V6 oil change

[glen bongo]

hi again
ive had my bongo now for 6 months its done 58,000 miles
im just about to get the oil and fillter chainged when I went
in to motor factors for oil and asked for a decent 5/30 semi
synthetic. he said if cheap or thicker oil had been used in the
past it may cause problems with the seals
does anyone have any thoughts or experiance of this?
I dont really know much about cars or engines.
but hope to get on a basic mechanics course soon
cheers

jimmy

[apole]

Hi there,

Firstly, if you haven't done so yet, seriously consider joining this forum, for the small fee the factsheets etc are brilliant.

I have a V6 too, and did try 5W30 oil in it. TBH it didn't seem to like it much, I found it ticked on startup and also when it was hot idling, kind of like a failing clutch release bearing.

Anyway I'm back on 15W 40 and it's much better so I'm sticking with that.

With regards to if thicker oil has been used, I've never heard of that. I do know if you have used mineral oil for years in and old engine then try and swap to say a fully synthetic lighter oil then you can find the car uses oil.

From what I've researched, thinner oil is recommended more in modern engines, and in our cars it is recommended only in colder climates that in the UK. I found it strange but thinner oil takes longer to get round the engine from cold startup than thicker oil (unless you are in a very cold climate !!).

I'm staying with a good quailty semi synthetic 15W 40 but others here have found 5W30 etc fine.

Oil changes are failry easy on the V6, remember it takes 4.5 Litres for a full change with filter, and 4 L without filter (but why you wouldn't change the filter I have no idea).

I found that if you need a filter wrench to get the old one off (now I do my own changes I can get it off without) and due to the limited access (and hot exhaust nearby) I found a good compact one in halfords that is a metal strap and has a screw thread to tighten it up round the filter.

If you dont' remove the engine cover (you don't need to) use a flatish container (like old ice cream tub) beneath the filter and some newspaper before removing as a small amount of oil will leak out as you remove it.

Also partly refil the new filter with oil (about half full) and wet the rubber gasket before refitting.

It's all pretty much the same as the diesel oil change in the fact sheet.

Good luck, take your time, have the right tools and parts to hand and you'll be fine.

Andy

[glen bongo]

Hi there
and thanks for the reply apole
I'm a fully paid up member
I've got a mate who works in
kwik fit who will put it up on a
a ramp and show me how to
change oil/filter etc.
I've already got 5/30 oil if I use
it and have any probs with
tapping/oil loss would it be
permenent ?
Cause my bongo runs like a DREAM
thanks

jimmy

[cheffy34]

I've always pt 10/40 semi in mine but i may try apoles 15/40 sometime, the only tappin i've had is when i used cheap oil and filter

[apole]

Hi,

If you have that oil and are not able to take it back/exhange it I'd give it a try, If you notice any extra noises then so long as you change it for thicker stuff fairly quickly I doubt you'll damage your engine. The oil you have is listed as the correct oil for your engine anyway.

Make sure you use a quality oil filter as well, dont' bother with cheap ones as they have very little filter surfaces internally and probably are missing the non return valve etc.

Andy

[glen bongo]

Hi again
I could propbobly take the oil back and get it changed . the guy in the the shop
seemed quite knowlegeable/ intrested in bongos. and said he could get most service parts
and other parts no probs He also checked a few of his product reference books and said the oil he gave me was suitable or above spec for V6 probe/626/xedos 6 and many more V6's
the oil I bought was comma X-tech semi synthetic. and the fillter was a wix again guy in
shop checked his refererance books to make sure it was compatible with item no's in members
area . he gave me the fillter for free since I bought 2 litres of oil since everything I had
read re oil amounts was about diesels
just dont want to hurt my bongo
so should I stick with what ive got or go for 10/40?
are wix decent oil fillters?

cheers
jimmy