i was told by my tech today that if i run synthetic oil in my car, the warranty on the entire engine is void. wtf? why would that void it? he said if i run it, just dont tell them. also, where can i take my old oil to dispose of?

 

They are full of crap!

Walmart accepts oil and its free!

 

Thats bull! The dealer I get my oil change recommends reg oil. Because they dont carry synthetic. I just bring my Mobil 1. But they never said it voids the warranty.

 

man, i'm going to have a few words with my tech tomorrow. oh, and btw, the reason why i was up there at all is b/c i'm getting my transmission replaced. last time it was there, they were "backordered" which is some bs...

zand - thanks. that'll work.

 

cough bullsh*t cough

 

as long as the oil used is API and SAE certified for use with your motor, you're fine. the logo on the bottle should match the logo and letter designation detailed in the owner's manual.

doesnt matter if it came from a lab or a dinosaur.

 

I do this for a living working with oil.
Nissan can only recomend what to use and you must meet or beat that specification. NO car company can tell you what you can and can not use and they must uphold the warranty unless they can prove beyond a resonable doubt that the oil caused the failure.

One new thing in the works is that the api is issuing a new classification that is the SM which basically means synthetic only.

Manufacturers are then allowed to say that if you do not use Synthetic oil it may void your warranty simply because that is the minimum recomended requirement.

The use of additives applies as well. Unfortunately there is no classification for additives. but i tell you this oil and additives are TOGETHER. with out additives you will not meet the latest specs without higher bases you will not meet the spec.

Next is the Group 3 vs. PAO discussion Castrol makes a synthetic oil but according to the PAO manufacturers its not true synthetic because its still a dino oil. Castrol won and shoved it up the PAO guys azzez

I'm convinced that there isn't a large difference between the two after seening the data compiled between them.

However additives do make the difference. most of the latest classifications to the api chart were due to the additives.

Funny enough that is why most of these new oils like Jmatic are being made. more friction modifiers call it what you want and sell it exclusive to nissan owners.

Nissan does not make oil but only specifications at what the think the car needs to perform well.

It is then contracted to an exclusive manufacturer of their choice and wham you got a controversy of what oil to use and what not to use.

 

awesome, thanks for the post krayZ... can u tell me this, since you know alot about it, which brand of synthetic would you recommend? i'm pretty sure im gonna go with royal purple, but whats ur choice?

 

I'd rather not say what I use just cause of peoples brand loyalty to certain oils.

Redline uses a ester based oil which is very hard on seals many use it without issues it actually is better for heat than the PAO or Group 3.

Amsoil is a PAO base but costs a fortune for what you can get from Mobil 1 or equivelent.

Royal purple is near the equivelent to Amsoil but I think they use extreme pressure agents which are good.

Many will say that they don't help in the engine but the API says different in the motor oil guide book.

Your rods, crank, and valve train need these. Many would say that a motor consisits of hydrodynamics and it has no pressure.

I'm not picky on the oil as long as its synthetic after the break in period. Blowby with synthteics has known to happen on newer engines.

Filtration and the extra amount of oil is KEY to contamination and heat.

Bypass filiters, oil cooler, exteneded oil pan. aide almost better than anything else with a emphysis on the filtration.

The better the filter less than 10 microns is the best in a synthetic cellulouse filter. You can get. External filters that will go to 2-3 microns rather than 20 micron full-flow filter.

 

Tell your tech, from my part, he is an IDIOT.

I wouldn't want someone like that anywhere neay my car even if he paid me.

 

Kray Z,

I know this has been discussed many, many times before, but at what mileage would you recommend switching to fully synthetic in the 350Z?

Some people say 1200 miles, some 3000, others 9000+

Thanks
Pud

 

With my Z I changed my oil at 1000 miles to "regular" dino oil. At 4000 miles I switched to Mobil 1 Synthetic-I drive my car hard, and it has never burned oil during oil changes. One time I burned 1/2 quart over a 4000 mile period but that is normal, I usually change at 3000-3500 miles and I dont burn any oil.....on my old car where I rebuilt the motor, I switched to synthetic at 1000 miles, and unfortunately it was too soon, I burned 2 quarts in 3000 miles-later that engine spun a rod bearing Take it for what its worth...

 

but what car was that on? an old civic or something? and by hard do u mean races every weekend or what?

 

just dont tell them anything.. sometimes they note things in your profile and they will hold them against you down the road.

 

how do i know if i have burned oil?

 

Check your oil levels periodically... if they keep getting lower and lower over time, you either have a leak or are burning oil.

Also, check to see if your exhaust smoke is a bluish color...

 

David Mc David in Houston recommend using Castrol Synth. Blend High Horsepower for all oil changes on Z's. I would think they would not do something as simple as an oil change that would void the warranty and pass the responsibility off on themselves.

 

If you use regular dino oil you'll never have to worry about your warranty.

 

I would say that 4000 is fair break in can occur long before that there really is no real marker for synthetic. The rings really need to seat and get adjusted so that you do not get blowby.

Dino oil is ok but has a low temperature burnoff rate and has the potential to sludge up and make a mess. It all depends on how you drive the car for the most of us its no problem. Dino oil also does not handle temperature changes like synthetic. The synthetic molecules will hold toghether far better than the dino oil.

Like i said before it doesn't matter what oil you use synthetic or dino as long as it meets nissan specs. They CAN NOT tell you what to use. Now here is one scenerio that could happen an thats if you changed to synthetic at 500 and blowby occurs yeah you could say that was the cause of the problem but usually if you switch back it corrects itself.

The other thing is moving back an forth from Synthetic to Dino. There is NO HARM whatsoever. Contrary to believe this was initated by the oil companies to introduce a new product that they thought was so good that once you start don't stop.
If one is better than the other why go to the lesser one?

To back this statement up you will notice some companies offer synthetic blend. Its made of half dino and half synthetic. How much of each is to be determined seeing how the PAO bases are twice or sometimes 5 times greater than the dino bases. I stay away just cause i think its a rip off to the consumer especially when you got castrol putting group 3 bases in thier oil and calling it synthetic.

Whether you use dino oil, Synthetic oil, or aftermarket additives. There isn't a damn thing nissan can say about it. And in a engine you can get away with a lot. Transmissions and rear ends are different.

An engine= less or no friction
LSD and Auto Trans= Friction in the discs less in the planetaries and ring, pinion assemblies.

If you add extreme pressure agents or anything else to reduce friction you will cause slippage. The additive companies actually offer friction modifiers to increase the friction in the necessary clutch packs.

 

My old car that burned oil was a fully built n/a Probe GT 2.5L, it lasted me "only" 2 months in which I drove it 8000 miles and went through 2 trannies in that time. I ragged the **** out of it every day, especially on the weekends street racing it and all that. I believe I switched to synthetic too early, the rings never broke in well enough and I had more blow by than usual. As far as the Z, I am much easier on it than the Probe(guess I grew up some), but I still drive it all the time, and am hard on it, and it never burns oil. 43,000 miles on the Z in less than 2 years, and numerous track days and "cruising".... Its a stout motor in n/a applications, even with the redline raised