Ok guys, I have been away for quite some time since I moved and now am getting back to a point I can visit the site more often. My question is, I just bought Rotella fully synthetic oil and after searching for said subject I see there has been a discussion or 2 on this subject since I was last here.<br><br>Is Rotella synthetic really a synthetic oil? Does it have the same qualities as say Mobile Delvac of Amsoil? I have read about all three and they all drive the same point, synthetic is better. Im all sorts of confused here. I just bought 3 gallons of Rotella and am changing the oil this weekend with a wix filter but after reading some of the post on thi I am not sure if I should continue if it is not truly a synthetic. Also, this whole thing of going to 5-40 synthetic as opposed to the usual 15-40 has me worried. What are your thoughts and experiences?<br><br>Thanks<br>Keith

 

I know there is a way to tell by the info on the bottle. Not sure though. I also thought Wix wasnt a oil filter brand that was safe? You might want to find out you question before you dump in a lot of money in oil. And the filter type too.

 

Shell Rotella synthetic is a petroleum based oil, a group III which is highly refined, and can now be labeled as synthetic. While being a good oil, it costs much less to produce than a true synthetic, therefore the price of it SHOULD be far less than a real synthetic such as Delvac 1 or Amsoil. The real synthetic's basestocks are made from polyalphaolephins(PAO) and esters.<br><br>I wouldn't sweat the 5W-40 designation. I think you'll only find the synthetics and the group III's capable of such a broad multi-grade range. It's still a 40 weight oil, but will flow like a 5 weight at 0F, meaning it has a very low pour point, much better for cold weather start-ups. <br><br>I'm running synthetic in my truck, but I don't know if the extra cost is of any real benefit in the crankcase??

 

<br>Wheels, Please allow me to confuse you even further.<br>First of all Oil is important, and through testing synthetics, have a higher heat resistance breakdown over petroleum type oils, good for diesels with 1700 EGT. But it does cost much more than any petroleum on the market today. So the question is how long do you want to keep your truck? To me that would answer what kind of oil and filter I would use. The shorter duration of time the cheaper the oil and filter I would use and vise versa.<br><br>I use Amsoil 5-30 HD 3000, I also run a dual bypass oil filter system. And this is why. This is the last truck I hope to ever purchase again.<br><br>Oil is important but oil filtration is more important. Most oil filters only filter to 20 microns. Some of the good ones filter to 5 microns. Amsoil sells a BE100 that filters to 1 micron. That is what I use. It only makes sense. Through research most of the damage done is at start up and particles under 5 microns. <br><br>You can use the &quot;best oil&quot; in the world but without good filtration you are still putting undue ware on your components.<br><br>I have to turn the key. I also can work to minimize the damage. OverFueled<br>

 

Good info in this thread. Group III oils are LEGALLY synthetic, but not TECHNICALLY. It's almost getting to be hair-splitting when you talk about the super-refined petro oils vs a real synthetic. A true syn is (as mentioned above) either PAO or polyolester based.<br><br>The rotella &quot;syn&quot; is a good oil. For the money, it will serve your purposes nicely. It may be a group III, but even these syn/dino oils are WAY better then the straight dino oils of even just a few years ago. <br><br>Fact is, the regular dino oils like Delo 400 and Rotella T are FAR FAR superior to ANY dino oil that was made even just 10 years ago. Petrochemistry has made a lot of advances in hydrocracking technology, and additive packages are better than ever.<br><br>Personally I use Redline 15W-40. My engine ran great with the Delo and Rotella I used before, but it *really* likes the expensive Group IV oil. Yes-- it's $30 a gallon, but I think it's worth it.<br><br>If I did mostly highway running, I would probably use dino or group III. My driving is start and stop, barely warmed up, and lots of short blasts. I often don't have time to let the turbo cool down past 350. Because of this, I feel that the high $$ is worth it in my case. I have always had grea results with Redline products! Redline oil does a great job of sticking to the components of the engine and not draining into the pan as much. It leaves a film of oil on things that really seems to ease the stress of startup. I am sure others on the market will more than meet your needs, though.<br><br>Filtration is a big deal. The best bang for the buck might be a bypass system with a quality Dino oil. That way your engine stays real clean, and you can change the oil to recharge the additive package without spending a fortune. I always dump in 3 gallons, so here's my oil change costs:<br>Rotella/Delo dino: 3@$6= $18<br>Cheap &quot;syn&quot;: 3@ $18= $54<br>Redline: 3@ $30= $90 <br><br>For full flow filters, stick with the Fleetguard/Mopar filters. Nothing short of a bypass setup is as good.<br><br>HOHN

 

Overfueled - <br><br>I am running Amsoil and the bypass filter setup. Hope I never have to crack the engine open.<br><br>How long are you running your oil between changes? Are you sending in samples for analysis?

 

Buckboarddriver, Why would you ever fear taking the engine apart? It should be as pristein as the day it rolled out the factory door. (using amsoil). I have just gone 20,000 miles on the oil and I an going to do the checks now at 20,000. I have 49,000 on now but I have changed it out a few times, before I got the information on the oil driveability thing and going 100,000 or 200,000 or more before, ever changing out the oil, and 20,000 between filter change. I have been using amsoil at the start 1,200 miles but I did the stupid thing and went with the change out at 6,000,12,000,18,000,24,000 before I relized that it was not going the right way. The hard way. Overfueled

 

Hohn It looks to me like you would be a perfect candidate for the issopro turbo temp. No waiting involved the temp degree timer does all the work. Just shut it off, (your truck), (it will stay running until 300 deg) and then shut off could take 20 seconds could take three minuets ,even if you come back and it is still running just put the key in and off you go. At the least you will not be burning your turbo oil at the expense of your motor oil. at 30.00 per/gal OverFueled

Also F.Y.I. you could use one of the fleet guard filters in the dual bypass system or if you wanted you could use both the fleet guard filters, but I would not advise passing up the 1 micron filtration, the BE-100 has, for a 5 micron filter, when most of the damage that is done to the motor parts are because of partials under 5 microns. OF

[quote author=HOHN link=board=4;threadid=15262;start=0#146518 date=1054925122]
Good info in this thread.

My driving is start and stop, barely warmed up, and lots of short blasts. I often don't have time to let the turbo cool down past 350. Because of this, I feel that the high $$ is worth it in my case.

HOHN
[/quote]