1, which
comes in 10W-30).
Whether you wait until 10k to switch to synthetic is really in the noise
level in terms of importance, but your engine will be better off with
synthetics in the long haul, especially if you're not religious about 3k oil
changes. Dino juice breaks down a lot quicker than synthoils, and the
residual crud and acid builds up scum and eats holes in the metal inside an
engine. In some cases this is more extreme than others. In some it may be
completely irrelevant.
In a then-new '76 Ford Econoline van used to tow a travel trailer, we used
Pennzoil in the 351 Windsor (sucky engine by the way...). Due to a lack of
power (here we go again...) Dad and I set about lighting a fire in that
truck. During the overhaul at only 65,000 miles (honest, the engine was
beat) we discovered a lot of crud left from the dino juice-the lifters were
literally sludgecicles. I believe (no proof) that this was due to the high
heat generated in a lot of towing, and the natural oil just broke down too
fast between 2,000 mile oil changes. An oil cooler may have helped too.
Dad switched to AMSOIL (one of the few synthetics he could find back then)
and ran that for another 100k. We pulled the engine for some "tune up" work
(more power, a recurring theme in our lives before it became a grunt call)
at 170k and while the engine wasn't dinner table clean, it absolutely didn't
have any sludge buildup.
Sure, it's only an example, but it showed me the difference something as
simple as oil selection can make.
-- --------------------------------------------------- Gary B. Kubat, kubat@kuentos.guam.net Capt. USAF Typhoon Duty Officer Joint Typhoon Warning Center, Guam
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