pls cud some knowledgeable peeps shed more light on this issue,
what grade of oil is good to use for cars in nigeria, bearing in mind  our ambient tempreture.
my car is auto 4wd  and has abt 120k miles,
my mechanic advised me to be using mobil super xhp 20w 50, but from the info am getting, it seems thats not the right oil to use.

nb:i dont wanna switch to synthetics, unless the person can prove to me that switching wudnt damage my engine seals  and that the high cost of synthtics  is comensurate with the improved mpg  and  longer duration of use

Cretin,
You know the answer but you are fighting it. Surely you can see the sticker or the embossed oil grade in the engine bay. And yes 5W 30 will take you to the synthetic range. Yes it cost more , but it requires longer interval changes as it degrades slower. Yes, it does not burn nor oxidise as much as the regulars we make here thus producing less sludge which damages your engine. Yes , while using synthetice you no longer require the ubiquitous oil treatment. Yes, our temperature is on average higher than that specified but you must also not that the range for synthetics is wider than that for organics.
Summary: Use synthetics if you can afford it and change it twice a year, or use the regulars and change em every six weeks . Do note that your kind of driving influences the duration also i.e stop and go, short distances on average e.t.c

That synthetic oil offers better protection is common knowledge, you might argue the cost factor but that's a personal thing. Personally I use Dino oil on my non race cars. I use synthetic in my Ducati because I ride him like it was stolen.

As far as oil weight, just go with what the manufacturer calls for in your climate.

The best thing you can do to your engine to prolong it's life is to change the oil regularly. In the USA I change my Dino oil every 3,000 miles or 1 month and for synthetic every 5,000 miles or 3 months. This is subjective and my own personal schedule based on my own research on how I use my vehicles.

So, if cost is a problem use the best Dino oil you can get, the correct weight and change it religiously.

On over 100 vehicles I've owned, I've never had an engine breakdown.

ok, thanks for the prompt reply.

apart from cost, the other reason i dont wanna switch to synthetics is I HEARD THAT IF YOU HV BEEN USING NORMAL OILS FOR A WHILE, THAT ABRUPTLY SWITCHING TO SYNTHETICS WILL DAMAGE YOUR CAR ENGINE SEALS/O RINGS, thus making it leaks and burn oil, cos the orings hv somewhat adapted to the chemicals in the normal oils, and the switch to synthetics will make dem warp and twist, thereby loosing their good sealing properties.

has anyone succesfully switched from normal oils to synthetics?, kindly educate the house

Synthetics DO NOT damage seals, that's an old Wives tale.

Synthetic, due to it's excellent lubricating compounds runs very thin (still offers superb protection over Dino oil) is prone to leaking past bad seals.

So if your car has a slow leak from seals especially rear and front main seals then it WILL leak more.

For me it's unacceptable for any of my cars to leak oil, well except for my antique British cars like the Austin Mini Moke - aka Exxon Valdez.

So if you already have a dodgy seal then don;t go to synthetic.

Remember you can also stay with Dino oil, the critical thing is to change your oil often.

PS: Even with Synthetic, cost becomes an issue, Mobil 1 is like $5 a quart here but Royal Purple is about $10 a quart, so there's also a difference with synthetic oils.

Let me introduce you to Bob http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/

wow, thanks
just a quick one,

is there any empirical or documented evidence that shows that synthetics give better mpg?, if yes is it significant?

There are other factors that have much greater importance on increasing your MPG than your engine oil., for example tire pressure. But to answer your question I have not seen any report that synthetic oil gives you better MPG though I know positively that it makes your engine run more efficiently. However any MPG gain would be minuscule.

.

Use what the manufacturer specified. Using a heavier oil than what is specified will damage your engine especially the rear main seals. Also, your engine runs hotter and your top-end will be poorly lubricated. There are also tighter crevices that the oil wouldn't be able to flow through plus your oil pump is over-worked and you will also have higher than abnormal engine-oil pressure because of the higher volume-pressure flow due to the heavier oil density. Engine will go through reciprocating drag, i.e. resistance that was never factored in the original design. In some vehicles, you can as well be expecting sludge in the longrun.

cretin: wow, thanks
just a quick one,

is there any empirical or documented evidence that shows that synthetics give better mpg?, if yes is it significant?

In layman's terms, synthetic oil is not oil but formulated "whatever" that was done in the lab. It is lighter and has less friction to surface-to-surface contact than oil derived from crude plus it provides higher stability in extreme heat. Scratch the heat out for the main answer to your question. With lower resistance to surface-to-surface contact, reciprocating parts and moving mechanics function with a lot less frictional resistance, thus using less work to get work done. Therefore, you have less parasitic losses in the drive train.

Synthetic doesn't add horsepower as Royal Purple or people claim. It is lighter and outperforms the crude alternative in the extremes as well as regular. Does it clean your engine? The blunt answer is NO. It's got some cleaning reagents but that's all about it. Regular oils too have the same kind of reagents.

there is a lot of information available on www.bitog.com about motor oil. it addresses a lot of myths and misinformation we deal with.

sorry i meant www.bobistheoilguy.com. my car is much better and i owe it to using the 5w-20 recommended by honda.

Trac PLEASE can one use the 5w 30 oils in Nigeria? Are synthetics good for all cars or it is made for specific cars?

Ngutor: Trac PLEASE can one use the 5w 30 oils in Nigeria? Are synthetics good for all cars or it is made for specific cars?

You can use the 5w-30 in Nigeria. Synthetics are good for all cars, though some believe that the extra cost isn't warranted for an old vehicle. If the vehicle states that you have to use 0w-20 or Xw-20, then stick to that. The first variable (Xw) is only applicable at starting. Once the engine turns over, it cancels out. So, 0w/5w/10w-30 is all the same. The second variable is what matters. The first variable specifies cold fluid-flow.

If you have an European car (for example, Mercedes), the oil must meet the minimum requirement of 229.5 sheet spec. This is found in Mobil 1 (M1) fluid and some other expensive oils. The older MB's might pardon but not later engine models. This is due to the materials used in the build.

Check your owner's manual.

I think the key issue we have in Nigeria is the Oil Grade that is available.

In My opinion Most people would love to use the Specified oil from the manufacturer but these oils are not ready available

It seems to me the viscosity of Most Nigerian oil Companys are marked at 20W-50 (Mobil,conoil,Ap,visco et al) grade.

I had a similar problem when I first got my car...so I had to make do with Mobil xhp. I Change my oil and filter regularly and I havnt had a Problem with my Engine.

Most People based outside Nigerian would Always advice you to use the manufacturers spec but least do they know that 20W-50 is what is ready available in the Market.

On the other hand
Total offers Semi-synthetic multi-grade engine oil 15W-50 (Quartz 7000)which Could give You a better feel than 20W-50.

1

Trac,
Can we use 5w_40 if the recommended 5w_30 isn't available?
Also, if the 20w_50 is drained and d synthetic is poured in wit d filter also changed, will it have a significant adverse effect on the engine in terms of performance and longevity??

elite: Trac,
Can we use 5w_40 if the recommended 5w_30 isn't available?
Also, if the 20w_50 is drained and d synthetic is poured in wit d filter also changed, will it have a significant adverse effect on the engine in terms of performance and longevity??

I apologise for the late response.

I am actually just seeing this response; Nairaland's notification system is sub-standard.

What I know about using the wrong weight of oil is you have increase i engine temperature and there is higher resistance in reciprocating parts. The oil is also mass. Get a keg of xw-30 and a keg of xw-40/50 and lift them. The 40/50 weight oil is heavier and that is noticeable; in other words, mass per volume area (density) is more. Imagine having a keg and a half of this multi-viscous oil in a crankcase, the density will be more than significantly heavier than a 30 weight oil.

You also have compromised pressure measurements/managements. By this, I am referring to the "absolute¹" and "guage²" pressure within the crankcase. Since depth is a factor in an engine's form-factor, pressure and elevation exist also as a relationship. According to Blaise Pascal's paradox³, change of pressure depends on the elevation and the type of fluid. There are two milestones in oil references in terms of SAE's multi-viscosity: @40degC and @100degC. How this oil behave at this temperatures at rating systems is a very calculated consideration. This also leads to a very important and critical aspect: pumping viscosity⁴. The state and how well or poorly this process is the pumping condition and it varies according to temperature. This will be compromised as well for a light-duty engine in normal or light duty operations.

If your vehicle indicates 5w-30, that is what you have to go by (Xw-30). If it says Xw-40, you will have to stick to that configuration. Both configurations are different on the "international rating system." Both SAE oils cannot be mixed for they will not mix. Engines today are subject to strict EPA or emission requirements. People want fuel efficient cars, so composite materials are used now and more precision is required when designers engineer their engines. Since the specifications you are opting for was not considered in the design for optimum performance, certain unaccounted results should also be expected.

Fluids are very critical in their operation. For example: a Mercedes transmission oil cannot be substituted for any other transmission fluid. It has it's own personality in operation. It is in two layers or more. The top is sort of magnetic and it keeps afloat wear debris from the trans-case and transports it via the course of motion till it's trapped by the filter. There are other fluid properties that only work within the transmission's crankcase but the singular aforementioned characteristic is enough to be very cautious. Some of the fluid specifications are not backward compatible. From my understanding as of today, the current is backward compatible with all previous MB trans-fluid. This is why it is so expensive. But there is a way around it (and I'm not going to discuss that).

If cars can be imported, then the oils too can be. It's not a recreational function. The proper oil configuration is what you need and save your money in the long-run.


<sub>1. Absolute - the lowest possible pressure
2. Guage - the actual pressure that has been influenced by the atmosphere (atmospheric pressure) in comparison to absolute.
3. Pascal's Paradox - change in pressure is dependent upon the vertical distance (elevation) and the type of fluid.
4. Pumping Viscosity - ability of the oil to flow through from it's channels to and through the oil pump inlet</sub>

hello,
please i need your advice. i use the mobil 1 5w 30 on my
2011 toyota camry but the recommendation is 0w 20.
Shld i go on with it or find the 0w 20 which is not easy to locate in the market in abuja, nigeria.
The millage is about 15,000 miles. Also is it ok to service at every 5000 miles with
a synth oil?

I stumbled on Total 15w50 quartz 7000...synthethic based oil, seems to be very good for regular european cars. the engine comes to life after oilchange but for modern Benz & others its quartz 9000. just my 2cents

From the link of total products, only the 10 40W and 5 30W seems to be in the range of most tokunbo cars in Nigeria.

http://www.lubadmin.com/Restitution.aspx?Marque=2&Famille=4&Type=2&Language=1&Site=4&Parametre1=2

5w20 & 5W30 motor oils are now available in Nigeria. A company called Solutions Plus in Yaba imports and sells them. Their nos are 07067009400, 07081609482, & 09096851969. They also sell 5w30 which is the recommended viscosity for petrol generators.

.

anneki: Hello All,

The 5w-20 and 5w-30 engines oils which are classified as energy conserving oils are either or among the oils that are recommended / best suited in the following 2000 - 2013 models:-

Acura : RL, TL, TSX, RDX, ZDX, ILX, MDX.
Chevrolet : Cruze, Equinox, Malibu.
Ford : Fiesta, Fusion, Taurus, Ranger, Escape, Edge, Explorer.
Honda : Accord, Crosstour, Civic, CRV, Pilot, Ridgeline, Element, Odyssey.
Hyundai: Accent, Elantra, Sonata, Tuscon / IX35, Santa Fe, Vera Cruz.
Kia: Rio, Optima, Soul, Sportage, Sorento.
Land Rover : LR2, LR3, LR4, Range Rover, Range Rover Sport.
Lexus: IS, LS, ES, GX, RX, GS, LX.
Mazda: 3, 5, 6, CX7, CX9, Protege, Tribute, Miata, MPV.
Nissan: Altima, Maxima, Murano, Pathfinder, Titan, Xterra, Pathfinder.
Toyota : Yaris, Corolla, Matrix, Prius, Avensis, Camry, Avalon, Venza, RAV4, Highlander, 4Runner, Landcruiser, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma, Tundra.

Because the API ratings ( SJ , SL , SM etc ) have changed over the years you will find that 5w20, 5w30, 15w40, and 20w50 now provide the same protection in countries where the ambient temperature is between 90 and 100 regularly.

These oils are available @
CitiWebb Autocentre - Km23 Lekki Expressway, Ajah, Lagos. 08035355245, 08106081883
Solutions Plus - 297 Borno Way, Yaba, Lagos. 08035559999, 08085373626
Stix Car Wash - 170 A E Ekukinam St, Utako, Abuja. 08055544230, 07032320432


I hope you find this useful

please which Engine Oil will you recommend for Mitsubishi Carisma 1998 Model
Engine Size = 1.6
Auto.

Thank you

i would advise you check your owners manual or your engine cap for that information. If you cant get it from there then you will have to rely on the numerous forums on the internet for such information. Perhaps one of the nairalanders based in europe can assist if he or she has the time to walk into a mitsubishi dealer to make enquiries on your behalf. If i were to suggest a viscosity especially for that model year it would be either 20w50,15w40 or 5w30.

Best rule I can give if you don't know is any car before year 2000 is mostly 10w30, after 2000 5w30 is common, from 2008 and up some cars atrted using 5w20 and these are synthetic based oils(blends&full)

toyota and honda recommendations

[img][/img]Honda0W20chart.png

Honda0W20chart.png

I hope nairalanders will find these charts useful.

yeah

Please what's the best oil for the nissan xterra and what is the minimum duration for change of oil