My local parts shed is asking very nearly £50 a jug for quality oil hence this thread. my oil is not due for a change, but I have just got the car and I’m getting it to a known condition, the air filter was shabby before replacement and other tells make me think I should change the oil. I like working on my cars, the reward is in that I know the work is done properly, and I don’t take shortcuts, the belly pan is coming off and the oil will be drained hot, and the new fitters will be OEM. The car has a recent service logged but having just had the belly plate off they must have vaced the oil out, poor practice in my book.
£50 is scary, and not normal, go elsewhere.
First synth I ever used was made by Esso. Since then I've used various good oils including Magnatec and semi-synths and Halford's own synth. The Volvo always got full-synth, the other car(s) got whatever.
I noticed the was a distinct improvement in performance after every oil change. The longest lasting improvement was with Mobil 1. The cheapest oils would "muck up" early and turn black soonest indicating that their detergent qualities had gone and their lubricating molecules were getting chewed up (literally minced by the engine).
As alluded to earlier, that Volvo 245 did very high mileage, I was about fourth owner but had it for almost 20y, and the service book indicated it always received synth, so I kept with it. The engine was running sweet as a nut when we parted comany having done over 330k with no major work done on the motor (It was struck whilst stationary by an ERF heavy tow truck, it was still drivable but BER) I think it had a scheduled cambelt and sparkplugs.
The MB is fairly low mileage for year. It had a non-Mobil MB-spec synth first time I had it serviced but Mobil 1 0W-40 this time. There is a difference, the Mobil 1 is still glossy, wheras the non-Mobil had turned thin and watery long before this point. Performance-wise hard to notice because the E320 has a lot more in reserve than the old Ovlov.
I had my indie flush the engine last time because I did not like the look of the muck in the oil. Sometime a simple drain leaves muck in the sump however I would not recommend regular flushing because it can cause leaks (it's thin and invasive). They supplied the Mobil at about the price of the cheapest in town, and gave me the leftover in the cannister.
