posted 05-13-2004 09:56 AM ET (US)        

When I had it installed the mechanic who installed it put in Evinrude/Johnson Synthetic Blend 4-Stroke motor oil. Which is what is recommended by the manual.

I had him purchase enough so I could do the 20 hour oil change which I have done.

So, I go to my local (near by) Suzuki dealer to get oil for my 100 hour change and he does not have synthetic blend, only the Suzuki 10w 40 4-Stroke oil. Now the back of the bottle does say synthetic polymers, but otherwise no reference to synthetics.

Question - Do I have to use a synthetic since I started with synthetic?

Any consequences not using synthetics?

It is still under warranty.

posted 05-13-2004 02:33 PM ET (US)            

Since break-in I have used only Mobil 1 10W40. I recommend it. Buy it at Wal Mart for half what a marina would charge.

posted 05-16-2004 06:16 AM ET (US)            

With oil, you have many, many, options depending on what type of motor you have i.e. standard 2-stroke, DFI, 4-stroke, etc. To make sure we don't get this thread going in all directions (and for clarity), you have a 4-stroke so lets just address oil in them here for now. You can go with any number of quality 10W30/10W40/20W50 standard motor oils. The weight you choose depends on the lowest and highest expected air temperature you will be operating in just like a car.

I agree with all who have recommended the Mobile 1 full synthetic oil, it is top-shelf quality, one of the best on the market, and will not harm your motor. If you want to save a few bucks, you can "treat" your engine with products such as "SLICK 50" or other quality teflon additives on the market and then just run standard (non-synthetic) oil. The metal parts have been treated and the teflon has bonded to them (when you use Slick 50) so the added expense of continuing to use synthetic oils after treatment is really not warranted.

Bigshot, on using other than the factory-recommended filters like you do.....I acknowledge this works and is a much cheaper alternative, and have even done it myself. One word of caution though when doing this. You need to know that the non-standard filter you have chosen is very close (or matches) the PSI rating for the by-pass of the factory-recommended filter. As you might know, Oil filters are designed to by-pass the filtering elements when they clog (to ensure the motor still gets oil when the filter gets really dirty).

I acknowledge that if you change the filter at every oil change and your motor is in good operating condition, the risk is minimal. That said, a few years ago when I was still riding motorcycles, I had a friend who ruined the motor on his $18K Harley Davidson. Harley recommends only Harley brand oil filters which cost 5-6 times more than car filters. Like many riders have done, he opted to use a car filter of the same size and thread pattern (which he bought for about $3.00). The by-pass on this car filter was designed to operate at a higer pressure rating than the motorcycle filter. In short, his engine starved for oil and locked up.....the bike was still under warranty but the factory would not replace the engine due to the wrong oil filter being used. The local dealership ascertained the exact damage to the motor when they disassembled it. They determined that there was no foreign material in the sump and the oil pump was working at factory specs. All the scorring on the cylinder walls, pistons, and valve train (along with that installed orange FRAM filter) told them all they cared to hear.

I think we can all get away with using "other" filters most of the time, just be aware that there CAN be issues with this depending on what motor we are talking about.

posted 05-16-2004 08:36 AM ET (US)            

I don't know if any of those articles in the archive address your specific question regarding the creation of a dependency for using synthetic oil if synthetic oil is initially used in an engine. I have heard of such recommendations, but I do not know if they are motivated by good engineering or by good marketing.

posted 05-18-2004 12:19 PM ET (US)         

I stopped using "premium" brands when Consumer Reports came out with their year-long study which proved there's no advantage to synthetics, except freeze resistance. They conducted their study using taxis and police cars, which get extreme use running all day, day in day out, and get regular service. They dismantled and blueprinted all the engines and provided all the different oil brands for the test in unmarked drums.

After the test ran its course, they dismantled all the engines and measured every tolerance. The result after hundreds of thousands of miles in every condition imaginable was absolutely no discernible difference in wear between the premium oils (both regular and synthetic) and the cheaper "gas station" brands. The only difference they could find was the fact that synthetics freeze at lower temps (regular oils turn to Jello at 20 below).

posted 05-18-2004 12:59 PM ET (US)            

I think the proper qualification for the motor oil would be a FCW (Four Cycle Water Cooled) as per the NMMA and the SAE weight should be your primary concerns, not the API alone and not the brand of oil. The conditions that this motor will encounter would be very different than those of your Ferrari or Porche, your Chevy or your Ford.

As per word of mouth such atributes or advantages of synthetic over conventional oil, I leave this experience to the engineers that designed your motor and to Johnson that tested your engine in its facilities, they should know better the qualifications and performance criteria that this motor was engineered for and are summarized in your Owners Guide.