Normal Oil to Synthetic

Discuss any maintenance you've done to your Vibe & Matrix and ask how to perform maintenance on your vehicle
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christo
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2009 12:48 pm

Normal Oil to Synthetic

Post by christo »

Hi,I'm the owner of my Vibe since 2 years.I always do my oil change by myself, changing oil and filter every 5000-6000km...Usually, since that moment, I'm using Castrol GTX 10W30 and FRAM filterNow, I'm looking to go synthetic oil...Can I do that? With the appropriate oil and filter?What do you use and recommand to me!???Thank you
CAMOGIRL
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Re: Normal Oil to Synthetic (christo)

Post by CAMOGIRL »

I switched my car from reg pennzoil 10-30 to Mobil 1 5-30 and corresponding filters no problemo. My car had used pennzoil for 8 years til then.Here's a link to a similar thread I started before I switched.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=44209
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Salsa Guy
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Location: Greater Tulsa Area

Post by Salsa Guy »

On these cars you shouldn't have a problem. The have the newer type of seals. I did mine at 90K and have 105K (miles) with no issues. On older cars the seals will "dry out" and cause leaks. For those cars they suggest a blend of Syn and dino oil.
05 Matrix XR 4WD and 03 Vibe GT
"If you want Government to solve your problems, then you are the problem!" BMSR
Trix MODS: SRI w/ AEM filter, Vibrant/Magnaflow Cat-back, Alutec Lightweight Crank Pulley
GT MODS: Cosmo SRI, DRL, Auto Stop
christo
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2009 12:48 pm

Re: (Salsa Guy)

Post by christo »

And another question... How long between a Oil change with the synthetic oil?My road is half higway and half city...Thx
djkeev
Posts: 1357
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 8:51 pm

Re: (christo)

Post by djkeev »

Quote, originally posted by christo »And another question... How long between a Oil change with the synthetic oil?My road is half higway and half city...ThxThe Same intervals should be followed, take note Mobil 1 has backed off of their extended interval change claim.You'll spend more but you get better protection and peace of mind.Dave
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Capt.Vibe
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Location: Montreal

Re: Normal Oil to Synthetic (christo)

Post by Capt.Vibe »

You should be fine. Don't forget to go with the thinner 5W30 synthetic for the winter months here in Quebec. It'll flow much better than a 10W oil.
2010 Red Hot Metallic 1SA
cptnsolo77
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Post by cptnsolo77 »

When is it too "late" to switch over to synthetic oil. I have used castrol GTX for most of the Vibes life. I have 124K right now & no problems. Too late to switch over??? I want this car to last 300K.....
* 2003 Vibe Auto Satellite Silver w / Moons & Tunes
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* Polk DB651-Speakers
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* 27 MPG City/Highway with AC on
Salsa Guy
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Location: Greater Tulsa Area

Post by Salsa Guy »

This shouldn't be another Syn vs Dino oil threath. Here's the low down if you use a quailty dino then change every 3-5 K miles. If you use a Syn change every 7.5 to 10 K miles (maybe change the filter at mid point). I have put over 200K miles doing both.
05 Matrix XR 4WD and 03 Vibe GT
"If you want Government to solve your problems, then you are the problem!" BMSR
Trix MODS: SRI w/ AEM filter, Vibrant/Magnaflow Cat-back, Alutec Lightweight Crank Pulley
GT MODS: Cosmo SRI, DRL, Auto Stop
djkeev
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Re: (Salsa Guy)

Post by djkeev »

Quote, originally posted by Salsa Guy »This shouldn't be another Syn vs Dino oil threath. It's not and thus far I see no evidence of it being so.Synthetic is a superior product to conventional oils.What it doesn't do is last many times longer before changes. Oil's don't wear out, the additives in oil wear out.Don't go switching to synthetic thinking you can change your oil half or one third as much as conventional for you'd be foolish to do so.Recommended interval for oil changes on a Vibe is 5000 miles. Follow it or something close to it. 3000 is too frequent for even conventional oils, 10,000 is far too long for any oil.There is a large list of good reasons to spend the extra $$ on synthetic. Learn what they are and decide if it is right for you or not.Bottom line is that whatever oil you use and how frequently you change it is a matter of personal choice. There are facts and figures to prove what you should or should not do but when the dust settles, people do what they were taught and are comfortable with.Dave
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Cougar Vibe
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Re: (Salsa Guy)

Post by Cougar Vibe »

Quote, originally posted by Salsa Guy »This shouldn't be another Syn vs Dino oil threath. Here's the low down if you use a quailty dino then change every 3-5 K miles. If you use a Syn change every 7.5 to 10 K miles (maybe change the filter at mid point). I have put over 200K miles doing both. I mostly agree with this, though I'd suggest that most "name brand/quality" non-synthetics can readily go 5K; 3K, to me, would be for budget oils where the seller has no relationship to the manufacturer (ie, Walmart/WPP, etc.). But of course, w/out a recent formulation VOA indicating additive makeup, baseline TBN and base stock formulation, you'll never really know what you are using (and thus, how far you could push your OCI).As far as synthetics, I too have pushed OCI's beyond the standard 6mth/5K recommendation; 8K was the most I ever did, though that was based upon a time limit (1 year) as opposed to mileage. The oil in question that time was M1EP and according to Blackstone there was still TBN of ~6...so I could have went a fair bit further than 8K. Conversely, my parents Accord has a normal driving recommendation of 10K (though it has a OLM too); my father still dumps the oil between 3-4K though...I guess old habits are hard to break.IMO, if you are one of those folks that doesn't do their own maintenance and haven't fallen into the cult of BITOG, you would do right by your Vibe to stick w/a 4-5K OCI w/name brand dino. But if you're looking to push the envelope, prefer to do your own oil changes and don't mind doing some research, then I say go for an extended OCI. However, you're going to have to have some UOA's done...otherwise, you won't know the data (remaining TBN, wear metals, etc.) required to truly extend your OCI; and once you factor in the cost of synthetics and UOA's, you won't really be saving money over the guys using dinos. Anyway, these oil discussions tend to be "elbow and earlobe" situations...so you'll probably get a lot of opposing viewpoints, most of which will give you pause for consideration. Try not to get too confused!Good luck, C_V
Caretaker

Re: (Cougar Vibe)

Post by Caretaker »

...yes, don't get confused, and don't waste your time with synthetic oil. Today's dinosaur oil is amazing. It is not your daddy's dinosaur. Yabba dabba doo.And please don't preach about dino versus syn threads when we have a new thread every day announcing a new member. That's using the 'ole search engine, eh?
Salsa Guy
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Joined: Thu Oct 07, 2010 10:46 pm
Location: Greater Tulsa Area

Post by Salsa Guy »

The answer is NO you shouldn't have a problem switching to a syn oil. end thread
05 Matrix XR 4WD and 03 Vibe GT
"If you want Government to solve your problems, then you are the problem!" BMSR
Trix MODS: SRI w/ AEM filter, Vibrant/Magnaflow Cat-back, Alutec Lightweight Crank Pulley
GT MODS: Cosmo SRI, DRL, Auto Stop
djkeev
Posts: 1357
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 8:51 pm

Re: (Salsa Guy)

Post by djkeev »

Quote, originally posted by Salsa Guy »The answer is NO you shouldn't have a problem switching to a syn oil. end threadOh yeah, to OP.... what he ^^^ says!!
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