Frank Fontaine

Fellas, don't take everything so personally. First of all, I'm not saying that the perceived benefit of putting the recommended 5W30 isn't true. The dude restored the correct 5W30 oil and "feels" better about it. that's cool, it's like going to change your brake pads and finding that the pads weren't that bad. You'd probably change them anyway.

Is it worth it? Sure, keeping 5 quarts of Mobil 1 in the case when it makes you feel uncomfortable isn't worth it, drain and refill.

But if you take a quart of 5W30 and another of 15W50, and pour each one at 95 degrees which is the outside temperature, I don't think you're gonna see any difference. Heat them up to 200 degrees F and I'm sure you're not gonna see any difference. Do the same at -18F and you will probably see the difference.

So the dude did the right thing because it's his car, end of story. If you know someone else ready to do an oil change give them that Mobil 1 because it'd be good for at least 7500-10000.

deezo

iTrader: (3)

Nothing to take personal. Brian was concerned about why his engine started making a tapping sound after he added 15w50 oil to his engine. We told him where the problem was. This has nothing to do with his preferance with oils, it has to do with what was going to damage his engine.

BrianV

iTrader: (9)

You know though, now that I think about it, my car since it got this engine has always had this weird tap/click happening at like 1600-2500 RPM. It's not engine related I don't think because it doesn't do it in neutral, it only does it when rolling, but it's not axles or wheels cause if I clutch in it goes away, it's something tranny related. I think that's just waht I was hearing with the 15-50 because today I was driving around without the radio on and heard it again and this time I remembered that sound from when I first got the engine.

I think it was just since I made the change my ear was so concentrating on hearing/feeling differences that I heard it again. I almost never run without the radio on.

Although I'm not saying that running 15-50 is a good thing, I think the statements in this post are logical, but I don't think my oil pump was making that specific sound I was talking about becaue again it was only making the sounds at 1600-2500 RPM.

At any rate, thanks for all the advice, I really think this thread should be closed soon because the posts are getting redundant, but don't mind me.

iwannabmw

iTrader: (3)

Sure you will. That's precisely the difference between SAE 30 weight and SAE 50 weight. The second number is the oil's viscosity at 100 C or 212 F. The 50 weight is thicker under normal operating temps., which is not good for the VQ engines.

My posts here had nothing to do with Brian using Mobil 1 either, in case anyone else was wondering. While Amsoil doesn't have a 15W-50, they do have a 20W-50, and I wouldn't recommend that to be used either.

SamMan23

I don't know if this helps, but here's my 2 cents. I think that the older american engines do better with heavier weight oils. The newer engines are made so precisely, that a 5w30 or 10w30 will lubricate the engine better. These new vq should probably take 5w30 or 10w30. I think that's what the manufacturers say anyways. Maybe 5w30 for winter 10w30 for summer. I use a Royal Purple 5w30. I used to use mobil1, but I like RP much better. It might also be better for your supercharged application. I know that RP is designed for turbo applications and race applications. RP is also designed to last 10000 miles too, but I change it at 3750 so I can keep my warranty.

BrianV

iTrader: (9)

I just got off a bottle of RP and there were some things about it that really bothered me. For instance, after about 500 miles When I'd pull the dipstick out there would be sludge on the tip (sludge formed on the bottom of the pan). This never happened with any other oil I've ever used, both syntehtic and non, but I dunno that could have to do with something else.

To me a good oil is a good oil. I change it every 2500 miles whether it says 10K or not, so i don't get all wrapped up in brands. I like Mobil1 cause I can find it at EVERY auto-parts store.

deadrx7conv

That oil filter info should be stickied in its own thread if it isn't already.

Don't confuse synthetic Mobil1 oil with dino Mobil oil.

I also had a Royal Purple settling problem. I noticed it on the bottom of the 1st RP bottle of oil. Must remember to shakeshakeshake ANY bottle of oil before using. Get those ingredients mixed up.
If you had real sludge on your dipstick, either your motor is shot, or the oil flushed all the crud from the engine.

I can't see why 15w50 would cause any problems. I remember(10+ years ago) when CR did an oil comparison and Mobil1 15/50 had better or equal cold/hot flow than dino 10/30. The best dino at the time was the PZL pennzoil. Please before anyone screams that it is thicker..., find the api/sae/ilsac/astm definition(temp/time/drip/SUS...) for the tests that they use to measure the oil weight and whether every oil brand uses the same test. It should be used only as a reference between same oils. Some oils(especially synths) can easily pass for multiple multiweights and I am not talking about straight weight oils since we do not use them.

And above all, the psychological ramifications need to be taken into consideration. You are more likely to hear/feal something wrong if you are not sure of the performance of the oil/filter/product.... And vice versa, an improvement felt when you are 100% sure of the quality. My car ran better on Texaco compared to Shell gas---until I saw the gastanker cross the street(from tex to shell) which filled both stations.

The only question I have is: What filter did you use?

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

Empirically Royal Purple is step below Amsoil and Mobil 1, and a step above Valvoline SuperSyn and Castrol Syntec. It's good, but nothing special.

BrianV

iTrader: (9)

I just use Frams, which I know aren't as good as the Nissan ones, but it doesn't btoher me because I changed my oil every 2000-2500 miles, and when I take it out it doesn't look shot.

BrianV

iTrader: (9)

Oh one more thing, I usually run their white filter, the one that has the technology where you have instant oil amongst the startup. I don't know, to me it's all about being able to buy it at the store, and if Fram was that bad I'd hear about it more from other people. I've seen the tests and am not denying it's inferior quality, but then again I change my oil so frequently that it really doesn't bother me.

Dave Holmes

FYI, I tried the Mobil 1 M1-205 yesterday on my '97 SE. Looked like a good filter; I saw the valve in the top that you'd mentioned. However, it does not fit on my '97. Length and diameter shouldn't be the issue. It just wouldn't screw on because the threaded hole is too small. It would start just enough to stick, but to get it any further would definitely strip the threads. I compared the hole to the filter I took off, and the threads appeared to be the same pitch, but the hole was smaller on the M1-205.

Dave

djPlayboy

if 15/50 isnt good why the hell does the nissan dealership put 20/50 in my car, me and them are gonna have words saturday when i take it in....hehe

djPlayboy

one more thing i have noticed the clicking sound to, maby the oil is the problem, we shall find out also im cleaning the throttle body tommorow also

deadrx7conv

Looks can be decieving.
Years ago, I quit using Fram when they started laying off people in the Fram plant at E.Prov RI. I believe that their quality went downhill. And, Fram actually recalled some filters that they made in Korea(home of the hyundai). That was enough proof of foreign quality for me. Plus, I like the ease of the "blind" install with the OEM filter as shown in the link. Your quote above scares me. Well-filtered old clean oil is better than poorly-filtered dirty new oil. Use the Nissan filters. They aren't expensive. And if cost was an issue, push your oil changes to 3-4k miles. I have a 1994 Sentra with 180k very abusive miles and change every 5k. My 1988 Maxima went 150k miles with 3-5k changes before being traded in for my brothers Xterra. My 1990 Sentra was totalled with 150k miles and back then, I was lazy and changed the oil between 4k-15k miles, depending on my mood. I always use synthetic oil(usually whatever is on sale).
I had engine noise with the Purolator pureone filter, but no engine noise with premium or the pepsboy relabelled purolator. I have read a lot of filter reviews and rarely do testers mention oil pressure drop, bypass pressure, or flow restriction/rate . And I never had problems with M1 15/50 which I sometimes use year round. With the numerous dept.store bankruptcies and closures, I have experimented with various filters and fluids. I think that Nissan engines are noisy(very noisy at times). Certain oil/filter combos bring out more of the noise. Maybe it is because the oil flows/drainsback easier and doesn't insulate the engine as well as an oil that sits around taking its own sweet time. Maybe its because I spent too much time outside in the 100 degree heat.

http://www.motorvate.ca/auto/maxima/...oil_filter.htm

deezo

iTrader: (3)

You better have a talk with them. The manual recommends 5w30. I went to have my oil changed one day and the tech threw in 10w30. I made him put the right weigh back in. He did try to tell me what was good for the engine but I didn't care to listen.

BrianV

iTrader: (9)

I think everyone is paranoid about oils, weights, and filters. If any thing was bad there would be class action law suits.

Mobil-1 is an awesome oil. Almost every manufacturer (benz, bmw, probably ferrari, porsche, etc). All their dealers stock primarily Mobil-1.

Also, today's engines aren't as critical as far as oil types, oil change durations, and break in periods.

Crap oil, as long as it's changed frequently enough is fine.

What does this tell you. Mercedes Benz, Acura, and a lot of other cars recommend oil changes at 10K miles now.

deadrx7conv

Sorry to bust your bubble. But, extended maintenance intervals are there to offset the initial high cost of new vehicle purchase. That was BMW's view and I bet that other automakers learned from this. If anyone tells you different, its because they are a liar. I believe that some even provide free maintenance now. This helps keep the warranty cost down, complaints down(TSB/recall issues fixed during oil change) and profit up(repeat business/kiss the customers a$$). It sure beats having some 16 year old in a jippylube forget to tighten the filter/plug in the $45k car. Also, statisticly, people who buy those very expensive cars do not keep them forever. They trade them in or lease them every 3-5 years. And, the educated or older person buying these cars usually doesn't drive with the "pedal to the metal". I keep my cars until they are ready to be recycled or when wrecked.

Class action lawsuits:: don't forget the toyota engine incident--sludge buildup; the SR20 nissan sludge incident and others. Some automakers do a pretty good job of keeping things quiet. One article concerning the Toyota issue said that it could have been prevented by using synthetic oils. The dino oil couldn't take the heat. And, new dino oils aren't crap compared to cans of oil from 30 years ago. I would never put crap oil in my car.

Paranoia comes with experience. If someone loses an engine, they tend to be more careful next time. Ask anyone who ran low on oil or poorly maintained the Mazda rotary. They needed preparationH after visiting the dealer for replacement and K.Y. during the repair.

I love the oil analysis spreadsheets. Too bad everyone is keeping track of mileage and not gallons of fuel burned or engine run time in hours. This would give the numbers more clout. My mom puts 5k miles a year on her car. I put 20k miles a year on mine. Her oil gets changed at about 4k miles(~6 months) and looks/smells like crap. My oil at 5k miles looks like it was poured from the bottle. Long trips vs. short trips and time per mile is very important.

BrianV

iTrader: (9)

Excuse me, this is BrianV, one of the only people on the org who destroyed an engine (at 70K miles). I was running Nissan OEM filter and brand new 5w-30 mobil-1. Take a look at the pistons in that engine!!!

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

It's hard for me to fathom spending several grand on a vehicle and not spend the same amount of money on a filter.

Buy an STP filter at AutoZone. It is made on the same line as a Mobil 1 filter (paper media is the only difference), and costs the same or less than Fram. STP numbers and Fram numbers are the same. The best filter for the VQ overall is the 2870A. Do your car that you've spent countless hours and time on a favor and at least put a filter on their that has consistent quality.

It doesn't require much effort to put a good filter on your car, especially a S/C one.

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

Do you visit other forums? Search for Fram and tell me someone who sings its praises.

Everyone buys them because people are inherently ignorant and either don't want to know the truth or would rather do what the other lemmings are doing.

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

Well damn. I need to edit some posts......


I hate giving out bad information.

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

20W/50?


I can't believe a Nissan dealer would put that in your vehicle.

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

Driving conditions (city/highway, miles per year, location, etc.) are stipulated in the original thread for each members car to at least give you an idea of what each car sees.

djPlayboy

yeah me and the dealership are gonna have words said in the morn, but i like them there kool about alot of things and every time i go in there mr. billy(the owner) is always like what did ya do to the max now... hes alos a max driver and a member here on the orgy but im gonna talk to him about the 20/50 oil, i know its hot here in louisiana but not that hot