Will Synthetic oil ruin my turbo?

The color of oil is not a good indicator of how much life is left in it. Getting darker doesn't mean it's necessarily breaking down. It just means there's most likely carbon in suspension and it's doing its job.
 
The color of oil is not a good indicator of how much life is left in it. Getting darker doesn't mean it's necessarily breaking down. It just means there's most likely carbon in suspension and it's doing its job.

Exactly.

Oil is really changed because it gets dirty, not because of break down. One of the jobs of oil is to remove dirt (contamination, combustion blow by, etc...)from your engine. dirty oil just means its working
 
i didn't mean that it was time to be changed just because it got dark ...

i just did a comparison and the mobile 1 was many shades darker at the same mileage as the pp ... i don't think that just because the oil is darker it is working better ... to me i thought it could be creating more shearing wear and tear or less resistents to burn off from vascosity breakdown and fuel dilution.
 
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The color of oil is not a good indicator of how much life is left in it. Getting darker doesn't mean it's necessarily breaking down. It just means there's most likely carbon in suspension and it's doing its job.

+1
man you are on a roll! preach on brother!!
 
i didn't mean that it was time to be changed just because it got dark ...

i just did a comparison and the mobile 1 was many shades darker at the same mileage as the pp ... i don't think that just because the oil is darker it is working better ... to me i thought it could be creating more shearing wear and tear or less resistents to burn off from vascosity breakdown and fuel dilution.

You cannot judge the effectiveness of an oil by its color at time of change...
the only way to judge an oils effectiveness is to find its viscosity and analyze its contents (i.e. metals suspended in it, gas content) lots of metals=engine wear
 
I have heard many good things about the PP, but have stuck with M1 since I have heard the rumors that Penzoil causes sludge/wax build up or used to. I have had a few cars go for a very long time on M1.

According to penzoil's site, the do use parafins in their products. I know some parafin products do have the ability to cause a wax like build up. The are very popular in the exterior paint industry where sometimes this is desired. Has anyone had this issue with the PP?
 
sorry op for tread jacking .... this discussing is kinda dragging on .. but its interesting.

oil was not compared at time of change .... said in my previous post it was checked at 1000 miles for both.

also in the other post it was said that its carbon and blow-by from combustion, wouldn't that also include some fuel in that blow-by?

fuel in oil = fuel dilution = break down in viscosity, no?

break down in viscosity = more wear and tear = more s*** floating around/burn off

and i know without an oil analyses, you will not know ...
 
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I have heard many good things about the PP, but have stuck with M1 since I have heard the rumors that Penzoil causes sludge/wax build up or used to. I have had a few cars go for a very long time on M1.

According to penzoil's site, the do use parafins in their products. I know some parafin products do have the ability to cause a wax like build up. The are very popular in the exterior paint industry where sometimes this is desired. Has anyone had this issue with the PP?

......ALL major brands of petroleum based motor oils are parafinic based, there are 3 basic types of base stock for petroleum oils (non-synthetic) Parafinic, Napthenic, or Asphaltic. Despite popular belief, it has nothing to do with wax or wax build up, wax like build up in an engine is caused by moisture, not wax. As for your M1, it is a Group 3 base stock, which the U.S. government now allows to be called synthetic...... but petroleum based. Pennzoil synthetics as well as Quaker State (both owned by Shell or Sopus product co.) synthetics are as good as any out there, and better than most for the money.
 
Soo... with all this oil talk going on about how great the PP brand is... which would have your vote?

Mobile 1?
Penzoil Plat?
Royal Purple?


I've used Mobile1 for a while, and switched to the RP because of the good reviews people were posting about it. I have yet to try PPlat, and I may give it a shot. Anyone who has tried RP or M1, and now using PP; what's your thoughts on it? Other than price per quart, is it worth the switch to PP? Thanks in advance!
 
I have used Pennzoil Platinum, but prefer Quaker State QHorsepower 5w30. I change my oil every 2500-3000 miles. If you plan on extending your drain intervals past 5k, then the Royal Purple, Amsoil thing might be the way to go, I stated my case on the Mobil 1 thing, just because they were 1st, does not make them the best...............
 
^Gotcha^

I like to change mine 4-5k... so I'll just stick with RP. Thanks dude!
 
sorry op for tread jacking .... this discussing is kinda dragging on .. but its interesting.

oil was not compared at time of change .... said in my previous post it was checked at 1000 miles for both.

also in the other post it was said that its carbon and blow-by from combustion, wouldn't that also include some fuel in that blow-by?

fuel in oil = fuel dilution = break down in viscosity, no?

break down in viscosity = more wear and tear = more s*** floating around/burn off

and i know without an oil analyses, you will not know ...

fuel dilution does not mean break down in viscosity. people get to excited over all this "oil breakdown" drama, partly created from castrol commercials I assume...

The contamination in your oil, idealy, burns off. Not all of it, but a lot of it. This is something to keep in mind when deciding change intervals. for example, if you make a lot of short trips, short enough to where you engine/oil dont reach full operating temperature, thus affecting burnoff, your oil shoudl be changed earlier because it will be dirtier.
 
I don't use ROYAL PURPLE just because their marketing guys could have come up with a better name....end of message...
 
sorry op for tread jacking .... this discussing is kinda dragging on .. but its interesting.

oil was not compared at time of change .... said in my previous post it was checked at 1000 miles for both.

also in the other post it was said that its carbon and blow-by from combustion, wouldn't that also include some fuel in that blow-by?

fuel in oil = fuel dilution = break down in viscosity, no?

break down in viscosity = more wear and tear = more s*** floating around/burn off

and i know without an oil analyses, you will not know ...

I'm still not convinced we've proven that this fuel dilution is a consistant problem with this motor. I've seen quite a few oil analysis from MS3's, MS6's and CX7's over at BITOG that would show otherwise (all <1.0%). The few that did show it being a problem had owners who had admitted being hard on the car. Constant stop and go, short distance commuting. These conditions being hard on oil are common to every other car on the road, not just ours. Being a high performance turbocharged motor compounds the issue by shearing oil down a weight (or two) from flowing through a turbo that's heating up well over the highest flashpoints of even the best synthetics. Most analysis show that a 5W-30 is closer to a 0W-20 by 5,000 miles in this motor with fuel dilution <1.0%, so how else can this happen? Heat. The only way to deal with this issue is to change the oil more frequently, which for some people who don't drive very much is probably the best option, or use a heavier oil, ie: a 5 or 10W-40. The Australians' owners manual for the MS3 shows being able to use a 10W-40 for this car. We don't have this option. Why? Fuel and emissions standards our cars in this country have to meet, which is why you see thinner and thinner oils being used and marketed. Mobil has 0W-20 synthetics on the shelves claiming they save gas. You might as well pour water into your motor.

From looking at UOD's over at BITOG, PP seems to be a great oil for the price. Walmart's got the 5 quart jugs for $22 (they were $19 a week or so ago). I'm still a firm believer that as long as you change your oil at intervals that work for you and your motor (and this really can't be determined without analysis), you can take any of the brand named oils off the shelf, whether it be M1, Castrol Syntec, PP, Valvoline, Quaker, etc and use them for 100,000+ miles without an oil related failure. Lots of people lose sleep over picking brand X over brand Z because of what they've heard here or there. Chances are, you will have sold this car long before your motor suffered from failure attributed to the brand of oil you used. My opinion is buy the cheapest stuff that gets the best reviews based on third party analysis.
 
My opinion is buy the cheapest stuff that gets the best reviews based on third party analysis.

I wouldnt even go that far. Just buy the cheapest stuff period. Your paying for a lot of advertising dollars with the huge mark ups on name brand oil.

Ive been using cheap (relatively speaking) dino for the most part, or synthetic if its on sale and i have a hole burning in my pocket. The no brand oil is the same stuff. Just make sure it meets the latest specs. and quit over paying
 
...I am fairly new to the Mazda scene, but all this talk of oil dilution, could it be caused by the washing of the cylinders? Our cars run pretty rich, and sometimes you might get some cylinder wash if it's too rich, just a thought..............
 
Subbin'

I'm due for my first oil change in about 900 miles. I'm gonna do it myself and use PP (alright)
 
sorry op for tread jacking .... this discussing is kinda dragging on .. but its interesting.

Let it get jacked. My original question was answered long ago, and there is some good information coming out of this discussion.

qluber1, thanks for the explanation on the wax issue, that is the most educated answer I have heard on that issue yet. A lot of rumors going around about it.

In fact on that note there seem to be a lot of rumors about oil in general...

So I would like to start the rumor that using M1 will definitely get you laid...
 
I'm still not convinced we've proven that this fuel dilution is a consistant problem with this motor. I've seen quite a few oil analysis from MS3's, MS6's and CX7's over at BITOG that would show otherwise (all <1.0%). The few that did show it being a problem had owners who had admitted being hard on the car. Constant stop and go, short distance commuting. These conditions being hard on oil are common to every other car on the road, not just ours. Being a high performance turbocharged motor compounds the issue by shearing oil down a weight (or two) from flowing through a turbo that's heating up well over the highest flashpoints of even the best synthetics. Most analysis show that a 5W-30 is closer to a 0W-20 by 5,000 miles in this motor with fuel dilution <1.0%, so how else can this happen? Heat. The only way to deal with this issue is to change the oil more frequently, which for some people who don't drive very much is probably the best option, or use a heavier oil, ie: a 5 or 10W-40. The Australians' owners manual for the MS3 shows being able to use a 10W-40 for this car. We don't have this option. Why? Fuel and emissions standards our cars in this country have to meet, which is why you see thinner and thinner oils being used and marketed. Mobil has 0W-20 synthetics on the shelves claiming they save gas. You might as well pour water into your motor.

From looking at UOD's over at BITOG, PP seems to be a great oil for the price. Walmart's got the 5 quart jugs for $22 (they were $19 a week or so ago). I'm still a firm believer that as long as you change your oil at intervals that work for you and your motor (and this really can't be determined without analysis), you can take any of the brand named oils off the shelf, whether it be M1, Castrol Syntec, PP, Valvoline, Quaker, etc and use them for 100,000+ miles without an oil related failure. Lots of people lose sleep over picking brand X over brand Z because of what they've heard here or there. Chances are, you will have sold this car long before your motor suffered from failure attributed to the brand of oil you used. My opinion is buy the cheapest stuff that gets the best reviews based on third party analysis.

I'm interested in the fuel dilution issue as well ... got a sample from my last change sitting here ready to ship out for analysis. I'm amazed at the smell of gas coming from it.
 

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