How long between oil changes? Is Amsoil good oil to use?

If you want people to read your posts you really should work harder to make it intelligible.

 

If you think Mobil 1 is trash why not ask the people who use it regularly..

Paging @qnyla

 

After I started the thread, I found out more information. And I expect educated opinions based on real world use, not some unsubstantiated rant with no data to back it up.

 

Who said Mobile 1 was trash?

 

Here's my data:

http://www.api.org/~/media/files/ce...iesel/publications/mom_guide_english_2013.pdf

See that mark on Amsoil? No?

Not trying to be rude. Everyone else pays for API standard testing. Amsoil says they don't because they can spend that money making "better" oil. Considering how large there following is now, I'm sure they could afford to actually stick their oils to an industry standard but choose not to because they probably don't have the proper specifications and surfactant content to pass the API testing on the first try.

You're the one showing us data from the manufacturer not certified by a third party source and making your assumptions based off at that. Again, not trying to be rude, but you are calling the kettle black with your comment.

Here's a couple of articles on Shell leading the way with the only true synthetic, not cracked base oil, motor oil on the market written by a third party:

http://fuelfix.com/blog/2014/03/07/shell-turns-natural-gas-into-motor-oil/

http://www.chron.com/business/energ...y-the-quart-Shell-s-new-oil-isn-t-5297989.php

Don't see Amsoil making any claims like that.

What you get with Amsoil is marketing hype, attacks from there fanboys, and an oil that's probably not going to meet API standards. I'm sure it's "good" oil, as in your engine won't blow up from it and it is the right weight with good physical characteristics, but I'm not going to pay a premium for their product when they refuse to even put a portion of their oils through the API after all the money they make from their pricing and significant fanbase.

 

BTW, moving on to more information that might actually help you, how many miles are on your 2011? Was it full synthetic from the get go? I know 0w-20 is a synthetic weight but I know some people run 5w-20 in there I4 2.7's to save a little money on the oil, which is silly, so I may as well ask if you know the engine history. If Toyota did the changes then no worries, because they would of used synthetic.

If I were you and that engine hasn't seen much care before now and ran dino oil I'd do a quick change filter and oil after 1000 miles of running synthetic. Dino oil tends to leave the odd deposit and has a much lower surfactant, that's the stuff that keeps dissolved shit in your oil and no deposited somewhere in the engine, load so switching to any synthetic might results in those deposits ending up in your filter. Youtube filter opening after running synthetic and you'll see plenty of filters jammed up with all the crap the synthetic oil picked up from an old engine. BTW this is also why sometimes older engines will leak after being switched over.

 

A doctor who is last in his class but graduated, is still a doctor.

If you're oil has the API rating, great, it passed the minimum requirements for the API rating. It's a label that manufacturers pay for.
There are many brands that don't have the rating that I wouldn't be worried to run. Redline and Motul, are two others that come to mind.

 

I looked earlier and Amsoil CLAIMS API SN certification on their web page...if they are incorrect...

 

No doubt, but Redline and Motul are popular racing brands. I'm probably going to use Redline in my transmission in a few years. I'm not here to say the API is everything, but they are the industry standard and that is important when you are on warranty like I am. I've seen how many times Mobil, I work at a Mobil dealer, had to try to get there newest synthetic Diesel oils to pass due to the extremely high surfactant loading necessary for the Tier 4 compliant oils. I find it sketchy the Amsoil just added that standard to there oil without that sort of testing or putting out some thorough literature on what they had to change to meet the new specification.

Personally though I'm not a believer that Amsoil has any benefits over top end synthetic oils like Pennzoil Platnium, Mobil One, etc etc. If you check out the bob is the oil guy forums for a while you'll see a lot of really good tests coming back on those oils with similar suggested intervals to even the top end stuff, not the stuff OP is using, from Amsoil. If their best isn't any better, why would I switch to their low end synthetic line for more money than the stuff I'm already using that people in the real world are getting excellent blackstone test results from?

 

They claim they meet the standards but they do not submit there oil for testing. Hence no starburst on any of their oils. Each test is something like $50K and is pretty extensive. It's not strange at all for the new standards to flunk an oil 2-6 times before the manufacturer has a formulation pass. Again, I'm just not willing to believe Amsoils word that they are doing enough testing to keep up with those standards.

 

(Quoted from Amsoil VP of Product Development Dan Peterson)

Then the article has an edit that says:

So the XL and OE lines I assume is what he's saying are API rated and their Signature line goes above and beyond.

I'll look into it more.

 

Or they know its a waste. It could be like taking a Lamborghini to a go-kart track to get a certification.

 

That cost is right. Every test is about 50K and like I said, most companies need 2-6 tries to pass.

If Amsoil is certifying there oils to API standards now . That is my biggest complaint given there pricing they should put their money where their mouth is, so to speak.

 

47k miles. Dont know about the total history, but the sticker from the last change was done at a Toyota dealership.

 

It could be. Then they are looking at only $50K to do an oil test and a small royalty. I'm sure the amsoil fanboys can afford another few cents on there $$$$$ oil.

BTW Ferrari recommends Pennzoil Platinum, or they used to the last time I checked.

 

Well, for piece of mine, you might want to at least change the filter early and cut it open to see what they results were. If you do post it, I'd be interested to see.

 

Im not due for a while, but I will. I also plan on doing an oil analysis starting at 5k. I will post those results when I get them as well.

 

I might wait to do the analysis until you've ran Amsoil at least once and changed through the system. If there is some extra crap the Amsoil picks up it would give you worse results than what will be true for the rest of your vehicles life.

 

I agree, either Mobil 1 or Amsoil are good synthetics and can go the distance, but filtration is still a concern. I'm going to use Mobil 1 M1-209 filter, because I believe it is better built than the stock filter and has more capacity. Amsoil Ea filters are TINY and to me don't have the capacity to run near as long as the oil before plugging, then it's on by-pass. I still run 5k intervals.

 

Amsoil has been in business since 1972 and is a good product. I've been using signature since 1991 and change it at 15k miles or one year. I use the Amsoil EA filters which are one of the best and rated for 15k miles.

$7 per quart + $15 filter = $57 for 15,000 miles or one year.

Works for me since I'm not a big fan of changing the oil three times a year when I can do it once a year for the same cost.