[schoenmaro55]

Hey Guys,

So I got my car from a used car dealer out of state and it was sold as is… with only 5,300 miles on it. I flew out there and drove the car around and checked it out. I knew when buying it that I would be giving the car most likely it’s first oil change before driving it 500+ miles out to CA.

The only thing open at that time of evening was Valvoline and I like them for the most part. I’m not good at working on anything, even simple oil changes so I like their process because I’m around the car the entire time and can see what they are doing.

They put in 10 qts of Valvoline 0W-40 Euro Synthetic Oil API SP. Interestingly enough they put on their service sticker to change the oil after only 3k miles. Do you think there was any reason specifically behind that?

I like to change my oil every 4K miles. I know Valvoline makes great oil and since I gave the car it’s first oil change should I just stick with this oil?

I’m right at 3k miles now since that oil change… should I do what their sticker said or do you think I can go to 4K miles as I originally planned to do.

One final question as well, when did you guys change the rear diff fluid for the first time. I can promise you this car has not had its rear diff fluid changed ever.

Quite a few questions here but I appreciate everyone’s time in reading my post!

Thank you!

[kropscamaro16]

i used mobil 1 for the first year or so then i switched to torco sr1 5w40 since i track it


as long as its dexos 2 approved it really doesnt matter but if you are going to go to dealership they only offer mobil 1 unless you bring your own oil like me

[SSDan]

I do not follow the 3000 oil change interval for full synthetic oil. I go about 6000-7000 which for me is about once per year. The old 3000 rule is for dino oil and today it is a way to drive up profit for the oil change places. As mentioned stay with dexos 2 oil and you'll be fine regardless of brand. I use Mobil and buy it in 5 quart jugs when it is on sale.

[schoenmaro55]

I'm having a hard time trying to see if that particular version of Valvoline Oil they gave me was Dexos 2 approved? It was the only 0W-40 they had.

[s346k]

i change the dif (and trans) oil every year. this year, i changed the engine oil 3-4k avg looks like. the car runs exclusively on ethanol from march-november, otherwise id let it go 7 or 8k miles.

[Spaceme1117]

Originally Posted by schoenmaro55

I'm having a hard time trying to see if that particular version of Valvoline Oil they gave me was Dexos 2 approved? It was the only 0W-40 they had.

I don't think that Valvoline 0W-40 European Car Formula is Dexo2 approved. But it won't hurt your car either. It is a very high quality oil.

This is a perfect opportunity to learn how to change your oil and filter yourself.


Run the oil for 3000 miles or whatever, the switch to Mobil 1 0W-40 ESP.

[Trochoidal]

That specific Valvoline name isn’t on the list. If you compare the specifications of what’s published from Valvoline and compare it to the DSP the two products are very similar.

http://www.gmdexos.com/brands/dexos2/index.html

[WhiteMale]

3K mile changes is really old news even for dino oil's now that are way better than they were in the past. Too it's how a quik change place like that makes money; oil changes. Full Syn in most DD conditions you should be able to go 6K+ miles between changes. The oil life monitor on these cars has a sophisticated algorithm to calculate and is a good thing to follow as a suggestion.

[SilverSurfer18]

I run 5w30 valvoline that is dexos2 approved and dont have any issues. Much cheaper and its not getting tracked any so works perfect for me.

[MR's 2SS]

Bought our 2SS new last January. It has 3500 miles now.
I bought the Mobil 1 0w40 Dexos at Rockland Auto. And a box of filters.
It was kind of expensive but not outrageous for a car like the Camaro. You dont buy a car like that to worry over a few bucks worth of oil.
That said I have use Valvoline in my cars and trucks for years. I only went for the Mobil 1 due to warranty considerations.
Im more concerned about the GDI engine contaminating the oil faster than other injection systems. I have read that the GDI causes fuel dilution of the oil.
I do all our oil changes at 5,000 intervals so every member of the family will instantly know when they are due just by the odometer.
I doubt I will go that long with the Camaro.
I do believe there are better oils for the engine than the M1 0w 40. I may switch at some point. There are some very high quality 5w 40 performance oils available.
Ive read that GM only recommends 0w40 because it gets higher MPGs. I find that believable. I run 5w 30 Valvoline in everything. I got 5w20 by accident one time and I got more than 1 MPG better mileage with a 6.2 that averages in the 13s.
I changed the oil at 1,000 miles and now again at 3500. Both times the oil was dirty and smelled like gas. Were not running the car every day and it seems likely I will do an oil change per year before winter sets in with less than 5,000 miles. My oil life monitor still shows 35% remaining even though I did not reset it at 1,000.
I also swapped out the rear diff. The factory fill smelled like dino gear oil. At 3500 it was not terribly dirty. Still amber. There was zero sludge on the fill plug and a small quantity on the drain plug. I refilled with Royal Purple because it came highly recommended in here. I may also go to Redline in the future. Others have said their gear oil was black and the plugs full of gunk. Not mine. The car is driven... gently.. but the way it was designed to be run... by me. The wife drives it like a car with a 6 speed.
I intend to swap out the tranny fluid in the spring or maybe at 5,000 miles. I dont find the tranny to be smooth. Its a bit notchy. A lot so going into 2nd but I blame that on whatever gate is in there for the 1 to 4 split.
It needs more miles to break in though.
When I change it out I will either use the Tremec oil or Ill go with Redline. Ive used it with success in my Harley trans. It actually did make the tranny shift more smoothly. I may go with Redline in the rear as well. Not sure.
I accidentally ordered a whole case of oil filters. I may experiment with more frequent filter changes than oil. They used to recommend that for high mileage service intervals in tractor trailers when the synth oils first came out. I read that the oil in GDI engines gets more crap from around the valves as well as dilution. Seems like a short filter change might be helpful. Since I have 12 of them.
In this car Ill use whatever I think is the best lubes available at the time. And swap them out more than recommended.

[Puddin]

Originally Posted by MR's 2SS

Bought our 2SS new last January. It has 3500 miles now.
I bought the Mobil 1 0w40 Dexos at Rockland Auto. And a box of filters.
It was kind of expensive but not outrageous for a car like the Camaro. You dont buy a car like that to worry over a few bucks worth of oil.
That said I have use Valvoline in my cars and trucks for years. I only went for the Mobil 1 due to warranty considerations.
Im more concerned about the GDI engine contaminating the oil faster than other injection systems. I have read that the GDI causes fuel dilution of the oil.
I do all our oil changes at 5,000 intervals so every member of the family will instantly know when they are due just by the odometer.
I doubt I will go that long with the Camaro.
I do believe there are better oils for the engine than the M1 0w 40. I may switch at some point. There are some very high quality 5w 40 performance oils available.
Ive read that GM only recommends 0w40 because it gets higher MPGs. I find that believable. I run 5w 30 Valvoline in everything. I got 5w20 by accident one time and I got more than 1 MPG better mileage with a 6.2 that averages in the 13s.
I changed the oil at 1,000 miles and now again at 3500. Both times the oil was dirty and smelled like gas. Were not running the car every day and it seems likely I will do an oil change per year before winter sets in with less than 5,000 miles. My oil life monitor still shows 35% remaining even though I did not reset it at 1,000.
I also swapped out the rear diff. The factory fill smelled like dino gear oil. At 3500 it was not terribly dirty. Still amber. There was zero sludge on the fill plug and a small quantity on the drain plug. I refilled with Royal Purple because it came highly recommended in here. I may also go to Redline in the future. Others have said their gear oil was black and the plugs full of gunk. Not mine. The car is driven... gently.. but the way it was designed to be run... by me. The wife drives it like a car with a 6 speed.
I intend to swap out the tranny fluid in the spring or maybe at 5,000 miles. I dont find the tranny to be smooth. Its a bit notchy. A lot so going into 2nd but I blame that on whatever gate is in there for the 1 to 4 split.
It needs more miles to break in though.
When I change it out I will either use the Tremec oil or Ill go with Redline. Ive used it with success in my Harley trans. It actually did make the tranny shift more smoothly. I may go with Redline in the rear as well. Not sure.
I accidentally ordered a whole case of oil filters. I may experiment with more frequent filter changes than oil. They used to recommend that for high mileage service intervals in tractor trailers when the synth oils first came out. I read that the oil in GDI engines gets more crap from around the valves as well as dilution. Seems like a short filter change might be helpful. Since I have 12 of them.
In this car Ill use whatever I think is the best lubes available at the time. And swap them out more than recommended.

Just a heads up on the gear oil but the royal purple makes the rear end really noisy. The only one that actually quiets the rear end is the ac delco. Tried the Valvoline gear oil as well and had the same issue like the Royal Purple.

[Christian1LE]

Originally Posted by kropscamaro16

i used mobil 1 for the first year or so then i switched to torco sr1 5w40 since i track it


as long as its dexos 2 approved it really doesnt matter but if you are going to go to dealership they only offer mobil 1 unless you bring your own oil like me

I dont see torco as dexos 2 approved? Or where you talking about regular oil for every day use? Going by this list.
https://www.gmdexos.com/brands/dexos2/index.html

[Gunkk]

Originally Posted by schoenmaro55

Do you think there was any reason specifically behind that?

To increase sales $.

Euro oil is not GM Dexos. Use the oil GM recommends in the owner's manual: 0w40 ESP FORMULA

I like to change my oil every 4K miles. I know Valvoline makes great oil and since I gave the car it’s first oil change should I just stick with this oil?

I’m right at 3k miles now since that oil change… should I do what their sticker said or do you think I can go to 4K miles as I originally planned to do.

Your car has an Oil Life Monitor (OLM) that will pop up a "change oil soon" notice on the dash when you get down to about 20% oil life remaining, and again when it gets to 0%. It's pretty smart. Obviously better than some arbitrary XXXX number of miles method. Do what it tells you.

Re: Diff fluid, do what the manual tells you. If you track the car, do what the track prep manual tells you. If you want to feel warm-n-fuzzy, change it now.

If you haven't yet RTFM then now's a good time.

[zxspeedspec]

Originally Posted by Gunkk

To increase sales $.

Euro oil is not GM Dexos. Use the oil GM recommends in the owner's manual: 0w40 ESP FORMULA



Your car has an Oil Life Monitor (OLM) that will pop up a "change oil soon" notice on the dash when you get down to about 20% oil life remaining, and again when it gets to 0%. It's pretty smart. Obviously better than some arbitrary XXXX number of miles method. Do what it tells you.

Re: Diff fluid, do what the manual tells you. If you track the car, do what the track prep manual tells you. If you want to feel warm-n-fuzzy, change it now.

If you haven't yet RTFM then now's a good time.

This is the only correct answer. Tadge himself answered in the C7 forums about how intelligent they designed the OLM and how it even tracks even RPM use and how much time it's spent at certain RPMs at what engine temps meaning it'll even decrease faster during a track day. No reason to second guess this monitor.

I will say you should check your dipstick. 10 quarts is generally half a quart too much since the last quart doesn't fully drain. It's probably not enough to cause head gasket issues, but depends on how aggressive you get with your driving.