So I'm hitting the point where I'll be doing this car's first oil change under my ownership. Apparently it's ahd all it's scheduled oil changes at the Volvo dealership. I'm not sure what they use, though. I've heard it can be bad to run a car on regular oil for 100k miles and then all of a sudden switch to synthetic, or visa versa. What's your take on this? Also, what oil would you recommend for a '01 T5? I take it that these cars take about 5 qts?

 

Oil is a subjective thing.... I think most on here DO recommend using synthetic oil for sure on any Turbo model. I use Castory Synthec 5w/30 on my turbo 850, but royal Purple, Mobil 1 or Valvoline are good oils.

 

and once again, there is NO RISK with switching to synthetic at ANY MILEAGE. It can only help your engine in the long run.....
Just go to walmart and pick up some mobil1 or castrol syntec.. save yourself money and trouble..

 

PS. if you wonder how much oil it takes, check your manual.. it can be surprisingly much.. my s80 takes something like 7.6qt's

 

I used Pennzoil Platinum in my old S70 and will use it in my S60 when the time comes.

 

I think you'll find on all the postings for the S60 and V70 sections (Model Year 2001 and above have same engine and auto transmission) that synthetic oil is the choice over regular oil........you can read those postings for more details. But obviously, regular oil is o.k. too but lacking in certain additional benefits from the synthetic.

 

Ohhhhhh this question. It's super subjective. People th ink that synthetic is going to change their lives and make the car better. Maybe 15-20 years ago. These days synthetic and regular oil are on the same mevel in all fields except one. Amount of time you can use it for.

If I may make one suggestion. Diesel oil like Rotella T. The diesel oils are designed for vehicles that constantly run and often go very very long between oil changes. And when a engine does go bad, it costs 15,000 to rebuild one plus the down time. They are also API certitified and contain elements that promote longevity of engine components.

http://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/Oils1.html

 

One complication concerning diesel oils are the high amount of detergents.. some would say possibly too much for a gas engine.. I cant vouch for this but in this case its probably easier and safer to stick with regular petrol intended oil..
Also, if I remember right from my Diesel Mitsubishi, the oil turns black very soon after putting it in, meaning you have no real way of assessing sludging, wear, oil life etc...

And while modern conventional or 'dino' oils are of a great quality, they in no way can be compared to synth.. apart from length of life, as far as I understand, synthetic has a different detergent mix.. If this helps is also subjective..

In the end, the main thing is just changing the oil very regularly... I personally choose full synthetic but it is a personal choice as was mentioned before..
In my mind though, I wouldnt pay $15 for a galon of conventional dino oil knowing I can get synthetic for $20

 

I think the easiest thing is READ you OWNERS MANUAL. There are many Oils, additives,etc....The type of oil you should use for your Vehicle is in there. You just have to pic a manufacturer. Remember also that most of the oils out there are the same. They all just come up with catchy names or gimmicks so when they make their tv commercial, you remember it and go buy theirs...Volvo Spent Millions of Dollars developing a car and also reccomend what oils to use. This is a good website for some info, http://www.carbibles.com/engineoil_bible.html but then engineers for Volvo came up with an oil for the tolerances of your car. Stick to the Car Manual and also read up on different oils. Take also info from members and the oils they use, and also ask why they like the oil they use. I have used Castrol Synthec on my past 3 cars and the price is good. My motorcycle (buell) uses Amsoil 20/50.. Harley motors run hot and also are air cool. I wanted an oil that would help with lubrication and also keep operation temp a little lower than fossil oils. Good Luck in your search< and keep us updated on what you find.

 

Well, additionally, use of the synthetic oil helps a bit on conservation of our natural resources over the fossel oil, if one has that particular bent in their decision process.

 

Usually diesel oils are the heavier weights (like 5W40) vs lighter weights for passenger cars (like 0W20). The ligher weights are supposed to produce less friction and therefore improve your fuel mileage. So if you go with diesel oil in your gas car your mileage may suffer. The diesels also usually start out with a higher Total Base Number so they can absorb more acid from the combustion process before going bad.

 

Regarding the tip about diesel-spec Rotella. Great oil, but...... since over the road diesels don't have catalysts (yeah, I know about ecodiesels now) they can contain anti-wear additives that catalysts don't like. So if your engine burns any substantial quantity of oil in normal operation, you may end up slowly poisoning your catalysts. And that gets expensive if you live in a smog check state.

My rule: good quality proper viscosity conventional oil in any water cooled non turbo engine changed at about 2/3 of factory recommended interval; synthetic in any air cooled or turbocharged engine since they expose the oil to hotter temps and synthetic resists heat a whole lot better. Ditto on change interval. If you drive a bunch of short trips, decrease the change interval.

 

Alrighty, one more question.

I have the T5 and the recommended oil for my engine is a 5w30. I found 6qts of Penzoil full synthetic 10w30 in the garage so I'm curious if I could use this just for the summer months.

 

why not man, go for it! good oil, good grade, good to go!

PS. you can technically use 10w-30 during winter in most places as well.. just not worth the trouble or mix... but 10w-30 is my all purpose oil.. handles just under freezing here in central fl, up to 100 degree days

10w- also works for me in trinidad where its always mid 30's celcius + some wicked traffic

 

what could i use to clean out sludge from the engine, i havent gotten a oil change in 10,000 mile and i am presently at 82,000+ mile on my 2003 s60 awd a lot of them highway miles.

 

you could use an oil change to clean out sludge... get it done NOW, do not wait any longer, and do a shorter oil change interval next time
stick to 3500 or something to counteract your bad treatment..

oil additives really are not reccomended in this car..

 

THANKS, I appreciate it!

Is there a better than regular oil filter i can use for the oil change.

thanks again.