How far does everyone go on mobil one?

ryan94rt10

Viper Owner
Joined
Sep 26, 2005
Posts
352
Reaction score
0
Location
Columbus, Ohio
I was just curious...how far do some of you guys go between oil changes with mobil one?

milage & months between changes
 

SuperSaiks

Enthusiast
Joined
Oct 29, 2005
Posts
443
Reaction score
0
I was thinking of changing my oil only once a year considering i only drive it in the summer stored for the winter, so far i only put about 240 miles on it this summer.

Does it hurt to keep the car stored with the old oil??? And then change the oil in the spring
 

Catwood

Viper Owner
Joined
Aug 14, 2002
Posts
1,470
Reaction score
0
I use 10W30 regular Mobil One.

I typically change after every track event so every month or so in the Winter. Then I go all summer on one change. I average about 2500 miles a year.

I need to find a way to recycle it for use in one of the beaters I own.
 

snampro

Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 27, 2004
Posts
1,156
Reaction score
0
Location
Dayton, OH
never more than 3000 miles, no longer than every 6 months (I always hit the mileage first). I like to get under the car to inspect everything, check for leaks, problems, whatever, so I just change the oil while I'm under there.

I use Mobil 1 full synthetic 10w-30 (has green on the cap or bottle), I get two 5-quart bottles at walmart for around $45...
 

GTSPOWERED

Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 9, 2003
Posts
385
Reaction score
0
Location
Ohio
Once a season I do not put but 1500 to 2000 miles per year Mobil 1 10-40 . I store my GTS 6 months per year October 1st to April 1st. I get all wound up like a kid every spring and it's like getting a new car every time.
 
OP
OP
R

ryan94rt10

Viper Owner
Joined
Sep 26, 2005
Posts
352
Reaction score
0
Location
Columbus, Ohio
sorry for not explaining...10w30 full synthetic...i just wondered cause the shop manual says under normal conditions to change every 7500 miles...and talking to a lot of people synthetic oil can go quite a bit longer between changes than conventional oils...so i was curious...does anyone test this idea from dc...7500 miles???

what about the new 15000 mile oil...how far to push that claim...even in other vehicles than a viper...any suggestions??
 

Asp Man

Enthusiast
Joined
Sep 20, 2005
Posts
1,472
Reaction score
0
Location
Kelowna B.C., WEStern Canada
For me it's twice a year, spring before driving season starts and in the fall before it gets parked.
With a lot of short trips it's more about getting the condensate and combustion by-products out rather than streching the miles out.
If all I did were hi-way miles, I'd let it go a lot further, but it's nearly Sept. and I've only got 1000miles on it since Jan.1.
 

V10SpeedLuvr

Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 3, 2005
Posts
15,320
Reaction score
2
Location
Daytona Beach, FL (Port Orange)
sorry for not explaining...10w30 full synthetic...i just wondered cause the shop manual says under normal conditions to change every 7500 miles...and talking to a lot of people synthetic oil can go quite a bit longer between changes than conventional oils...so i was curious...does anyone test this idea from dc...7500 miles???

what about the new 15000 mile oil...how far to push that claim...even in other vehicles than a viper...any suggestions??

I asked the same question a couple months ago and was told just regular Mobil 1 10w30 would go way past 3k, but the filter needs to be changed every 3k
 

Purdue_Boiler_Viper

Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 20, 2005
Posts
912
Reaction score
2
Location
Indy
Either the question or answer should include which version of Mobil 1.

Ok Tom, please post the science. Some good questions here. For us warm weather drivers, when is best to change the oil? End or Start of the season?

Any real reason to change other than the Dodge recommended schedule?

Thanks,
Pat
 

KHitman

Viper Owner
Joined
Oct 11, 2005
Posts
150
Reaction score
0
Location
Mt. Washington, KY
I do 4000 mile changes with 10w30 Mobil 1 full synthetic. First car i've ever owned that cost almost $70 to change the oil... OUCH!!!
 

snampro

Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 27, 2004
Posts
1,156
Reaction score
0
Location
Dayton, OH
Drive 500-1000 mi/yr. Changed annually at dealers so a professional can look for any problems.

still laughing about the "professional" statement. no one will ever care about your car as much as you do.

about the 7,500mile thing and 15K miles oil, I use the 15K mile oil in my wifes accord and change it every 7500 miles, no problems. that car is driven a lot different than my VIPER and is cheaper to repair/replace
 

Steve-Indy

VCA Venom Member
Venom Member
Joined
Oct 2, 2000
Posts
8,522
Reaction score
164
Location
Zionsville,IN. USA
A Viper driven only a few hundred miles a year should do fine with Mobil 1 SuperSyn being changed once a year in MY opinion (and, I think that the extensive testing that I have had done on many Vipers' used oil samples over the past 5 years will support same...noting that one friend drove his Viper 800 miles in two years and the oil sample tested very closely matched the ****** sample of the same tpye of oil...and, even after 2 years he had a total base number (TBN) over 11...indicating plenty of additive package was left as I hoped/expected).

Admittedly, frequent oil changes were historically important...and still are today when using non-synthetic oil in certain engines (just look at the "sludging" that has plagued some of the more popular manufacturers in recent years)...plus, it can be FUN to fool with the car!!

So far, the 15000 mile "extended" Mobil 1 looks good to me though I have only used it for a year in Wife's Jeep...figured that I would stock up on SuperSyn so that I could "watch awhile" before switching the Vipers over to the Extended Interval Mobile 1.

As a non-track driver, I feel that I can be a little more relaxed on my oil change intervals (OCI's)...especially since I am prone to changing ALL the Viper's fluids once I get one on a lift!!

There are MANY good synthetics out there...I just figure that sticking with the factory fill is working fine in our Snakes as they see "heavy duty".

It seems to me that there is a tendency to "fix" on the oil change with Viper owners...and FORGET the coolant...noting that I just returned from a car gathering where I found another Viper with NO history of coolant change over 10 years ( I actually quiz owners about this regularly and often get the same sad answer...including "what overflow bottle in the nose???")...go figure!!!

Rant over.
 

Matt

Enthusiast
Joined
Oct 13, 2000
Posts
580
Reaction score
0
Location
San Jose, CA
Once or twice a year......miles not an issue

Same here. Usually 5W-30 or 10W-30.

Does it hurt to keep the car stored with the old oil??? And then change the oil in the spring

Better to change it before you put it up for storage.
 

joe117

Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 4, 2002
Posts
5,391
Reaction score
1
Location
Maryland, USA
"Any real reason to change other than the Dodge recommended schedule?"

I don't think so.

Some guys think they are going to prevent engine wear and failure by changing oil every 1000 miles or 6 months.

Engine failure on the cars that they drive 3k miles per year.

They are not hurting anything other than the threads in their oil pan plug.
But they are gaining nothing.

It's just nonsense.
 

Vic

VCA Venom Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2000
Posts
6,762
Reaction score
0
I've run a few trucks/cars in our little fleet at 5000 mile intervals on Mobil 1, with very good results. For example, my F150 has over 167,000 miles, and it doesn't burn one drop of oil between changes. Its very oil tight, even at that high mileage.

I also ran 5000 mile intervals on my old Jeep Grand Cherokee, and it also was very oil tight, and didn't burn oil between changes. It had that bullet-proof straight-six in it, which was a very hardy design. I sold it at 186,000 miles, as almost every other part on the car other than the engine was falling apart. P.O.S. car, I'd never buy another one.

Note that I warm my cars up thoroughly, so the pistons, rings, valve guides, bearings, etc, are all at their expanded state before any torque is demanded from the engine. Some folks have argued this point about needing full warm-ups with me, but I'm sticking with what my first-hand experience has taught me. Go with what you know, as long as its working for you.

These experiences with my cheaper cars told me that a 5000 mile interval with Mobil 1 would be alright in most any engine, including my Viper. Unless I'm tracking it, then it gets changed at every event.

I've noticed the GTS does burn some oil at the track.
 

Tom F&L GoR

Enthusiast
Joined
Oct 3, 2000
Posts
4,983
Reaction score
5
Location
Wappingers Falls
Here's someone that goes 80,000 miles with Mobil 1 (on page 3):

longer drain

If you read it, you'll see it's a 10 gallon sump (OK, 4 times larger) but even factoring that in, it is relatively long. Well, this example is also synthetic oil, and you put synthetic oil in your Viper/regular car, what's the difference? The additives!

Diesel oil is formulated for large amounts of soot entering the oil, huge amounts of air consumption (diesels are unthrottled) that may allow more road dust and debris to come in contact with the oil, relatively high and constant oil temperatures, and infrequent cold starts (due to heaters or idling.) Ummm... sound like a Viper yet? Other than some diesel oils made with really high ash, all this makes a diesel oil pretty good for Vipers or any car.

Gen 1/2 engines were designed in the late 80's and mid 90's when the allowable anti-wear additive in oil was around 1200 ppm phosphorus; today's oil can be down to 800 ppm (depending on what viscosity grade, whether it's a "euro" formula, etc.) Diesel oils are not yet limited like gasoline engine oils, so the phosphorus level is still high(er.) Again, the present circumstances make diesel oil a good choice.

Is using "regular" Mobil a bad idea? No. This seeming contradiction is because it depends on when the additives are "used up." One performance feature of an oil (say TBN) can be used up before another feature (wear protection.) The key to long life for the engine is not "running out." Using a diesel oil gives you protection for a longer time.

Aha, some of you may be thinking about those new 7500 or 15000 mile gasoline engine oils. Hint: You should be able to figure it out now. It's more or less a "diesel" oil sold in quarts and different viscosity grades. (i.e. they have more additives)

So, when to change the oil? How about that diesel engine with 80,000 miles? It probably gets 8 miles per gallon, and so has burned 10,000 gallons of fuel. Each gallon of oil has suffered through 1000 gallons of fuel. So with a 2.5 gallon Viper sump, you could burn 2500 gallons of fuel, or go ... many miles!

For today's lesson, that is the take-away. Engines with fuel injection do not do nearly the harm to oil that carburetors did. The Mobil "euro" oil in Europe will go 18,000 miles and up because the maintenance practices there (for resale or warranty) pretty much force regular check ups. Oil drain intervals, whether from the US OEM or the oil company, are hugely on the conservative side and account for the many poor practices of the worst case American car owner. So with all that "cushion", a reasonably maintained Viper should be able to run to the maximum drain interval for your oil and be fine.

I do agree with Steve- skip one of the 1,000 mile oil changes and please do something about the coolant. Judging by the rusty internal parts I see in some brake cores, some of you ought to be flushing brake fluid, too.
 
OP
OP
R

ryan94rt10

Viper Owner
Joined
Sep 26, 2005
Posts
352
Reaction score
0
Location
Columbus, Ohio
hey tom

i put the mobil one super syn (15000) in my 2002 nissan pathfinder...it is a daily driver (about 30-40 miles daily mostly on the highway) do you think 7500 miles is a good place to change...the factory manual is saying every 3500...but that is with conventional oil...or do you think i can do the full 15000...the truck is not pushed too hard! and it isn't in real dusty conditions...thanks
 

Gerald Levin

Viper Owner
Joined
Mar 15, 2003
Posts
1,359
Reaction score
0
Location
Indianapolis, IN
still laughing about the "professional" statement. no one will ever care about your car as much as you do.

Happy you got a good laugh out of that one. I can change my oil myself... never have... never will... but I'll shell out the $100+ gladly to have a viper expert do it for me and examine the other components of my car. My car is only serviced by one of the best viper techs in the Midwest that has done probably over a hundred Gen 2 recalls (correctly) so its money well spent to have this "professional" change my oil and examine my car for any problems.
 

FE 065

Enthusiast
Joined
Nov 3, 2001
Posts
2,292
Reaction score
0
Location
MI
Once or twice a year......miles not an issue

Same here. Usually 5W-30 or 10W-30.

Does it hurt to keep the car stored with the old oil??? And then change the oil in the spring

Better to change it before you put it up for storage.

How about using cheap (non synthetic) oil for the oil change just before storage, then in the Spring, change again back to Mobil 1 ? That'd give you clean oil for winter lay up, but it'd be cheap enough to get rid of just in case it's absorbed too much moisture over the winter..

I used to fog my engine every Fall before shutting if off one last time..
 

snampro

Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 27, 2004
Posts
1,156
Reaction score
0
Location
Dayton, OH
can someone explain to me why some of you guys think $50 of oil and a $10 filter is expensive? if that's a problem for anyone then I think you bought the wrong car.
 
Top