> 9k miles will be ok IF you use high quality full synthetic
> oil, like Mobil Amsoil, Valvolene, Redline etc.
I've been ringing around and one garage said that Magnatec isn't that different in quality to Mobil 1 etc although it is only partly synthetic but just change it 2000 miles or so earlier but much cheaper to buy in the first place circa £10 per litre difference (I need 7.5 litres).
Should I REALLY avoid Magnatec and stick to Mobil 1 / Amsoil type of fully synthetic oils?
> I still think 12 months is a bit long for an oil change though.
I don't think I'll do more than 9000 miles a year anyway but I shall try to source a friendly garage who'll change the oil more regularly than once a year.
Is 1 year really too long? What do others think?
> Cost co do Michelin cheap.
Michelin tyres? I think the S280 tyres are seriously wide at 245/60 something. Do they stock these? I've found the cheapest at £100 per incl balancing but I'm told I should stick to well-known branded tyres.
Thanks for your help so far folks ..
rojer@lycos.co.uk
1.3 'A' Astra
'W' Renault 18
'H' Renault 25 TXi
'H' Astra Est
'K' Passat
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Castrol magnatec at typical halfords price is a rip off in my opinion. Its not really better than any other semi-synthetic oil. Silkolene 10W-40 is good. Round here, se london, i can buy 4 litre of Valvolene full synthetic for £15, ie cheaper than magnatec at halfords. go to a good motor factor and see what synthetic they do. £34 for 4 litres of mobil is a lot of money!!
Most of the time i buy my tyres from micheldever. give their head office a ring and they will offer you better advice than me. I personally do not like "cheap" tyres. tyres are very important as regard to safety. i never want the unfortunate pleasure of dealing with a high speed blow out. Just thought i would mention cost co as i was impressed with the prices when i last visited.
If you are not going to be doing many miles, the type of use will determine the best service interval for you. If you do many short trips, no matter of the milleage, it would be best to change the oil more regularly in my opinion. If you do the occasional longer trip, and stick to the good oil you should be ok. I am not sure but i think your s class would of had full synth from new at a Merc dealership. I know bmw recently (few years ago) started elongating service intervals as they switched to fully synthetic oil.
Ben
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As usual in the Backroom there is a heavy emphasis on the type and frequency of changing oil.
Given the way you treat the car I submit that the 280 engine is the least of your concerns if you change the oil every 10k or so miles - they last for huge mileages.
Like most(not all) modern cars it is the rest of the car that can give expensive problems if you are unlucky. Suspension, electronics, drive train, ABS etc.
The car is really solidly made and you are likely to get a lot of trouble free miles out of it.
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Thanks Ben and 'Cardew'. I found the tyre site and I shall ask my regular tyre dealer too.
Am I right in thinking that 'fully synthetic' oils are all very similar in quality (i.e. a cut above all non-fully sythetics?)
If I'm saving £30 or £40 per oil change I'm happy to do an oil change 1 or 2 thousand miles earlier but pay a little less per change. I imagine this might even be better than waiting until the oil starts to approach full level of saturation of engine rubbish.
And yes, you're right, MB DOES only use fully synthetic oil from new.
Thanks for your help so far guys.
Does anyone out there know what work exactly is done on an S280 at each of the schedules service intervals? I'm dying to know!!!
PS Off to look at ANOTHER S280 tomorrow! My family are so impressed that they all seem to want one now!
;)
rojer@lycos.co.uk
1.3 'A' Astra
'W' Renault 18
'H' Renault 25 TXi
'H' Astra Est
'K' Passat
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Slightly at a tangent, proably should be on tech forum but this topic is exercising hot debate amongst my local drinking/motoring circle at the moment. There is tons of research and opinion on the 'Net, and so much individual opining, prejudice and preference that it can all get mighty confusing.... So, first off my MB importer pal says absolutely synthetic and nothing less will do for yours.
Fossil oil is for your lawnmower and your Harley-Davidson ;-)!
Mobil 1 is of course regarded as the standard but there are no bad brand synths so choose whatever suits your pocket is his view. He uses Shell. He also says pay more attention to the rest of the car than just the oil changes on the basis the engine is the most bomb-proof part of the car. He is German MB factory-trained by the way. The old saw of breaking in your engine on fossil first to achieve the necessary fit wear because synth was too slippery is now dead he claims, and all Mercedes and BMW's run synthetic straight from the factory.
OT again but this is a gem. A US pal of mine runs a small interstate trucking company. All his Cummins engines run on synthetic and the oil gets changed at 100,000 (that's what I said) miles. This equates more or less to annually. Well when you consider one of those takes 78 quarts.... He usually runs the trucks to about 1.5 million miles then sells them in Canada to a company which breaks them and rebuilds tow-trucks, fire engines, industrial gen-sets and low mileage utility vehicles using second hand reconditioned parts. He claims when they tear down his Cummins diesels after all those miles they can still find the original honing marks on the bores.
Now here is an interesting slant to this. He worries less about changing the synthetic oil than changing the filters. Each truck gets a filter change every 3 months or so, and he regards this as a primary reason for the longevity.
Hope that sort of answers the S-Class oil issue!!
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Guys! I am SO impressed!
You are ALL so knowledgable! If not yourselves, at least your pals seem to be ..
;)
Okay some more facts: Money to me is no object, but I object to corporate rip-offs. Such as "Mercedes does the best service" and, "Must be Mercedes approved 'x', 'y' and 'z'" at twice the price and, "Must be serviced at X,000 miles" etc.
I'm just trying to separate the real facts from the profit-squeezing.
You're all helping me get a Mercedes, if not general, car education!
I shall ask my 4-Mercedes-owning friend who belongs to the Mercedes Benz Oweners Club but I'll ask you anyway, does anyone else know of a good MErcedes Specialist in or aorund York or Watford?
rojer@lycos.co.uk
1.3 'A' Astra
'W' Renault 18
'H' Renault 25 TXi
'H' Astra Est
'K' Passat
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