I am curious to hear your guys' unbiased (if that is possible) opinions on synthetic oils. Based on the research I have done it seems there is a lot more hype behind them. Do they hold up longer? Yes. However....this shouldn't be an issue if you change your oil at the correct times. Clean oil is good oil. Neither me nor my family has really ever bought into the hype of paying $14 a quart for synthetic and we have never had any oil related repairs needed. Also, what many companies say are 100% synthetic oils are blowing smoke, as the oils actually contain a small percentage of a synthetic base. I noticed there are A LOT of sources out there on the internet that are biased towards one way with no real proof, etc. I could go on about some other things. I think synthetics do have their place in certain situations.

Anyways, that's my view on the whole topic, but I am really interested in hearing a truly educated and unbiased opinion on this topic

 

The vast majority of today's "synthetics" are petroleum based. There are very few true synthetics left due to the skyrocketing cost of synthetic base stocks.

If you change your oil every 5k or more often, there is absolutely no reason to use anything but the Motorcraft synthetic blend. That stuff tests out as good as many "synthetics".

If you want to extend your drain intervals, then a true synthetic would be the way to go, and you will also need a premium filter to go the distance.

 

I think it will be hard to get an educated opinion on this topic from here unless someone is an oil tech for bp or shell. i never used to run synthetic in any of my vehicles for the reasons you mentioned (price and the fact that I always change on time or earlier). my 240 is turbo'd and that thing turns conventional or synthetic black the minute you start it up after an oil change haha. but the guy I bought my truck from had always ran full synthetic in it and so I continued. I have always heard it is bad to go from synthetic to conventional (dont know if theres any truth to that, but figured it couldnt hurt). anyways, after 3000 miles in my truck synthetic looks brand spankin new. i can barely see it on the dip stick!

interested to hear what other have to say though

 

Yea I figured...I change it every 3k-5k. I just don't see the need to pay such a high price for synthetics and some special filter.

 

I know that is a total myth that once you run synthetic you can't go back. That was true back when synthetics first came out and they were having some issues with synthetics. I agree that it will be hard to get a good opinion. Honestly, usually people that run synthetics are die hard synthetic people even if they don't really have any hard facts or educated info. Like I said, I am not opposed to synthetics, I just like to hear other peoples educated info, maybe it will make me change my mind.

I will say this...I grew up racing and riding motocross and I still ride A LOT and race from time to time (I am a Mechanical Engineering student in college by the way). I raced Intermediate class, which is one below the local Pro class and I am very very hard on my bikes (2010 CRF250R) and I have never used synthetic oils. In fact I run Shell Rotella T from Walmart (it is actually a diesel type oil). I have never had an issue in all the years I have ridden. I will tell you the abuse that motor sees is many times that of my F-150, even though of course the F-150 has many many more miles on it. The same could be said for my full blown race bike (2007 KX250F) back when I was big into racing.

 

Sub'ing. I've always wondered too.

CC, you at Arizona State?

 

Na I am up north at Northern Arizona University, ASU was too city boy life for me haha...nothing to down there other than party or get mugged.

Well doesn't appear many people have much to say about this topic haha

I posted this same question on Bobtheoilguy so I will see what is said

 

I think allot depends on your driving and how often. I don't put more than 5K to 7K miles on my truck in a year and when I do drive it they are usually longer trips pulling minimal weight, so for me the full synthetic made sense. I use a quality Amsoil filter and Amsoil full synthetic and change once a year. If you drive your truck daily and use a quality oil and filter in proper intervals, I would probably stay away from synthetics.

I'm not an oil guy or some type of tech, just saying that is what works for me.

 

Haha that's pretty much why I chose Texas A&M over UT. I'm engineering too. Very little mugging going on up here. It's still pretty city-like, but it's all fields 5 miles out of town lol

Just make sure to link or relay the info if they say anything good.

 

Maybe Labnerd will chime in. He may one of the few knowledgeable people on the forum on the subject of oil. He has said many times in the past that you are wasting your money on "synthetic" oil. And, he said he uses the Group II oil like Havoline or yellow bottle Penzoil and runs it 7500 miles with a lab test along the way.

 

I doubt you have any ide just how big that question is. A lot of folks claim synthetics offers more protection. Protection from what? Any Ford certified motor oil is double length tested at 302F, that's 16 hours. Your engine won't last that long at those temps. So extreme heat is not a factor. Cold startup even for some synthetics can be an issue and a conventional can be formulated with additives just for cold startups so the cold isn't really a factor. And most folks don't have -25F startups but if you do, you'd be wise to look at the CCS rating of an oil, not the label or brand. But what are we really taking about when we use the term "synthetic"? If the definition is a man made or man modified product that does not appear in nature, then we have just opened a lot of doors. At one time it pretty much meant the PAO based oils, a gas to liquid technology, but they have become expensive and rare these days. Using the above definition means that any crude stocks that are severely hydrocracked are synthetics. That includes the common Gp II oils, the Gp II+ and obviously the Gp IIIs. It just eliminates the Gp I solvent refined base oils. A number of oil companies are using this to call their oils "full synthetic" when in fact they are just barely a blend of years past. You're even using recycled oil these days as part of the "synthetic" base oil and there's nothing wrong with it either. So what is the big deal? Synthetic base oils adds stability to any motor oil. This allows the car maker to recommend longer drain intervals- that's about it. No synthetic base oil has more lubricity than a conventional oil and any formulation that gives a synthetic a lubricity advantage can be formulated in a conventional base oil with the exact same results. Any fuel mileage increases in using a synthetic base oil can be identically duplicated with an exact viscosity match conventional. Years back the synthetics were thinner on the Kinematic scale and gave better fuel mileage. That advantage is gone these days as conventional oils have improved dramatically. But car makers use the synthetics to make their products more maintenance free by offering the stability of a synthetic. Otherwise, synthetics have been a money maker for the oil industry who spend billions in advertising dollars to milk the unsuspecting of their money. Want the best for your engine? Read and understand the owners manual....but then, that's too easy and doesn't cost near enough.

Is there more to it than this? Yeah, but I don't see the need of an explanation you probably wouldn't understand anyway. The blends are the best of all of the base oils and not all synthetic base oils are user friendly, like the PAOs which do zero for the seals and doesn't mix with the additive packages. More chemistry is needed just to force it to work. Like with most things "keep it simple, stupid" will win every time.

 

I think the main difference between full synthetic and other blends is service life. If you want to extend the drain period run the full synthetic oils. Also, the cost difference depends on where you get the oil. If you can get the full synthetic from a 55 gallon drum, the cost will be much less. I recently had my oil changed at the local Ford dealer and they charged me around $5.50 a quart for Full synthetic which is usually closer to $7-8 if poured from a bottle. You can tell which one was used by the part number of the oil.

 

Damn, this matched basically the research I had done on oils to a T. I may share this with the people over at Bobtheoilguy. Just wondering...are you like a petroleum engineer or something haha?

 

I actually applied to Texas A&M and UT at Austin, as well as TCU. Decided I didn't want to head out that far from home. My brother lives in Texas though. They got some badass motocross tracks there in Texas.

 

Naw - he's a Walmart greeter with an internet connection, sitting in his mom's basement posing as an industry expert

Seriously - Is that a serious question?

Of all the 1,361 posts LN has contributed, fully 90% of them are oil-related advice and industry insight.

He doesn't post much anymore because folks simply are too dumb, too biased, or too lazy to listen.

CC, strap on the Search function and start reading.

I guarantee you that, if you had already done so, this Q of yers would be moot, and the electrons wasted answering it could have been applied to more productive endeavors.

"Like, HAHA" < ----WTF, like, good grief, like, - university material?