Just bought a used '03 SE that was a previous rental. I assume they used regular dyno oil in there but I would like to switch to syn. It has 31k miles on the clock. Is there anything I can do/look for before switching?

I also heard about changing the oil again after about 1000 miles after switching to get rid of any junk that the syn. cleaned out of the engine. Is this correct?

Finally, how many quarts does the 3.5L engine hold?

I tried researching these in the fluids forum, but couldn't find a straight forward answer for the '03s. Thanks for any help!

 

A lot of different opinions on this. Don't worry about changing to synthetic, it will only do your engine good. I would change the oil and filter and put in new dino oil and run for about 100 miles. Change out oil and filter replace with good oil filter (I Use Nissan Brand) and your choice of synthetic oil. (I use Mobile 1 5w30). After that change oil every 3-5 thousand miles.

 

start with semi synthetic, next oil change you can use fully synthetic

 

First, congrats and welcome to the club!

The 3.5L takes 4.25 quarts with a filter change. If you're going to use Mobil1 filters, you have 2 choices...the M1-110 and the M1-105. The M1-105 will only fit the 3.5L and is almost twice the size of the M1-110 so that's what I use. The M1-110 will work with either the 3.0L or 3.5L.

Good luck with the car!

 

Richard, so you think I should change it right now to frest dino oil and filter? We bought it as a certified pre-owned nissan from a dealer, so I think they would have changed the oil when they were certifying it? So, could I just change it to synthetic right now or do you still think I should run some fresh dino for 100 miles? Thanks!

 

I have an 03 that had 20,000 miles on it when I went to Mobil1. I haven't had any problems. In fact I just had my second Mobil1 change today. I just totally switched over I didn't run a half synthetic for a few hundred miles then switch. It'll be fine it fact I will be using Mobil1 in the tran fliud before too long.

 

I am curious if the amount of driving will also effect the benefits of changing to synthetic. my Max is my weekend car, so it sits during the week, except when I do errands. would changing my dino oil to synthetic reap the benefits as if it were a daily driver?

basically, will having the synth sit for a week at a time do more harm than good on my engine?

 

Amsoil will give you 1 year of service from 1 oil change and 2-3 filter changes. You be the judge. Wouldn't that save you hassle and money. I do this on my wifes Durango and oil analysis came back great.

 

Skytower31
Pull the dip stick and check the oil color. If its still pretty clean then just change the oil and filter and put in the synthetic. If the oil seems pretty dirty(dark brown or black) I would drain and refill with new conventional oil and change the filter - run on that for about 100 miles then change over to synthetic and a good filter either nissan brand or the mobile1 filters are two excellent choices/

 

Good deal. Thanks!