ARTICLE: Synthetic oil vs Mineral oil

[R2D2]

Right chaps. I went over to Mundhwa (a locality in Pune) to tank up with Shell Premium fuel. This is the 1st time with Shell petrol.

Helix Ultra was out of stock and not available anywhere in Pune (according ot him and said he would order it for me if required.

The station manager told me it costs Rs 1015/litre (wow!) in the 1 litre pack so a 4 litre can should cost slightly less per litre. The man claimed i could use it for 25000 kms (LOL!). They also tried to palm off some model cars (Ferraris etc) for Rs 100 each.

The Shell petrol pump was a nice experience with polite attendants.

Rgds,

[nitrous]

I pay 2600 for a 4L can of Shell Helix Ultra 5W40. My favourite brew in synth.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by nitrous

I pay 2600 for a 4L can of Shell Helix Ultra 5W40. My favourite brew in synth.

Good grief that's 40% less! How's that possible! Surely the taxes in MH cant account for the difference! This is a Shell petrol pump so they ought to have uniform prices at least in MH.

Rgds,

R2D2

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Gansan, please go right ahead and change the oil to one of your choice whether semi-synth or mineral. As long as you exceed the mfrs recommendation you will not go wrong.

Regards,

Made the switch to Helix Super 15W40 on Saturday. This is a API-SL mineral oil. Took the oil to MSM and met the service adviser. He said so long as the oil met or exceeded Maruti specs it was OK with him. Went and stood by the express service ramp and watched till the last drop of oil was drained out. Told them to add the oil carefully and stop just short of the max mark, as it was a four litre can. Told them I will top up at home if there was a slight shortfall. Paid Rs 210 charges, including a new oil filter.

Inspite of my caution, found the level 8 mm above the max mark when I checked oil level first thing today morning. So went to MSM straightaway at 8.00 AM and got some of the oil drained. Now it is exactly at the max level mark. I can't say engine has become smoother, but it seems to rev more easily and pickup seems to be better even with the A/C. I checked the mileage too by topping up fuel yesterday and again this evening after completing 85 KM of city driving with 75% A/C usage. It is 16.5 KMPL approx, up from the 14+ KMPL earlier. This will need a few more readings to confirm.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Gansan

I can't say engine has become smoother, but it seems to rev more easily and pickup seems to be better even with the A/C. I checked the mileage too by topping up fuel yesterday and again this evening after completing 85 KM of city driving with 75% A/C usage. It is 16.5 KMPL approx, up from the 14+ KMPL earlier. This will need a few more readings to confirm.

Gansan, glad to see you went the extra mile to use better oil. You obviously love your car a lot. do let us know about your experiences with Shell in the long term.

The correct way to pour oil into an engine is to measure the exact quantity before you pour it in. Buy a liquid measure for this purpose. Preferably pour in a little less and top it off the next morning only if required. Please use the dip stick only as a rough guide.

Rgds,

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Gansan, glad to see you went the extra mile to use better oil. You obviously love your car a lot. do let us know about your experiences with Shell in the long term.

The correct way to pour oil into an engine is to measure the exact quantity before you pour it in. Buy a liquid measure for this purpose. Preferably pour in a little less and top it off the next morning only if required. Please use the dip stick only as a rough guide.

Rgds,

Thanks buddy! I realized I should have taken a measure after reaching there. I disallowed them to use their measuring container as it will have residue of MGO. It will be a lot easier if this oil too came in 3 litre cans like Helix and Helix Ultra do.

[amit_mechengg]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Good grief that's 40% less! How's that possible! Surely the taxes in MH cant account for the difference! This is a Shell petrol pump so they ought to have uniform prices at least in MH.

Rgds,

R2D2

i can just infer from your posts that you keep searching in wrong places. do you expect shell bunks to sell you much below MRP ??

shell 4 litre can costs 2800 rs, last time when i had inquired. now again dont ask me where already given you the addresses.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by amit_mechengg

i can just infer from your posts that you keep searching in wrong places. do you expect shell bunks to sell you much below MRP ??

shell 4 litre can costs 2800 rs, last time when i had inquired. now again dont ask me where already given you the addresses.

Thanks amit_m. I think asking a Shell petrol station would be the natural thing to do given that Shell havent published names of any other dealers/stockists on their site. I've emailed them thru their websites asking for more information on a supposedly out of stock article.

I'll try some of the dealers you mentioned and let me see what they quote. BTW you gave me the names but not the addresses but I'll find out.

Rgds,

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by DieselFan

Some WISE MEN on this forum has suggested you to take Manufacturer's recommendation just as guideline but I would follow it with obedience if I own a lakhs of rupees car and I don't want to screw it up. Following manufacturer's guideline is like insurance for your car against major problems (Again you can't eliminate problems but can definitely minimize them).

I appreciate the compliment! It truly is one because if you had really cared to read all that I have said on this thread, you will find that I am making a strong case for either following manufacturer recommendations religiously - including the inconvenient parts such as severe service conditions for more frequent oil changes - or exceeding these, based on decades long experience, for longer reliable engine life. Even for the referred Honda car, I can assure you, based on personal experience, that if you went and asked for a change to a Honda supplied oil - synth these days - at 1000kms, you will not be told that this change will void the warranty. And this, even for a Japan built CBU, like the one I had. All Honda wants is that you use their oil! And if the manufacturer recommended synth, I would use it, and throw it away in 6 months, if my environment was severe - as in, the usual stop start cycle that most Indians have to suffer in the cities. The high cost of doing this is part of the high cost of buying an expensive car.
@the dipstick comment - I disagree, the dipstick is the most reliable measurement, if taken in the manner in the manual. Usually done on a hot engine, 10 minutes after shut down to allow the oil to first drain back fully into the sump. Please see my extensive posts on this excess engine oil subject in another post. The only thing that you may want to check about the dipstick on a onetime basis is if your engine has been installed with a wrong dipstick - has been known to happen. Easy to check, compare it with that on another car with the same engine and if it has the same length, that error factor is ruled out. The reason for overfilling is because the old oil has not been fully drained out, or the garage adding that little bit more for good luck! More on this issue on the other thread.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by R2D2

I think asking a Shell petrol station would be the natural thing to do given that Shell havent published names of any other dealers/stockists on their site. I've emailed them thru their websites asking for more information on a supposedly out of stock article.

Better buy from the Shell station to ensure purity even if the price is higher.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Gansan

Better buy from the Shell station to ensure purity even if the price is higher.

I'd have wholeheartedly agreed with you had it not been for the substantial (40%) price difference between what the petrol pump mgr quoted and what TBHP folks are paying for it elsewhere.

Rgds,

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

@the dipstick comment - I disagree, the dipstick is the most reliable measurement, if taken in the manner in the manual. Usually done on a hot engine, 10 minutes after shut down to allow the oil to first drain back fully into the sump

Actually my comment was more towards using a dipstick whilst changing engine oil. It is surely the best way to check on oil levels post the oil change.

Still strongly believe it is best to measure and pour oil to minimise risk of overfilling (which I loathe).

Rgds,

[gpa]

Originally Posted by Gansan

Made the switch to Helix Super 15W40 on Saturday. This is a API-SL mineral oil. I can't say engine has become smoother, but it seems to rev more easily and pickup seems to be better even with the A/C.

Gansan,

Glad to know you strived to make the switch to better oil. For future changes, it is best you go there with a measuring can to avoid what happened again. As for the FE, wait for a few cycles (tank full to tank full) and then take a reading as that will give you an accurate figure.

[Sawyer]

Re the Shell mineral oil referred, that sounds like a decent oil for Indian conditions - what is the per litre price? How does that compare to Castrol Magnatec that comes it at around Rs 300 a litre, a better grade by being 10w40 and API SM? I think that is also a pretty good deal, allowing for six monthly changes to not being put off because of having poured in a 800-900 a litre oil just six months ago.
I doubt there will be much difference in the Castrol and the Shell in practice, to be honest. Hence the interest in the Shell price.
@R2D2, I see what you mean. However you will find that even in the measurement method, you may end up overfilling. Others here have experienced that too. Probably because some of the old oil is still in the sump. So what usually works best is to fill in about 300ml less than the sump capacity, and then use the dipstick method at home to top up if necessary. On the other post, you will find my recent experience where even this resulted in overfilling. But that is a different story!!

[amit_mechengg]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Thanks amit_m. I think asking a Shell petrol station would be the natural thing to do given that Shell havent published names of any other dealers/stockists on their site. I've emailed them thru their websites asking for more information on a supposedly out of stock article.

I'll try some of the dealers you mentioned and let me see what they quote. BTW you gave me the names but not the addresses but I'll find out.

Rgds,

oil and other stuffs are always costly at fuel bunks. mostly they sell @mrp.
in city you will find hell lot of shops which sell only oils. the profit margin in oil is very high. also the prices keeps on changing.

if you buy at fuel bunk they wont spare their profit margin for you. but these small shops do as they are keen on clearing their stocks.

from MG road via the lane near the aurora towers, you will come across
ABN Amro bank. if you keep going straight for @ 1 km on the left side just before the signal you will find GYANI oils.

go beyond signal and you will find universal oils