Okay, I'm about to change the oil in my civic and I was wondering what the best type of oil is for it. Keep in mind it's winter. I tried to research it but I found nothing. My mom says she just used 10W-40, she doesn't believe in synthetic because she thinks it breaks down to easy. I never really new anything about oil I just did what she said. My dad hates cars so he doesn't have a clue. So if anyone could lead me in the right direction that would be great. Thanks!
You definitly need 5/30 for the cold as it will get to moving parts quicker. Where do you live again and how cold does it get there? I always have used synthetic oil in all of my cars. You will notice a difference in the performance when using synthetic oil.. trust me.
I agree. A good 5W 30 is recommended for nearly all modern engines. It flows well when cold and provides excellent protection when its hot. Synthetic Oils are awesome but expensive. Modern Synthetics are compatible with conventional oils. I've owned my Ranger for 13 years, it gets an oil change around 3500 to 4000 miles. I use 1 quart of 5W 30 synthetic and 4 quarts of 5W 30 conventional. Oil is the life blood of the motor, regular changes is important. My recommendation, pick a brand and a weight and stay with it. If you car is older (I assume it is) and it had a conventional oil in it all its life, then stay with a conventional oil.
x2 on what ranger said. your car is older and i bet it just used conventional oil before so just stick to the conventional oil.
i run synthetic and regular oil with no probs at all.i also use moble 5000. its like 2 bucks or so. if the inside is dirty you can use a 1/3 can of seafoam to clean it. let it run for a day or 2 then go ahead with the change. mine ran smoother afterwards. they now have 0-w20 out thats suppose to help extend gas milage.
i too use synthetic 5w-30 in the winter. 10W-40 in the vette in the summer though and 10w-30 for eveything else in the summer its always been the valvoline extended mileage synthetic blend or QPower full synthetic. depends of the vehicle. i always use either WIX or Fram filters. NEVER USE PENZOIL PRODUCTS! actually thats just my opinion, i have heard it is all recycled oil and i think it has a low breakdown point and basically, to me it looks like recycled ish so sorry if i offend someone.
Okay, so you guys are saying I should just stick with the 10W-40 in the summer and 10W-30 in the winter?
the only reason i run 5W-30 in the winter is because here it can get like -10 or so and the cars sometimes sit for a long time cause only 2 or 3 people drive our 5 cars.
All oil breaks down. Some faster than others. The safest way is to use what the manufacturer recommends.
I just put a bottle of RESTORE into my oil this oil change I had friday...I've heard it works pretty well from a friend of mine that has been using it for a while now. Hope it helps my gas mileage
it never hurts to give a synthetic a shot to see what kind of gains you get from it. Yeah it's expensive, but because it's man made the molecules are even on it, and then you get a lot more even wear because the molecules are like little ball bearings. But as long as you stick with the specs i.e. 5w-30 then you should be just fine, synthetic or conventional, it don't matter, however if you do use restore or seafoam, make sure you change your oil VERY QUICKLY after doing it. I.E. 500 miles or less, as there is potential for crap that it knocked loose into your oil pan to get sucked back up. = Grenade!!!!!!. Seen it happen before, it works well just remember to change your oil after doing it.
ok for the seafoam i can see changing the oil soon after,but restore is suppose to replace a quart or so of oil.