Oil viscosity for 3.0R

[Blake8828]

Hi guys, just wondering what brand and viscosity oil you guys are using in your engines?
Sorry if this has already been covered, I had a bit of a search and didn't find much.

My mechanic insisted on 10w-30 last service since this is what is recommended for the car.
From what I understand 10w-30 is popular with car manufacturers due to its lower viscosity
meaning better emission results.

Would a 5 or 10w40 be a good choice for this engine? I do drive rather enthusiastically on
occasions and am happy to spend a little extra on good oil.

Any suggestions would be great! Thanks

[alessandro132]

I use Motul 4100 Turbo Light (10W-40) and have been running this for the past few oil changes (standard used by Garage 88). No oil consumption and haven't really noticed any difference to fuel economy.

[Blake8828]

Does the engine seem to run quieter on Motul?

[Robbks]

I've been using 10W40 magnatec with no issues,
Always used it in all my cars, and change regularly
There's others who do recommend as Subaru Recommend to use 5W30.
I'm not hard on the car when it's cold anyway to make sure the oil is moving nicely before giving it the berries.

[alessandro132]

I'm not hard on the car when it's cold anyway to make sure the oil is moving nicely before giving it the berries.

This. Always wait until engine oil is up to temp, not judging by coolant temp before giving it some. Usually takes 10mins or so.

Does the engine seem to run quieter on Motul?

TBH haven't really noticed a difference. My engine is very quiet, no noisy lifters etc. Only really notice a bit of noise when it's dead cold in winter on start up, but dies away within 15-30 secs once the oil has circulated through the engine. But this is with me standing right next to the RHS guard. None noticable from inside the cabin.

[Flat6Estate]

Interesting that subaru recommend 5W-30, because my car was serviced by subaru penrith just before I bought it.
And the 125000km service records state that they used 10w-30 in that service.

Just on a side note:
If it is noisy at idle, remove the serpentine belt and check the bearings on the idler and tensioner pulleys.
Mine was making a bit of noise and I noticed that when the air cond was cutting in and out, and noise changed slightly.
Whooped off the belt and checked that 2 pulleys and sure enough, they were very sloppy.
2 x new $5 bearings pressed into the pulleys and put back together, and no more noises at idle....

Timbo

[Brunsy3.0]

I run penrite 5W40 runs pretty well cant say ive tried many others to compare but im happy with how it is so for now im sticking with it. Always been a penrite man I blame my old mechanic for that haha

[Adrian2627]

I always used Penrite 5-40 in my old 3.0 at when I sold it at 160k it was still running beautifully. Australia is a hot country so using a 10-40 will serve you well on the hottest of days in the worst of traffic.

[Blake8828]

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

Thinking I might go for a 10w40 next oil change.

[Flat6Estate]

I think Tradewind has mentioned Shell HX7 10w40 being a better long life oil.
Is a semisynth oil good to use or should we only use full synth?

[Blake8828]

Good question.
I asked the same question at my local Subaru dealer, he said it's very important that the oil is fully synthetic.
Probably just and excuse to charge more for a service though...

[Flat6Estate]

I used to run penrite hpr5 in my rs impreza, and it used to used a couple of litres over 12500kms. It did have 250000kms on it though. Seemed like a waste now I think about it.
The lib is running 10w30 and it barely used any - with 130000km on the clock.

Maybe one of our local experts, Kido, Tradewind or anyone could confirm 100% if semi synth is ok in H6 motor....

[alessandro132]

Maybe one of our local experts, Kido, Tradewind or anyone could confirm 100% if semi synth is ok in H6 motor....

Semi-synth is fine - the real issue with these motors is lack of regular oil changes. So as long as you're changing it regularly (every 5000kms) then you'll be fine.

[Tradewind]

Maybe one of our local experts, Kido, Tradewind or anyone could confirm 100% if semi synth is ok in H6 motor....

Semi-synth is fine - the real issue with these motors is lack of regular oil changes. So as long as you're changing it regularly (every 5000kms) then you'll be fine.

Best advice on this subject - ever

[RX25SE]

I use 10W-40 semi syn and, as above, changed at 5000k.
Since the dawn of time I have changed oil at 5000k and have always had long lived reliable engines.