[franko9217]

My wife drives a '13 Nissan Murano. We decided to hold onto this car long term. Does it make sense to use synthetic oil or since it's a non performance car it really doesn't matter?

If it's better to use synthetic what grade would you recommend being that i live in san diego?

Also, do i assume to wait 10k miles in between oil changes?

Thanks in advance.

[WreckerX5d]

Synthetics have a higher boiling point than conventional, and also they tend to not wear and break down as rapid as a conventional will over the regular interval. You can go a bit farther than normal with synthetics, but it's all dependent on driving style.

If you really want to know how far you can go on a synthetic, do an oil analysis through Blackstone Labs ($25) and they will give you a very good idea.

So yes, if you plan to keep the car for the long haul, switching to a synthetic would be a good choice. The grade of oil is dependent on the manufacture.

[08njSTEP]

Here's my non-BMW experience. My dad bought a Chevy Astrovan for business. He used Mobil-1 synthetic and changed oil every 3,000 miles. Van had about 280,000 miles when he dumped it. 7 transmissions, 0 engine problems. He got his oil from a Mobile-1 sponsored race team and they suggested he extend his oil change to 7,500 mi. He bought a Chevy 3500 van as a replacement. He went to a 5,000 mi oil change interval and just wasn't comfortable with 7,500 mi recommendation. That van went 350,000 miles and he gave it to charity. No engine issues ever. The Astro was around 1986 and the 3500 was in early '90s. This was in the early days of synthetic oil. The race team set a bunch of endurance world records. The biggie was 10k miles averaging 178mph. They set 5kmi, 5kkl, 10kmi,10kl, 12hr& 24hr records. The car was a stock ZR-1 Corvette, the team was Morrison Motorsports, and EDS-Mobile-1 were sponsors.

[CirrusSR22]

Just think of how many trillions upon trillions upon trillions of miles that have been driven on non-synthetic. It's perfectly fine if your car doesn't require synthetic.

[Bbb34]

If I'm you, I would do synthetic oil and go 7.5K miles (or 6 months) between changes. That's exactly what we're doing for my wife's car - keeping it long term.

[franko9217]

Thank you all for the responses.... My whole mindset of how i treat my cars changes when we are thinking long term.

[oolas3]

I don't think non-synthetic even has a financial advantage as you'll be changing the oil every 3k-4k miles, while synthetic can go 8k-10k miles.

[overcoil]

If you go to the Mobil 1 site
https://mobiloil.com/en/product-selector
They can guide you to the correct oil viscosity.
I personally would definately use full synthetic.
Frm personal experience felt Nissan makes a very durable product. Ran synthetic in my 240SX and that engine was indestructible.

[Viffermike]

Boy ... an oil thread ...

:: reaches over to a shelf, grabs a can of worms, pops open lid ::

Full syn. Always. The Mobil 1 guide is a good one. There's a reason manufacturers use it almost exclusively now in new engines -- particularly performance engines.

[Dackelone]

Since your gonna keep this car... go with a full synthetic rated oil. Use a short OCI(oil change interval) and you will be fine. I would also stick to using a factory oil filter too.


Just some food for though on using a dino oil with a long or forgetting to change the oil vs a synthetic oil...


Go to 05:30...

[Jdub679]

I've been using a synthetic blend (Valvoline Max Life) on my 200k+ mile Toyota beater. Changed religiously every 5k miles. Supposedly it's got additives that will help swell seals and keep leaks at bay.

I've also performed a Blackstone oil analysis on the car, and according to them, the engine is in top shape.

That said, unless someone can provide evidence to use a full synthetic over what I'm using, I choose the blend for the high mile additives.

[overcoil]

Originally Posted by Jdub679

I've been using a synthetic blend (Valvoline Max Life) on my 200k+ mile Toyota beater. Changed religiously every 5k miles. Supposedly it's got additives that will help swell seals and keep leaks at bay.

I've also performed a Blackstone oil analysis on the car, and according to them, the engine is in top shape.

That said, unless someone can provide evidence to use a full synthetic over what I'm using, I choose the blend for the high mile additives.

200000 miles Toyota makes a great engine, I guess that with high powered turbo engines that create enormous hear the full synthetic ?

[insanecoder]

Toyota makes a great engine and he was a great owner.. religiously changing at 5k miles

[GATORB8]

About to turn 200k on the 5.4L 3V V8 in my F150. Manufacturer recommended oil type and weight, OEM oil filter, and manufacturer recommended OCI.

You can always do a blackstone sample if you want to extend intervals.

Reminder, today's longer OCI's are also inflated by increased oil capacity, not just improved oil.

[figgie]

on my 2007 Cadillac CTS, from the time the car was born (built) it has been on Mobil 1 full synth. Engine is the 3.6L V6.

180,000 miles, 10k oil change intervals. I do check the car for oil levels religiously. During the first 30k miles, every oil change I was getting it analyzed by Blackstone labs.

Present: ZERO motor issues. The transmission on the other hand... rebuilt already. lol