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BUYING OIL, SOME BASIC ADVICE FROM OPIE OILS


oilman

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This post may seem like going back to basics but we are constantly surprised by the amount of people who do not know or understand what is written on a bottle of oil and therefore have no idea of what they are looking for, buying or using.

 

This post should help as a basic guide, for more detailed information contact us and we will be happy to help.

 

So, to be blunt about the subject, if a bottle of oil does not contain the following basic information then DO NOT buy it look for something that does!

 

1) The purpose for which it is intended (i.e. Motor oil, Gear oil etc)

 

2) The viscosity (i.e. 10w-40, 5w-30 etc for Motor oils and 80w-90, 75w-90 etc for Gear oils)

 

3) The specifications that it meets (should contain both API and ACEA ratings)

 

4) The OEM Approvals that it carries and the codes (i.e. MB229.3, VW504.00, FORD 913a/b, BMW LL04 etc)

 

Ignore the marketing blurb on the label it is in many cases meaningless and we will explain later what statements you should treat with skepticism.

 

So, what does the above information mean and why is it important?

 

THE BASICS

 

All oils are intended for an application and in general are not interchangeable. You would not for example put an Automatic Transmission Oil or a Gear Oil in your engine! It is important to know what the oils intended purpose is.

 

VISCOSITY

 

Most oils on the shelves today are “Multigradesâ€

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Question for oilman , some oils I use have "JASO:MA" on the labeling what does this signify ???

 

JASO = Japanese Automotive Standards Organization

 

MA means it's a motorcycle specification (for bikes with a wet clutch).

 

:thumbs:

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  • 2 years later...
Just wondering , my car has Valvoline 10w-40 fully synthetic Oil can i top up with another 10w-40 fully synthetic Brand eg Mobil??

 

Indeed you can.

 

All oils will mix.

 

Mixing good quality with poor is not good as it negates the performance of the good stuff though.

 

Should be on 5w-40 or 5w-30 really though.

 

Cheers

Guy

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Just wondering , my car has Valvoline 10w-40 fully synthetic Oil can i top up with another 10w-40 fully synthetic Brand eg Mobil??

 

Indeed you can.

 

All oils will mix.

 

Mixing good quality with poor is not good as it negates the performance of the good stuff though.

 

Should be on 5w-40 or 5w-30 really though.

 

Cheers

Guy

 

Guy:

 

I'm sure you have already been asked the question before, but do you have an up-to-date list of the engine oils (that you stock) that you would recommend for a normally aspirated 350Z (2002-2008) - perhaps grouped by price (discounting any offers available on particular makes) When I check your website there are so many so if you could narrow it down for us that would be very helpful :thumbs:

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  • 6 months later...
  • 3 months later...

Oilman - our handbooks in our 350z do not specify a fully synthetic oil. In fact the Nissan manual states a 5w30 "Mineral oil" should be used, no not even semi synth.

 

Now with drain intervals at 9000 miles, for a standard road car with normal use (perhaps 1 track day a year) would there _really_ be ANY advantage at all in using a fully synthetic oil over a mineral or semi?

 

Is it not perhaps pouring money down the drain (oil recycling centre)?

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Handbooks give the minimum requirements, the least you can get away with using, so if the car is somewhere random in the world that has no top quality oils, it tells you what you can get away with using. Also, why would nissan want to recommend an oil that gives far better protection and therefore makes the engine last longer?

 

9000 miles is quite a long time for a mineral oil to last, especially with a track day thrown in as track use is the quickest way to break an oil down. By the time you've reached 9k, the oil is going to have lost most of it's properties. I've just had a quick look on Pistonheads and it seems that a 6-7 year old 350Z is about £10k and a new engine is £2-3k off Ebay. Isn't it best to spend a few quid extra at service time and look after the car a bit better if you want to hold on to the car a while? Especially if you use it for track days or hard use in general.

 

We've got 15% extra off if you use the code MAYOFFER when you order at the moment, making a decent oil even cheaper

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If you have a new car, when ideally would you do the first oil change?

 

In the US, it seems they do them after maybe 1,000 miles, but Nissan just say to leave it in til the first service at 9,000. Is it ok to leave the oil in there that long or should you change it out sooner? Break in acording to Nissan is 1,200 miles.

 

I know a few chaps around here are looking at or have acquired 370z's so would be good to know :thumbs:

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To be honest first service is fine, engines these days are built with such fine tolerances that the run in process is virtually non existent compared to what it used to be.

 

Americans have a mentality of chaning oil every 50ft, so dont pay too much attention to it. America generally runs on the principle of use crap oil and change it often and if you look at the big lumbering lower power gas guzzling v8's they have used for so many years its not really a problem.

 

9,000 miles is fine for the oil as long as you dont take for ever to get to first service.

 

Cheers

 

Guy

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My car, 2004 with 70,000 has started using about 2 litres between services (that's 2 top ups) and when hot the oil pressure varies between 25 at idle , 43 at 2000, and 60 at max revs.

I get a regular service at a Bosch service centre (I've found one that cares) and let them supply 5W 30 semi-synthetic. Would my car benefit from a better oil and would I see better pressures and lower oil consumption ?

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To be honest first service is fine, engines these days are built with such fine tolerances that the run in process is virtually non existent compared to what it used to be.

 

Americans have a mentality of chaning oil every 50ft, so dont pay too much attention to it. America generally runs on the principle of use crap oil and change it often and if you look at the big lumbering lower power gas guzzling v8's they have used for so many years its not really a problem.

 

9,000 miles is fine for the oil as long as you dont take for ever to get to first service.

 

Cheers

 

Guy

Thanks Guy, that's a great help :thumbs:

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