Synthetic or mineral oil?

AP · Post by AP » 16 Mar 2009, 21:02

I just purchased a 2005 XC90 2,5T with 48K miles on it. Here is the question:

1. The Volvo manual recommends the oil/filter to be changed every 7,500 miles. I've never driven a car more than 3,000 miles in between oil changes. Is it smart to wait to 7,500 miles before changing oil?

2. Synthetic or mineral oil?

All pros and cons are welcome...

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 16 Mar 2009, 21:05

Big debate on all of this, but my belief is that synthetic oil is definitely best if you have a turbo of any kind- it cuts down on the "coking" or burning and drying of the oil in your turbo after it cools down from being hot. That said, I don't follow Volvo's 7.5K mile interval (I think it's too long). I just use Mobil1 and stick with 5K miles- it's easy to keep up with.

AP · Post by AP » 16 Mar 2009, 21:14

Great, thanks for the info. I don't like to mess with the oil myself so I'll take it to a shop. Do you recommend paying a few extra bucks for having a volvo dealer do it, or is Grease Monkey, MIDAS etc. equally good?

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 16 Mar 2009, 21:52

Neither- Volvo overcharges and grease monkeys are just that- I wouldn't have them touch my car- ever. It's really easy to do if you want to learn- I have mine down on my wife's '04 V70 (the Volvo we have most like yours) to about 10 minutes. If you still don't want to do it yourself, find a good reputable independent shop or mechanic to do it- they may charge more than the grease monkeys but it is worth the peace of mind and since they are under there anyway, if they see something of concern they can alert you.