Synthetic motor oil question.

[Bobhdus]

I was told by the dealership that if my vehicle which I just recently bought (2002 F150), had synthetic oil in it, then I could never go back to regular motor oil. But at this point, being I bought it used, I have no idea what type of oil is in it, so he says I should use synthetic just to be sure.

So is this b.s or a fact that you can never use regular oil after using synthetic? I'm not against synthetic, just don't see how it would matter, as a "quality" regular motor oil will still offer good friction protection...

 

[MG44]

Switch it up

 

[dmftoy1]

Complete ignorant bs from dealer

 

[blacK20]

That's a complete load of ****. IF anything at all, you don't want to go from conventional to synthetic oil on a vehicle with some mileage.

 

[Morrison]

Probably a sales pitch that they are pushed to say with every used car they sell.

 

[Ruger_556]

You need to find a new dealer if their service department told you that...

 

[Falcon67]

Run either. If you have the maintenance records, I'd stick with what has been used if the motor is in good shape. All the dailys here get syn oil. And there's no problem going from conventional to syn either - another old internet wives tale.

 

[Bobhdus]

Well what you all said is what I figured. It's a Ford Dealership, the truck was a 2002 with only 30k on it. It's in cherry condition and even with the original tires made in 2001.

I usually buy my own oil and change myself. If I find myself at Walmart or somewhere cheap, I use my iPhone barcode scanner app and price check the oil. Sometimes I can find synthetic oil on sale down the street for same price as premium regular motor oil with that app. I know a few people that usually just change the oil filter by itself then the oil on the next go-around... Anyone ever hear of that?

 

[Falcon67]

I've heard of that - cheap skate with no upside. Oil gets contaminated with things that the filter won't remove. The oil doesn't wear out but the additives that help it perform in the engine can lose effectiveness. We're talking $$$$ to replace an engine - how cheap does the oil have to be, really.

 

[Ruger_556]

I've heard of that - cheap skate with no upside. Oil gets contaminated with things that the filter won't remove. The oil doesn't wear out but the additives that help it perform in the engine can lose effectiveness. We're talking $$$$ to replace an engine - how cheap does the oil have to be, really.

I think he's talking about synthetic oil where the filter is only good for 7,500 miles but the oil can run much longer.

 

[Falcon67]

I won't run oil that long, but that's just me. I shoot for 5K or under. With the turbo Dart, $75 oil change is money well spent IMHO. The 2004 F150 has over 100K and no problems.

 

[Cb-man]

Unless it had an oil change sticker in it that said synthetic or it was serviced there and the records say synthetic there is no way to tell the difference between oil and synthetic.
I call BS and if it only has 30k miles.... use what you want.
Preferably a quality brand.
Some people will say Synthetic oils will help impregnate old seals and prevent leaks.....
and if you change back to conventional at higher miles it could be bad...
I say if a seal is going to fail its going to fail. Oil isn't going to change that.
Low mileage truck use what you want,

I worked at a ford dealer as a technician. the standard oil they use is a Motorcraft (ford brand)
Semi-synthetic blend anyway

 

[Ruger_556]

I won't run oil that long, but that's just me. I shoot for 5K or under. With the turbo Dart, $75 oil change is money well spent IMHO. The 2004 F150 has over 100K and no problems.

I don't either but for the people that do it's common to change the filter twice for every oil change.

 

[kiatech]

I'd worry more about 13 year old tires.

 

[Bobhdus]

Hahaha, I had a blow out three weeks ago and changed all 4 of them. That's how I knew they were all original. The tire guy looked them up and said they were obsolete a few years ago and it was time to upgrade. They recommend new tires every 5 yrs I guess...

 

[Jagmandave]

That's a complete load of ****. IF anything at all, you don't want to go from conventional to synthetic oil on a vehicle with some mileage.

Also nonsense, use anything you like.

 

[General Geoff]

It's not switching between synth and conventional that causes leaks, it's putting fresh oil and filter into a car that's been loooong overdue, where the damage to seals and gaskets has already been done (and the crud and carbon is all that's keeping the engine from leaking). At least in my experience.

 

[Ruger_556]

It's not switching between synth and conventional that causes leaks, it's putting fresh oil and filter into a car that's been loooong overdue, where the damage to seals and gaskets has already been done (and the crud and carbon is all that's keeping the engine from leaking). At least in my experience.

^^^This^^^ Synthetic flows better so it also leaks wayyyyy better too. I does not however cause leaks.

 

[nolimits76]

Nice find. Even though the tires from 2001 may have plenty of tread, be sure to replace them simply due to age, dry rot, etc.

In regards to the oil, this is probably what your dealer was talking about.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/how-to/products/4213451

 

[marinusdees]

Sure glad you asked this question. Lots of opinions, no data. everybody has one and not the other. What are you going to do??

 

[Tarheelgarage]

i was told by the dealership that if my vehicle which i just recently bought (2002 f150), had synthetic oil in it, then i could never go back to regular motor oil. But at this point, being i bought it used, i have no idea what type of oil is in it, so he says i should use synthetic just to be sure.

So is this b.s or a fact that you can never use regular oil after using synthetic? I'm not against synthetic, just don't see how it would matter, as a "quality" regular motor oil will still offer good friction protection...

 

[theoldwizard1]

I usually buy my own oil and change myself. If I find myself at Walmart or somewhere cheap, I use my iPhone barcode scanner app and price check the oil. Sometimes I can find synthetic oil on sale down the street for same price as premium regular motor oil with that app.

Motorcraft semi-synthetic is a good deal and is what they use at the factory on Ford products. Sold at Wallyworld along with Motorcraft filters.

I know a few people that usually just change the oil filter by itself then the oil on the next go-around... Anyone ever hear of that?

Yeah, I have heard of that. I'm cheap, but not that cheap. Not a good idea, unless you have to add a quart every 1,000 miles.

BTW, a few years ago (after your truck was built), Ford changed the recommended oil change interval for "normal" driving from 5,000 to 7,500 miles using Motorcraft semi-synthetic oil. Nothing else changed. So if your driving is "normal" save a buck and go 7,500 (may not apply to EcoBoost engines or diesel)

 

[yuk]

thats what they tell little old ladies so once they do the upsale, she is too scared to go back to the regular stuff...... do you look like an old lady? LOL

 

[nicksnothereman]

I was told by the dealership that if my vehicle which I just recently bought (2002 F150), had synthetic oil in it, then I could never go back to regular motor oil. But at this point, being I bought it used, I have no idea what type of oil is in it, so he says I should use synthetic just to be sure.

So is this b.s or a fact that you can never use regular oil after using synthetic? I'm not against synthetic, just don't see how it would matter, as a "quality" regular motor oil will still offer good friction protection...

Regular oil will sludge up anyway so it shouldn't matter for the main seals.

It's using synthetic after using regular that's supposed to be the problem according to folklore. You could go 50/50 (synthetic blend) and see what happens. Should be fine with that. Just make sure there's no outward leaks from the front main and no oil in combustion (smoke from the tailpipe from the valve seals; doubt the oil rings would be a problem). Not too much of a p.i.t.a. to check every couple of weeks when you're checking the oil level.

 

[DangerousDan55]

Here you go..... http://www.valvoline.com/faqs/motor-oil/full-synthetic-motor-oil/

 

[Banjorear]

I don't either but for the people that do it's common to change the filter twice for every oil change.

On the East Coast (I assume it is available nationally), the Amsoil synthetic oil recommends a filter change at 5K and then another fresh filter and oil at 10K.

I know many who use their products with some high mileage so it's done. Whether or not it's good, I don't have data to back it up.

 

[ADCS]

There are very few true synthetic engine oils (group 4) available in North America so chances are it never actually had synthetic in it anyways. You should have no problems using a standard dino oil or synthetic blend (group 3) oil.

 

[Cb-man]

Some oils "sludge up" more than others. If going with a conventional oil do some research and buy a good Oil. This "sludge" is caused by high paraffin content in the oil.
I work for an oil company and deal with it every day. Although I do like high performance cars so I am not against synthetics.
I personally use Valvoline as I know they have one of the lowest Paraffin contents.
Some oils that have high paraffin contents will be advertised as used in high performance race cars. This is true because paraffin is actually a great lube when it is hot!
And race engines run hot and are usually rebuilt before the paraffin breaks down and builds up. Castrol Pennzoil...... just to name a few

 

[LS6 Tommy]

The only thing you never do is break an engine in with synthetic oil. After the rings are seated, go for it! I never use synthetic oil to extend service intervals. I use it to increase protection in wide swings in operating temps or for equipment that sits, like a portable generator. By the way, if you really want to find out what oil was previously used, send a sample out to be analyzed. We used to do it once a season on the race car.

Tommy

 

[Bobhdus]

Great comments here and thanks for the links. I'm going to go full synthetic and put a premium filter on it.

I have personally seen a car leak profusely when synthetic was added and then stop when regular was put back in, but that was in the mid 90's. I didn't know when "things" changed . Now it seems all cars are recommended to use synthetic. One of the links to popular mechanics talked about that.

Btw, I work as a Pipefitter in the Ford F150 Assembly Plant in my State, but it's such a huge plant, I couldn't find any of our in-house mechanics when I posted this. Most of the guys here are into racing and love Mobile1 Synthetic... I only live 4 miles from the Plant and usually work 7 days a week.

My new/ old truck won't see much miles on it with me. I may trade up in a couple of years for that 30 mpg aluminum body truck when we start making them. This truck I have now only gets 14 mpg (same mpg as the model T...). Thanks!

 

[sparky7]

You can use whatever oil you want as long as it is recommended by FORD for that truck.

Period, end of argument.

 

[Jagmandave]

The only thing you never do is break an engine in with synthetic oil. After the rings are seated, go for it!
Tommy

OK, so what about all those cars that come with synthetic oil in them from the get go? You think the MFR runs 'em on regular dino oil on a dyno to break them in then changes it before they go out the door or what?

Mercedes, Porsche, BMW, MINI, Corvette all come with synthetic in the crankcase when new.....

 

[LS6 Tommy]

OK, so what about all those cars that come with synthetic oil in them from the get go? You think the MFR runs 'em on regular dino oil on a dyno to break them in then changes it before they go out the door or what?

Mercedes, Porsche, BMW, MINI, Corvette all come with synthetic in the crankcase when new.....

Sorry. You are absolutely correct. I should have prefaced my statement by saying when you BUILD an "old school" engine never break it in on synthetic. The OEMs do indeed use synthetic in brandy new engines. My daily driver requires it. It came with synthetic oil in it.

Tommy

 

[coyotejake]

To get back to your original question, yes, you can go back to conventional motor oil. That brings my question however, which is; Why would you want to? Obviously, conventional oils have 'worked' from the start, but the price to buy and repair today's vehicles is far more than I would be willing to trust to yesteryear's oil, which does in fact, break down. I have, after my own research, decided to trust my three trucks to Amsoil, which HOLDS ITS LUBRICATING PROPERTIES MUCH LONGER, needing to be changed more for the buildup of byproducts than for breakdown. Yes, I extend the change interval to each fall (4-5K mi. for one truck, 15K mi. for another) as an easy way to keep track of it all. Yes, I swap the oil filter every 5k mi., as it is now the weak link in the lubrication system. Yes, I lube the chassis/steering with each filter change. No, I no longer listen to everyone's opinions or question my decision.

 

[djjsr]

I was told by the dealership that if my vehicle ....... had synthetic oil in it, then I could never go back to regular motor oil. ...

Just curious. Was the person that told you this a salesman or someone in the service department?

 

[Bobhdus]

The Service Dept.

 

[skippy24]

It just goes back to sales. They probably charge $30-40 for an oil change with regular oil and $80-100 for an oil change using synthetic oil. The labor is the same for both while the synthetic has maybe $10 in additional product cost. Just trying to get additional revenue. Just use the recommended viscosity and schedule and you should be fine.

 

[b-body-bob]

I know a few people that usually just change the oil filter by itself then the oil on the next go-around... Anyone ever hear of that?

I've heard of that. We've got a VW that the dealer will change oil for free every 10k miles. VW approved oil is $9 a quart. They find out you're using something else and have an engine problem under warranty, you'll be hassled. So people will go buy a VW filter and a quart of oil to change the filter at 5k miles, saving about $40 each time.

 

[Bobhdus]

My wife's oil change is free so there was no real sales pitch. I was asking about my truck and not being a car expert asked because my truck is older and not sure when everything changed over to synthetic. I buy my own oil and prefer to change it in my vehicles (unless there is a service agreement...). I also take the time to look around at everything else that might need attention.

 

[djjsr]

Just curious. Was the person that told you this a salesman or someone in the service department?

The Service Dept.

That's unfortunate. I could understand a sales person saying that because some of them really don't know much about cars. But someone in service knows better.

So, the way I see it is that the guy can't be trusted. He's lying to you and he knows it. He wants see if you're gullible and he can make a few extra bucks.

If you plan to continue doing business there, I suggest you confront him about it. This time it's an inexpensive thing like an oil change. Next time it might be something a lot more costly.