I've read into the advances of synthetic oil, and began to realize the oil isn't going to break down anytime soon after recommended 7k miles. The real danger is in the filter. I am considering saving both my time and money and just refilling the quart or two that I lost since the last oil change, then swapping out the filter and calling it a day. Is this a bad idea that could harm my engine in any way?

-Thanks

 

No.......... too easy.

 

How many miles on your car?
I have never had to add any oil between changes, frankly I do not see a drop in the oil level at all. I change the oil and filter after 2 to 3,000 miles though.
If you are burning that much ol I would say the car has been abused and more abuse will hardly matter. Do not try to sell this car on this forum, as you have said that it is in poor condition.

 

My 2005 Roadster has 114000 miles on it and never uses any oil between changes and it's a daily driver, 65 miles a day 5 days a week for the past two years. These engines are almost Bulletproof with proper care.

 

Same here, my Graphite had 116,000 on it; I can't say it did not use a "drop" of oil, but it sure never used more than 1/4 cup, if that, in the 5000 to 5500 miles I drove it between changes.

If you wish to stop doing oil changes, switch to propane fuel. Changing the filter does NOT mean you have eliminated contamination.

Gotta tell ya, cjfine, I thought you were trolling here. If you have done any reading at all, how could you miss the fact that engine oil becomes contaminated. "Breakdown" of the oil is not the entire reason to change it.

 

Ditto to all the replies. Oil changes are the absolute extension of life and life-blood of an engine. Why and how you have to add so much is a huge question. Have you EVER changed the oil? Once a year or 7-10K miles whichever comes first (the -10K is if there mostly long trips at speed, and such). Mine rarely went 4K so mine was once a year (mainly because I have to for the LPW (Lifetime Powertrain Warranty). Go change your oil and filter!

 

I for one have never been a big fan of any oil additives, but for those who are, here is a working link to the above mentioned product :

https://www.bcdiesel.ca/en/archoil-friction-modifier-2

 

I am with you on this matter, if there was any benefit to be had with extra additives in the oil then the oil companies would have put it in a long time ago.
I look upon these additives at best as harmless and at worst as snake oil. They are like bottled water, you pay a lot for something that comes free from the tap. As long as you do not live in Flint that is.

 

Only additive I ever add to a motor is STP oil treatment (as it coats the parts some so they do not 'dry start' when first cranking). This first cranking 'dry start' is where damage to bearings/moving parts occurs. Oil companies do not add this type of thing because it costs them money. Before I started adding this to the XF, I got confirmation from Mobil1 and STP, by email, making sure they were 100% compatible.

 

Dry start? I doubt that any of these cars start dry. Oil sticks to everything, the cylinder walls have a microscopically thin layer of oil on them and bearings do not squeeze out the oil on their surfaces. I can imagine that it is compatible so is other synthetic and dyno oils and STP is made to be compatible or it would be bad for business.

 

The only case for a "dry start" would be a complete engine rebuild, top & bottom end. I still put together street rod motors for the occasional rodder. Been doing that now for about 25 years. Probably do 2-3 motors a year.

And during assembly, I will apply moly-lube oil to all moving part surfaces to improve assembly & avoid a "dry start" condition when I first crank the motor.

 

To each his or her own. Its the same for tires, oils, wipers, brands of gasoline, and the like. I know we have NO electric oil pump and they would not function fully if the crank was in the wrong position anyway. SO, an engine treatment to protect the close tolerances in MY engines will be taken care of. I used the term 'dry start', that means (to ME) that the engine sat for quite a period of time before cranked/ran. In actuality, a rebuilt motor would NEVER be dry because anyone who rebuilds a motor without having all associated parts drowning in any type of (assembly) oil deserves to rebuild it down the road. No matter how thin or thick oil is, I believe the oil could be mostly gone from the bearings upon a cold start (given my car sometimes sits for MONTHS without being started). I know STP is extremely persistent, and clings to everything it touches. The intent is to have the coating of STP on the bearings to fight off any wear until the pressurized oil floats the associated parts internal. So, that is my choice to add STP to my engines. If semantics is an issue then maybe some leeway should be applied? Who knows...


My 87 Buick Park Ave blew a timing belt/gears back in @ 96/97, that 3.8L motor had 132000 miles on its odometer but actually had over 161000 miles on it (odometer was replaced it its lifetime before I bought it). The shop (college auto shop, I was in classes across the hall a Friday morning when the belt blew at lunch break, and they did the work for a course project for a grand total of 68 bucks and a bundle of shop towels) took that Friday afternoon until Tuesday morning the following week, to fix it. The Monday morning I got to classes, the guy in charge of the college shop (head instructor) that did the work could not believe how clean the internals were. He called me into the shop (during one of my breaks) showing me the entire front of the motor off (and the oil pan off being cleaned of the timing gear fiberglass parts). He asked directly how many miles were on it and how/why it was so clean, I told them I used a (at the time) generic engine treatment at every recommended oil chance (same bottle as STP, same consistency as STP, procured from WalMart). My 02 Camaro 5.7L LS1 motor is notorious for its noisy lifters upon startup and until its warmed up. The noise is almost eliminated by adding a bottle of STP when the oil is changed. This one result convinces me something is different, so I continue to add STP to my motors. Always have, always will. Yes, oil changes may be enough for most, many do not follow any schedule (all you have to do is pull the dipstick and you can see the abuses engines get). I choose to INVEST in another 3 bucks a year for my engines (6 for the XF, as it takes 8 quarts oil). BTW, the ONLY reason I use the factory listed Mobil1 oil in the 0W-40 weight, is because I will not let Chrysler have the ability to deny my LPW. If I was not able to get the Mobil1 at 22 bucks a 5 qt bottle, I would probably use a synthetic BLEND at a less expensive price (or maybe even plain DINO oil OH MY!). It isn't rocket science, it IS clever marketing and cooperation with auto manufacturers, to confuse both the government pollution folks and consumers who just throw hands up and take it to the stealerships. Yes, I said it, GOD BLESS capitalism!

 

I belive as you...stp is always at my side... Used some on wife...runs great !

 

I don't think it works at all as a sunscreen. Nothing I saw even remotely mentions an SPF factor!