Engine Oil - First Change; What to use?

Hey folks,

I'll be going to pick my new '07 Legacy GT Wagon up on Friday. I have a 2500 mile drive home.

My plan is to change engine oil at 1000 miles, as soon as the official break in period is complete. I've always been a believer in changing out the break in oil asap; I dont want all those contaminants floating around forever. I am planning on leaving the OEM oil in for those first 1000 miles. Sound like a good plan?

What I am unsure of is the type of oil to put in at 1000 miles. Of course, the engine continues to break in. Some wear is good early in an engines life; the cylinder walls have microscoping ridges that wear down, leaving little valleys that can allow oil film to move, etc, etc. At 1000 miles, I dont think I want to go to a full group 4 or 5 synthetic because the engine still needs to finish breaking in.

How about a group 3 synthetic? It will allow some wear, but not as much as a regular petroleum oil. I am thinking, after doing some research and reading, that I will go with Penzoil Platinum at my 1000 mile oil change. Does anyone think this is a bad idea?

After another 3000 miles, I will change oil again. I want to use Amsoil or Redline at that point, but havent decided which one yet. After I get the group 4 or 5 in there, I will make one more earlier than normal change and do an oil analysis and then be up to full intervals.

While I am on the topic of engine oil, are the Subaru filters good enough? Or should I search for a better one? Money isnt really a concern for the first few oil changes; ultimate protection and break in are the paramount concerns.

Thanks for any thoughts.

If you do a search I think you'll find your answers

Nobody wants to give me a cut and dried, simple answer?

I was wondering specifically what oil to use after only 1000 miles. Most first oil change information was for 5000+ miles, that I found while searching.

Why do you have a 2,500 mile drive home?

I bought the car in NC and live in Calgary, Alberta. It should be an awesome road trip!

I'd go with a dino if you're changing at 1K with an OEM filter. i'd go synthetic at the next change after that.

I'm running 10w40 redline at the moment, had some issues with mobil 1.

Mike

Use whatever oil you're comfortable with as long as it meets the spec in the manual. Many various opinions on this issue, there is no 'right' answer. Some will tell you to run synth after 1k, others will tell you to wait till 10k, others here use dino exclusively. In the end, IMO as long as you perform regular maintenance per Subaru recommendations and drive reasonably, your engine will outlast the rest of the car.

You probably don't really need to change at 1k either, but do it if for no other reason than piece of mind. If there really was an issue with contaminants, engine manufacturing particles, etc. then manufacturers would all recommend 1k oil changes or we'd be seeing a lot of fried engines.

Use a quality Dino oil and a Purolator Pure 1 filter at 3000 mile intervals. If you want to use synthetic oil wait until 12-15,000 miles to allow for break in.

OK?

.........While I am on the topic of engine oil, are the Subaru filters good enough? Or should I search for a better one? .....

Amsoil EaO oil filter may offer superior filtration.

.....What I am unsure of is the type of oil to put in at 1000 miles. .........

go to this thread:

http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=58023&highlight=banjo

go to post #156 from Opie, and download the May 07 Tech Tips article that is linked in that post.

Nobody wants to give me a cut and dried, simple answer?

Because nobody can. A straight forward answer unfortunately does not exist. Oil is a preference thing. Nobody really has had the money to buy several thousand Legacys and several gallons of different makes of oils, and then have the time to do varying analysis on what works and what does not in the exact same conditions. So what you have is varying opinions on "what worked for me and my car". Thats it. Answers about oil in cars will never be straight forward. The only straight forward answer is that you should use it and it will need changing at some time.

Read the threads and you can make an informed decision for yourself. Hope this helps?

If you really want to go crazy wondering about oil, spend some time at the forums on http://bobistheoilguy.com

FYI, Chevron and/or Havoline dino oils put up among the best UOA's (Used Oil Analysis) over there (including synth) FWIW. Plus, they're cheaper than the 'mainstream' oils such as Castrol, Pennzoil, etc.

Iyalla's right though, there really is no 'cut and dried' answer to the question of 'what oil to use'.

Also, the OEM filters are just fine, use them with confidence.

I just got home yesterday. Unfortunately, I left before most of the opinions above were posted ....

Well, I did change the oil at 1200 miles. I was glad I did. I expected the oil to look almost brand new, but it didnt. It was quite black already; I would say about the same color as my '99 Grand Am with about 2500 miles on full synthetic.

Given that the oil was so dark, I elected for another earlier than normal change for change number 2. I changed it after another 2500 miles. It actually isnt as dark as the 1200 mile oil.

For both changes I put in Penzoil Platinum 5W30.

I kept samples of both changes and will be getting an oil analysis done. If nothing else, it will help research. I'll post them up on the site in the coming weeks.