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Few questions about engine oil

WolvesSoulZ

WolvesSoulZ

New member
Last time the oil was changed on my car was around 6000km ago, the next oil change mileage sticker was set for 164000km, now I'm at 164087km, so I've been considering doing my oil change next weekend or so.

My model is a 2000 Grand prix GT.

I've went around to the local auto part shop, and they told me that 5L of oil and a filter would cost me around 40$ taxes included, first of, is that a good price?

Second of, what brand of oil should I use? And third, I know it says 10w-30, but I've seen that last year on the winter, the car had little trouble. Since on the winters, the temperature can drop as low as -40C here, and on the summer go as high as +45C. Is 10w-30 alright as they recommend it for the N/A 3800?

As of the oil filter, what brand would be the best to get?
 


winter, run 5w30, summer 10w30

Oil shouldnt cost that much. Buy whatever you want really, some will say coventinal and some will say synthetic. Its what you want to spend. Just stay away from penzoil. Go with castrol or valvoline.

I can go to the store and get 5 quarts of oil and filter for 22 bucks and do my oil change. I know I live in the US, but the price should be similar.
 
Prices are quite higher here, I get all my parts at the local auto parts because it's the least expensive place I found, even online.

(No clues how it relates to your prices, but my Dayco serpentine belt was 27$ taxes included)

Anyways, if I put 5w-30 for the winter, that means I'll have to change the oil once again this summer, shouldn't be too bad anyways.

And I think that the last owner put Pennzoil in it, since the sticker had Pennzoil on it... Anyways.

Here for 5 quarts of Castrol oil it would be around 25$, without the filter.

There's some Quaker State 5w-30 oil on rebate for 15$/5L somewhere near here.
 
either of those 2 deals sounds good to me, and buy a wix filter and your good to go.

Depending on how many miles you drive, you will have to change it every 3000-4000 miles, so it may take more than one oil chagne of 5w30 to get you through the winter. Then spring/summer time when your oil change is do, you can switch back to 10w30 if you want.
 
Mmhmh I think I drove around 6000km +/- in 2-3 months so maybe I need to do a few oil changes a year, anyways, I'll get some Quaker State oil while it's on rebate, nothing bad having 5w-30 in temperatures above let say, 15-20C? since the weather is weird here..

Anyways, I don't know if they hold Wix filter around here, any other brands you can recommend?
 
i personally run 10w-30 all year. the cap says 10w-30, so i wouldnt run anything LIGHTER. in my moms 3100, it says 5w-30, but i still run 10w-30 all year. it may not hurt anything running lighter, but it gives me piece of mind.
 


10w-30 oil and a fram oil filter = 301,000 miles on the odometer. make sure you change your oil ON TIME.......ALWAYS lol
 
Would 10w-30 withstand -30C? 'cause I know my car had trouble last winter...

And now that it seems to be both sides, would 5w-30 have any chances to damage my engine?
 
5w30 wont do any harm at all to the motor.

10w30 is just better for oil pressure in the summer time because its thicker, because theses motors love oil pressure.

5w30 is better in the winter because its a tad thinner to help the motor out when its cold, and will keep the oil pressure the same because it dont heat soak as bad in the freezeing cold, unlike it would on a 100* F day.
 
So as of now, I'd be good to get the deal I just saw for the winter.

5L of Quaker State 5w-30 for 15$ and a FRAM Oil filter for 5$?
 


WolvesSoulZ said:
Would 10w-30 withstand -30C? 'cause I know my car had trouble last winter...

And now that it seems to be both sides, would 5w-30 have any chances to damage my engine?
Click to expand...

if it gets that cold , i would run 5w-30 also, lol. definitly check it periodicley if you drive alot. maybe change it a tad earlier then you would with 10w-30. make sure you put 10w back in when it warms up.
 
The point is that you want that oil to flow as freely and quickly as possible on a cold start. 10w30 is going to be thick below freezing, it's going to be thick at 10 or 20 C. Bob the Oil Guy claims that even at Florida temps 5w30 isnt as free flowing as an ideal oil would be.

Motor Oil 101 - Bob is the Oil Guy
Read read read, then read again, this guy is an expert.

I never use anything besides 5w30, I hate the idea of that first second of a cold start on a winter day when the oil is cold and not flowing properly. I'd use 0w30, but I worry about that being too thin on WOT runs.

Castrol Edge with Titanium is my motor oil of choice, full synthetic and I honestly felt a smoother acceletation and easier start ups.

For all the hype about K&N filters, I used them for years, and my oil always got dark and dirty quick with those, I started using Bosch DistancePlus and my oil stays golden all the way to oil change time now, big difference.

Typical oil change, oil + filter costs me about 45-50 dollars, Im from US
 
Mhmh that's some good infos, but I'm only keeping this car for the year, then next year I'll be getting a GTP.

The fact is that affording a 50$ oil change right now is out of my budget, being a full time student with school on the weekend and often leaving a whole week or month for school doesn't give me tons of money... But those infos you gave are great for once I get the GTP. (I also already have my rear brakes line to change, my hub bearings, and maybe swaybar or top plates)

Right now, as you say, 5w-30 would be a better choice for me.
 
Autozone, Oreilly and other auto parts store usually have oil and filter deals in their sales ads. You may want to look at them.
 


5w30
The first number represents what the oil viscosity is like when cold.
The second number represents what the oil viscosity is like when hot.

Originaly all oil was manufactured and was only one number or viscosity. They have since figured out how to add stuff to the oil so that it is like a thinner oil when cold and a thicker oil when hot. Thinner oil is much easier to suck into a oil pump, think of sucking a thick milk shake. Multi viscosity oil is formulate to suck easier into the oil pump when cold but still provide the correct viscosity when hot. It's kind of a win win.

If your in Canada or any colder climate I highly recommend 5w30 for winter. Recently they have come out with 0w20 oils but I don't use these because the oil is not thick enough when hot for our engines.
 
I think if you follow the manufactuer's recommendation from your owners manual you will be fine. I use Wix oil filters (NAPA Gold is the same). Purolator is a good oil filter too.

As for motor oil. The manufacturer recommends any brand that carries the starburst logo "For Gasoline Engines." This means any name brand or auto parts store brand motor oil will work fine. I typically use Quaker State, Valvoline, and Formula Shell. I've done some research and found the comparisons between one brand of oil from the next are very similar. Measurements such a pour point, viscosity index, cold pumping, flame (temperature when the oil wil catch on fire), etc. are very compariable from name brand to the other. I think the higher price of some oil is due to advertising and name recognition. Some of these oil brands are just re-labeled. NAPA label oil is made by Valvoline (Ashland Oil Co.) BP Select is Castrol since BP owns Castrol. Sopus products is owned by Shell Oil Co., and makes Quaker State, Formula Shell and Pennzoil. I still avoid Pennzoil because I've seen some sludged engines from Pennzoil, but I don't think that is still the case since Pennzoil is under new ownership. I just can't shake my negative perception of Pennzoil.

I think if you use a name brand oil and a good filter you will be fine as long as you don't go too many miles between oil changes.
 
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