Fully synthetic oil

Dale V

Dale V

Dale V

Soldato
Joined
14 May 2004
Posts
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I need to buy 4 litres of fully synthetic oil for my rebuilt mr2 engine, it has been run in, and all is fine, so its now time to change the oil. I have never used a fully synth before so im looking for some recommendations on which should be prefered.

I've been talking to a few people and so far its narrowed down to 2 brands:

Silkolene PRO S 5W-40 (5 litres) £49.35 plus £7 postage = £57~
Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40 (4 litres) £18 plus £7 postage = £25~

Now the silkolene is from opie oils and the shell is from ebay, so im not too sure if this is the reason in price difference, or just because the silkolene is more of an advanced oil. Does anyone know how much the shell helix retails for at a garage?

also does anyone else have a specific fully synth brand they would recommend?

cheers
 
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I was told that Silkolene and Millers were the only proper fully (100%) synthetic oil; don't quote me on that though. I used Millers last oil change as it was available in my local motor factors :)

Bloke who recommended it used it in his 400+bhp Supra :)
 
I went for "Silkolene PRO S 5W-40 (5 litres) £49.35 plus £7 postage = £57" on my last service, but only payed £45 for 6 litres of it.

My engine sounds a lot healthier in my honest opinion.
 
cool, cheers chaps, does anyone know anywhere else to get it from, ie. cheaper lol :D

just at £60 it seems expensive for an oil change :\
 
57 quid good god. I used to get 5 liters of Mobil 1 synthetic from Walmart for 18 bucks :/

How can you pay that much? I would have to change my oil every 2 months (3000 miles), at that price I would not be able to drive!
 
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ethos said:
I went for "Silkolene PRO S 5W-40 (5 litres) £49.35 plus £7 postage = £57" on my last service, but only payed £45 for 6 litres of it.

My engine sounds a lot healthier in my honest opinion.
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Reading around the internet it seems like 5w-40 is the spec VW quote you should use for the 1.8T, i was under the impression it was 5w-30 fully synth, hmm.....
 
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Firestar_3x said:
Reading around the internet it seems like 5w-40 is the spec VW quote you should use for the 1.8T, i was under the impression it was 5w-30 fully synth, hmm.....
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It depends on the revision of the engine, and the servicing intervals.

SEAT for instance, use and recommend 5W-30 for the Leon Cupra and Cupra R.
 
Defcon5 said:
Isnt that the one that the opie oil man always suggests, as its the most expensive?
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Its not necessarily most expensive (I think royal purple is worse) but it is the best and you get what you pay for. Granted its more than halfords own brand etc, but the cost of 5 litres of oil fades into insignificance compared to an engine rebuild. It is genuine tri-esther oil - it really is the best.

Its made my engine quieter than mobil 1, and holds better pressure at idle after a really good spanking when mobil would start to thin out from the heat. A guy on passionford actually paid for independant chemical analysis of the 'top' oils as some degraded badly after top speed runs - Silkolene came out top and his car was running around 800 bhp with nitrous.
 
Sorry to be o/t, but is it better to use the best oil possible, and stick to 10 oil changes, or use a cheaper oil and change every 5/6k?
 
I'd buy the Shell Helix tbh, nothing wrong with it and is good enough for Ferrari. Silkoline IMO is just gimmicky overpriced stuff bought by those who buy into oilman's very pushy sales pitches on every forum known to man.
I have yet to see any proof that this kind of oil improves the engine longevity over a normal priced run of the mill oil by Shell, Castrol etc.. Regular engines last ages no matter what oil you put in, likewise highly tuned ones blow up no matter what oil.
 
Reading this, I'm starting to wonder what is really in the 'fully synthetic' vauxhall oil they sell at the dealers, that's peanuts in comparison..
 
Defcon5 said:
Sorry to be o/t, but is it better to use the best oil possible, and stick to 10 oil changes, or use a cheaper oil and change every 5/6k?
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All depends really. Only reason you need to change oil is either due to it shearing down/becoming soot loaded so that the viscometrics have changed or the fact it is full of acid and the detergent 'base' has been used up. Base is there to neutralise acids etc.

The better oils are either synthetic base (assuming the same additive pack used) for longer drain intervals and better oxidation stability. Or better additive packs regardless of base oil for engine protection etc.

Personally I am comfortable with 9,000 mile intervals. Anymore in road use is an overkill, a better oil will offer better protection and for what it costs Vs the amout of fuel you burn in that period I definately think it is worth the premium just for piece of mind. OEM oil filters are also a must.

People love to **** off Magnatec for it not being 'fully synthetic' but the wear performance in Industry tests where camshaft wear is measured is miles better than any other oil. Ive seen plenty of competitor results which I cannot disclose for obvious reasons, but let's just say it is 10 times better than some stuff out there.
 
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