Oil and filters

Ohoopee

I have always used Castrol and just picked up what ever oil filter was the cheapest. Castrol is usually pretty easy to find around my area. But a buddy of mine swears by Mobil Oil...told me he wouldn't use Castrol oil to oil his bicycle chain. The castrol website recommends their magnetic stop-start 5W-30 for my car and that is what I have always used. I went to the Mobil website and it recomments I use Mobil Super 3000 X1 Formula FE 5W-30...there is not much difference in price so I thought I would get your opinons on which one is the best..I realize I am probably going to get supporters for both.

As for the oil filters, I don't even know which brand I usually get as I usually just get the cheapest one...is there any particular brand that any of you swear by?

JohnBoy26

What make of car?

Ohoopee

Lexus IS 200 2.0L 1988cc

Alanstrainor

Meh, I don't buy into the brands of the oil I use. My 3 series manual says to use castrol 5w30, and I did for the first 2 years. But now I use halfords own brand oil that meets the BMW-LL01 spec my car needs and I notice no difference whatsoever. Just get the right spec and you'll be alright.

JohnBoy26

Blueprint is good for japanese cars

snaps

I suppose the brand websites will suggest the most expensive oils to use?

Atlantic Dawn

I usually go main dealer for the oil filters, pricing around €10-€12 a go. I've been using Halfords oil the last few changes as the specifications meets requirements so it's been grand.

Cerebrum

Ohoopee wrote: »

But a buddy of mine swears by Mobil Oil...told me he wouldn't use Castrol oil to oil his bicycle chain.

This sounds very scientific.

Can you ask him to elaborate?

biko

Disregard pub/buddy advice and go with what it says on the tin.

EPAndlee

I used to always use Toyota oil and a genuine toyota filter. The filter was only around a €10 and oil was around €25. Did always use genuine service kits

colm_mcm

Far as I remember, the IS isn't fussy about oil, so anything from 5w30 fully synth to 10w40 semi.
I would be inclined to stick to what you've been using all along.

20% off Castrol in Halfords at the minute.

Ohoopee

Yeah, I saw Castrol is on sale at halfords...but it's not that much cheaper so I was willing to give Mobil oil a try...never used them. My friend didn't say exactly why mobil was better but said it is because they are synthetic...said Mobil synthetic oils are the best.

colm_mcm

If you want actual synthetic then get Castrol edge instead of Magnatec. But again, why bother? What you have is working.

Cee-Jay-Cee

If you have been using Castrol up until now and never had any issues (burning excess oil etc) then why change for something you haven't tested?

Your buddy really hasn't a clue what he's talking about, there would be little or no difference in Mobils 5W/30 full synthetic oil compared to Castrols 5W/30 full synthetic oil and certainly none that he would be able to point out. You should point out to him that Castrol is an engine oil and not designed for bicycle chains, he needs a proper chain oil (wet or dry) for his bike but then again I'm guessing your buddy knows as little about bikes and chains as he does about oils in general :P

I use Castrol on both my car and on my wifes car (I use the stop/start 5w/30 for her car) and neither of them use a drop and the engines runs quiet and smooth. I have no reason to change it to anything else besides I can usually get it for around £22 in Asda just across the border which is a lot less than it costs on this side.

Motormadcork

Personally I've used Castro, Mannol and Mobil, and never had any issues whether it be a Japanese or euro car. As for filters is use Mann or Cooperfiaam. The likes of blueprint do not manufacture filters and are for talking sake a "Boxing Company".

JohnBoy26

Motormadcork wrote: »

Personally I've used Castro, Mannol and Mobil, and never had any issues whether it be a Japanese or euro car. As for filters is use Mann or Cooperfiaam. The likes of blueprint do not manufacture filters and are for talking sake a "Boxing Company".

They are but their filters (or whoever supplies them)are decent quality filters in my experience.

Motormadcork

JohnBoy26 wrote: »

Motormadcork wrote: »

Personally I've used Castro, Mannol and Mobil, and never had any issues whether it be a Japanese or euro car. As for filters is use Mann or Cooperfiaam. The likes of blueprint do not manufacture filters and are for talking sake a "Boxing Company".

They are but their filters (or whoever supplies them)are decent quality filters in my experience.

I'd certainly use a blueprint filter but if I was given the option blueprint or Cooperfiaam, I'd take coppers but hey that's my opinion.

fancy pigeon

Alanstrainor wrote: »

Meh, I don't buy into the brands of the oil I use. My 3 series manual says to use castrol 5w30, and I did for the first 2 years. But now I use halfords own brand oil that meets the BMW-LL01 spec my car needs and I notice no difference whatsoever. Just get the right spec and you'll be alright.

Another happy Halfords oil user here, never an issue with their oils.

Only ever had diesel filters block, no oil so far; always serviced on the button

corkgsxr

If his reason is that one is synthetic and other isn't he hasn't a clue.

I noticed differences in oils on motorbikes but your talking about something that oils the gearbox too and revs to 16 thousand.

And I've found Castrol best and have made more power in the Dyno with Castrol vs motul.

So I generally stick with it in cars too.

Wibbs

corkgsxr wrote: »

If his reason is that one is synthetic and other isn't he hasn't a clue.

How do you mean C? Now if it's his only criteria then I can see that alright(or if I was running in a rebuilt engine), but overall synths have better temp ranges, flow better, reduce friction more and last longer.

I noticed differences in oils on motorbikes but your talking about something that oils the gearbox too and revs to 16 thousand.

TBH down the years like yourself I've rarely noticed differences with the oils I use. Though I never saw the hoopla over Mobil One. In my yoke I've always ran synthetics and never noticed any difference between the brands at the same weight and viscosity(though price can vary enough).

I will say that changed for me when I tried Millers Nanodrive "Racing" oil a couple of years ago. Very noticeable difference and one I wasn't expecting TBH(just tried it as it was on special offer in a local motor factors, cheap bastard that I am. And it had Racing right there on the fecking bottle FFS*. I'm only human ). The engine ran quieter and smoother. And like I say noticeably. Thought it was my imagination, but two mates also petrolheads(and one a mechanic of near four decades in the game) also noticed it. It also seems to last better over time. Certainly the colour changes less. Now this may be a bad thing of course. I've read before that (usually)oil changing colour shows it's working, but the stuff nearly comes out the colour it went in after changing at 3000kms(in fairness I'm anal about oil changes ). To the degree that at my last oil change a mate of mine's van needed oil and I suggested this stuff(close enough in weight) and he was in a bind so as a stopgap we figured feck it, took it out of my engine and into his turbo diesel(with a new filter he already had) and lo and behold it quieted that down too.

I've subsequently read more on the oil in question and apparently independent tests got extra power just by swapping it in compared to another synth. I'm always dubious of such claims and remain so. It certainly didn't give me any extra going by my Arse Dyno anyway, which is all that counts(3BPH less or more means feck all in the real world). Plus I have found different engines I've had "prefer" different oils. What works a charm in one engine might be not so hot in another, though generally because of research and regs modern oils are all up to par and differences are minor. Or imaginary..

Filter wise I usually go Blueprint, though I have used OEM(Honda) Hamp filters too. Never noticed any diff TBH. My main deal madness is changing the oil regularly. More regularly than the average non insane petrolhead anyway.




*IIRC Racing oils have more protectant and the like than regular. Zinc and such. Which means they're less "green" and exceed the API ratings. Millers one does in the US anyway. On the other hand they're not expected to last in a race application and a race application is very different from going to the shops.

corkgsxr

Wibbs wrote: »

How do you mean C? Now if it's his only criteria then I can see that alright(or if I was running in a rebuilt engine), but overall synths have better temp ranges, flow better, reduce friction more and last longer.

TBH down the years like yourself I've rarely noticed differences with the oils I use. Though I never saw the hoopla over Mobil One. In my yoke I've always ran synthetics and never noticed any difference between the brands at the same weight and viscosity(though price can vary enough).

I will say that changed for me when I tried Millers Nanodrive "Racing" oil a couple of years ago. Very noticeable difference and one I wasn't expecting TBH(just tried it as it was on special offer in a local motor factors, cheap bastard that I am. And it had Racing right there on the fecking bottle FFS*. I'm only human ). The engine ran quieter and smoother. And like I say noticeably. Thought it was my imagination, but two mates also petrolheads(and one a mechanic of near four decades in the game) also noticed it. It also seems to last better over time. Certainly the colour changes less. Now this may be a bad thing of course. I've read before that (usually)oil changing colour shows it's working, but the stuff nearly comes out the colour it went in after changing at 3000kms(in fairness I'm anal about oil changes ). To the degree that at my last oil change a mate of mine's van needed oil and I suggested this stuff(close enough in weight) and he was in a bind so as a stopgap we figured feck it, took it out of my engine and into his turbo diesel(with a new filter he already had) and lo and behold it quieted that down too.

I've subsequently read more on the oil in question and apparently independent tests got extra power just by swapping it in compared to another synth. I'm always dubious of such claims and remain so. It certainly didn't give me any extra going by my Arse Dyno anyway, which is all that counts(3BPH less or more means feck all in the real world). Plus I have found different engines I've had "prefer" different oils. What works a charm in one engine might be not so hot in another, though generally because of research and regs modern oils are all up to par and differences are minor. Or imaginary..

Filter wise I usually go Blueprint, though I have used OEM(Honda) Hamp filters too. Never noticed any diff TBH. My main deal madness is changing the oil regularly. More regularly than the average non insane petrolhead anyway.




*IIRC Racing oils have more protectant and the like than regular. Zinc and such. Which means they're less "green" and exceed the API ratings. Millers one does in the US anyway. On the other hand they're not expected to last in a race application and a race application is very different from going to the shops.

Basically don't say cooking oil is **** compared to fully synth racing oil. Compare like for like.

Cos full synth Castrol is terrible for cooking sausages so in that case cooking oil wipes the floor

Esel

There are different 'definitions' of 'Synthetic' in different jurisdictions. Even of "Fully Synthetic'.

I like the Lidl Fully Synthetic ( €5/L ). Unfortunately, it is seasonal in the shop, so you have to stock up when it's available.

westyIrl

Motormadcork wrote: »

Personally I've used Castro, Mannol and Mobil, and never had any issues whether it be a Japanese or euro car. As for filters is use Mann or Cooperfiaam. The likes of blueprint do not manufacture filters and are for talking sake a "Boxing Company".

I'm pretty much the same. 2 TDI cars since new. 1 with 600k, other 150k. Castrol Edge 5w-40. Mann filters (OEM). Usually order ahead of time from am@zon etc. so have in time for service and works out same price as local factors if not cheaper.

Does it make a difference? I don't know, but neither car has given me any engine problems so I'll keep going the way I'm going.

Jim

honda boi

I usually use halfords Ford 5w30. Never an issue. Ran out of my stock recently(had bought aload when they were like €15 for 4 litres)
So went to amazon and bought an xflow(think that's the brand) 5w30 oil and not a bother in the car with it.

jimbis

With filters I always advise people to buy from main dealer, they're not that expensive (sometimes cheaper than m/factors) and you will get the correct filter.
Just because the filter fits doesn't mean it's the right one and I've seen it happen with certain models down through the years.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Wibbs wrote: »

How do you mean C? Now if it's his only criteria then I can see that alright(or if I was running in a rebuilt engine), but overall synths have better temp ranges, flow better, reduce friction more and last longer.

TBH down the years like yourself I've rarely noticed differences with the oils I use. Though I never saw the hoopla over Mobil One. In my yoke I've always ran synthetics and never noticed any difference between the brands at the same weight and viscosity(though price can vary enough).

Mobil 1 was the only oil that I used and found it too light and my engine (96spec B18C) burned it at an alarming rate despite the engine never having burned a drop of oil before that. I changed back to the Bardhalls fully synthetic I had always used previously and things returned to normal and no more using oil. I had that car for 5 years, changed the oil every 6 months religiously regardless of mileage (sometimes it was only 3/400 kms since the previous oil change as the car was a weekend/2nd car) and the only time I ever had to top up the oil was when I used Mobil1 so for that reason I would never use it again.