yea, im gonna change my oil and filter, just need to know how many quarts of oil I will need for my 93 loyale SW, 4WD, Manual, 135000. What type do you recommend normal or synthetic? and what brands also?

4 quarts. I usually just buy oil buy the case.

technically, 4.2 qt, but the .2 never comes out

 

Synthetic is better, I like Mobil 1, Castrol - the natural version of either is also good - I usually say "anything but Quaker State" - they STILL have formulation problems - I also avoid "high mileage" oils as a rule, because they can have funky additives in it

 

Filter is also important DO NOT USE FRAM - FRAM KILLS ENGINES - if you have ever seen a fram oil filter cut apart - its scary, they are the ONLY manufaturer to use CARDBOARD to hold the filter paper together, everyone else uses STEEL - they can disintigrate at startup, and lodge paper in the bearings of your engine, causing it to seize

 

my favorites are purolator or wix

 

a little Marvel Mystery Oil is always good at an oil change too - follow the directions as to the dilution

 

good luck

I also avoid "high mileage" oils

I always figured that they put "high mileage" on the container so they could charge more for it.

Also what weight should I get? I live in Florida so it will never be below 50ish. my car also ticks sometimes, would 5W be optimum for these conditions? or what?

Five is way to thin, you'd want a thicker, higher number, the warmer your climate is. Stick with a good high quality 10W30, I use Castrol, and you can't go wrong.

 

The "high mileage" oils have additives that swell your seals, these work like rogaine, if you stop using them, the problem comes back, although with the oils, now your seals have worn down more, and will shrink even smaller, letting out even more oil.

 

 

Some guys on the board use a really thick oil to combat smoking, I think a 20w50, you might be able to get away with it in Fla, but i'd caution against it as the extra time that your engine runs at startup before the thick oil makes it to the important parts could be offsetting the benifit later.

 

I use Subaru OEM oil filters, and don't forget the crush washer.

^ Likewise, Castrol 10W30. I do, however use the high mileage variety, due to the large quantity of leaking seals in my engine, and the fact that I never ever plan to replace any of them. The gentleman who 'rebuilt' the engine in my wagon before I owned it didn't replace many of the seals, and thus, they leak quite badly.

 

I've used Purelator One and Bosch filters with much success.

i just put Amsoil 10w30 in a 92 legacy with 195k, i picked up a couple mpg, been using the stuff for years, no problems in older engines as long as they have been maintained and no sludge buildup, best i can prove is 4 mpg increase just by changing to synthetic....1978 mazda glc 1.5

I use Subaru OEM oil filters, and don't forget the crush washer.

 

What's a crush washer?

What's a crush washer?

 

 

Its a metal gasket that goes between your drain plug and your oil pan, it keeps it from leaking, although it probably won't anyway, its cheap 1.50 insurance.

I have never replaced my crush washer, nor have I ever had trouble with it leaking (where would you even find it?) - biggest warning is to NOT overtorque your oil pan bolt IE use an impact wrench as I have seen some quickie lube places do - it will strip the threads out, and cause the plug to leak/fall out, baaaad things happen......

on the subject of oil viscosity - I like 15w40 so long as it satisfies API-SL standards for gas engines (ours require API-SF, which is an older standard, but 15w40 is generally a diesel engine oil, which is completely different, so I want it to meet tight standards for gas engines)

Castrol RX satisfies this (API certified for gas and diesel engines) - reason being, it is a happy medium between 10w30 and 20w50 - no oil pressure startup problems and no leaks either

15w50 is an even better choice, because it is for gas engines, but the only company I know is making it is Mobil 1, and that is like liquid gold cost-wise (but it is almost unbeatable performance-wise)

 

synthetics ARE BETTER, but more expensive - Castrol RX is natural, and Mobil 1 15w50 is synthetic - you can also generally get up to 7.5k-10k miles (5k filter change) on a synthetic, and only 3-5k on a natural, but if it is city driving, the interval is less

 

avoid 10w40 because it has some inherent instability/gelling issues