2014 WRX Oil

[lubricatosaurus]

Originally Posted By: Kuato
Thanks, I think.

With WM's return policies, you might be able to return the M1 0w40 in exchange if you talk to them nice. A friend of mine was a manager there, he said they'd sometimes take returns on stuff they didn't even sell! So as long as M1 0w40 is on the shelf, you should be good


I did it. Walmart took back 6 brand new un-opened quarts of M1 0w-40, no receipt, and I traded it in for Pennzoil Platinum 0w-20, and they gave me a gift card for $3.40 too! woo-hoo! (They were out of all M1 0w-20, but I like Pennz synth OK.)

Sorry, bananaman82 (your mascot is:

), back to your thread topic:

Therefore, Walmart is ez-going on returns of course, so just return the M1 5w-30 after you take a picture of the receipt and save it. Then trade it for 0w-40 and use that.

As far as your questions about cornering, that should not be a problem with these engines since the oil pickup is very low in the oil pan, and as long as you are NOT running the oil 2 quarts too low, it will always pump oil with no interruptions for lateral g-forces.

Its important to check your oil level once a week or so, and always look for leaks on the ground. I did see the WRX owner's manual makes no mention of a low oil level warning (only oil pressure).

Wow, WRX's have a differential oil temperature sensor and warnings. Never heard of that. Interesting. They really expect you to drive this Fast & Furious-ly, don't they? Then their oil pickup had better be low in the pan, its their fault if they don't.

 

[Garak]

Personally, I don't much approve of the notion of hanging onto false receipts and foisting them upon anyone, be they the government or a corporation in a warranty claim.

 

[lubricatosaurus]

Originally Posted By: Garak
Personally, I don't much approve of the notion of hanging onto false receipts and foisting them upon anyone, be they the government or a corporation in a warranty claim.

I got M1 0w-40 on Amazon (sale) for my stash, then took them to Walmart with no receipt to get an exchange or store credit. (I no longer need them.) They were pristine, perfect, new oil bottles, so I didn't feel guilty. They'll sell'em in a heartbeat to wise German car owners.

 

[buster]

I'd highly consider Mobil 1 5w30 ESP in a new WRX.

 

[Garak]

I didn't say I had a problem with people returning the wrong oil to the store, unopened. I have a problem with people hanging onto false receipts and using them in a warranty claim, a rebate process, or for tax purposes.

 

[JMP1980]

Originally Posted By: bluesubie
Originally Posted By: bananaman82
Considering the trouble I had in this situation with ALL receipts and using proper oil, I am not risking it.

What kind of warranty do you have? As I mentioned earlier, most repairs made under "goodwill" from SoA have a 12k mile/1 yr warranty and not the remainder of the Powertrain Warranty (in regards to the same type of warranty claim).

Most of all, pay attention to the HTHS comments in this thread. This is more important than the grade on the bottle or the brand of oil. You want an HTHS of 3.5 or higher and no Resource Conserving stamp in the API donut on the back. Also look for ACEA A3/B3 or C3. Unfortunately, your selection is limited.

If you run a GF5 oil, change it every 3,000 miles and hopefully that will get you through the remainder of your warranty.


Hello all. This is my first post on this forum and I've been trying to read and learn, but it's a lot to take in. This thread is especially interesting to me because I recently bought another Subaru (2016 STI) and I'm trying to figure out what oil I'll use. I actually started doing the research because I heard the "Mobile1" comments on other forums, and it got me second-guessing.

There definitely seems to be a lot of expertise on this forum, but it has brought up additional questions in my mind. The common advice in this thread is a 0W40 or 5W40 with high HSTS that isn't GF5 or "Resource Conserving" (I don't really know what any of those mean), but the last two are specifically what the manufacturer calls for. I trust the wisdom on this site, but what factors cause Subaru to specify those things if it's not contemporary wisdom to be the ideal oil for these engines? I appreciate any additional explanations that can be offered, and sorry if it's already been explained and I missed it. Thanks!

 

[05LGTLtd]

Generally speaking Subaru picks their oil requirements based on fleet efficiency, not unlike other auto makers. Some auto makers pick their oil specs on application performance/protection over efficiency/low internal resistance.

For instance, many euro makers like MB, Porsche, VW, BMW etc have certifications that specify more robust oils. Some specs are for 30 grade, some for Xw40's. It is generally excepted that these oils are more robust in engines that are harder on oil. Forced induction engines can be harder on oil, so many feel, like me, that using an oil that meets these req's will serve better in in their turbo Subaru.

30 grade, and 40 grade oils for that fact, are not all the same in "toughness". The spec many follow is the HTHS for a given oil. It seems to be consenses of the more stringent manufacturers who spec oil for more demanding engines, that having a HTHS spec of 3.5 or more is an important thing. Many HDEO, like rotella also have higher HTHS than your resource conserving oils.

So here's a list of generally acceptable full synthetic oils for a subaru WRX/STi/GT/XT:

Edge 0w30, 0w40, 5w40
m1 0w40
PP/PU 5w40
Synpower 5w40
Rotella T6 5w40

IMHO, 5w40 HDEO is probably overkill for most FI Subaru drivers. I've run M1 TDT as a summer fill. If your not tracking, autoX, living in a hot climate, or just driving like an insane Italian all the time, your probably fine with a 'lighter' Xw40 that meets the slew of euro specs for durability. There are other oils that meet these specs, but cost and availability may preclude them. Run amsoil, LM, or RL if you want.

Turbo Subaru owners who populate Internet boards tend to think that more is better about most things. Hence the 'love' for T6. For me, any oil that passes Porsche A40 is fine with me. (Edge 0w30 being the exception, although I stick to Xw40). Before I was stage 3, I ran 5w30 and 10w30, but always short intervals. I run ~4500 mile oci now. I wouldn't run ANY oil more than 6k in a turbo Subaru without uoa. Models without an oil cooler, I'll cut that to 5k.

Often the argument for T6 is the cost. Really that's not a good argument, since the price per quart is not as low as the other oils available in five quart jugs or on clearance sales. Since subarus hold 4.25 quarts, I find gallon containers inconvenient. Others don't.

The bad rap on M1 5w30 was mostly from the pre-SN formulations. Some had burning issues. I know some who ran it fine, even under severe duty use.

I ran PP and PU in 5/10w30 while stage 2 without any issues.

Subaru should step up and release a STi spec, so Subaru owners know what parameters are important for these engines. Especially with DI phasing into these models. Of course, all the weekend racers would decry it from the start on the boards and say that T6 is the only oil you need...

 

[05LGTLtd]

To the OP, sorry to sidetrack your thread to address the previous question.

For warranty on your repair, the option that Subaru absolutely could not deny you for would be to have your oil changed at the dealer with Subaru synthetic and and a Subaru filter under the severe duty interval listed in your owners manual.

But there's no fun in that!

 

[Yup]

Our Subaru dealer was ADAMANT that we use Subaru filters. He said, legally, they have to let us use whatever we want, but they DO NOT recommend anything but Subaru. They were priced well so that's what I've been using. It's the bypass pressures, I'm pretty sure. He said you can have oil pressure issues with some filters.

 

[bullwinkle]

This sounds to me like a job for an old BITOG hero-0W30 German Castrol! Thicker than your average 30 weight, but still decent at low temps-combined with the Subaru filter. Surprising that Subie engines are getting so fragile, they used to have rock solid bottom ends.

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: bluesubie
Originally Posted By: bananaman82
Considering the trouble I had in this situation with ALL receipts and using proper oil, I am not risking it.

What kind of warranty do you have? As I mentioned earlier, most repairs made under "goodwill" from SoA have a 12k mile/1 yr warranty and not the remainder of the Powertrain Warranty (in regards to the same type of warranty claim).

Most of all, pay attention to the HTHS comments in this thread. This is more important than the grade on the bottle or the brand of oil. You want an HTHS of 3.5 or higher and no Resource Conserving stamp in the API donut on the back. Also look for ACEA A3/B3 or C3. Unfortunately, your selection is limited.

If you run a GF5 oil, change it every 3,000 miles and hopefully that will get you through the remainder of your warranty.

Yes a lot of talk about running a heavier oil than what the manufacturer spec's regardless of how the car is operated. There is nothing extreme in how the OP uses his car let alone track it so if anyone is a candidate for using nothing heavier than what's specified he is.
And that's knowing Subaru undoubtedly has electronic safety management systems in place to prevent engine damage should the oil get too hot and therefore too thin.
But even if the safety systems weren't in effect
there still is a safe maximum oil temp' for the spec' 5W-30 before the possibility of bearing wiping could occur but no one has referenced that. And if you don't know what it is you simply haven't done your homework before blindly recommending a heavier motor oil.

And no one has mentioned the downside of using a heavier oil; namely, reduced oil flow on start-up and during warm-up when most normal engine occurs. For example M1 ESP 5W-30 may have a 15% higher HTHSV but the price you pay is a much heavier oil on start-up. Compared to typical 5W-30 like PP it's almost 35% heavier at room temperature and over 40% heavier at 32F.

Now for those that still feel a heavier oil (3.5cP HTHSV) makes them feel better, as unnecessary as it may be, there is one 3.5cP rated oil wthout the start-up disadvantages and that's the new PP Euro LX 0W-30 (API SN).
Due to its very high viscosity index it's actually lighter than ALL 5W-30s (except Sustina) on start-up and even all other 0W-30 at typical start-up temp's.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
Now for those that still feel a heavier oil (3.5cP HTHSV) makes them feel better, as unnecessary as it may be, there is one 3.5cP rated oil wthout the start-up disadvantages and that's the new PP Euro LX 0W-30 (API SN).
Due to its very high viscosity index it's actually lighter than ALL 5W-30s (except Sustina) on start-up and even all other 0W-30 at typical start-up temp's.


I HOPE that the above is correct, since I am using this for my winter OCI, and really did NOT want to use a 3.5 (or greater??) HTHSV oil in the winter for this car.

I was even thinking about thinning it out with a quart of Sustina or MGMO 0W-20 for the coldest part of the season.

LOL

 

[Shannow]

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
And no one has mentioned the downside of using a heavier oil; namely, reduced oil flow on start-up and during warm-up when most normal engine occurs.


At least you've now come around acknowledging the warm-up phase.

Now, pray tell how "oil flow" prevents wear in this crucial phase of engine operation ?

Flow isn't lubrication.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: dailydriver
I was even thinking about thinning it out with a quart of Sustina or MGMO 0W-20 for the coldest part of the season.

LOL

Well, you know what I'd think of that.

CATERHAM is right that there is such a Pennzoil product. Of course, there are other options depending upon what service category and viscosity one is willing to try.

 

[Thebimmerfan]

Maybe your tech meant that synth have smaller-sized molecules than dyno (and equal-shaped also), but this is known as an advantage in lubrication (except maybe in quite old engines where they can cause some leaks), not as a problem.
In these engines people use to be happy using Motul X-cess 5W-40 for normal use and 300V (in the adequate viscosity) for track use. I personally wouldn't go lower than XW-40 in that car.

 

[Shannow]

Originally Posted By: Thebimmerfan
Maybe your tech meant that synth have smaller-sized molecules than dyno (and equal-shaped also), but this is known as an advantage in lubrication (except maybe in quite old engines where they can cause some leaks), not as a problem.


That's not how oil (mineral or synthetic) works.

 

[Thebimmerfan]

Originally Posted By: Shannow
Originally Posted By: Thebimmerfan
Maybe your tech meant that synth have smaller-sized molecules than dyno (and equal-shaped also), but this is known as an advantage in lubrication (except maybe in quite old engines where they can cause some leaks), not as a problem.


That's not how oil (mineral or synthetic) works.


Detailed and worthy answer, congrats and thanks for clearing up things...
What's "not how oil (mineral or synthetic) works" - what I said or what tech told OP?

 

[Thebimmerfan]

Originally Posted By: Shannow
Originally Posted By: Thebimmerfan
Maybe your tech meant that synth have smaller-sized molecules than dyno (and equal-shaped also), but this is known as an advantage in lubrication (except maybe in quite old engines where they can cause some leaks), not as a problem.


That's not how oil (mineral or synthetic) works.


This is exactly how oil - mineral and synthetic works.

 

[wemay]

Thebimmerfan...

How would that be beneficial on metal surfaces that, on the molecular level, are all inherently porous, no mater how much machining.

How would that be beneficial when the additive carrier oil is a different Group than the base oil... essentially introducing different sized molecules into the mixture.

Maybe just more marketing.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: Thebimmerfan
This is exactly how oil - mineral and synthetic works.

When are base stocks homogeneous mixtures of one compound?