New 18 STI Factory fill UOA 1,300 mi

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Do you think that is from the engine build or they put it in the factory fill oil? I wonder if I should have kept it in longer? Most like to do the first change around 1k miles or so.

I am also running Castrol Edge 5w30 now.
 
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I am the wrong guy to ask on assembly lube but I do like to dump factory fill early. However I always run a quality conventional oil for about 4,000 miles on my first oil change before switching to a synthetic oil. Yes prob old school but every car or truck I have ever had did not use any oil for most of there life 2-350,000 miles.
 
Holy moly is right!
Whether this came from the FF oil, the assembly lube or moly coated pistons is probably immaterial.
Subaru knows that the moly content of the FF is high and intends that it be so.
Subarus typically show high copper in UOAs, as this one does.
I wonder whether Subaru uses a copper gasket paste in engine assembly?
Does this engine have an oil cooler, although you see high copper even in those Subarus that don't.
 
Forgot to mention that the STI is a very impressive machine.
Good luck with yours and I hope you enjoy many happy, fast miles in it.
 
I would recommend stepping up to a 5w40. Those engines are known to be better on thicker oil.
 
Do your vehicle a huge favor - use the best oil from the start. Like this here. 0w30 or 0w40 is what I would recommend, but 5w30 is fine as well. 0w30 and 0w40 just have a wider range of operating temperatures.



 
Originally Posted By: fdcg27
Forgot to mention that the STI is a very impressive machine.
Good luck with yours and I hope you enjoy many happy, fast miles in it.



Thanks, Hoping to keep this one for a long time.
 
Originally Posted By: Vlad_the_Russian
Do your vehicle a huge favor - use the best oil from the start. Like this here. 0w30 or 0w40 is what I would recommend, but 5w30 is fine as well. 0w30 and 0w40 just have a wider range of operating temperatures.



I have not read anything bad about Castrol Edge and been using it for awhile now in my other vehicles. Using the 5w30 to stick to what the manual calls for so I dont have any issues with warranty if I ever have engine trouble.
 
The STI does have an oil cooler. Leaching from it was the suspected cause of high Cu in my '08 STI factory fill, when I posted it way back when.

Viscosity was a little lower than I'd like for your EJ257, but that's OK. I'd also stay away from anything with "Resource Conserving" on the bottle. Your engine will thrive on a slightly heavier, beefier oil. I had good luck with Rotella T6 5W-40. Others have liked various flavors of 0W-40, such as Mobil 1's offering.

Good luck and have fun!
 
Originally Posted By: fdcg27

Subarus typically show high copper in UOAs, as this one does.
although you see high copper even in those Subarus that don't.


fdcg, it's not always right to paint with such a wide brush... not all Subarus shed copper. My 01 Forester UOAs are below, and although I was going too long on OCIs for iron wear (I think due to a filter bypass issue), my copper is low, and the univ. avg is only 4ppm for the non-turbo EJ25s. Other than that, I'm all good.




OP, congrats on your purchase! Hopefully you keep and enjoy it longer than the roughly ~18 month average new ownership that WRX/STIs have. I don't get it either... some people just don't enjoy driving like Ken Block
smile.gif
 
Originally Posted By: Spdfrk1990
Originally Posted By: Vlad_the_Russian
Do your vehicle a huge favor - use the best oil from the start. Like this here. 0w30 or 0w40 is what I would recommend, but 5w30 is fine as well. 0w30 and 0w40 just have a wider range of operating temperatures.



I have not read anything bad about Castrol Edge and been using it for awhile now in my other vehicles. Using the 5w30 to stick to what the manual calls for so I dont have any issues with warranty if I ever have engine trouble.
When it comes to warranty - they will only need proof that the oil changes were done in timely manner (receipts) and they might test the viscosity. When it comes to viscosity test - they will only be able to test for the operating viscosity. So 0w30, 5w30, 10w30, 15w30, 20w30, 25w30, SAE30 will all look the same on their warranty testing. Based on this I would definitely find the MOST ROBUST oil in 30 grade available for the STI. RedLine 0w30 or 5w30 or even 10w30 will most definitely eliminate any oil-related issues for many years/miles to come. And after warranty is over - you could easily stretch it out to 10k OCI, like many here do with amazing UOA results on RedLine oils. Unless you do a lot of track days.

Castrol oils have their additive levels slashed by the API certifications. High performance engines NEED those additives. Redline oils have one of the highest amounts of additives to battle anything that happens inside an engine.

Think of it as boxer vs MMA fighter. Boxer with boxer gloves and boxing rules will not last long in a MMA cage vs an MMA fighter who follows MMA rules during a fight, since boxers are limited to only arms and upper body, while MMA fighters can and will use their whole body to the fullest potential in a fight.
 
Thanks. I will look into the redline for the next change. I always liked their gear oil but never heard much about the engine oil. Use to hear bad things about the redline engine oil in the past. I guess they have made changes.
 
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Originally Posted By: Vlad_the_Russian


Castrol oils have their additive levels slashed by the API certifications. High performance engines NEED those additives. Redline oils have one of the highest amounts of additives to battle anything that happens inside an engine.



Actually, the 0w-40/5w-40 0w-30/5w-30 Euro oils don't generally have reduced additive levels because they are not GF-5 "Energy Conserving" oils.
 
Congrats, I kept my FF in for 1,000 kms before changing the oil back in 2010. Then did one or two changes on conventional before switching to synthetic... still purring along after 7 years.
 
Just pointing out, I assume you are running the black Edge? That product has a good slug of boron and a decent moly level as well. Additionally they put a small amount of titanium in. It's a good oil so you shouldn't worry about your choice. The gold Edge is also a very good oil. Nothing wrong with Redline but be sure you understand it does not carry the API starburst. Subaru could be picky on that if a warranty repair came up.

Congrats on the new Subie.
 
Originally Posted By: PimTac
Just pointing out, I assume you are running the black Edge? That product has a good slug of boron and a decent moly level as well. Additionally they put a small amount of titanium in. It's a good oil so you shouldn't worry about your choice. The gold Edge is also a very good oil. Nothing wrong with Redline but be sure you understand it does not carry the API starburst. Subaru could be picky on that if a warranty repair came up.

Congrats on the new Subie.


Yes the black bottle. I had only heard good things about it in the past on here. Thanks.
 
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