My cars oil requires changing but looking at the oil available and its vast difference in price i have no idea which to choose. I have a 1.6 Ford Orion LX.
Whats the difference between synthetic, semi synthetic and mineral and which is the best for my car?
What do the figures 20/50, 15/40 mean and hopw do you know which your car requires?
I have heard that Castrol Magnatec might be a good bet as i do alot of short journeys but am really confused and hope someone can shed some light on this subject.
Much appreciated
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Ford Motorcraft 5W/30
Cheap as chips, good quality, and can be fitted by your local RapidFit with no techical expertise required on your part.
Basically, the lower figure is the thickest at which the oil will do its job, the higher the thinnest. 15/40 will usually be a good quality mineral oil, 20/50 will be lower quality - at this grade you can get 5 litres from Asda at £2.76(!)
Castrol Magnatec is a good oil (I use it to top up) but if you want to do a change, go to RapidFit and get them to do it for you. That way, you know it will be cheap, good quality and competently fitted with a new filter for less than 20 notes.
For people who don't drive Endura or Zetec engined Fords, your owners' manual should say exactly what you need. If you don't have one, go to the franchise dealer or a scrapyard and buy one as the few quid that it will cost you will save you an enormous amount of hassle.
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Thanks David for that explanation. I'm not yet ready to change the oil in my TDCI - still using factory oil. But when I do, I've got some unanswered questions:
In the past, I've used semi synthetic 10w40, on Cavaliers etc. This time I thought I would like to use fully synthetic as many have often suggested is good on this site. The TDCI requires 5w30 (I think!). However, my tentative searches have not found any fully synthetic 5w30 oils.
Is there a "fully synthetic" 5w30? or is 5w30 as good as if not better than fully synth anyway, or am I just being completely naive (last option sounds most plausible!).
Any help gratefully received!
Splodgeface
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Pop into your local Halfords and go to the oil section. They have printed cards with every car imaginable listed telling you which oil you should use.
Easy peasy....
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Your TDCi must use a 5W 30 oil. Ford's own Formaul E oil is indeed semi synthetic but is widely regarded as the best to use.
Your car should still be under a three year warranty so I should stick to what it has been filled with.
Ford Part No:1212636 Price Inc VAT 21.51 for 5 Litres
HTH
Charles
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Having reread my answers...
Firstly, Magnatec is a good oil but I kind of implied that Ford would fit it for you. They won't, and you don't need them to either.
Secondly I think Tim's car is on a K plate. If it has the older style front, it will have the 8v engine and if it has an oval grille, it will be a 16 valver. The engine specs are quite likely to be different and my advice kind of assumed it was a 16v model. If you want a cheap oil change done with semi-synth then try National's ongoing £15 oil and filter offer www.national.co.uk This uses Duckhams 10W40.
Ford petrol engines are notoriously fussy about the oil they use and I certainly wouldn't use any grade other than that recommended just to get the benefit of fully synth.
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Thanks for the help, one and all. Informative as usual!
Splodgeface
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Thanks for the help, one and all. Informative as usual!
Certainly informative, but I was surprised that no-one suggested 'plain old' GTX would be quite acceptable for a 1.6l Orion engine.
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Probably would be on the 8v, certainly not on the 16v. It's also a question of what's available, and unless you're buying at trade rather than accessory shop prices, I genuinely can't see the point in changing the oil yourself. At a minimum of £9 for 5l of semi-synth (cheap, in other words) plus £4 for a filter, you're up £2 at most over National.
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But if you diy, you KNOW it's been thoroughly drained, hot, the sump nut has not been overtightened or stripped, and you've had the sensual pleasure of hot oil dripping off your elbow.
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Thanks for the help so far.
My car does not have a grill and is not the 16V engine.
Nobody has yet to explain the difference between mineral, synthetic and semi synthetic?
What are the main differences between the oils on the market and what should i be looking for?
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Nobody has yet to explain the difference between mineral, synthetic and semi synthetic? What are the main differences between the oils on the market and what should i be looking for?
Have a look at the Engine Oil Bible
It will explain the differences.
www.chris-longhurst.com/carbibles/index.html?menu....l
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Dear nixontim, a brief explanation of the differences for you, in simple terms.
Mineral oil is refined from an extracted petroleum product. Synthetic oil is made by chemists and utilises polyol esters. Semi is a mixture of both. Oils may appear to be similar on the surface but will contain different additives to provide wear protection and detergents which compete with friction reducers.
The original synthetics were made differently and didn't work very well. They caused some catastrophic engine failures. The modern formulae work well, much better than mineral.
If you would like to know more about lubricants you can go to www.redlineoil.com.
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Beware of cheap imitations - ALL good oils have to meet a
SAE specification - which is usually stated in the manual/hand book.
What is your driving profile like? short journeys or motorway
This will also affect your choice.
Only buy a product that meets that standard. Some doggy service centers / dealers have been known to use "recycled" oil but charge you for best brand!
K2
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I do a 50 mile round trip a couple of time a week but are regularly pottering around town burning off petrol on short jouneys.
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bafta said:
"Synthetic oil is made by chemists and utilises polyol esters. Semi is a mixture of both. Oils may appear to be similar on the surface but will contain different additives to provide wear protection and detergents which compete with friction reducers."
Bafta: Are you sure?
Chris Longhurst's "oil-bible" site (see above) says "despite their name, most synthetic derived motor oils (ie Mobil 1, Castrol Formula RS etc ) are actually derived from mineral oils - they are mostly Polyalphaolifins and these come from the purest part of the mineral oil refraction process, the gas. PAO oils will mix with normal mineral oils ..." ... " Pure synthetic oils (polyalkyleneglycol) are the types used almost exclusively within the industrial sector in polyglycol gearbox oils for heavily loaded gearboxes. These are typically concocted by intelligent blokes in white lab coats."
It seems you can't mix pure synth with mineral oil. The so called fully-synths generally are derived from mineral oil and are really not pure-synth.
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