2020 Oil Change thread

[newtomit]

I was at an auto shop recently and looked at their oil change menu. Cost of regular oil change is $29 but full synthetic one is $79. I've never done an oil change myself but I would think the work is the same no matter what kind of oil it is. I know synthetic oil costs more, but like $20 more the most for 5qt, not $50. Is it just "premium" markup or some kind of price game the store plays?

[Mechanic]

Actually there is a large variation in the price between convention oil and synthetic oil. Most regular oil is around $5 per quart while synthetic runs from $8 to $15 per quart. Another consideration is how much oil does a certain vehicle hold. The mirage is only 3.2 quarts. Certain Mustangs, Camaros, and Corvettes can hold 10 quarts. So how do the oil change places use a flat rate charge for an oil change? By having disclaimers in there ads.
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Eggman]

Full synthetic engine oil (at least the North American market version of full synthetic) can be found for less. I got some Kirkland 0W-20 full synthetic through Costco for cheap. On our last Costco visit a couple days ago I spotted the Kirkland full synthetic on the shelves in 0W-20 and 5W-30 if I recall correctly under $22 for two five-quart bottles. That price is tough to beat, and it's from the same supplier/blender that provides oil to Walmart under the Super Tech brand and to Amazon under the Amazon Basics brand. Check those sources too if you are at all inclined to try changing your oil yourself. Just ask around here for roughly one hundred different approaches, and they are all the best haha.

Edit: that price can't be right. Online Costco says it's $26.99 with discount. Talk about wishful thinking. Can't wait to get back and check those prices.

[Mechanic]

Eggman,
. . . . I don't know anything about Kirkland and of course Newtomit was asking about the prices at oil chance places so the Kirkland price probably doesn't apply. I do know about costco and walmart and I don't do business with them. I only buy books from amazon. Otherwise I do all of my business with my locally owned and run parts stores. Since I have been using Castrol for decades it is what I continue to use. In my professional opinion it is the best oil on the market. I am concerned about the low price of Kirkland oil for you do get what you pay for.
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Mark]

I was at an auto shop recently and looked at their oil change menu. Cost of regular oil change is $29 but full synthetic one is $79. I've never done an oil change myself but I would think the work is the same no matter what kind of oil it is. I know synthetic oil costs more, but like $20 more the most for 5qt, not $50. Is it just "premium" markup or some kind of price game the store plays?

Recommended 0W-20 is going to be a synthetic oil. I am not aware of a 0W-20 conventional oil. Synthetic oil will cost more, but it's not that much more these days. I would be bold & ask what brand oil they use. I would also ask if they would adjust their price for a vehicle that only uses 3.2 quarts of synthetic oil.

One of our highest mileage (300,000+) forum members has been using 5W-30 conventional oil changed every 5,000 miles without any major engine issues.

I have switched over to Super Tech Full Synthetic oil which cost $13.97 for 5-quarts at my local Walmart. 5-quarts of Super Tech Conventional oil is $12.96 for 5-quarts. That's a difference of $1.01 for 5-quarts of synthetic oil verses 5-quarts of conventional oil (approximately $0.20/quart)

$0.20 x 3.2 quarts = $0.64. If I decided to use Super Tech conventional oil instead of their full synthetic oil, I would save myself approximately 64 cents/oil change.

I would question a synthetic oil change costing $50 more, because conventional oil is not that much cheaper than synthetic oil these days. I don't think anyone could easily justify 3.2 quarts of synthetic oil costing $50 more than 3.2 quarts of conventional oil (when comparing the same oil brand).

I don't think most people question the extra cost of synthetic oil changes, because it has extended the oil change interval of vehicles. I may be paying more for an oil change, but I can go much longer before needing another one. The days of 3,000 mile oil changes are behind us.

[Mark]

Eggman,
. . . . I don't know anything about Kirkland and of course Newtomit was asking about the prices at oil chance places so the Kirkland price probably doesn't apply. I do know about costco and walmart and I don't do business with them. I only buy books from amazon. Otherwise I do all of my business with my locally owned and run parts stores. Since I have been using Castrol for decades it is what I continue to use. In my professional opinion it is the best oil on the market. I am concerned about the low price of Kirkland oil for you do get what you pay for.
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

Kirkland, Amazon Basics, & Super Tech are basically the same oil. In some ways, they may be superior to some of the brand name oils on the shelf. In the most extensive oil tests I have seen, these oils did quite well. I really don't think you can buy a bad synthetic oil these days. If there is a bad brand of oil, please share it with us?

The (Project Farms) guy who has done an extreme comparison of the major synthetic oil brands on youtube.com uses Amazon Basics and Super Tech in his vehicles.

There's nothing wrong with having brand loyalty. If a certain type of oil gives you confidence, I feel the extra money may be worth it. If I went by the oil tests I have seen, Pennzoil Ultra Platinum has done quite well. It's not enough to convince to pay extra for it, however.

Since Steve's Mirage (300,000+ miles) has done quite well on 5W-30 conventional oil changed every 5,000 miles, I figure using any synthetic oil changed every 5,000 miles may do just as well or better. Paying extra for brand name oil wouldn't give me an ounce of extra confidence, but that's me. I don't expect others to feel the same way!

[Mechanic]

Mark,
. . . . I would ask also if I was going to use one these oil change places but I don't so I won't. Since I have a lifetime unlimited bumper to bumper warranty I will always use a Mitsubishi dealer. It isn't much more than using the local repair shop. If I didn't have the warranty I would go to 10K oil changes with the Castrol but they balk at that. So I do 7.5K changes. The oil is just starting to darken at 7.5K miles.
. . . . Castrol GTX will handle 5K changes with no problems at all. Of course these engines have a lot less leakage than the engines of even 20 years ago and that means less contamination of the oil. I don't know anything about Supertech and I won't shop at walmart under any circumstances.
. . . . The cost of conventional oil has gone up more than the cost of synthetic oil so the price difference isn't as great as it used to be. Also it is getting harder to find conventional oil with synthetic blends being more common. Yes, we no longer have to change the oil every 3K miles. 5K for severe usage and 7.5K or even 10K for normal use.
. . . . Did you receive the last email that I sent you back on 7-12?
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Mark]

Mark,
. . . . I would ask also if I was going to use one these oil change places but I don't so I won't. Since I have a lifetime unlimited bumper to bumper warranty I will always use a Mitsubishi dealer. It isn't much more than using the local repair shop. If I didn't have the warranty I would go to 10K oil changes with the Castrol but they balk at that. So I do 7.5K changes. The oil is just starting to darken at 7.5K miles.
. . . . Castrol GTX will handle 5K changes with no problems at all. Of course these engines have a lot less leakage than the engines of even 20 years ago and that means less contamination of the oil. I don't know anything about Supertech and I won't shop at walmart under any circumstances.
. . . . The cost of conventional oil has gone up more than the cost of synthetic oil so the price difference isn't as great as it used to be. Also it is getting harder to find conventional oil with synthetic blends being more common. Yes, we no longer have to change the oil every 3K miles. 5K for severe usage and 7.5K or even 10K for normal use.
. . . . Did you receive the last email that I sent you back on 7-12?
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

You do some extreme highway driving, & I could see 10,000 mile oil changes being good for you. At the same time, I know you have a lifetime powertrain warranty on your Mirage. Thus, sticking with the recommended 7,500 oil change interval is probably best. Personally, I think using a heavier weight oil is wise for your driving, too.

As far as Walmart goes, it's the only grocery store in my area. Even though Richland Center has a population of over 5,000 people, we don't have another option outside of Kwik Trip (gas/convenience store). RC is where I work & do business. RC is the only city in my county. I'm not driving to Reedsburg or Baraboo to buy groceries & other items like that. I say this, because you know the towns I am talking about. Thus, I am stuck with Walmart whether I like it or not. Walmart employs a lot of people that I know personally, too. 75% of the time, a former student is doing my check out.

I forgot to get back to you on a question in your last email. Thank you for reminding me. I will go back to my personal email & see if I can find it. If not, I remember the question now. I will do that shortly! Sorry about that!

[Eggman]

Eggman,
. . . . I don't know anything about Kirkland and of course Newtomit was asking about the prices at oil chance places so the Kirkland price probably doesn't apply. I do know about costco and walmart and I don't do business with them. I only buy books from amazon. Otherwise I do all of my business with my locally owned and run parts stores. Since I have been using Castrol for decades it is what I continue to use. In my professional opinion it is the best oil on the market. I am concerned about the low price of Kirkland oil for you do get what you pay for.
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

I was suggesting an alternative if price is a concern, and stated as much in my post. And of course, there's lots of helpful advice to be found here on the forum to support that.

[Mechanic]

Mark,
. . . . Yep and Yep! The color tells you a lot about what the oil is doing. Since it is just starting to darken at 7.5K miles I know that it is fine. I was doing 10K changes on the Protege and it was using one quarter quart in that time at 146K miles. With the 5-50 in the Mirage I am not using any oil between changes. Of course I wasn't happy about Mad City not changing the drain plug gasket and the oil leak that developed. Fortunately it was just a slight drip but still not good. To risk a $4K engine for a $2 gasket.
. . . . I didn't know that RC doesn't have a local market. Did walmart cause one to go out of business? No I don't think that I would enjoy driving to Reedsburg or Baraboo to go grocery shopping.
. . . . NP! I was just wondering!
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!