[2hellandback]

Synthetic oils any one use them in there trucks ? Im wondering at 3Xs the cost can you go 15,000 miles between oil changes and still be better off for there use over standard oil ?

Any other downsides besides cost to using synthetics?

[Double L]

I know alot of drivers usally use lucas oil stabilizer when they do an oil change.

[no_worries]

Im wondering at 3Xs the cost can you go 15,000 miles between oil changes and still be better off for there use over standard oil ?

It depends on how long you go between changes now. If you're only going 5000 miles now, than you'll most likely save money if you can go 15,000 with synthetic. It's unlikely you can triple your mileage simply by switching, assuming that you're maxing out your conventional oil now. Did you use oil analysis to establish a benchmark for changes with your current conventional oil? This is important to know if you're trying to get the most out of your oil. I change mine at 15,000 and get an analysis either every or every other time. Always looks good and I could extend to 20,000 without a problem. Just because everybody tells you they change their oil at 10,000 or 12,000 or 7,000 doesn't mean that's how long YOUR oil will last.

In my book, there are two reason to switch to synthetic; cost savings and added engine protection. As you said, synthetic is substantially more expensive, so in order to realize savings you must be able to extend your drain intervals long enough. If this is your goal, you'll most likely need to add a bypass filtration system to maximize the life of the oil. I know guys that extend their drains with that setup to 25,000 and higher, some significantly. Always using oil analysis as a gauge, of course.

The second reason to use synthetics is increased engine protection. It's a FACT that synthetics deliver better protection to wear parts than conventionals. That increased protection is from day one, not just as the oil gets older. The primary reason is the increased flow properties. Where the debate comes in is, does the increased protection justify the cost? Most don't think so which is why conventionals still dominate the market.

So, can drain intervals be extended far enough to make synthetic at least a wash? Yes. Will it work for you? Maybe, depends on your truck and operation. You're working in off-road, low speed, high idle time operations, right? If that's the case, you're going to have a lot more soot and will most likely need a bypass filter to extend your drains significantly. But you'll need to use oil analysis as your primary tool in making the decision. The added protection is the ace in the hole. If your close on extending the drain interval far enough, the added protection factor might put you over the edge. If you're further away on realizing cost benefits, it becomes murkier. It's very easy to quantify the savings you get from extending drains. It's much harder to quantify benefits of added protection. Do some research and hopefully that will give you enough of a sense of the benefit to you to help your decision.

One final point. The benefits of reduced wear lessen significantly the older your truck is. If you've got 600,000 miles, synthetic won't undo wear that's already there. Just something to consider in doing your cost/benefit analysis.

[2hellandback]

Originally Posted by no_worries

It depends on how long you go between changes now. If you're only going 5000 miles now, than you'll most likely save money if you can go 15,000 with synthetic. It's unlikely you can triple your mileage simply by switching, assuming that you're maxing out your conventional oil now. Did you use oil analysis to establish a benchmark for changes with your current conventional oil? This is important to know if you're trying to get the most out of your oil. I change mine at 15,000 and get an analysis either every or every other time. Always looks good and I could extend to 20,000 without a problem. Just because everybody tells you they change their oil at 10,000 or 12,000 or 7,000 doesn't mean that's how long YOUR oil will last.

In my book, there are two reason to switch to synthetic; cost savings and added engine protection. As you said, synthetic is substantially more expensive, so in order to realize savings you must be able to extend your drain intervals long enough. If this is your goal, you'll most likely need to add a bypass filtration system to maximize the life of the oil. I know guys that extend their drains with that setup to 25,000 and higher, some significantly. Always using oil analysis as a gauge, of course.

The second reason to use synthetics is increased engine protection. It's a FACT that synthetics deliver better protection to wear parts than conventionals. That increased protection is from day one, not just as the oil gets older. The primary reason is the increased flow properties. Where the debate comes in is, does the increased protection justify the cost? Most don't think so which is why conventionals still dominate the market.

So, can drain intervals be extended far enough to make synthetic at least a wash? Yes. Will it work for you? Maybe, depends on your truck and operation. You're working in off-road, low speed, high idle time operations, right? If that's the case, you're going to have a lot more soot and will most likely need a bypass filter to extend your drains significantly. But you'll need to use oil analysis as your primary tool in making the decision. The added protection is the ace in the hole. If your close on extending the drain interval far enough, the added protection factor might put you over the edge. If you're further away on realizing cost benefits, it becomes murkier. It's very easy to quantify the savings you get from extending drains. It's much harder to quantify benefits of added protection. Do some research and hopefully that will give you enough of a sense of the benefit to you to help your decision.

One final point. The benefits of reduced wear lessen significantly the older your truck is. If you've got 600,000 miles, synthetic won't undo wear that's already there. Just something to consider in doing your cost/benefit analysis.

Wow you think exactly the way i do! So ive decided to go the first oil change with standard oil see where my oil consumption is at and oil analysis, no use burning syn in a worn out engine.

[Sonny Pruitt]

http://www.truckersoilforum.com/

here's where you will get your answer

[ncnewbie]

Some more food for thought:

http://www.etrucker.com/apps/news/article.asp?id=27037

[tankyanker]

i installed a by-pass filtration system on my truck, it runs two additional amsoil filters, and ran synthetic for a while. i recently switched back because of cost/availability issues with synthetic. amsoil is pretty easy to find here, there's a dealer 10 miles from the house, but it's 30$ a gallon. i eventually went to schaeffers synthetic, which is 18$ a gallon, but i have to order it. if i was going to use a synthetic, i would definitely use a lower cost synthetic like schaeffers since i think it holds up just as well.

now i just run regular delo 15w40 with the bypass and i'll probably stay with that. for me, it seems like the most cost effective way to increase the drain interval without damaging the motor. you have run the numbers$$ ... i mean, if you increase the cost of your oil, then you need to be able to get at least that many more miles out of the interval or what's the point? if you go 10,000 miles on your 10$ a gallon oil, then you need to least get 30,000 miles out of your 30$ per gallon oil.

i think synthetic oil also has a higher detergent value than regular oil, and some people say that it will clean out the deposits from your regular oil and cause your engine to leak sometimes after switching. i have an 8 year old cat, and about 2 months after i switched it started leaking (about a gallon every two weeks) which was really frustrating because the business leaking out was 30$ a gallon.

btw, if anybody has any ideas how i can stop getting it to leak, i would really appreciate it. i replaced the oil pan gasket, which slowed the leaking but did not stop it. the rubber bushings and spacers looked ok, and i torqued to specs, but i did not use gasket sealant per advice of my dad.