1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Mobil 1 0/20 W. Fully Synthetic

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by Blizzy, Aug 11, 2009.

  1. Blizzy

    Blizzy Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2009
    11
    1
    0
    Location:
    Sacramento, Ca
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    I'm thinking of changing the oil in my wife's new Prius for a couple of reasons. First of all I trust myself more than I do a guy working at a dealership express lube. I can just see these guy's putting in the wrong weight oil since 0/20 W. is relativly new. When we bought the car and I was told it used 0/20 oil I went over to the parts counter and asked how much. They said about $7. a quart but they hadn't even got any yet. Mobil 1 0/20 W. at Wal-Mart sells for $22. and comes in a 5 quart container which is a little more than we need. The oil filter which I haven't priced yet can't be more than $6. from the same place.

    Does anyone out there have a better preference for oil?? Like maybe Castrol which I heard is now suppose to be better than Mobil 1. Theres also oil on the market that I've heard will go 15,000 miles between changes. One that comes to mind in Redline.

    I also don't agree with the (or 6 months) interval between changes. What if I only have 3,000 miles on the oil and 6 months goes by am I suppose to change it?? I really don't think so. I understand about oil getting contaminated but I don't think it has to be changed at 6 month intervals regardless of mileage. It's the miles that contaminates oil not just sitting in a crankcase.

    The dealership (Toyota) that we take our 4-Runner to uses Penzoil in the bulk. The Runner takes 5/20 W. So I'm wondering if they'll get 0/20 W. Penzoil which I'm not a big fan of. Thats all the oil they have in the express lube at Toyota so I live with it and we change oil every 3,000 miles. I would have changed it myself but the Runner was my Wife's (now it's mine!) and she insisted that we take it to the dealer!

    Enough said about oil....I'm out of breath anyway!!

    Blizzy's husband >> Steve
     
  2. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2005
    580
    498
    47
    Location:
    Raleigh, NC
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Steve,
    I have been buying my 0/20 Mobil 1 at Walmart in one quart bottles for several years now. I use 3 1/2 quarts per change so I buy 7 quarts at a time.

    Mobil 1 is my preference. I don't know if there are better oils than Mobil 1, but if there are, I don't really care because I get good results with what I have been using for years.

    I change my oil religiously every 25,000 miles, whether it needs it or not.:D

    Dan
     
    1 person likes this.
  3. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2005
    580
    498
    47
    Location:
    Raleigh, NC
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Duplicate
     
  4. morpheusx

    morpheusx Professor Chaos

    Joined:
    Mar 6, 2007
    1,555
    81
    0
    Location:
    Akron, OH
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Mobil-1 Extended Performance (now with a Tan Gold colored Lid and only about $3 more expensive in the 5 Qt jug then the standard Mobil-1) is also guaranteed for 15,000 miles. I have 9000 miles on my current oil change and it looks like brand new oil. Castrol Edge (Gold Bottle) also is guranteed for 15,000 miles. For now the filter for the 2010 Prius might be dealer only I believe I read it takes a cartridge filter.

    Special note I would follow the 5000 mile intervals while in your powertrain warranty.
     
    1 person likes this.
  5. Winston

    Winston Member

    Joined:
    May 19, 2007
    614
    20
    0
    Location:
    SF Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Do any of you with the long drain intervals do oil analysis. 25,000 miles seems a bit long, even for Mobil 1. Amsoil maybe, but not Mobil 1.
     
  6. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2004
    9,059
    3,529
    0
    Location:
    Kunming Yunnan China
    Vehicle:
    2001 Prius
    krousdb plans to analyze the current oil, and I am advocating the TBN test because that is more of a concern in my mind) than shearing out of the viscosity range.
     
  7. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2005
    580
    498
    47
    Location:
    Raleigh, NC
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    I will be sending a sample in in a few weeks after my next change. Why would you say it's OK for Amsoil and not for Mobil 1?
     
  8. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

    Joined:
    Feb 7, 2006
    22,102
    11,546
    0
    Location:
    eastern Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Mobil 1 may not be a true blue group IV synthetic. Amsoil is, but I don't think they get their group IV oils AMA certified.
     
  9. tom1l21

    tom1l21 Member

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2009
    268
    13
    0
    Location:
    East Longmeadow, MA
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    I currently run the regular Mobil 1 5W-30 with a puralator no slip grip oil filter. I was thinking of switching over to the gold cap for the 15k interval between changes. Will that oil filter I'm using last 15k, and if so, can I maybe get 20k out of both the oil and filter? Will using the same oil for over 6 months be an issue too?
     
  10. acdii

    acdii Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 5, 2007
    1,124
    131
    0
    Two keys to oil, first use good oil. Mobil 1 is probably the best commercially available oil, Amsoil and Royal Purple are said to be even better, but not as commercially available. Second, Always, and I mean ALWAYS use a good filter. Stay away from Fram if you plan to go long intervals, or replace it every 3K. Mobil1, and K&N filters are identical, and very well made, WIX filters are also very good, probably the best on the market. Something I found very funny, I bought a Mobil 1 filter for the TCH, and a week later a John Deere filter for my x500. They were both the same exact filter, down to the part numbers stamped on the case, only the DOM was different.

    I have done oil analysis on my truck and cars for the first few changes to know just how long I can go between changes, which on a F350 Diesel is expensive, so I want the oil to last as long as possible. I easily got 9500 miles out of Dino in the diesel, and in the gassers, I got 15,000 out of Mobil 1 before deciding to change it, and there was still some life left in it. Remember the key to long oil life is a good filter, and change them out frequently. If you want to go 15K between changes, replace the filter every 5K.
     
  11. tom1l21

    tom1l21 Member

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2009
    268
    13
    0
    Location:
    East Longmeadow, MA
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius

    Not sure how puralator stacks up, but it got pretty good reviewshttp://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B000GIVEII?tag=priuschatcom-20 . If I were to go 15k with mobile 1 (are we talking the extended performance gold cap?), when I change my oil filter, do I have to drain out the oil then put it back in or can I just remove the oil filter? I have never done the latter so don't want it to come gusing out on me. Also, what is a general test I could perform say after 10k to make sure the oil ius still good. I don't even know what it would cost or where to go to get it tested. Thanks for the info so far!
     
  12. acdii

    acdii Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 5, 2007
    1,124
    131
    0
    I haven't heard anything bad about the Purolator, haven't heard anything outstanding about it either. Its a matter of how much media is in it and how small of a particle it can filter out, down to <5 microns is good.

    Replacing the filter is simple enough, on a cold engine, all the oil will be in the pan except for what is in the filter and valleys that didn't drain down into the pan. Just remove the filter as normal, and if the filter is positioned where the open end is facing up, fill it with fresh oil, and install it, run the engine until pressure builds and top off the oil as needed. If you run the engine first though, you will lose more oil as it drains down from the head.
     
  13. tom1l21

    tom1l21 Member

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2009
    268
    13
    0
    Location:
    East Longmeadow, MA
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Good to know, I think I'll stick with mobil 1 puralator, or k&N if the price is right. Were you talking about mobil 1 extended performance in the previous post? And if not, is it really worth the extra $4 per 5 liters?
     
  14. acdii

    acdii Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 5, 2007
    1,124
    131
    0
    Mobil 1, the original. The only way to know for sure if it is worth the extra money is with an oil analysis. After running 10K with Mobil 1, have an analysis done. if it comes back safe to run another 5K, then the answer is no. If you run the extended, and do the analysis, and after 15K comes back that you can run another 5K, then yes. I have been running Mobil 1 for years, and every one of my engines has been CLEAN, no sludge, no deposits, looks as good as the day they were built. For me Mobil 1 is worth the extra cost.
     
  15. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 24, 2006
    5,963
    1,981
    0
    Location:
    Edmonton Alberta
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Based on info from the oil filter study I'd say if you're planning on extending the oil change interval, change the filter only on the old interval. The study showed most filters are mostly plugged by about 1500 mi. The oil circulates via the bypass. A -larger- filter is not practical. There isn't room for it.