10,000 Miles and Counting on Mobil 1 and Mobil 1 Oil Filter on 2007 Escalade...

[CTS-V-TWIN]

Just wanted to post an update.

I finally changed the oil in our 2007 Escalade today after six and a half months and 12,553 miles.

As you can expect, the oil was really black when it was being drained.

I did get a good sample of the oil and I sent it off to Blackstone Labs right after the oil change was completed. I am very curious to see the condition of the Mobil 1 after almost 13K miles.

I will keep you updated of the results when I get them back from Blackstone.

SG

[CTS-V-TWIN]

I just got my Blackstone Labs oil analysis report via email. That was FAST! The oil was still good at almost 13,000 miles since my last oil change and with 31,000 miles on the engine!!! I guess the Mobil 1 Extended Performance Oil Filters are as good as they say! Everything pretty much looked good. Just wanted to give you the heads up!

SG

[C66 Racing]

I'd be interested in knowing how the oil performed in terms of wear metals vs the universal lab averages for your motor family given the long service interval, and did you get TBN done, and if so, what was it?

[airhammer]

Impressive!

[CTS-V-TWIN]

Originally Posted by C66 Racing

I'd be interested in knowing how the oil performed in terms of wear metals vs the universal lab averages for your motor family given the long service interval, and did you get TBN done, and if so, what was it?

I can email you my full oil analysis if you like. The TBN was 1.3 which was low, but this engine had gone almost 13,000 miles in harsh L.A. driving conditions and that has to be taken into consideration. Blackstone Labs made a mistake and listed that I run leaded fuel which is false. I emailed them so they can correct it and find out why there was so much lead present.

SG

[simplemind]

Originally Posted by AERO1

find out why there was so much lead present. SG

You did say L.A., right.....


As you know, BMW has a 15,000 mile oil service interval even on the M series. They use a "special" Castrol synthetic. Whether it is special or not, I don't know, but I'd bet that Mobil 1 is just as good, and should easilly go 15k. Bimmer freaks, yes I are one, are pretty spooked about the interval, but BMW pays for all oil service up to 4/48 and it's on your own tab if you want it changed earlier, and it ain't cheap.

[CTS-V-TWIN]

Originally Posted by simplemind

You did say L.A., right.....


As you know, BMW has a 15,000 mile oil service interval even on the M series. They use a "special" Castrol synthetic. Whether it is special or not, I don't know, but I'd bet that Mobil 1 is just as good, and should easilly go 15k. Bimmer freaks, yes I are one, are pretty spooked about the interval, but BMW pays for all oil service up to 4/48 and it's on your own tab if you want it changed earlier, and it ain't cheap.

You are talking about two totally different designed engines. BMW and Mercedes engines are designed with internal parts so that they can go longer intervals and still be safe. GM engines were designed to run as long as the engine oil life monitor says to change the oil which is around 7K-8K mile service intervals. I ran our Escalade to the point where it went from 100% oil life remaining to 0% and I reset the oil life monitor back to 100% and when I changed the oil out it was down to 45%.

The TBN rating was 1.3 when the oil was analyzed which is very low, so I may go 10K instead of almost 13K miles next time.

L.A. conditions are VERY harsh on any motor oil.

Last time I checked Mobil 1 was better than Castol Synthetic. My sister runs Mobil 1 Extended Performance in her 2002 745LI and that is what her BMW dealer recommends for her to use over the Castrol.

SG

[simplemind]

Originally Posted by AERO1

You are talking about two totally different designed engines. BMW and Mercedes engines are designed with internal parts so that they can go longer intervals and still be safe. GM engines were designed to run as long as the engine oil life monitor says to change the oil which is around 7K-8K mile service intervals.

BMW actually monitors the driving conditions/usage and adjusts the oil change interval accordingly. As far as I know, Caddy uses a simple timer, set for the type of oil used (dino/syn), .

Last time I checked Mobil 1 was better than Castol Synthetic.
SG

Do you have hard data to back that up?

.

[hcvone]

It's more that many Euro cars carry much more oil than american cars, they can get away with changing it less, and as said BMW pays for oil changes, I used to fight with them about when I wanted the oil changed, now I do it myself and use Amsoil, have since 2000 on my BMW's & Benz's.

[CTS-V-TWIN]

simplemind,

Cadillac claims that their oil life monitor is guaged by the way the car is driven, but their oil life monitor on the Escalade is programmed for conventional oil. My STS-V's oil life monitor is programmed for Mobil 1, so our Escalade percentage drops much faster than the STS-V's. The Escalade can't tell what oil you use, even though I use Mobil 1.


While Castrol may be a good synthetic oil, Mobil 1 has always been the superior synthetic oil MOST automakers go with and trust. It is second only to Red Line, Royal Purple, Amsoil, etc. BMW seems to be the only one that uses Castrol while others go with Mobil 1. It's funny that a lot of BMW dealers use Mobil 1 instead of the BMW factory recommended Castrol Syntec. I will search for hard data to show that Mobil 1 is better than Castrol. I am 100% certain Mobil 1 is better than Castrol Syntec, but I am sure I can find data to show that it is a better performing oil. I am sure hcvone has the data somewhere. He seems to be up on this stuff.

SG

[CTS-V-TWIN]

Simplemind,

Check out this link:

http://www.texassyntheticoils.com/

Check out this paragraph:

In fact until recently many of these manufacturers never even had a synthetic (except Mobil1). They were too busy trying to debunk the benefits of synthetics to the average consumer! Now, technology, competition and consumer demand has forced every major oil manufacturer to have a synthetic, and they are now also claiming the same benefits that at one time they were trying to debunk, but yet not a single one even comes close to offering the protection and performance that AMSOILdoes. In fact, the Castrol Syntec isn't even a 100% pure Group 4 synthetic...

I am still searching for actual hard data, but this is a start...

SG

[Palomar9]

Can anyone offer some tangible concrete (cost effective) reasons for using exotic and expensive oil in a fairly conventional engine which was designed for regular oil in the first place? I change oil/filter myself about twice a year for less than $50. Five years from now, would it have made any REAL difference if I had used synthetic oil and an expensive filter?

[simplemind]

Originally Posted by AERO1

Simplemind,

Check out this link:

http://www.texassyntheticoils.com/

I am still searching for actual hard data, but this is a start...

SG

Thanks for the link, and I am familliar with Amsoil, which is a great product. Also, I was not touting the Castrol, simply referring to what BMW had specified for my '03 M3. Appearantly the Castrol that BMW approves has "Made in Germany" on the label, and is a 100% syn product, has a black label, and has a ACEA A3 and BMW LL-01 rating, fwiw!

Here is another link that may be of interest, or not !
.
.

[Dif]

Originally Posted by Palomar9

Can anyone offer some tangible concrete (cost effective) reasons for using exotic and expensive oil in a fairly conventional engine which was designed for regular oil in the first place? I change oil/filter myself about twice a year for less than $50. Five years from now, would it have made any REAL difference if I had used synthetic oil and an expensive filter?

If a person changes the oil all the time at 3000 miles and only keeps a vehicle for a few years and then trades up.....
Probably no big deal not using Synthetic when not keeping the vehicle long.

I used to think it was just some fancy oil..
But then I did some research to see just what was what.

The Synthetic will Not get Thin when Hot, and will Not get Thick when Cold.

The molecules in the Synthetic are all the same size, not all various sizes like in Petroleum oil.
Doesn't sound like much but it coats the moving parts more uniformly.

With Synthetic, the engine stays Perfectly Clean.
Where as Petroleum based oil will leave sludge that builds up after a lot of miles and looks like so much mud in the engine.
The pistons and everything else internally become coated, burned and dirty with this sludge.
I've had cars with 100,000 miles when I was a kid, and after taking valve covers off, you could scoop the sludge out of the top of the head with a spoon.
About 10 years ago I was over my friends house and he had been using Synthetic for years ... and keeps his vehicles for years.
He took his truck engine apart to redo the valves after 150,000 miles.
I was shocked,... the engine was clean as the day it was built.

It's proven the Synthetic will last many times longer because it simply doesn't break down as fast as Petroleum oil.
The only problem I see with Synthetic is leaving it in for extended periods with out using a Premium high mileage filter.
It won't matter how good the oil is if it gets dirty.

For me, I don't put more than 6-7000 miles on a year and is another reason I use Synthetic.
Petroleum based oil should be changed every 3,000 miles or....
every 3 months ....... which ever comes first.
Sometimes it takes me 6 Months to put on 3000 miles.
Petroleum oil breaks down once it's exposed to engine heat, moisture and temperature changes in the weather just from being in the engine too long.
It's not all about the mileage.

As for being cost effective:
Synthetic can be left in at least twice as long as Petroleum oil.
Yes, it cost more initially, but you get 1 oil change to every 2 with Petroleum oil.
In my opinion if keeping the vehicle for 5 years or more regardless of the miles, the engine will be in better shape with Synthetic oil and run better.

Take it for what it's worth..., just info I've found and experienced with Synthetic.
I've been using it about 10 years in all my vehicles and notice improvement in performance and mileage.

[scroitoru]

on my jeep, i have 120K, and have used Mobil 1 synthetic since I bought in back in 2001. It rides so smooth, like new. On top of that, I am also using top of the line oil filter and the top of the line air filter, and changing the oil every 7500 miles. It is worth it, if you wanna keep your car a long time.