2013 Altima 3.5 SL oil

cdavidc1949 · Sep 9, 2012

I just bought this car and I am trying to decide on a oil for.The owners manual says use Nissan Ester Oil 5w-30.I am thing of using either Pennzoil Ultra or Mobil 1 ESP. On the Mobil oil website is says Mobil 1 oil contains ester but does that make it an ester oil or does it require 100% ester stock to concidered an ester oil?

second question-- I seem to remember reading in here one day that cars with direct injection have different oil concerns. I think someone was saying oils with lower TBN were better for these types of engines.I have looked and can't seem to find it.Does this make sense or did I misunderstand it?

I apologise if these appear to be stupid questions

sprocketser · Sep 9, 2012

Congrats on new Altima , @ my Nissan dealership , they put in Mobil 1 if we want on request with an upcharge of course without any warrantee issues , but mine s a 05 SER Altima .

Don t know much about your questions do , I must say that I ll try Pennzoil Ultra 5W-30 on next oil change / Wix filter any time soon .

CharBaby · Sep 9, 2012

[quote:cdavidc1949]"I apologise if these appear to be stupid questions"

Nonscence! These are never stupid questions

This is why BITOG exists...To ask, to share, to learn!

Garak · Sep 9, 2012

Originally Posted By: cdavidc1949
I just bought this car and I am trying to decide on a oil for.The owners manual says use Nissan Ester Oil 5w-30.

Check the manual to be sure. As far as I know, the Nissan Ester Oil is not required, only recommended. Remember that Ford recommends Motorcraft oil and GM tends to recommend AC Delco. For whatever reason, this Nissan Ester Oil business creates a lot of confusion.

Nissan/Infiniti service fills in Canada are Mobil products, including conventional Mobil Super 1000 and Mobil 1. The Nissan Ester Oil is certainly not an ester based oil, and at the dealer prices, I wouldn't consider touching it.

As for direct injection, in general, I'm not so sure about TBN. I believe a lower NOACK number is desirable.

bourne · Sep 9, 2012

your car does not have DI so you dont have to worry about it. Its the exact same VQ that nissan has been using in their older altima. The mpg gains come from the CVT improvements , not engine improvements. Feel free to use any oil meeting the latest SN/SM , GF-5 rating in 5w30 weight. They all meet the requirements. I know alot of folks here like VWB in their VQ. I would use a quality dino for the first 15-20k , then switch to something like PP or Synpower in 5w30 and forget about it.

Anything more is over thinking it.

cdavidc1949 · Sep 9, 2012

Thanks for the info

NismoMax80 · Sep 9, 2012

Originally Posted By: bourne
I would use a quality dino for the first 15-20k , then switch to something like PP or Synpower in 5w30 and forget about it.

Anything more is over thinking it.

This.

I suggest Mobil 1 0w-40
VQ loves the stuff.

cdavidc1949 · Sep 9, 2012

the engine code in my car is VQ35DE. would that not imply that the DE stands for direct injection

mattd · Sep 9, 2012

a second for M1 0w40. i use it in my dads 2010 maxima.

bourne · Sep 9, 2012

Originally Posted By: cdavidc1949
the engine code in my car is VQ35DE. would that not imply that the DE stands for direct injection

Here is the list of the VQ engines, the DE code engines are regular multi-port injected. Engines coded with DD have DI technology

VQ35DE

Nissan and Toyota are still sticking to regular port injection in most of their vehicles. Honda has slowly started the switch to DI. But more importantly to answer your question, no DE does not stand for Direct Injection. Both engines for the new Altima are port injected ( which is generally good , given the performance/mpg Nissan has been able to get out of them. Port injection is simpler, cheaper/easier to fix generally and leaves less deposits in our engines )

SLCraig · Sep 9, 2012

Originally Posted By: cdavidc1949
the engine code in my car is VQ35DE. would that not imply that the DE stands for direct injection

The 3.5 has been the VQ35DE since 2001 in the Pathfinder. Not direct injection.

RD400 · Sep 10, 2012

Right, the "DE" means Dual overhead cam and Electronic (multi-port) fuel injection.

And another vote for M1 0W-40

gizzsdad · Sep 10, 2012

Originally Posted By: bourne
Both engines for the new Altima are port injected

Not sure about this. I think the new I4 is direct injected, and is also the first Nissan product to recommend 0W-20.

http://www.nissanusa.com/buildyournissan/modelLine/build/2013/ALT?tool=model.top_nav.build.button (Click on View All Standard Features)

rcy · Sep 10, 2012

Originally Posted By: cdavidc1949
I just bought this

Originally Posted By: sprocketser
mine s a 05 SER Altima .

Nice cars...

Coprolite · Sep 10, 2012

The Nissan Ester oil has ester in the add pack. This was originally done to quiet some issues with the VVEL in 37VHQR which affected some limited number of engines in 08-09. Since then, if a Nissan was specced for 5w30, it was the Nissan Ester Oil 5w30.

For warranty purposes, I would stick to a 0w/5w-30. Pennzoil and Mobil 1 have shown good results. The required interval is so short that high end synthetic is not cost effective.

I am currently running PU at 6 month intervals because I like to DIY. If I was having it changed, I would pay the same amount for PYB.

Ddub · Sep 10, 2012

Not specific to your line of questioning, but just offering a suggetion based on what I have done with my wife's 2010 Mazda 6 2.5L.

For no particular reason, I like Pennzoil products. I changed the factory fill at 2500 miles to PYB using a Bosch premuim filter. At 5000 miles I chaged to Platinum (new Bosch premium filter), same at 10,000 miles. At 15,000 miles I started using Ultra and a Bosch distance plus filter and 7,000 mile OCIs. I also use a bottle of Techron on the last full tank prior to an oil change. All is running smoothly, I supply my own oil and filter and the dealer charges me $9 for the labor; not bad really. I plan to conduct my first UOA on my next oil change just for general purpose. Good luck with the new car. Those are nice.

bourne · Sep 10, 2012

Originally Posted By: gizzsdad
Originally Posted By: bourne
Both engines for the new Altima are port injected

Not sure about this. I think the new I4 is direct injected, and is also the first Nissan product to recommend 0W-20.

http://www.nissanusa.com/buildyournissan/modelLine/build/2013/ALT?tool=model.top_nav.build.button (Click on View All Standard Features)

Agreed with it being the first Nissan to recommend 0w20. It is still however Port Injected. It uses a Nissan technology called Direct Ignition , which is not to be confused with Direct Injection. Here is more info about the engine :

Nissan QR Series

Taken from that page :
Quote:
The QR25DD is similar to the QR25DE but increases the compression ratio to 10.5:1 and includes direct injection. It produces 170 hp (125 kW) and 181 lb·ft (245 N·m).

gizzsdad · Sep 11, 2012

@bourne

Thanks for the clarification!!

The Critic · Sep 13, 2012

Congrats on the car, it is very nice. My mother has a 2010 Altima V6 and that car is an absolute blast to drive; I'm sure the new one is even better with the revised CVT.

On my mother's 3.5SR, I use Valvoline SynPower 5w-30 and change it at least every 3,000 miles. The oil darkens very quickly, not that it is necessarily indicative of failure.

sprocketser · Sep 13, 2012

Originally Posted By: rcy
Originally Posted By: cdavidc1949
I just bought this

Originally Posted By: sprocketser
mine s a 05 SER Altima .

Nice cars...

Thanx , appreciate the comment buddy .

2013 Altima 3.5 SL oil

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