which engine oil for both 1997-850 NA and 2001-V70XC

[cn90]

Dino is fine, don't lose sleep over it.

The main issue with synthetic is cost. If you can find cheap deal, go for synthetic.
Check your NAPA store.

[jblackburn]

Once or twice a year, my NAPA autoparts store goes on sales with NAPA Synthetic Oil at $3.50/qt.
NAPS Synthetic Oil is made by Valvoline (I checked).

So I stock up enough for 1 year supply for my 3 vehicles at home.

This is what I do:
- I change my oil every 5K-6K (I don't want to get into argument of extended interval, whoever wants to go that route, go ahead). This is what I do.
- WINTER: 5W30 Synthetic
- SUMMER: 10W30 Synthetic.

This has served me well during the last 10 years.

Many people use dino oil w/o any issues, but my thinking is: if I can get Synthetic for same price as dino (Synthetic at $3.50/qt is a bargain), then I use Synthetic. I have used dino oil before too.

My two run with Penzzoil 5W30 standard. Is there a flush step before switching to synthetic?

Pennzoil is good stuff. But if you want to switch to synthetic, so long as neither leak significantly, just go ahead and switch. No flush or anything needed.

[louty]

so in one post I have read, syn oil is not good for turbo's
if true why would that be ?

been running syn 10/30 summer adn 5/30 winter in my wifes 98 s70 turbo and it has 160k on it

[jblackburn]

Handles heat better and prevents the turbo from "coking up" when shutting the engine off.

[louty]

Handles heat better and prevents the turbo from "coking up" when shutting the engine off.

so am i reading that correct ?

Synthetic is NOT good for turbos

[jblackburn]

Oh, I didn't read the "not".

No, synthetic oil is good for turbos because of that reason. I don't know where you woulda read that it's not. Most turbo and high-perfomance cars these days are requiring synthetic oil because of these properties - and it means less-frequent oil changes.

[KlubMarcus]

No, synthetic oil is good for turbos because of that reason. I don't know where you woulda read that it's not. Most turbo and high-perfomance cars these days are requiring synthetic oil because of these properties - and it means less-frequent oil changes.

Yep, synthetic motor oil is better. I usually buy conventional oil because synthetic is double the price. So I figure I can change my oil 3 times a year for less instead of twice a year for more. I switch to synthetic when it goes on sale at conventional prices.

[MoVolvos]

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http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/sho ... detail.htm

Although they LN Engineering specialize in air-cool Porches they do a lot of testing. Swepco hands down will beat any oil dino or synthetic on the market. This has been proven by Lab Analysis and real world experiences.

http://www.lnengineering.com/oil.html#Z20

"Also previously in our test fleet were 2004 W8 VW Passat, 2004 VW Touareg V10 TDI with oil changes every 5,000 mi with a similar 10-12 qt oil capacity, with base-line results for the Motul VW approved 505.01 spec motor oil required by VW.

We (and several of our customers) have also run in various race engines over a complete season the Motul 8100 X-Cess, Swepco 306 15w40, Motul 300V 5w40 and 15w50, Brad Penn 20w50, and Brad Penn 50 wt oils, and we have all been very impressed with their performance. Of particular interest is Brad Penn's and Swepco's high temperature performance upon teardown of engines for inspection. Used oil analysis and physical inspection upon teardown has shown Brad Penn and Swepco to have some of the lowest wear metals in UOA as well as inspecting finding highly stressed components coming out like new. Compared to oils twice their price, even more impressive is considering Brad Penn is not a synthetic oil and the oils we are comparing them against are Group IV and V full-synthetics and the Brad Penn similarly has exceptional high temperature performance expected of and seen when using full-synthetics."

My personal experience is with a Plymouth Voyager with a Mitsu 3.0. The Head Gasket went at 50K on a complete rebuilt and the Hash Marks were still in the Cylinder walls. The mechanic a second generation shop owner says they have never seen that before!

http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/e ... g99488.htm

"Now, is synthetic oil worth it? Perhaps. Synthetic oils do not protect the engine better than normal oils. They just last longer. So if, for example, a synthetic oil lasted 50% longer than a high quality normal oil, and cost only 30% more, then I would say it would be worth it in that case. However, often, this kind of analysis shows synthetic oil cost more in the long run."

The above is true only if the synthetic has good formulation. Oil lasting longer, not breaking down does not mean the protection is better. Here in CA I've used Swepco 15W-40 for some dozen years except for one winter I ran 10W-30 because someone wanted that for Warranty purposes in their car and I get them by the case of 24.

Blessings,
BKM
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[erikv11]

I've never used boutique oil, no one in my (large) extended family ever has, almost all of us drive high mileage vehicles and have for many years, and none of us have ever had head gasket failure in our cars. I have no idea why BKM has seen that issue so much, or why he attributes it to oil change habits, that is very strange.

When it comes to oil, there are some basics everyone agrees on, then there is a huge area of personal preferences and opinion, special needs (e.g. race cars are not daily drivers), etc.

The basics:
- oil change interval (OCI) is crucially important
- dino is fine, but needs a shorter OCI
- synthetic is fine, you can use a longer OCI
- climate matters when you are selecting a weight, so does the owner's manual
- use a filter with a good check valve

There are more details for sure, but those basics will get you a LONG way.

And then there is the rest, millions and millions of words out there to sift through ... go browse BITOG if you want to chat oil.

[waynej]

BKM, Please explain how engine oil can have any effect on a head gasket. I have been using Mobile 1 in all my Volvos for years and have never had a bad head gasket. I wish it was as good at cleaning the engine as you claim.

The major cause of head gasket failure is your foot being too heavy before the engine is warmed up to operating temp.