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Who does their own maintenance?

2K views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  Zainossr 
#1 ·
How many of you do your own oil changes and minor maintenance? Is there a figure for what it costs to have the dealer handle everything on a yearly basis? Do any of you use Z-Max or other oil additives?
 
#2 ·
Changing Oil.

Stan, I'm a bit of a stickler about doing my own oil changes. By doing it myself I know exactly what oil is going into my motor, what filter, the correct amount of oil, drain plug is not being over tightened or stripped, etc. Actually, I sort of enjoy it. After viewing a lot of the input by the petroleum engineers, and others, at the www.bobistheoilguy site I believe that Mobil 1 synthetic, 10w-30 is an excellent oil for our 5.3 motor. A lot of guys who run the LS-1 motors in their Camaros and Firebirds have had superb results with this particular oil. One of the best filters for our motors is the AC-Delco Ultraguard Gold (UPF-44). It has both flow and filtration numbers that are very good. Hope this info. may be helpful to you.
 
#5 ·
Mobil one

My Z28 came with Mobil-1 from the factory and I always used Mobil-1 for every oil change. But I had to replace the entire engine because a piston was eating up a cylinder wall. Not saying it's the oils fault, in fact it may have covered up the problem and extended the life of the engine till almost past the end of the extended warranty....

Just wanted to point out that even if you think that you're doing everything right, things can still go wrong.
 
G
#6 ·
Both of the Corvettes that I've bought since 1998 came with Mobil1 from the factory. They say that you don't need to change it before 10,000 miles but I change mine at 5,000. I have never had a problem or burned a drop of oil and the Z06 I own right now gets run pretty hard.

I don't do my own maintenance because of warranty issues that might come up and the fact that my dealer has an excellent service department. Also, I owned classic cars and muscle cars for years and worked on them so much that I got tired of getting dirty and busting my knuckles.

 
#7 ·
I have been told that if you use synthetic oil you have to use this all the time. I have also been told that I should not use it for the first couple of years if I do regular oil changes. Is this true? I am about to come up on three months and it is time to change the oil. I can do it my self but not sure the best oil to put in it. I always try to use the best filter but not always the best oil.
 
#8 ·
Mobil 1.

Nostoc, I run Mobil 1 in every vehicle I own (8 at present time) and change it at 5,000 miles. Have had great luck thusfar. I've been buying Mobil 1 at WalMart for $19.82 for a 5 qt. jug. Just remember that your SSR needs one more qt. as it has a 6 qt. oil pan.
Brownhornet, The old advice not to run synthetic for several thousand miles no longer holds true. These new motors let the rings "set" much quicker. I drained my factory oil at 1,000 miles and went with synthetic. Corvettes, Porsches, Mercedes, and perhaps others, come directly from the factory with Mobil 1 in the crankcase. My Chevrolet Service Mgr. said he had heard that GM may start using Mobil 1 in most of their vehicles at the factory fill starting next yr. It costs maybe an extra $15 per oil change to use Mobil 1 over conventional dino oil but it's just a little extra protection, sort of like insurance. People who use it regularly speak highly of it and I've heard few, if any, negative comments.
 
#10 ·
I plan on running Amsoil in my SSR.

My son uses Amsoil in his vehicles. His Maxima has 150,00 or so miles and he changes the Amsoil about every 12,000 or so. He has a friend that races and the friend says most all the race cars run Amsoil, even if their sponsor is Mobile 1! :D
 
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