Best Engine Oil for the GTS

[Talon]

Anyone got some strong opinions? I'm looking to decide which is best for my viper. I tried digging around online to see if there was a special blend/brand for the Vipers (I have a 1999 GTS), but I don't see that there is one. Hell while we're at it, what type of oil does it take anyway? I haven't had to change it or top it off since I bought it obviously which is why I'm asking now before I get to that point.

Thanks!

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Mobil 1 fully synthetic was the factory fill and most owners continue to use the same. Other brands are fine too but at least use a synthetic for the most protection. When to change widely varies but I do not scrimp on this and change oil and filter at a maximum of every 3k miles. Keep an extra quart around for topping off as needed too.

 

[Talon]

Oh yea I'm a huge believer in regular maintenance. I owned a 5.3L Chevy Silverado for about 11 years. I had to pull the intake manifold to change some knock sensors and while I was on top of the engine valley I took some time to clean it up. I also had a nice view to my valves. All I ever did was regular oil changes and other regular maintenance and check out how clean my valves were. Even the channels were in fairly good shape for 135,000 miles and never doing any additional cleaning like deep creep.

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[TitleMine]

I hear good things about RP but I've used Mobil 1 in my sports cars so far. Never had a problem.

 

[steve e]

Amsoil is by far the best, Mobil 1 is ok, but Amsoil is way better. On my 1999 GTS I gained 20hp on my Sun dyno just buy switching to Amsoil, lowers the friction inside the engine.

 

[luc]

Mobil 1 fully synthetic was the factory fill and most owners continue to use the same. Other brands are fine too but at least use a synthetic for the most protection. When to change widely varies but I do not scrimp on this and change oil and filter at a maximum of every 3k miles. Keep an extra quart around for topping off as needed too.

Changing oil every 3,000 miles, except in a few specific situations is a complete waste of time, money and energy.
This "3,000" schedule have been promoted for ever by.... you guess who?: oil companies and business that sell you oil changes

 

[speedracervr4]

You're going to get everyone's "opinion" on what's best. I use Amsoil in my Viper and Mobile 1 in my Srt 10 Ram. Here is an interesting read with some good data.
http://540ratblog.wordpress.com/

 

[mitchdob]

Some links:

1. http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/effects-of-shearing/

2. http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/motor-oil-101/

read thru..... "201": http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/motor-oil-201/

3. http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Files/Mobil_1_Product_Guide.pdf

 

[BW96snake]

Interesting read.. One conclusion is that 5W30 could be a much better choice than the popular 0W40..
It's ranked much higher (#9) and is thinner, which according to the paper provides further benefits that are ties to wear...

 

[Ron]

Diesel engine oils have higher levels of detergent and anti-wear additives including zinc phosphate combinations. Shell Rotella T6 and Mobil 1 Delvac are two synthetic versions that come to mind. I've gotten very good used oil analysis after using these oils so I stick with them in all my cars. 5w-40

 

[Viper98912]

Using Mobil 1 0W-40 in both the GTS and AMG

 

[Jance GTS]

Using Mobil 1 0W-40 in both the GTS and AMG

I use that in my 2000 GTS too.

 

[Dom426h]

Diesel engine oils have higher levels of detergent and anti-wear additives including zinc phosphate combinations. Shell Rotella T6 and Mobil 1 Delvac are two synthetic versions that come to mind. I've gotten very good used oil analysis after using these oils so I stick with them in all my cars. 5w-40

+1

I use either Shell Rotella T6 5w40 or Motul 8100 5w40 for street & track cause they both have elevated anti-wear additives that are beneficial to my aggressive driving style.
Advance Auto carries the Shell: http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...21/8120031-P?navigationPath=L1*14926|L2*15035
Some performance shops carry the Motul

Talon,
Check out my comments on page2 of the following thread:
http://forums.viperclub.org/threads/662560-Pennzoil-Ultra-Euro-5-40

 

[natsfan]

I use Royal Purple and am very happy with it. I also use their oil filters which I have found to be top quality.

Even Royal Purple says you can go over 3,000 miles per oil change if you are running a quality oil and filter (they specifically say theirs, I wonder why).

"Royal Purple suggests adhering to manufacturer’s recommended oil change intervals for vehicles under warranty using its API-licensed SAE engine oils. With Royal Purple HPS, drain intervals may be extended to 12,000 miles (20,000 Km) or one year, whichever occurs first in street-driven, mechanically-sound vehicles. For guidelines specific to your vehicle, we recommend contacting our technical department." From the Royal Purple Website under Facts and Questions.

You can get the oil and the filters for a good price on Amazon and with Prime you don't have to pay for shipping.

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Changing oil every 3,000 miles, except in a few specific situations is a complete waste of time, money and energy.
This "3,000" schedule have been promoted for ever by.... you guess who?: oil companies and business that sell you oil changes

I am in that specific situation actually due to the way I drive the car and since I do not live in Calif. Im not concerned about waisting energy. For a 105k car spending 100.00 for frequent oil changes is nothing. I don't listen to promotions by oil companies but do change all lubricants sooner than the manual suggests.

 

[steve e]

In the 15 years I have had my Viper, I have changed the oil and filter 17 times, it has 2800 miles on it. Love to wast.

 

[luc]

In the 15 years I have had my Viper, I have changed the oil and filter 17 times, it has 2800 miles on it. Love to wast.

Kind of sad, less than 200 miles/year. What is the point to have a viper if you don't drive it?

 

[Dom426h]

Changing oil every 3,000 miles, except in a few specific situations is a complete waste of time, money and energy.
This "3,000" schedule have been promoted for ever by.... you guess who?: oil companies and business that sell you oil changes

+1, I've been enjoying 7K intervals with my daily drivers. Typically do 3-5.5K on the Viper depending on amount of track days and availability of friends lifts.

Kind of sad, less than 200 miles/year. What is the point to have a viper if you don't drive it?

You don't want to know...

http://jalopnik.com/man-who-has-had-sex-with-999-cars-will-marry-vw-beetle-1445719610

 

[BW96snake]

Well, I use 0W40 too..

But the point after reading the article is - Why not use 5W30 when it's ranked much higher than, for example, 0W40, and comes with added benefits due to its thinner weight. Simply stating that "Amsoil is way better" or "I have had success with Redline" kind of ignores or at least puts little weight on the content of the article.

 

[steve e]

Kind of sad, less than 200 miles/year. What is the point to have a viper if you don't drive it?

My 95 has 188k, thats the one I use now and then, when it hits 200k I am going to strip it and make the worlds coolest gokart.

 

[steve e]

Well, I use 0W40 too..

But the point after reading the article is - Why not use 5W30 when it's ranked much higher than, for example, 0W40, and comes with added benefits due to its thinner weight. Simply stating that "Amsoil is way better" or "I have had success with Redline" kind of ignores or at least puts little weight on the content of the article.

Everyone is giving there opinion on which brand they feel is the best Quality , I never argue with people about oil, they just do not get it anyway, I tell them K-Mart has good oil use that, saves a lot of time.

 

[natsfan]

I am in that specific situation actually due to the way I drive the car and since I do not live in Calif. Im not concerned about waisting energy. For a 105k car spending 100.00 for frequent oil changes is nothing. I don't listen to promotions by oil companies but do change all lubricants sooner than the manual suggests.

I hear you. At the end of the day it's personal and changing oil often will not hurt a car. A Viper definitely deserves to be baybied and if you drive it hard should be. I posted the RP info to show that 3k miles is no longer the norm.

 

[Darth Menace]

You're going to get everyone's "opinion" on what's best. I use Amsoil in my Viper and Mobile 1 in my Srt 10 Ram. Here is an interesting read with some good data.
http://540ratblog.wordpress.com/

That was a long yet enjoyable read! thanks. I like how Amsoil is pretty much the highest wear protection without additives

 

[Talon]

I certainly have lots to think about. I must admit I was one of those people that naturally assumed heavier weights added wear protection. I of course also knew it equated to additional friction which means less power due to reduced mobility.

There are obvious discrepancies about what brand is the best, but it definitely sounds like I should be going with a 0W-40 or the 5W-40 right? I live in Texas too where it gets dang hot too though so I'm thinking at least a 5W if not a 10W. Since these engines run hot though I think I want to keep something higher in the 40s maybe. Anyone of you guys in Texas (or other hot southern states) got feedback?

 

[BW96snake]

Why not Mobil 1 5W30 when it's #9 on the list of best resistance to pressure-wear?

 

[WSAYERS80]

Changing oil every 3,000 miles, except in a few specific situations is a complete waste of time, money and energy.
This "3,000" schedule have been promoted for ever by.... you guess who?: oil companies and business that sell you oil changes

You are 100% correct. My buddy and I had an old S-10. We did a standard oil change and drove it till were heard Pinging and knocking. Then rebuilt the motor. We hit 22k miles before any knocking.

Anyways I wouldn't go beyond 8-10 with standard oil.

Gas mileage is set by Oil companies as well..

 

[Talon]

WSAYERS you sound like quite the conspiracy theorist lol. Not that I think you are, you just sound like one. haha. I agree that 3,000 is early, but it's also a general rule of thumb. It's easier to talk about than to tell people, well on regular oil and in a newer car you could go 8-10,000 miles if you do mostly highway driving with minimal dust, but if you live in the country and tow a lot or if you live on a really dusty dirt road, or if you have a lot of short start stop trips you maybe should do earlier blah blah blah right so they took a shot at a number. Is the number going to be on the short side in the name of some more sales, yes I'm sure, but at the same time is it a fairly reasonable estimation to cover all types of driving under one rule, yea it's fairly close.

My dad wouldn't change the oil in his truck but once a year MAYBE which meant he was driving 20k+ miles per year on his oil. Did his truck run? Yes. In fact it ran well for many many years, but when it did start failing it didn't take long and the whole engine failed. He started having problems with the engine burning a lot of oil...probably from over-worn seals because it was getting sludgy. It was also a 1991 engine where tolerances weren't as tight as they are today.

Personally I just like to change my own oil from time to time and take a good look at the oil that comes back out of the engine. If it's nasty black and thick I know I should probably not run on it as long as I did. If it's still in pretty good shape I know I can go longer on it, but I definitely prefer it always looking a bit on the clean side because that means the engine is staying clean. It's also good to always check the drain plug on the oil. For those that don't know, they are magnetized so that any metal shavings from inside the engine end up stuck to this plug and not recirculating and gouging things. Normal wear would be a thin layer of practically indiscernible metal shavings. It basically should just appear to be gooey charcoal. If you find large chunks of metal (clearly visible size pieces) you might should worry a bit.

 

[1badacr]

Amsoil is by far the best, Mobil 1 is ok, but Amsoil is way better. On my 1999 GTS I gained 20hp on my Sun dyno just buy switching to Amsoil, lowers the friction inside the engine.

What weight amsoil were you using 5w40? 5 w30, I have a 99 gts/ACR and am getting ready to change the oil, what filter are you using?

 

[speedracervr4]

Sorry but you're not going to gain 20hp by switching oil...Waaay to many other varibles will affect dyno #s.

 

[Talon]

Speedracer I hear if you use AstroGlide instead of oil, you can easily get 20hp.