I have 92,000 miles on my 99 Accord. I switched from regular oil to synthetic. Mobil 1 supersyn 5-30. My Dealer said the 5-30 was ok becuase it is the synthetic no regular oil, but did i make a mistake by switching to synthetic at such a high mileage? I heard about when you switch to synthetic after running regular for a while, the deposits on the rings will come off. Thus, making a burning smell of oil and such. I did have that smell but is gone now. Did I mess up by switching with so many miles? Should I go with some high mileage oil? Please help...

 

I've known many that changed over with high mileage such as yours with no ill effects.
Here's a few things to keep in mind:

..It is common for the car to use oil when switching to synth so keep an eye on the dipstick. It generally settles down after 5000 miles or so.
..Watch for leaks even if there were none before you installed the synth. It's only a possibility but it does exist.
..Go 5K only on the first round of M1, after that you can extend it. A $20.00 used oil analysis will give you a good picture of how the engine is wearing and how far you can go on the synthetic between changes.
..It's not uncommon for people to report a nosier engine when using M1 although I have never experienced this over the last three cars.
..Fram oil filters are at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to quality. It is unfortunate that some of Honda's filters are made by Fram. You can do better.

 

i changed my oil every one thousand miles until it hit 40k, then i changed to syntech...i can actually FEEL a difference...the only issue with syn is that it is thinner, and if you have a minor leak, it may increase..just keep an eye on it, but everyone shoudl do that anyway

 

i switched to synthetic at 123k, so far no complaints, no leaks, cant' really say better perfomance one way or another.
i am hard on my car, lots of miles every day, so far so good and i plan on sticking with the synthetic from now on/

 

OK, I'm here to learn, so sorry If so many of my questions are beginner and might seem silly (I am !)

Why would one want to switch to synthetic? It sounds like its better, fromyour posts...
My 99 has 27K,..should I go synthetic? Whats with the leak talk?? Will synthetic make my system more prone to leaks?? (sorry, I know, I know..newbies..geesh! I know nothing of engines, so I hope you'll bear with me, I won't even be offended if I'm ignored because my questions are so dumb)

 

Minx -

In truth modern regular oils have become so good that the advantages of synthetic are beginning to shrink.
I am pro synthetic and use it in two cars, lawnmower, pressure sprayer, etc. etc.

The main advantages of synthetics are -

1. Longer oil change intervals.
2. Extreme resistance to thermal (heat) related problems.
3. Faster flow at cold engine startup.
4. Internal engine cleanliness.

Not all oils marked synthetic actually are fully synthetic due to a loophole.........do some homework if you decide to switch over. On your car with such low mileage leaks would not be a concern.


PS Quit kicking your own butt!! We are here to help, not ridicule.

 

Don't worry about changing with higher mileage. I'd just change the oil filter between oil changes.
Synthetic is thin because it has a much colder pour point than regular oil. If you compare hot regular oil to synthetic oil they are basicly the same. If you have leaks you had them before, it just shows up a little more with synthetics. Everyone I've know who changed has noticed a decrese in oil use with an engine that doesn't burn oil excessively. It has a lot higher flash point and doesn't burn off from the cyl. walls like reg. oil does. And it also doesn't get thicker with age as regular oil does. Dino oils burn the smaller molecules off first where synthetics have the same size though it's viscosity range. It also doesn't cause sludge problems and that alone with modern engines is worth using it. Some engines are more apt to make it than others and comsumer reports noted some engines where it's a very bad problem. It's cure also was to go with synthetics. Modern engines run a lot hotter, have tighter tolerences and the one huge benifit also with synthetics is it's thin at cold weather and it flows faster durring startup and warmup where most engine wear is caused.
The only problem I've ever heard about changing from reg. oil to synthetic is some recomend using a engine cleaner before changing to synthetics and that is def. a bad idea with high mileage engines. I've heard where it breaks loose lots of crud that plugs up oil passages and can ruin motors. With low mileage motors I'm neutral. I don't think it's needed. I've changed to Amsoil in my audi quattro that I got from my cousin that had 240k miles on it. It had a bit of sludge in it that is slowing going away, it's never used any more oil in fact uses much less oil and the gas mileage went up from 22 to 26mpg but I changed the tranny and rear end also to the same brand synthetic. I highly recomend changing all oils in the car over. Just make sure if you do change the trans oil that you know it's GL rating. You do not want to run a GL-4 gear oil in a trans that requires GL-5 and vice versa. It will ruin the syncro's. That info is in the owners manual. It also seems thinner and it makes cold weather driving much better if you ever noticed a car is hard to shift when cold and gets smoother when warm, this is not a issue with synthetics, at least not with Amsoil though I've heard it mentioned a bit with Redline when real cold. Don't really understand why as I've not used that brand and maybe their tranny is already showing syncro wear and is just more pronounced.
I'm not usually the type to recomend any specific type of oil, use what you want. But check out reivews on different types and how easy it is to get. I order all mine though their website and I get it in at least 3 days. It's never taken longer. I've seen a 5deg. difference in temp from one type to Amsoil but I'm using their top of the line stuff which is a little more expensive but worth it from the results I've seen. My Audi has a oil temp guage so I monitored it for awhile with 2 different brands. I am now pretty biased so use what you feel is best and try different types if you want over the years and judge for yourself which is best for your car.
Even the cheapest synthetic is a little better than dino oil. But the top of the line stuff is like night and day different.

 

billcat,
that is an excellent post, full of good info. nice work man.

 

Amsoil is a terrific product but there are others out there that are as good or better. I mean no offense, so don't take any.
Mobil 1 is available anywhere/everywhere unlike Amsoil. Unless you purchase in quantity Amsoil is roughly $1.00 more per quart.
I don't feel that it is $5.00 better (+shipping) than M1, per oil change.

It also depends on which Amsoil product you use. The 7500 is a group III synthetic which is not up to par with the group IV and V oils. The 2000 series is top notch but at a higher price than the 7500 and other true synthetics.

I don't blame you one bit for being biased toward Amsoil but please acknowledge that there are equal or better products available off the shelf without having to order them.

 

Wow, never got a good post praise from anyone, thanks.
I am pretty biased towards amsoil, I used mobil 1 and then amsoil. I could tell the difference between them but only the series 2000 type.
Amsoil has many warehouses across the country and though you have to order it they are located pretty close to many major citys. The closest one to me is in Oregon, I live in Washington state and it still only takes up to 3 days to get to my door. They also make very good oil filters so I can get everything I need and don't have to drive there to get it. If you live close to a store then saving shipping is fine, I live about 20 miles to the closest store that sells any oil and the gas travel costs make up for the shipping or close enough. I've never been impressed by mobil 1. I couldn't tell the difference between it and reg. oil even though I'm sure the engine could at least with the reduced wear and so on but it still was a night and day difference when changing to Amsoil. When compared they come very close to each other in many wear charts and so on, but Amsoil uses more additives which increses it's cost but makes it a longer mileage oil as well.
I'd use either one over any dino oil and over other synthetic brands. Frankly, I have doubts about Mobil 1. When it first came out they sold it as 25k mile oil. Then they stopped. Either to sell more oil or they gutted the quanity of additives after they quit the long mileage claim and went with car mfg. oil change guides. It didn't make sence to have the extra additives if it wasn't going to go that many miles anymore. I can't say if they did or not. I've just seen results from one to another. Engine runs smoother, runs cooler, the oil never changes color thoughout the years use. Another thing I like about Amsoil, that's all they do is sell synthetics, they don't sell gas or other products and have to be the best there is to stay ahead in this market. It's their specialty. And from what I've seen and others I've talked into using it once they do they never have gone back to any other oil type.
I also use their 2 stroke oils in my dirt bike and chain saw, use their motorcycle oil and also their fork oil, in a way I save a lot of driving time getting it all at one source and gas costs. They really know their stuff. BUT, I still always like to tell others to try them both or do a lot of research on the web as there are many articles about these oils and make up their own minds. I am just sold on it by what I've seen from them.
Also, if you use a lot of their products you can spend a little extra and get on their membership or preferred customer plan, what ever it is I can't remember but you get good discounts when you do. It brings the price down about 2.00/qt. I think, you get it at dealer cost. It costs about 10.00/yr. Or pay more for more years. They have this info. on their website.
That's what I did and bought a few years worth and saved quite a bit and also bought a lot for friends as well. Just something to consider if you use it in all your cars and get their gear oils and other types for outboard motors and lawn mowers/ weed wackers/chainsaws, you name it, if it has a motor they make a synthetic oil for it. Sheesh, sorry folks, I'm sounding like a dealer now and I do tend to go on a bit more than I should.
One thing that is note worthy, they are now selling the only motorcycle oil that uses additives that prevent rust. If you have a bike they tend to sit over the winter time and will get rust in them. Unless you can seal it and pump a vacume or non air gas like Nitrogen or something like that, into it it will rust. Regular oils don't prevent rust on their own and no other brand offers this additive as of yet that I've heard of. They just came out with this new type cycle oil a few months ago. I've coated engines that I had on stands with oil as I thought it did and it still rusted so I know oil doesn't stop rust on it's own. I used to get their flyers in the mail about their new products. They also make very good dual layer foam air filters. The first layer has larger holes and traps larger dirt particles and the second layer is much denser to trap small particles. This makes them last much longer and they breath very well. Oil based. I prefer them over K&N filters.
Again, sorry about long posts and being biased. Please do your own research and use what makes you feel comforable.