Synthetic Oil - Toyota Corolla 2003

Unless you are an automotive engineer or are following the advice of an automotive engineer (and not an auto enthusiast), then my recommendation is that you follow the manufacturer's recommendations.

For example if Toyota recommends 5W-30 SL for your car, then use that weight and grade regardless of whether it is conventional or synthetic. Toyota also recommends that you do not extend the oil change intervals for synthetic.

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A good quality synthetic oil is designed to outlast dino oil by a large margin. I'd be curious to hear Toyota's argumentation. If they are concerned about contaminants in the oil, wouldn't changing the oil filter frequently be just as good?

Read it all to understand what can happen with petro type oil. Many people had major engine problems when they DIDN'T use synthetics!

Filters don't remove water, acids, or unburned hydrocarbons.

Ed

Good quality synthetic oils are, I was told, designed to leave a permanent protective coat on a metal surfaces. How concerned do we still have to be about water, acids, or unburned hydrocarbons if we are using synthetics? Also, some filters are apparently designed to filter down to 6 microns, which should take care pretty much of everything, or close to it.

Who told you - "Good quality synthetic oils are, I was told, designed to leave a permanent protective coat on a metal surfaces." Sounds like something an Amsoil salesman (but not Amsoil) might say. Why do you think this is more the case for synthetics than for conventional oils? One of the cheif benefits claimed for synthetic oils is that they flow better. Seems contadictory that they flow better and stay in place better. All motor oil that meets the current API classifications (synthetic and conventional) include wear fighting additives. These additives included anti-wear additivies that do provide protection like you are describing, but you don't have to have to use synthetic oil to get these additives. Amsoil does claim to provide "extra" wear fighting ingredients in some of it forumations, but those are often not API certified. Excessive amounts of some additives are alleged to damage catalytic convertors.

Water, acids, and unburned hydrocarbons are liguids just like the oil. A 6 micron filter won't remove them anymore than it removes the oil. It is possible to have a fitler that filters too small a particle. Below a certain size, small paricles are not particularly harmful. If you filter all these out, you will just reach the capacity of the filter sooner and kick in the filter's bypass valve, which will let unfiltered oil flow through the engine. You can use a seperate bypass type filter in addition to a full flow filter to try and remove very small particles from the oil (while still retaining the full flow filter to prevent larger particles from circulating), but people who change their oil at the vehicle manufacturer's recommended intervals are not likely to benefit from bypass filters.

Ed

I think the discussion is about synthetic oil. Laboratory examination proves that the oil in my car at 8K miles use is just as good as the day I put it in, including the ability to deal with the crap mentioned above. Think I ought to swap it out every 4K anyway? For who's benefit? For the exact same engines, it's not recommended in Europe or Australia. How many Toyota INC.s do you think there are? The correct answer to 'it's Toyota US's party line' is that it's that and no one knows why.

AMSOIL DID say it, why do you think the salesmen say it as well? You seem cynical with your opinion of others and the way you respond to posts.

Check out page Three and look under WEAR PROTECTION, it states: Wear Protection

Since one of an oil's main functions is

to prevent friction and wear, Anti-wear

Additives are part of the chemical

composition of an oil. These additives

protect engines by bonding to metal

surfaces and forming a protective film

layer between moving parts that are

vulnerable to friction and wear when

an engine is first started and before the

oil begins to circulate completely. While

this protective film doesn't entirely eliminate

metal to metal contact of moving

parts at start up, it minimizes the

effects of contact.

Why do you

Maybe if you read things instead of jumping on people like you did to me on another link you would UNDERSTAND things better.

Rich

WRONG WRONG WRONG!!!

Let me quote AGAIN! "the AMSOIL By-Pass Filter effectively stops particles smaller than one micron in size, substantially reducing engine wear."

Where do you get your presumptions from? You never have the facts right!

BTW, THE FILTER DOES REMOVE WATER ! "Because the AMSOIL By-Pass Oil Filter removes water and particles smaller than one micron,"

Please read alittle

Fan,

Do you use an oil analysis kit?

A friend has a fleet of semi's along with excavation equipment. One oil change on some of those big boys gets into hundreds of gallons of oil! He does a test on the oil and the lab tells him everything and when its time to change it. The oil tells them when the engine even needs tuning. One trucks oil test came back as having a vacuum leak, and the lab KNEW where it was, in the intake manifold. The oil showed something that alerted them. He took it to the dealer (under warranty) and sure enough there was an extremely small leak present. BTW, this lab was not the one that Amsoil uses but another.

Anyway, I was wondering if you used the test kit and how often and if you had any special experience with it?

Rich

Yes I do. I use one from time to time, usually every 4th or 5th oil change or when I just feel like a test. I've been using synthetic engine oil since the 70s. I used it through all the memorable "synthetic oil scares" and never had a problem. Don't know anyone who's had a problem with it. I've never used Amsoil oil or their other products.

If you care to share with us which lab and oil I would appreciate it. My brother uses Mobil 1, which I personally don't wish to use due to the articles I've read. He's had great success with it but it seems that the Amsoil line has better numbers, Just my opinion at this time. I also hear there is a RedFlag or something like that for transmissions that are suppose to be wonderful, I'm currently looking into it.

Rich