Hi Scotty, I have a 2018 Ram 1500 with the 5.7L v8. The truck has just shy of 28,000 miles on it and is just about due for a oil change. The truck isn't driven a whole lot and was wondering if there is any benefit to running synthetic in the truck when it's driven about 5-6k miles a year? Conventional or even synblends are much cheaper and when it holds 7 qts of oil, feel this might be a fair question. I don't want to ask a oil change place as I feel 90% of the time they don't have a clue about what they're telling you LOL.
Thanks Scotty!
Given the camshaft and lifter failures those engines are prone to I'd want to be using the highest quality oil possible.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGIUygJugGs
Good video, I have watched others like that one. I do feel it's mostly an idle issue for those hemis to get that issue. At the same time, long story short I worked a brake company for a while and it is possible the years the video mentioned 2011-2013 (so 2011 to 2015 models probably) had the "worse lifters" as I know for a fact Ford f150 brake rotors were cheap cheap cheap 2009-2012. Was just really curious if the cost is worth it if it's not driven much and looking to maybe confirm thoughts or disprove them? Such as synthetic might be better as it does better with flow so with a engine sitting it's better?
at minimum the oil should meet the specifications in your owner's manual
ms-6395 spec, any gf-6a would meet that spec. sorry if I come off dumb I'm once again just looking to see if the cost is worth it. So far I'm gathering the synblend in the middle is my route to go.
any gf-6a would meet that spec
there you go. Use that.
Cool lol, but I never asked about spec. It's a question of "worth" vs trying to argue oil types...
I understood the question.
The term "Synthetic Oil" is intentionally ill-defined. It has no basis in reality.
I'm telling you that what matters is that the oil has properties deemed suitable for your engine by the manufacturer. The ILSAC certification ensures that the oil is laboratory tested to perform to those specifications.
So if you're asking is it worth it to put more importance on the buzzwords marketers have put on the bottle to trigger your psyche, the answer is no. GF-6A is the best oil classification that has been standardized at this point in time.
This has been discussed many times and the consensus is that synthetic oil is superior to conventional oil. See FAQ for many more opinions and comments.
Not questioning if syn is better than conventional, not sure how to word my question I guess. I'm seeking if there is any sense for me to use synthetic if I don't even put 10,000 miles on my autos combined, I hear tons of info on syn having great flow what not but never any remarks on if something doesn't move as much.
I agree with @chucktobias partially but my point is, the needle bearings in those lifters disintegrate and allow the lifter to carve up the cam like it's on a lathe. Whether or not expensive synthetic oil can alleviate the poor quality of the part itself is open for debate. Personally, I doubt that really good oil will ever fix inferior parts. You could always put what you save from not using synthetic in a fund for the time when the lifters and cams do go out. At least you'll be a little ahead of the game.
Good point, I'm not really so focused on the hemi failures honestly. I guess the engine stated really isn't what I'm asking so that's my fault for not being clear. I'm basically asking is synthetic work the price if you don't drive much? I also have a 2020 Nissan Versa I bought as a demo that had 2500 miles on it. I got it in 2020, it has 8900 miles on it LOL so clearly I don't drive a lot.
I ended up just going with a MS-6395 synblend oil, seemed to be the middle ground and would quiet my mind either way.