Please Advise on My First Oil Change

[igor92128]

I bought a 2005 V6 Mustang and I have changed the oil for the first time yesterday. I don't know much about oil so I just took it to Wal-Mart and got the Pennzoil 10W30 bulk. I wanted to get synthetic, but I didn't know what kind of oil was in there before so the guy at Wal-Mart said that since 10W30 is on the fuel cap the oil must not be synthetic and that I needed to get the regular oil. They said I would have to goto a shop to get my engine drained if I wanted synthetic oil. However, before going in for the oil change I noticed that my fuel filter was Motorcraft, which I later found out is a performace filter. Anyways, after changing the oil I noticed that the car is not as responsive as before.

So what should I do in this case? Does the type of oil have an effect on performace of the car, or could it be just me?

Thanks,
Igor

 

[igor92128]

Oh and also, the car is totally stock.

 

[glewis29]

From the owner's guide

"To protect your engine’s warranty use Motorcraft SAE 5W-30 or an
equivalent 5W-30 oil meeting Ford specification WSS-M2C929-A."

Pennzoil does meet this specification if you use the correct weight.

I also replaced my filter with the Motorcraft replacement because I figured I was saving enough doing the oil change myself, no reason to skimp on a $3 filter.

According to http://www.nordicgroup.us/oil.htm#5W30 versus 10W30,
the 10W30 will be thicker and could be the cause of the performance loss. I'm not really qualified to say though.

Also note that the first number describes the thickness when the oil is cold, the second describes the thickness at operating temperature. Accordingly, the 10W30 and 5W30 shouldn't be that different for 99% of when you're operating the car. However, if you live where it's cold right now, you might want to consider another oil change.

 

[igor92128]

Thanks for the reply. Correction, the oil was actually Pennzoil 5w30, and the oil filter was some generic one.

So does the type of oil and oil filter have a significant impact on performance? Would it make much sense for me to put in something like Mobil1 Synthetic and a K&N performance filter if my car is completely stock? These parts are designed for high performance engines and I'm just not sure if a stock v6 would be considered a high performance engine.

 

[igor92128]

The thing I'm worried about though is if the car already had synthetic in it and I just put regular oil in there without flushing the engine.

 

[Tru_Blue_104]

From my experience using all different types of oil, I would say you could and in my opinion should switch to Mobil 1 5w30. If you look around the forums, you'll find that's what a lot of people use.

As mentioned before, you may be feeling some performance loss if synthetic was in there before and now there isn't. How long have you had the car? How many miles?

Also, from what I've heard from many mechanics, they prefer not to use Penzoil. Mobile 1 all the way and I bet you'll feel that performance come back. Also, buy a good oil filter. Motorcraft, is what I have always used in my past 2 mustangs and the only other ones I would use is a Synthetic Mobile 1 filter, K&N filter, and possibly a Purolator One filter (I have heard good things about that brand, though I have never used one. Anyone know anything about them?) .

Anyways, I hate to tell you this, but I would say go back and put synthetic in it. I really have noticed a huge difference between conventional oil and synthetic and personally I will run it in every car I own.

gl

EDIT: 2005+ mustangs come stock with semi-synthetic. So even if semi was being used, if you change to conventional there would probably be a noticeable difference.

 

[stanmckinney]

Shouldn't a place that changes oil know what goes in the car and be legally responsible for putting in the right kind of oil?

 

[igor92128]

I've had the car for 2 months and about 3000 miles. Well, when I took it in the oil was 1 quart low and dark looking but I assumed that the dealer would change it before selling the car. Not sure if they did.

I actually got funny looks when I came into Wal-Mart and they said they never had a new Mustang come in there before so maybe Mustang owners get their oil changed at a Lube shop or the dealer? I always used to just goto Wal-Mart to get the oil changed on my old Ford Ranger but this is different.

So I should just goto an auto shop and buy the oil and filter and then take it to the lube place and tell them to use that instead of what they are using? Is that how you guys do it?

 

[ozanracing]

I've had the car for 2 months and about 3000 miles. Well, when I took it in the oil was 1 quart low and dark looking but I assumed that the dealer would change it before selling the car. Not sure if they did.

I actually got funny looks when I came into Wal-Mart and they said they never had a new Mustang come in there before so maybe Mustang owners get their oil changed at a Lube shop or the dealer? I always used to just goto Wal-Mart to get the oil changed on my old Ford Ranger but this is different.

So I should just goto an auto shop and buy the oil and filter and then take it to the lube place and tell them to use that instead of what they are using? Is that how you guys do it?

Motorcraft is not a high-perf. brand, it's Ford's parts label.
Most guys on here would just change thier own oil, use the recomended grade synthetic oil and a motorcraft/bosch filter and that will be fine.
Fill the filter with oil prior to installing it, that will prevent the engine from running without pressure durring the initial startup.

 

[igor92128]

Do you think I'd notice a performance difference between a Motorcraft filter and a higher performance filter such as K&N? Or is this negligible?

 

[Tru_Blue_104]

Do you think I'd notice a performance difference between a Motorcraft filter and a higher performance filter such as K&N? Or is this negligible?

Oil filters won't give any performance gains or losses, they will simply either do a better or worse job of keeping the oil clean therefore giving you better performance.

What I would do if I were you is go to a auto parts store and buy Mobile 1 oil, and an oil filter (Motorcraft, Mobile1, Bosch) then go to a lube shop and tell them to use that oil and filter. They will just charge you labor then. This may be more pricey than using their oil and filter, but this way you'll have better quality products.

Also, you don't need to "flush" the engine or anything before switching to synthetic. I have done a lot of research cause I was concerned about this and it's completely unnecessary.

 

[ozanracing]

You are ONLY concerned with switching to a synthetic in a high mile engine that has been using conventional.
Syn. is thinner in contrast (to the same "weight") conventional oil, therefore the rear main/front main seals tend to leak after you change over.
The "lube" shops you speak of are crap, and don't fill the filters with oil prior to installing them, thus I recomend you do the 'work' yourself.
A thinner oil (lover viscosity) will be easier to push through the oil galleries and cause the pump to work less, reducing power loss. Laws of fluid dynamics.

 

[Tru_Blue_104]

You are ONLY concerned with switching to a synthetic in a high mile engine that has been using conventional.
Syn. is thinner in contrast (to the same "weight") conventional oil, therefore the rear main/front main seals tend to leak after you change over.
The "lube" shops you speak of are crap, and don't fill the filters with oil prior to installing them, thus I recomend you do the 'work' yourself.
A thinner oil (lover viscosity) will be easier to push through the oil galleries and cause the pump to work less, reducing power loss. Laws of fluid dynamics.

Oaznracing is right about switching to syn at high miles. Usually it's not a good idea. However a lot of the time you can switch over anytime and have no problems with leaks as long as the engine doesn't have leaks to begin with. I've switched my 94 v6 stang over to synthetic at 160000 miles and have not had any leak or any loss of oil. The car ran A LOT better after I switched.

Also, I guess a "lube shop" is probably not the best place to get it done, as they are usually expensive as all hell. Doing it yourself is the best and really easy, but if you absolutely can't do it yourself, just bring the car in to any decent shop that does oil changes, they will usually have no problem doing the work with your selected products.

 

[V6WBlue05]

I bought a 2005 V6 Mustang and I have changed the oil for the first time yesterday. I don't know much about oil so I just took it to Wal-Mart and got the Pennzoil 10W30 bulk. I wanted to get synthetic, but I didn't know what kind of oil was in there before so the guy at Wal-Mart said that since 10W30 is on the fuel cap the oil must not be synthetic and that I needed to get the regular oil. They said I would have to goto a shop to get my engine drained if I wanted synthetic oil. However, before going in for the oil change I noticed that my fuel filter was Motorcraft, which I later found out is a performace filter. Anyways, after changing the oil I noticed that the car is not as responsive as before.

So what should I do in this case? Does the type of oil have an effect on performace of the car, or could it be just me?

Thanks,
Igor

I think by that response it should tell you how much they really know about what oil your car has or takes.

Unless you tell them what you want never, I mean never take it to a 'quick lube' place most of the people that work there are kids that don't even have a car much less know what oil is for.

I would suggest you take it to a dealer or a good quality repair shop. From my experience quick lube places are only there to make a quick buck and could care less about your car.

 

[igor92128]

Thanks for all the feedback. But this is a 2005 V6 Mustang with about 20,000 miles. I don't think anything should leak after I switch to synthetic. Someone told me that the benefit of synthetic is that you can go 7500 miles between oil changes and that it lasts longer then conventional, which requires changing every 3000 miles. If that's the case then switching to synthetic will be even cheaper then conventional oil.

Also, is there a difference between flushing the engine and draining the oil?

 

[V6WBlue05]

There is no need to flush a motor to switch to synthetic. It will not cause any problems.

But to answer your question there is a difference to flush a motor you normally drain the oil and run a chemical solution throuh it to 'flush' the oil etc. Not necessary for an oil swap.

 

[Tru_Blue_104]

Yes, you can go up to 7500 miles on synthetic. But, I would only go up to 5000 because after that point, some oil filters will start to deteriorate. Change every 3000 miles if you live in a very dusty area or are driving the car really hard A LOT. Change it every 4000-5000 miles if you are driving normally (you can still gas it but obviously not all the time). I do this and it works great, also seems when I drain the oil at 5000 there is still some life left in it, but like I said, I've heard oil filters can break down.

 

[igor92128]

I've been looking online and I see Mobil 1 Tri-Synthetic with Supersyn. Is this probably the oil that I want to get. Its going to cost about $40 for the 5 qts but I guess it's worth it. Also, is it true that the V6 uses the same engine as the Ford Taurus?

 

[Tru_Blue_104]

I've been looking online and I see Mobil 1 Tri-Synthetic with Supersyn. Is this probably the oil that I want to get. Its going to cost about $40 for the 5 qts but I guess it's worth it. Also, is it true that the V6 uses the same engine as the Ford Taurus?

All you want is Mobile 1 Synthetic. Not sure what the Tri-Synthetic is. All of their synthetic oil has SuperSyn, thats just their stuff. The stuff you don't want to get is their "Extented Performance" or their "clean" line.

As for the engine, I'm not entirely sure, but the new 4.0 hasn't been used in a Taurus to my knowledge. The 4.0 block is from the Explorer, but it is different in the Mustangs. The old V6 engine, the 3.8, was used in the Taurus I'm pretty sure. Even so, if they 4.0 is used in any other cars Ford makes, the only similarity should be the block, the heads and all that other stuff is different, made for the Mustang.

EDIT: btw, $40 for oil may seem like a lot, but trust me, the car will run so much smoother. The engine will rev easier and smoother. Also, if you live where it gets really cold, the engine will stay more protected at startup. Oh, and even though you're spending $40 on an oil change, it actually is costing you about the same as before since you can go more miles between oil changes.

 

[igor92128]

OK, I finally got my oil replaced. I don't really have much time to spend so I just went to this place called EZ Lube which was down the street and most convenient. As they were working on my car I decided to go up to them to take a closer look as to what they were doing and noticed that they were pouring 5W-20 oil into the car when the oil cap clearly says 5W-30. The guy apologized and told me he'd refill it with 5W-30 but it still really ticked me off that they tried to pour the wrong oil into my car.