oil question

[Speedgirl]

I got my gt2 awd micro blue stinger and the manual says to change every 6k 5/30 but the dealership had done an oil change at 4500k with regular 5/20.. got wire harness changed out and now need to know which oil you guys use..synthetic/regular and how often do you change it..

Thanks

 

[Jimmer]

I use whatever the Kia dealership puts in it when they do the oil change

 

[MerlintheMad]

Likewise. I've never stipulated a preference of my own, because I don't have one. I asked why they want me in there every 4K miles, and was told that because this is Utah and we use a lot of salt on our roads in the winter, this is a harsh environment. Coastal regions are also supposed to go in for oil and maintenance more often than the "recommended" 6K miles because of the salt. If I lived in a gritty environment, e.g. Saudi Arabia (we have members of the forum who do), I'd be in every 3K max, maybe more often than that during severe sand storm periods.

But watch these guys: I noticed that somehow my "service reminder" had been changed from 4K to 3K miles, and the sticker they put in the window copied that 3K miles interval. I changed it back to 4K miles and told them to write the same on my window sticker; and they did without batting an eye. (They are just trying to hustle me through my nine free oil changes: five to go.)

 

[Jimmer]

Likewise. I've never stipulated a preference of my own, because I don't have one. I asked why they want me in there every 4K miles, and was told that because this is Utah and we use a lot of salt on our roads in the winter, this is a harsh environment. Coastal regions are also supposed to go in for oil and maintenance more often than the "recommended" 6K miles because of the salt. If I lived in a gritty environment, e.g. Saudi Arabia (we have members of the forum who do), I'd be in every 3K max, maybe more often than that during severe sand storm periods.

But watch these guys: I noticed that somehow my "service reminder" had been changed from 4K to 3K miles, and the sticker they put in the window copied that 3K miles interval. I changed it back to 4K miles and told them to write the same on my window sticker; and they did without batting an eye. (They are just trying to hustle me through my nine free oil changes: five to go.)

Mine is set up every 6 months.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Mine is set up every 6 months.

That works. But I took mine off the monthly reminder altogether: only miles reminder for me.

 

[Jimmer]

That works. But I took mine off the monthly reminder altogether: only miles reminder for me.

It's just set up that way cause of the free 2 years of service, though I will likely continue every six months after the free service. I average around 5K every 6 months so it works. I will switch out my summer and all season tires at the same time.

 

[TwiceStung]

Likewise. I've never stipulated a preference of my own, because I don't have one. I asked why they want me in there every 4K miles, and was told that because this is Utah and we use a lot of salt on our roads in the winter, this is a harsh environment. Coastal regions are also supposed to go in for oil and maintenance more often than the "recommended" 6K miles because of the salt. If I lived in a gritty environment, e.g. Saudi Arabia (we have members of the forum who do), I'd be in every 3K max, maybe more often than that during severe sand storm periods.

But watch these guys: I noticed that somehow my "service reminder" had been changed from 4K to 3K miles, and the sticker they put in the window copied that 3K miles interval. I changed it back to 4K miles and told them to write the same on my window sticker; and they did without batting an eye. (They are just trying to hustle me through my nine free oil changes: five to go.)

What is a FREE oil change? The only one/anything I got for free was when I complained so badly about their service dept (not the techs, the reps that write you up) that the manager gave me a free oil change. Still used my own free oil (Mobil 1 full synthetic). Oh, and the rep that handled my service appt was fired after I was there!!

 

[MerlintheMad]

What is a FREE oil change? The only one/anything I got for free was when I complained so badly about their service dept (not the techs, the reps that write you up) that the manager gave me a free oil change. Still used my own free oil (Mobil 1 full synthetic). Oh, and the rep that handled my service appt was fired after I was there!!

It's purely according to the dealership. Jerry Seiner "threw in" nine free oil change, maintenance checks. At 15K miles the "pay for" stuff kicks in; I was alerted to this fact a couple of weeks ago when I was in for oil change number four.

 

[Chark]

If you're planning to own the vehicle long-term, then full synthetic is superior to normal oil. It lubricates/protects better at startup, which is when most wear happens. If you're leasing and planning to return, then standard oil is ok.

 

[MerlintheMad]

If you're planning to own the vehicle long-term, then full synthetic is superior to normal oil. It lubricates/protects better at startup, which is when most wear happens. If you're leasing and planning to return, then standard oil is ok.

I agree on the oil versus synthetic if you don't want to bother as often. But oil will not be inferior if you change it. This has been debated before on the forum. Top grade oil is all good. And since maintenance checks for other things come a lot more often than synthetic needs replacing, it isn't a big expense or bother to change the oil then as well.

 

[mldavis2]

This comes up from time to time. The answer is simple. RTFM.
The 3.3TT requires an oil rated as GF-4 or higher. As far as I know, only full synthetics make that standard. Synthetic oils are a virtual necessity with turbocharged engines because the extreme heat at the turbocharger shaft and bearings will "cook" regular oil and gum up the works. I would never put anything less in any of my cars, and if you do have engine problems and are not using GF-4 or GF-5 rated oils, you may put your warranty at risk. Do not let a dealer put their bulk oil in your engine unless it meets the GF-4 specs, and you have no way of knowing what they use unless you trust them at their word. Free oil changes tempt shops to use cheap oil. I buy my own (Mobil 1 5W-30) and take it with me to the shop so I know what goes in my car.

 

[compujas]

This comes up from time to time. The answer is simple. RTFM.
The 3.3TT requires an oil rated as GF-4 or higher. As far as I know, only full synthetics make that standard. Synthetic oils are a virtual necessity with turbocharged engines because the extreme heat at the turbocharger shaft and bearings will "cook" regular oil and gum up the works. I would never put anything less in any of my cars, and if you do have engine problems and are not using GF-4 or GF-5 rated oils, you may put your warranty at risk. Do not let a dealer put their bulk oil in your engine unless it meets the GF-4 specs, and you have no way of knowing what they use unless you trust them at their word. Free oil changes tempt shops to use cheap oil. I buy my own (Mobil 1 5W-30) and take it with me to the shop so I know what goes in my car.

GF-4 has been superceded by GF-5 from the looks of it. And I don't even know if you can buy oil that isn't API certified. I went to Walmart's site and sorted by low price. Chevon Supreme dino oil is $3.66/qt and meets GF-5. So is SuperTech, Valvoline, etc. GF-5 doesn't mean full synthetic. I'm not an expert on it, but it seems like any API certified motor oil for gas engines meets GF-5, which is pretty much all consumer motor oils, conventional or synthetic. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a motor oil that isn't GF-5 compliant.

Edit: As for the warranty bit, if you're bringing it to the dealer for oil changes and they're not using the right oil, the dealer/manufacturer is going to have a hard time blaming you for not using the right oil.

 

[MisterMac]

Here we go again. I wish people would use the search function.

 

[mldavis2]

Edit: As for the warranty bit, if you're bringing it to the dealer for oil changes and they're not using the right oil, the dealer/manufacturer is going to have a hard time blaming you for not using the right oil.

Good post. I never use anything but Mobil 1 because that's usually what's on the oil filler cap on so many engines. I never look for cheap oil and their ratings, so I learned something if all oils are GF-5 now. Kia dealers often recommend Total but I've never seen it on retail shelves. GM tried to sell their "GM Goodwrench" oil at dealers, and that didn't work out for them. Using dealer oil will likely be more common since it's a real pain to change oil in the Stinger unless you have a rack of some kind. Not worth the effort for me, but I bring my own oil so I know what goes in the car.

As far as warranty, the dealer is the one to determine if a failure was the result of negligence, so rarely is the factory rep involved in determining the extent or responsibility of repair unless alerted by the dealer. I don't know how it is today, but I was a service manager back in the late '80's and many of us had an extra code we could use to bypass the limitations of the regular warranty codes for repairs in order to get reimbursement from the factory. It would be very rare for an oil-neglected engine to be refused for warranty unless there was some extra-ordinary damage such as obvious oil breakdown (congealing, caking, etc.) combined with a lack of oil change records.