2005 Volvo S60 2.5T Oil Recommendation?

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I cannot agree with most of Skyship's post.

First off, the 1.9 diesel is not the same as a white block (WB). Completely different designs.

About the "book": VCNA had "dodgy" published oil specifications here for many years, and permitted dealers to pump cheap bulk conventional "energy saving" 5w-30 into high pressure WB turbos for 7.500 mi OCIs. And many did, sludging up quite a few.

Perhaps things were different in Europe. But that's what went on here in the US.

Trust the enthusiasts and the Volvo indys in the field, who have to deal with these once they get traded in out of warranty.

The ONLY reason VCNA was recommending 5w-30 in them was to meet advertised fuel efficiency. The WBs are designed for and run well on heavier oils. The only caveat is that the oil be suitable for the anticipated winter temps, and that a heavier oil will increase turbo spool-up, which could reduce performance.

There is no requirement to run a Castrol product in a Volvo - it is pure cross-marketing that Castrol paid for. Shell and XOM make great oils, too.

I will again repeat: in a Pre-1999 WB, a heavier oil is preferred to reduce consumption. After '99, Volvo improved the ring pack and consumption is much less of an issue on lighter oils

In the NA WBs, you can run a less robust oil than in the turbos, provided a more modest OCI is observed. The NA engines are easier on oil. The turbos are not.

In the turbos, the oil composition and specification is far more important than the viscosity, and the use of an A3 full synthetic oil is STRONGLY recommended. You will not see any of that in ANY Volvo owners manual in North America for most years. And despite what the owners manual says, a plain jane conventional "starburst" API-SL or SM oil won't cut it in a turbo for very long . . . and certainly not for 7,500 miles.

Good oils for the turbo WBs include M1 0w-40, GC, and RTS. The last two are at or near a 40 wt. I would opt for GC or Redline in a higher pressure T5 or R engine. You can run a little lighter with Redline (which makes it a better track oil IMO), but need to avoid short trips more with it. An R in particular can be very hard on even the best oils depending on how hard it is driven.

All change intervals should be baselined at 5k to start, and only extended after a confirming UOA. If you run a better synthetic in a NA, 7,500 is easy.

And NEVER, EVER run a solvent flush through a turbo WB. It's a great way to score up the turbo bearing. I've recovered colleagues' WBs that the dealer wanted $5k to desludge with $45 worth of ARX.

I do agree that the best filter for a Volvo is the OEM, and that is usually also a Mann or Mahle.
 
Most likely will be filling up with GC here within a month or so. It will probably be the last change before the new year.
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r34dy2fly - GC is a great choice for this car...are you using the factory 7,500 mile OCI?

And Magnus - that oil filler is so clean, it makes me envious...mine weren't clean when I bought the cars...not that clean anyway...though the inside of the engines are clean now (thanks to Pennzoil Ultra, M1 and GC that have been run through them over the years).
 
I'm actually still doing 5000 mile OCI as I'm still trying to clean up a lot of the gunk that was left behind from previous owners. I don't even want to show anyone what my oil filler looks like. If I wasn't concerned that some of it might fall into the sump, I'd scrape at it. :p

I'll have to do one more PU OCI as it was on sale at WalMart where as the GC was sitting at a pretty $9/qt before taxes. :p
 
Unless it's right at death's door, I'm not a big fan of shock de-sludging treatments. AFAIK, the only safe way to do crash cleaning is disassembly and hot tank soaking. I don't know what the going rate is, but a few years ago the dealers around here were charging around $4k for it.

Have you considered a run or two of ARX? I know it has its fans and critics, and some report zero improvement with it. But I have had good success with it in saving sludged up white blocks. It won't expose the turbo to the risks that a solvent cleaner might. It does take time and patience.

RTS (T6) works well with it where a turbo requires more than a plain conventional for the rinse.

A case of Mahles comes to around $4-5 each from certain internet vendors. Still cheaper than a cleaning teardown or engine damage from overly aggressive alternatives.
 
Thanks Volvohead. I bought a case of filters from IPD a few years back, still have a few around. Got several cases of M1 5W40 on closeout for 0.98/Qt...still have quite a bit of that. Got 24 QTs of Pennzoil Ultra 5W30 on sale for $3.96/Qt...so, that comes after the M1...

I've had a great UOA on both the Ultra Euro 5W40 and the M1 0W40. The only part of the engine that I would want to clean would be the oil filler screen. The XC looks great inside the sump (replaced oil cooler o-rings last summer). I don't think I'll bother with the ARX, because that would require me to go dino/GRP III for a bit, and require more frequent changes...with the fleet of cars I maintain, I would rather extend, not shorten, the drain interval...
 
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magnus308:

I would be interested in your opinion between the Castrol Edge 0W30 and the Redline 0W30. Thank you.
 
Just swapped out the oil in the Volvo for some 5W30 and stashed up on some GC as it was on sale here. I'll probably leave this in for a good 7000 miles before swapping out with the GC.

It just pains me each time I go to change the oil and see all that heavy varnish on the oil filler.
 
Originally Posted By: Sam_Julier
magnus308:

I would be interested in your opinion between the Castrol Edge 0W30 and the Redline 0W30. Thank you.


I have no scientific evidence for which one of those outstanding oils that actually perform better in my engine other than that the engine sounds so very smooth with the Redline oil and that gives me peace in my mind, I also believe that the Redline oil gives a slightly better Turbo protection than the GC.

I have used Redline products for more than 10 years in several applications and i really like their products, I also use the Redline MTL in my manual gearbox on my Volvo and is very satisfied with it.
 
I've used M1 0W40 in my S60 since I bought it. Several UOA's suggest that it's working well. Reading the owners manual, 0W40 is clearly a recommended choice for the 2.5T engine. I'm using a 7500 mile oci with the M1 and there's plenty of life left at that interval.
 
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So I know this is more severe duty than most on here but I have been running the Amsoil dominator racing 10w30 in my 2004 V70R.

On at least two different times this motor has seen 9,500-10,000 rpm. This is what happens when Volvo makes a dodgy cable shifting mechanism that feels like [censored] even when new, and if any one felt the shifter in a $9,000 Honda civic from the 90's would be jealous.

9,500 rpm is what happens when you are at the top of third gear and the trans goes into second instead of fourth.

I also buy cases of oil filters for it from ipd online.
 
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At 9,500-10,000 RPM I'd be more worried about the engine than anything else. :p

I've seen 350Z miss a 3->4 shift and blew an engine right on the interstate. Horrible feeling.
 
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