Recently had Coupe back to dealer. Service person wanted to do oil change. I have owned the car for 6 months. Warranty books indicate dealer servicing since new. Dealer also did oil change and minor service before my purchase. FSS indicates 8,300km to next service. I advised service person accordingly. He said the oil used started to break down after 6 months and should be changed. I then asked what oil had been used at change. Service person said it was Castrol Magnatec 10W-30 "Dealer Blend". I said that was not the recommended oil. Service person said it was used by the dealership on all vehicles. I then asked about changing to full synthetic oil. Service person said that would require an oil and filter change. A short drive around the block and another oil and filter change. I left the dealership and came home. I e-mailed Castrol and asked about the 10W-30 Magnatec "Dealer Blend". I received a telephone call from a Castrol technician the same afternoon. He said the oil would be Castrol Magnatech FMX. It did not meet the Mercedes Benz specification for use in the engine used in the Crossfire. He recommended Castrol Edge 0W-40 synthetic, which met the specification. I sent e-mail to Chrysler for advice but have not yet received a reply. What is the consensus on the current state of the engine given the Chrysler Dealer has been servicing the vehicle and using Castrol Magnatec? Vehicle still under manufacturer's warranty for 11 months. Any comments would be appreciated.

 

I will never, ever, ever, let a dealer do service on my car that I can do myself. You are setting yourself up for rape if you do. And, one more little hint: Chrysler could care less!!! Chalk it up to lesson learned, change the oil yourself...or take it to a garage/mechanic you trust...and then, WATCH them do it. Anything less, and you have just been had.

 

Boy, it continues to amaze me when I hear these stories about Chrysler dealers. You can tell your dealer that they will void your warranty if other oil is used. Chrysler will deny all claims on internal engine repairs if they find out the dealer put in the wrong oil, then the dealer will throw their hands-up and put it off on you to pay for the repairs.

Put the OEM spec oil in the car... Mobil1 synthetic.

 

agreed. Mobil 1 -- and stay away from the dealer!

 

I bought my base crossfire back in the fall 2005. At that time you could initial off on some paperwork stating that I will change the oil at the recommended interval.

 

Castrol 'synthetic' oil is bad news. Only thing I can say about it is to stay away.

 

Thank you for your replys.
Still no answer from Chrysler.
Castrol Technician phoned me. He advised that Castrol Edge was the recommended product from the Castrol range.
I contacted dealership service division. Service manager said he would need to speak with the Castrol rep for them. Service manager got back with advice that product the Castrol rep recommended was Castrol TXT Softec as used by the dealership on VW services and in the CHRYSLER 300C HEMI. Service manager said I could book Coupe in for service to change to Castrol TXT Softec. He did not know what oil was in the Coupe now, Magnatec or Softec as they had both in stock and which one used was not on my vehicles service record.
I am not aware of Castrol TXT Softec so I will check again with Castrol on Monday.
For interest I will follow this through.
Looks like I will go to the Mobil 1 Signature Centre from here on.

 

Bring them the owners manual and ask them to read it.
It is nice that the castrol rep is trying to help but it is irrelevent.
I would give them an ear full. Don't let it go.
Good luck.

 

I've been told that since the tolerances are so tight on the M-B motor that you really should stick with 0w40, so that's what I'm doing. With the car able to go so long w/o an oil change, why even risk using non-synthetics too. Good luck with your car down there!

 

I am not sure that Castrol has a true synthetic oil in the US.

At this point I would suggest finding another dealer or changing it yourself.

 

Latest update.
Chrysler dealership had probably been using Castrol Magnatec 10W-30. Does not meet MB specification as per Crossfire handbook. Castrol recommends Castrol Edge 0W-40. Dealers Castrol recommended Castrol Softec TXT. I went back to Castrol. It appears Castrol Edge 0W-40 is retail quantity 5 litre packs, while Castrol Softec TXT is the bulk (20 litres+) supplied to outlets.
I went back to the dealership and they changed oil to Castrol Softec TXT and replaced filter at no charge.
I now intend to purchase Mobil 1 synthetic and a new (Still paper filters here) and change the oil myself. This afternoon. Just to be sure of what is in the engine.
Regards.

 

I would not let that Castrol crap sit in my engine for more than 5k miles. The sooner you get it out the better.

 

SRT6 - Any particular reason for the thumbs down on the Castrol? Inquiring minds want to know!

 

I have the same question...have been told that most oil is the same and in fact comes from the same pot just labeled for the various companies.

 

It might be that Ford vs Chevy mentality. I run Redline Racing oil and some people swear by it, and others thumb their nose at it... As my mechanic always says, it's not the oil you use, it's how often you change it !

 

Castrol Syntec is not a true synthetic oil. It is all a marketing scam on their part. If using a non-synthetic oil I don't think Castrol GTX is a bad product.

I had issues with a previous motor and while I can't prove it I believe the issues were related to my use of castrol syntec. I also have a couple of friends who believe engine issues they encountered were attributable to Castrol. In addition when the last generation RX-7 was undergoing testing a single synthetic oil resulted in engine failure. Nissan at the time took the route of stating that no synthetic oils were approved for the car. I have been led to believe the oil in question was Castrol Syntec.

I would not describe this as a Chevy vs. Ford thing. I would describe this as once bitten/twice shy, better safe than sorry. There are a number of good oils out there. Personally I am a huge fan of Redline oils although I have yet to use it in the car.

 

I'm sure that you mean Mazda, the manufacturer of the RX-7 and other rotary engine equipped vehicles.

As for me, I swear by Mobil-1...but I have also sworn at it. I had a '90 VW Jetta a few years ago. It was a great runner and I planned to keep it for a long time. So one day I changed oil and filled her up with Mobil-1. At first I only noticed a bit more lifter noise on cold startup. A month later the oil idiot light came on while driving about 25 MPH and the nasty low oil-pressure alarm sounded. I immediately pulled into a service station to check the oil. The stick showed full, and the oil looked and smelled normal. Still, from that time on the Oil light flickered at idle, and the low oil pressure buzzer sounded at low speeds whenever I'd driven more than 30 minutes or so. Of course I drained the Mobil-1, never using it in this car again. But...the "damage" as it were, was done. The car was never the same again.

So why do I still swear by Mobil-1...I guess because I felt it was a freak event, but more than that, I bought into the Mobil-1 story from the first Popular Science article in 1976. That was an amazing article, and other than my Jetta, I've had nothing but good results from it.

As to Castrol, until this thread I'd never heard a disparaging comment about it. In fact, that's what I used in the Jetta while it still ran...and in the end it was a wreck that killed her...with the low oil problem still plaguing my son to whom I'd turned over the keys.

 

Yes, I meant Mazda. Not sure why I typed Nissan.

Some engines like one oil better than another.

 

Bringing this thread back from the dead...to share my experience with poor servicing

It seems us Aussies don't have much luck with dealers servicing our Crossfires and deciding what oil they think is appropriate

I just had my Crossfire serviced today - here's my story:

The car is under an extended warranty for 3 years which requires me to have it serviced at the dealer (not a Chrysler dealer) I bought it (they have Audi, Toyota and Mitsubishi dealerships) to maintain the warranty.

The service is required every 6 months and is a fixed price of A$169 - approx US$150 which includes and oil and filter change and a few other service items/checks. Which to me seemed like a good price knowing the price of 8 litres of 0w-40 that the coupe takes I was happy with the deal.

So its time for the first service so I rang and booked it in a couple of weeks ago and asked the service booking person to confirm they will use the manufacturers spec products in the service - answer yes. I dropped it in today and asked the same question - answer yes. So I was feeling good at that point - but nervous!

So I pick it up this afternoon and see 15W-40 oil has been used (Castrol) - so you can imagine my reaction when I get shown what they'd used - I went through the roof with the technician who then proceed to argue with me that the oil they'd used was better than the 0W-40 and when I showed him the handbook with the Mercedes spec of 0W-40 he (wait for it..) told me that he disagreed with their specs and that it wasnt the best oil for the engine. At this point I went ballastic and demanded to see a manager as I was getting no where with the "service adviser". He also tried to say that the service didnt use the manafactuers spec oil (despite telling me it did that morning) and if I wanted that spec then I would need to supply it at my cost.

Got to see the manager after 10 minutes and he agreed to have the oil changed (once they ordered in the correct spec oil which as they use Castrol will be as per the attached specs which specifically meet the MB specs as set out in the handbook) - he just wanted me out of the reception area as I was raising hell by then after the reception guy told me that he knew better than Mercedes on what was right!

So they've agreed to replace the oil (and I'll be pushing for the filter as well) without further charge and to use the correct grade of oil going forward - but I do have my concerns as to what they're going to use going forward so will need to figure how to satisfy myself they honour their undertaking to use the correct grade of oil for each service!

I haven't paid the bill - they can wait for that til they deliver what they're contracted to provide.

If it wasn't for the 3 years extended warranty they'd never see me again! - and they won't be getting any extra business from me that's for sure.

It won't hurt to run the engine with the 15W-40 for a few hundred kilometers will it? - I just won't push it too hard

 

Nope, just don't try to start the car if the temp gets down to freezing.
Also, 15W-40 is typically a diesel engine oil weight. It will decrease your fuel economy.

BC.