oil recommendation for V70XC

aldug · Post by **aldug** » 29 Jun 2006, 06:20

I have a 1998 V70XC Turbo with 80,000 miles and I was wondering what type and weight oil is recommended. I live in an area where it gets close to 0 degrees in the winter and well into the 90s in the summer. I bought the car with 65,000 miles on it and I have idea what type of oil the previous owner used.

stoutlogic · Post by **stoutlogic** » 29 Jun 2006, 09:30

Generally speaking 5w30 synthetic of any kind. Mobil 1, Pennzoil Platnium, Amsoil, Castrol, any major brand will do. Turbos tend to be hard on oil so you may want to stick with 3-5K oil changes. Use a good filter such as a Mann, stock Volvo filter, you can get them from foreigncarpartsonline.com, FCP Groton, you can grab a case of 10 for $35+/-.

If your anal about oil and want to make your head spin visit this site:

http://theoildrop.server101.com

funny sh*t, those guys have way too much time on their hands

aldug · Post by **aldug** » 29 Jun 2006, 09:45

Is it ok to switch to synthetic if the car has has dino it's whole life and is it ok to switch back to dino in the future? For a turbo with synthetic oil, the change interval is still 3-5k even though the oil is 2x-3x more expensive?

the underlord · Post by **the underlord** » 29 Jun 2006, 09:57

aldug wrote:Is it ok to switch to synthetic if the car has has dino it's whole life and is it ok to switch back to dino in the future? For a turbo with synthetic oil, the change interval is still 3-5k even though the oil is 2x-3x more expensive?

sure. with 80K on it, switch.

I change my Mobil one 10W-30 @ 5,000 Miles.

aldug · Post by **aldug** » 29 Jun 2006, 13:38

OK, I will give it a try. The myths of synthetic being bad for the seals and causing leaks are not true?

the underlord · Post by **the underlord** » 29 Jun 2006, 14:00

aldug wrote:OK, I will give it a try. The myths of synthetic being bad for the seals and causing leaks are not true?

sometimes with a high mileage car, leaks can occur with a synthetic changeover, but you only have 80K miles.

stoutlogic · Post by **stoutlogic** » 29 Jun 2006, 14:06

aldug wrote:Is it ok to switch to synthetic if the car has has dino it's whole life and is it ok to switch back to dino in the future? For a turbo with synthetic oil, the change interval is still 3-5k even though the oil is 2x-3x more expensive?

Switching back and forth is not a problem. As for cost 3k oil change interval (OCI) with dino or 3-5k with synthetic. Yes its more expensive but you probably spend the difference between the two on coffee or soda's in a week. It's your engine, but why skimp on the most important mainentance for your ride?

If you want cheap try Walmart SuperTech synthetic, or Shell Rotella 5w-40 synthetic, both are easy on the wallet.

Tsquared · Post by **Tsquared** » 29 Jun 2006, 18:07

The manual on the 96 850 recommends synthetic over dino oil. It also recommends a bit longer interval than 3K miles...

stoutlogic · Post by **stoutlogic** » 29 Jun 2006, 20:37

True, my 98 t5 manual recommends 5k on dino or synthetic, synthetic recommended but most driving styles do not fit into 5k service interval. Frequent changes are cheap insurance IMO.

Since Volvo chooses to charge absurd prices for parts, I prefer to spend a little more on oil and change it a little more frequently.

Really what are we talking about? 2 to 3 oil changes per year for most people? So you spend $10 extra x 3 changes = $30 extra per year

If it saves you one trip to the dealer your ahead of the game.

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 29 Jun 2006, 20:47

stoutlogic wrote:Really what are we talking about? 2 to 3 oil changes per year for most people? So you spend $10 extra x 3 changes = $30 extra per year

The amount I drive I put about 2500 miles on my car in a month...almost all highway, so I choose to replace the synthetic oil at 5K miles...that's still 6 oil changes a year...at least (sometimes I drive more like 3K in a month). $6.00 a quart on the average X5 quarts = $30 x 6times a year = less than $250 (counting filters). I still consider this cheap insurance.