carcus

Just hit 7500 miles and switched to Mobil One synthetic 10-30. Anyone else running synthetic and what weights are you running? Could have went with 5-30 but warm out here all the time.

I know dino oil works fine, but got the Mobil 1 at Walmart, pretty cheap there. 20 bucks for 5 quarts. Ran this oil in my BMW and Camaro Z28. I like it. Still keeping the regular change intervals.

Had to get the oil change done. The dealer I got the car from is 10 bucks.....2 hour wait though and since I passed on a bad survey to Nissan when they called about customer service, did not want to go through the dealer service again. They wanted 80 bucks for the 7500 mile checkup. I said, OK, you guys want 10 bucks to change the oil because I got it there, good deal for dino oil. They said for 80 bucks they change the oil, check fluids, and rotate the tires. What the hell is the extra 70 bucks for............check the fluids!!!!!! Besides rotate the tires????

Just looking at what you guys are doing.

Tek-Niq

iTrader: (3)

I tought it was at 10k for synthetic.... if not I need some info then....

carcus

Alot of new cars come with synthetic from the factory. Not an issue with newer cars. At 7500 miles, my car is broken in as well as it can be.

Hell, the Vette comes with Mobil one and a few other cars. As long as you get the junk out and look for problems after the first oil change, can not see why people are afraid of going to synth early.

Does the Max really need it.....no...but plan on keeping the car until it dies.

Monotaur

Yeah, I switched to Mobile 1 at around 8K or so I think (can't remember exactly - I had a few extra changes there in the beginning), and have used it ever since (and I'm keeping the same oil change interval).

On an interesting side note though, I called Nissan about an inconsistency in their recommended oil change interval. Somewhere (I can't remember where) I read that they recommend a change at every 3K miles rather than the 3250 the service manual schedules. The rep said that if there were any ever engine-related warranty issues that would require them to have to look at oil change intervals, that they would highly suggest 3K mile change intervals... I'm not sure why then their manual specifies 3250, but I've always stuck to 3K. Or maybe it was just the CSR being misinformed?

sayaltitude

Just gave the car its first dino oil change this morning at 730 miles. Mobil 1 filter. I'll keep using dino (Castrol GTX) at 3,000 mile intervals until I get past around 12,000. My dealer says 6,000 is okay to start using synthetic, but if that's true then 12,000 seems like it'd be even better.

When I do make the swap, it'll be to Amsoil. I'll keep researching, but I think I'll be comfortable leaving the Amsoil in place for 6000-8000 miles at a stretch.

SilverMax_04

That's a little early for complete engine break-in according to both Nissan and the experts on this site. But I would not change back now. Go for it.

I'm currently running Mobil 1 and changing every 7,500 miles -- the maximum that Nissan recommends (will accept). But you need to read the recent article by Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers (Tom and Ray Magliozzi) from "Car Talk" on a question about why in Germany "no one changes oil more than once a year, if even that. Why are Americans changing oil so much more?" I will quote here the key points they make:

"They drive fewer miles per year than we do. We in the US average about 15,000 to 20,000 miles a year. Germans average about 10,000 miles a year. Synthetic oil is more popular there and synthetic motor oil only needs to be changed every 10,000 miles, which works out to about once a year for the average German driver. . . A single quart of synthetic motor oil in Germany costs about 10 bucks."

"The Europeans are trying to stretch the interval even farther. Manufacturers are reportedly trying to achieve a 30,000 mile oil-change interval with synthetic oil. So that might mean changing the oil once every three years over there."

"Over here, we use mostly traditional, petroleum-based motor oil. And most manufacturers now recommend changing the oil every 7,500 miles. We recommend doing it every 5,000 miles, because we tend to be more cautious about protecting the engine. Very few people recommend changing the oil every 3,000 miles anymore. It's just not necessary, and the environmental costs are too high."

"But maybe it's time for us to reconsider our recommendations? With engines and oils getting better all the time, we might have to go up to 7,500 miles too." This would be with dino oil -- and they said earlier that synthetic could easily go for 10,000 miles. I will continue to follow the Nissan recommendation (requirement) of 7,500 miles as long as the engine is under warrenty. When that ends, I'll probably go to a 10,000 mile change interval with Mobil 1.

Bosjoe

I started using Mobile 1 after 2 oil changes.. You just read that it is better for your car.. If its good for a Vette Its good for me. I change mine at about every 7000 miles. I do mostly highway driving. No stop and go for me. a Mobile 1 chage every 7000-8000 miles ends up cheaper then changing Dino every 3000 miles. With todays engines they do not need that many changes. Unless you live in very dusty conditions or towing everyday.. But who is going to tow with a Max.

NOCturnalI30

iTrader: (1)

i have 84000 miles on mine should i switch to synthetic???

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

95 227k switched at 87k Castrol Syntec 5 0r 10-30, 5-7500 mile intervals
03 50k, switched at 39k " " " " " " "

Bobo

I have a low mileage 95SE that I've owned since new. I am considering switching from dino to synthetic, likely Mobil 1 at 60K (presently under 58K). I plan on using the Nissan oil filter. As you can tell I am a low-miler, mostly highway driving as the car isn't a daily driver.

What change interval do you think I should use? Can the oil remain in the car for a year if I only drive it 5, 6, 7K?

Bobo

bump to the top. Anybody home?

SilverMax_04

With that kind of driving pattern, you should have no problem changing oil once a year. The critical point is that the engine should get completely warmed up when you drive the car. If you only drive a few miles and then stop and turn the car off, you will want to change the oil more frequently because it does not get a chance to heat up and evaporate the water that will normally condense in your engine.

I am currently changing my synthetic every 7,500 miles (for warranty). When the warranty runs out, I will be going to 10,000 miles (but then I put about 15,000 miles a year on the car, much of it long highway miles).

Maxima-Ness

Amsoil...48k

The Legend

switched at 22,000 to mobil1, currently at 80,000 gonna start using amsoil

S00NR1

iTrader: (3)

Switched to Mobil 1 5-30 at 53k miles. In reference to your question about weights, the 5w30 should still be fine in MS as the upper temperature range of the weight is the same as the 10w30.

Lytheum

mobil 1 5w 30 currently at 96k...switched at 84k

Larrio

iTrader: (10)

5w30 mobil 1, switched since 20k miles, currently at 47.5k

FishyMan

currently amsoil syn ever since... 1997 maxi 65k..
i do about 5k or so. i look at my oil and see. i do a lot of driving on it and traffic so i think 5k is okay. people keep saying all these extended drain interval and thought it may or may not work or whatever, i just believe that 5k of constant driving is good measures. 7k would be light, ocassionaly driving.

i look at the color to tell me, if its a bit darker cuz i went over, then i know i should do it earlier. i don't do analysis or put too much into it. one time on conventional oil, i think i went to about 3.5k rather than 3k i COULD TELL the diffce w/o having a need to analyize or whateve.r the particles were trapped in the oil. u COULD tell..

anyhow just my opinion...

SilverMax_04

You are right about this being just your opinion. Turns out the hardest driving on motor oil is the "light occasional driving." The oil never gets a chance to really heat up. The easiset driving on motor oil occurs on long trips (if the outside temperature is not over about 90 degrees F). Then the oil gets to a good operating temperature and evaporates any water that may be suspended in the oil. Water comes from the combustion process in your engine = a gallon of gasoline when burned yields almost a gallon of water. Most of that water goes out the tail pipe, but on short drives it can condense in the engine and run down into the oil pan.

FishyMan

ya honestly i can tell you, i may not be a scientist in a lot of areas, but i do know some basic info. i feel if i am going to keep a car for well over 4-5 years, I will do what i can to take care of it. therefore, i let experience + facts speak for itself. rather than going by someones word, i follow my application and go from there.

Bobo

Then don't start your Maxima up, drive it a mile or two and turn it off before its even warmed up. Why - ultimately moisture in the oil, pure and simple.

jinnoh

Been using Mobil 1 5w-30 since 10K miles on my 2000 GXE. Now at 65K, and the motor is still purring along. I generally change oil every 5K miles of mostly freeway driving. I didn't really see much of a difference when I went from 10w-30 to 5w-30.

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

You guys that are going 7-10k miles between oil changes with synthetic.. do you trust your filters that long? Or how does that work?

I run synthetic but I usually change my oil every 4k miles or so mainly because I dont trust the filter for much longer than that

Bobo

If you're going to switch it that often perhaps you might as well just use Castrol GTX dino oil. Isn't one of the benefits of switching to synthetic to take advantage of longer oil-change intervals? How long does it take you on average to rack up 4,000 miles? If its every 3 or 4 months, I would say you're wasting your money.

FishyMan

i think one asset of syn is extended intervals, but also better protection in many aspects.

i racked up 4,000 in about 3 or 4 months. im gonna keep my car for a long long time, so i would want the best for it. i change mines about 5k or so.. too much city driving, stop go.. oh well..

the best is to look at ur oil and oil filter, it will tell u.. and yes imo, the filter will be limited...

xhyao

I have a silly question..can we replace oil filter without change the oil, say I'd trust mobil 1 can last 7K, but can the filter (Nissan OEM 9E000) last 7K.

With the procedure that I can find, I am afraid one has to replace oil when replace the oil filter.

BourneJ

Hello all,

I have 145,000 miles on my max. Switched to Mobil1 at 52,000 miles. I change the oil & the filter every 7,500 miles. Sometimes I even went very close to 10,000 miles between changes. No problems at all.
I think it's part of an advertisement about changing it every 5,000 miles.
In Europe, people drive up to 10,000 miles between changes (synthetic oil of course).

- Jason

p.s. I also use Mobil1 oil filters.

kcryan

iTrader: (1)

M1 77k 98 i30

FishyMan

yes oil seems more complex than the filter itself... just change both...

xhyao

so will OEM filter last 7500 miles without any problems? my engine is older so it cannot use M1 105 filter as recommended on the top post in this thread.

SilverMax_04

That is the mileage I use to change oil (Mobil 1 - 10W30 -- because I bought a lot of it very cheap for my previous car) and I use the OEM 15208-9E000 (just bought 3 of them today at the dealer). I don't try to change filters in the middle of this mileage. I might try that if I lived in a very dusty area where the oil might get more dirt suspended in it. Don't have that kind of air, so I don't think it is needed.

FishyMan

i personally do not believe it can last that long. when u change oil, your putting in FRESH NEW OIL, in the oil filter (if not removed the same time) as your oil change . will imo leak out the bad stuff, thus negating the full utility of the oil change.

what year is ur car? i change mines every 4-5 k. im nearing 5k, and have been lazy, and will change it soon..filter too of course..
no matter what oil filter you use, i think it's mileage will be limited, it is paper type fo media after all

SilverMax_04

You need to see what bill99gxe has to say about filters in the sticky on this site. The better filters he reviews should be able to last 7,500 miles. But don't rely on my word, check it out. Bill has cut into used filters to see what has actually happened inside.

FishyMan

oh i do an did see.. i undersatnd that there are grades even though, and how fram sucks and what not. but it is just my opinion you know?

when i change oil, i also will change my oil filter as well. i dont' believe in doing 1/2 here and 1/2 there. I don't run synthetic over 6k, let alone 5k tops. I have used experience to dictate how long my intervals should 'relatively' be. Sorry if my statement was too brief.

I have gone about 500, over 3k on conventional oil and i noticed it was much darker. Similarily, I have tried going to about 6k before on synthetic and thus, felt it is was darker than average. It's just me, I do mines at 5k. amsoil..

Bobo

I don't think oil that is a little darker is the end of the world. It's not as though you're going to suffer from cold startup in Hawaii, FishyMan.

S00NR1

iTrader: (3)

If your oil is dark and you are running syn, then it is pretty obvious that the syn is doing its job by cleaning out some of the deposits. If you are seeing really, really dark oil, then I would suggest considering an Auto-Rx treatment sometime in the near future.

SilverMax_04

Somewhere along the way we started mis-understanding each other. I don't know anyone on this site who recommends changing oil and not changing the oil filter. That is only doing a half-assed job. The question was "should you change your filter half way through the run you give your motor oil? -- change the oil at 8K miles and do a filter only change at 4K miles and then again when you change the oil at 8K miles?" All of my responses above are an attempt to answer that question.

FishyMan

i have convention in my other older car, and the darkness on that was/is not same as the darkness on my maxi. its like refilling and draining of oil that has collected and crap and not allowing it to be running in the current state.

i have had first hand experience of actual neglected cars (and im sure a lot of us had), and to see how dark their oils were. i know what is meant by dark. i understand, it's not one of those things where, 'why is the oil i drained out not the same color'. some cars were so dark, that its properties felt like it had A LOT of sediments in it, and not even motor oil. one car i did had just pure black black sludge paste. even spread out, looked nothing brown. the dipstick reading seemed okay, but once i drained it, it was real dark. now why would i wanna keep it running in that state? because i am 500 miles, or X amount short of a numerical oil change law, theory?

would i risk my oil to even get to that point b4 discovering? sometimes life takes a toll, and you forget to even check, yet monitor the car, and next thing you know, u check and the car has already become in that state.

it may be dark, but like mentioned before, i may not be a scientist or expert, or have visits to oil lab samples, who am i to judge scientifically and numerically what my oil has collected? i just use my judgement, my experience to dictate.
what im saying is that, i just go by an estimate and change both oil and oil filter together. its not like i do it religiously, but i won't let it run black either, or wait till the trash can has been filled to its brim. it defeats the purpose of an oil filter, to have sediments floating around and what not..

just my 2 cents and my ideas.. peace

FishyMan

i think i was under the impression that he/she meant to say that by saying an oil filter lasting 7k, and that he/she is afraid to replace oil when replace filter.

i thought he/she was trying to replace just oil filter and leave oil in for long.


that's why im trying to advocate doing both together, and despite how a filter is rated, or syn etc etc..

SilverMax_04

Guess we agree on one thing -- change the oil and the filter toghether. We also disagree on another -- how soon the oil needs to be changed. You simply use oil color to decide when to change. I use driving conditions and the quality of my original motor oil to decide. IMO the color of your motor oil can be deceiving. What matters is its lubricating properties and its ability to resist acids. So, if you do mostly short drives where the engine rarely gets warm, you should definately change the oil more frequently than if you mainly do highway (or long city) driving where the engine gets hot for at least a half hour. If you frequently drive in very dusty conditions, you should definately change the oil more frequently. The best way to determine if you are changing oil too soon is to send in a sample of your drained oil for a lab analysis. I don't do that, but probably should.

Based on the driving I personally do, and the Nissan recommendations for that type of driving, I change my Mobil 1 every 7,500 miles. When my engine's warranty expires, and if my driving continues the same, I intend to go to 10,000 mile intervals. We can agree to disagree on these points.