Oil - Synthetic vs Mineral

[NigelM]

i bought a 4 Cyl Premium with 2,200 miles on the clock.
When the time comes I need to make oil decision. Synthetic or Mineral?
Pros and cons? Recommendations?

I drove a Nissan 350Z from new for 13 Yrs/170,000 miles and swapped from mineral to synthetic at the recommended time.
I was a little disappointed that the piston rings went at about 150k...

What is everyone doing with their Stingers? Suggestions? Recommendations? Experiences?
Thanks

 

[BIGRED]

I only use synthetic

 

[MisterMac]

Kia requires a synthetic blend to maintain the 10/100,000 powertrain warranty. The change intervals are pretty short, so you'd be just fine with that. However, most will tell you to use full synthetic.

 

[rocket23]

synthetic every year......in the spring.

 

[MisterMac]

For what's it's worth, Kia has aside range of recommended oil weights. This allows us to choose the best weight for our temperature extremes and how hard we run our engines, etc...

This morning, for my second oil change at 5,800 miles I have my dealer putting Mobile 1 15w40.

 

[Audible Silence]

Second oil change at 5k? Seems excessive.

 

[MisterMac]

Second oil change at 5k? Seems excessive.

Never skimp on oil or tires. I run my Stinger hard and live in the desert. The oil change interval is appropriate considering those facts.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Jerry Seiner has my oil changes set at every 3K miles. Hmm. I asked why they have my first oil change scheduled at 4K miles instead of the recommended 6K and was told that Utah's salted roads make it a "harsh" climate, which means changes every 3K to 5K miles. Subsequent oil changes have been 3K apart. Mostly I think this is so they can get through the "first nine oil changes free" phase and start charging me sooner.

As for mineral or synthetic: if I am getting oil changed this often, then the difference question is moot.

 

[Audible Silence]

Never skimp on oil or tires. I run my Stinger hard and live in the desert. The oil change interval is appropriate considering those facts.

To each their own. Ever get it tested? Synthetic is usually good for at least 7k miles. Going on a road race curcuit every month would certainly change things.

 

[Beege]

better than olive...

 

[NigelM]

I’m in Central Florida so of course warm/hot most of the year. Don’t anticipate driving it too hard around town at this point

 

[MisterMac]

To each their own. Ever get it tested? Synthetic is usually good for at least 7k miles. Going on a road race curcuit every month would certainly change things.

I can hardly believe I am entertaining this post. However, for the education of the others:

My first complimentary oil change from the dealer was done 3,000 miles ago with 5w30 blend. )As all Kia products require synthetic blend, they do not stock full synthetic of any kind) Not being happy with that, I bought my own full synthetic and had them use it to change my oil and filter today.

I am well aware that conventional oil is good for at least 7,500 miles between changes. Some full synthetic oils can go 20,000 miles between changes.

Yet, when I consider the small price of oil and filters in comparison to the cost of replacing an engine block, I willing choose to spend some excess money on more frequent oil changes than required.

Those seeking more understanding than the average person needs, I recommend Bobistheoilguy forums.

 

[SKStinger]

The other thing to consider when changing your oil this frequently is the environmental impact. This car holds a lot of oil (6.9L) so dropping that every 3,000 miles seems wasteful to me.

 

[MisterMac]

Lol. The oil came from the earth. If you are that concerned about the environment, sell your Stinger and walk

 

[SKStinger]

Lol. The oil came from the earth. If you are that concerned about the environment, sell your Stinger and walk

There is really nothing humorous about my post. 6.9L of used oil doesn’t naturally flow back into the earth. I was stating a fact. There is an environmental impact in not maximizing oil life and its amplified by the amount of oil this car requires. If that doesn’t matter to you then that’s fine. Perhaps it matters to others and that’s the intent of my comment.

 

[K-Rock]

Is there an objective way to check oil quality besides color between changes?

SK can have an extreme climate swing, one of the world's largest between hot and cold through the course of a year.

Kia recommends 6K km in Canada which is about 3600 miles. For me that's every 2 months, which seems frequent for my style of driving which is mostly highway, steady speed with the odd burst of power to keep it fun.

 

[MerlintheMad]

The other thing to consider when changing your oil this frequently is the environmental impact. This car holds a lot of oil (6.9L) so dropping that every 3,000 miles seems wasteful to me.

Your concerns are without foundation, imho. We have been removing petroleum from the earth for hundreds of years. It goes back in or gets recycled. There is plenty of room on planet Earth to dispose of used oil. And eventually it will be taken back in and naturally "recycled" or "reprocessed" by natural means. If we don't like dealing with this, we should return to .35 of a billion inhabitants worldwide and shiver in the cold, grimy dark. High tech means waste to dispose of. Our disposal methods are what need attending to, not concern over the use of 7.29 quarts of oil every 3K to 6K miles.

 

[MisterMac]

There is really nothing humorous about my post. 6.9L of used oil doesn’t naturally flow back into the earth. I was stating a fact. There is an environmental impact in not maximizing oil life and its amplified by the amount of oil this car requires. If that doesn’t matter to you then that’s fine. Perhaps it matters to others and that’s the intent of my comment.

No, the used motor oil is recycled.

 

[SteveCo]

Is there an objective way to check oil quality besides color between changes?

Yes, have an oil analysis done. You send away a small sample and get back a comprehensive report on the condition of the oil, including viscosity breakdown and percentages of elements in the oil that may indicate problems with the engine like premature bearing wear, etc.

 

[SKStinger]

Your concerns are without foundation, imho. We have been removing petroleum from the earth for hundreds of years. It goes back in or gets recycled. There is plenty of room on planet Earth to dispose of used oil. And eventually it will be taken back in and naturally "recycled" or "reprocessed" by natural means. If we don't like dealing with this, we should return to .35 of a billion inhabitants worldwide and shiver in the cold, grimy dark. High tech means waste to dispose of. Our disposal methods are what need attending to, not concern over the use of 7.29 quarts of oil every 3K to 6K miles.

I'm not sure how what i've said is without foundation? Not maximizing oil life means we are all consuming MORE oil. That means more petroleum is extracted which creates a greater environmental footprint. Used motor oil doesn't get recycled into new motor oil. It is cleaned and used in other applications such as hydraulic oil, etc. So the new motor oil we're putting in the car is not the recycled oil you dropped prematurely. It has to be extracted and refined again. Recycling that oil so that it can be reused is not a "natural" process and creates its own environmental footprint.