Oil Matters

[ldc]

So today i did my maiden oil change (at my mechanic, not dealer) at 7000Kms. I had bought two cartons of Mobil 1 0w-40 some 4 weeks ago and didn't get to use it due to time and today i made time.

Anyway my mechanic having seen the price of the oils suggested i should not waste money on it since i change oil every 5000km, instead use the dealer's retailed oil.

Today change was 6.5L which costs $96 worth of oil (5L costs $80), filter $25 and $20 labour. So $141.

I would think next time i'd do the change myself and save $20. Still the $96 is a real cost for just oil.

Should i stick with Mobil 1 or save money and use dealer oils?

[Bluey]

Save your money. Fully synth is good for performance engines or when changing at manufacturer intervals and the car is mainly driven in city traffic, country dirt roads or at regular extended high revs.

If you're going to change as regularly as you suggest, then use the dealers oil.

[ldc]

Manufacturer's interval is every 15000kms. That's too long for my liking, although i believe Mobil 1 can go that long before changing.

I want to see how good Mobil 1 is, and if i think it feels good while starting up and driving, i might stick with it. Dealer's oil seems to be restrictive.

[Bluey]

I used mobil 1 in my Subaru turbo engines and only changed every 15,000 km as per handbook, and it lasted without a problem. The only time I changed it otherwise was the couple of times i went around the race track.

I think if your changing every 5000 km and you're worried about it being restrictive just get an oil with lower viscosity figures, but not at the price of mobil 1.