My 2014 rogue had only seen 5w-30 synthetic blend since its birth. I changed oil yesterday to Nissan recommended 0w-20. I put full synthetic this time. There is huge difference in the way car runs now

1. Rpm used to be higher with 5w.30 w hile cruising at 70mph on highway. I could definitely feel engine straining. Even on slight hill rpm would shoot up ~500. Now with 0w-20 synthetic rpm is constantly below 2000 on highway speed. Even on hill rpm remains stable.

2. Car is noticeably quieter now. with 5w-30, i could hear lot of noise from engine specially on acceleration from stop and on highway. It was like i was towing a trailer.

3. last and most important thing i noticed is Increase in fuel economy. I cant believe i drove 17k miles with stupid 5w.30.

Nissan recommends 0w-20 for rogue but dealer says 5w-30 can be used alternatively. There is not much weight difference in both type but it makes huge difference in drive-ability. I think other nissan 6 cylinder cars use 5w.30 so dealers just keep that in stock and put it in rogue even if it deteriorates engine performance.

Good info. I'm still waiting to put 0W-20 into my car since I'm still milking dealer freebie oil changes. They still insist on putting in 5W-30 as their default oil though, probably since they have drums of it on hand.

What gas miealge are you getting with 5w-30? are they using synthetic blend or conventional oil? You should insist on 0w-20. Rogue's user manual clearly states that 0w-20 should be used.

0-20 is a thinner oil. Many manufacturers have gone to the thinner stuff to bump up gas mileage to be able to meet federal mpg regulations. A thinner oil also works better in colder weather as it allows for faster circulation upon start up. A full synthetic oil is also reccomended for many of today's engines. I run full synthetic in all my vehicles. Gone are the days of buying a case or two of regular 10-30 and using it for everything in the driveway and in the lawn mower to.

you boys are kidding yourselves if you think you can hear the engine straining less lol.

the only thing you can hear is louder lifters due to to thinner oil, or less chain rattle upon ice-cold startups with thinner oil.

slimsol wrote:What gas miealge are you getting with 5w-30? are they using synthetic blend or conventional oil? You should insist on 0w-20. Rogue's user manual clearly states that 0w-20 should be used.

It's definitely not great but it's mostly because of my driving style and insane NYC traffic. I average 17-23 within the city depending on the season. Bumps up to 26-30 for highway runs around an hour or so. I'd hope it's better with 0W-20 but I won't get a chance to find out until next year when I start doing my own changes.

The dealer put 5w-30 on my first 5k miles service, will this damage the engine? Next month im going to have my 10k miles service, should i insist to use the 0w-20 which is the recommended. Why would they put 5w-30 if the recommended is 0w-20? WTF

It won't harm your engine, and as long as its a full synthetic oil you'll be fine. It you do run into problems because of the oil, it would be the dealers fault, and they would have to fix it.

I would assume the dealer buys oil by the drum, and though crude oil may sell for $50 a barrel ,refined synthetic does not. So the dealer probably buys what he can use the most of.

was there an engine change between 2013 and 2014? Why the change on spec on the oil? My manual say 5w30 for my 2010.

well, it sounds like the dealer(s) need to change the thought processes as vehicles like the Rogue are the best selling vehicle in the line up. Also, other vehicles like the Altima that use the same 2.5L-4 also require the 0w-20 oil.

Turbo models and their V6s may require the higher viscosity 5w-30, but how many of those are out their compared to the 2.5L-4s...not as many, so percentages should tell dealers to lean to having more 0w-20 on hand. However, dealers are in business to make money and if they[/] think 5w-30 will not do any damage and it costs them less per barrel, then that is what they will go with. Is this ethical or optimal? No, but those words don't tend to exist in a dealer's vocabulary. However, "bottom line" and "profit" do, and that is how a dealer stays in business.

Ask your service advisor on your next oil change if you can bring in your own 0w-20 oil and have them put it in. Make sure to request your empty bottles back. Sure, there is no guarantee that they will actually put th oil you brought in for them to put in your car, but that goes into a whole other issue.

If your dealer isn't willing to play ball, find an independant and have them do your oil changes. As long as they are ASE certified and you have the receipts, Nissan can't say diddle if something were to happen within the warranty period. This is not like the Ferrari and Shell oil warranty debacle of decades ago.

Just my $0.05 (inflation).

disallow wrote:was there an engine change between 2013 and 2014? Why the change on spec on the oil? My manual say 5w30 for my 2010.

there was no engine change. its still the same engine. they changed the oil spec to keep their MPG & eco-friendly rat-race going. you are totally fine with 5w-30. i used 5w30 during all times except during the deep freeze winters, when i switched to 0w-30.

K03sport wrote:Turbo models and their V6s may require the higher viscosity 5w-30

no really. you want the thinnest oil in there as possible. thicker cold oil takes longer to make its rounds - so 0w-30 is optimal for turbo. plus 0w is synthetic.

However, dealers are in business to make money and if they[/] think 5w-30 will not do any damage and it costs them less per barrel, then that is what they will go with. Is this ethical or optimal? No

ow-30 is an upsell. its called synthetic. they'll pass the costs along to the consumer. they dont use it, and charge you for the cheaper 5w30. you're being a little dramatic about this.... no?

Make sure to request your empty bottles back. Sure, there is no guarantee that they will actually put th oil you brought in for them to put in your car

[/quote]
why would they pour your oil down the drain, and waste their own oil - just to charge you the same amount??? dude, where do you come up with this stuff? lol

ImStricken06 wrote: you want the thinnest oil in there as possible. thicker cold oil takes longer to make its rounds - so 0w-30 is optimal for turbo. plus 0w is synthetic.

strange...VW specs 5w-40 (yes a synthetic oil) for my turbo engine as the higher "hot weight" will handle the heat better. I'm sure a 5-30 or 0-30 would work in a pinch, but depending on climate (btw, I'm not in Canada or Alaska), I would not want to run the "30" oil very long. Interestingly enough, Mobil's 0w-40 (also a synthetic) meets the VW spec that is spec'd for my turbo engine. I (personally) would not run a conventional oil in my turbo or any turbo engine for that matter. [Our Pathfinder takes 5-30.] Maybe Amsoil, Royal Purple or BradPenn 30 weights can handle the heat; however, I haven't looked to see if they meet the VW 502 spec. A track day may warrant a higher spec oil due to higher temps and longer periods in a high rpm condition, but I don't do track days and I don't live in AZ either.

True, flow when cold is important, but shear resistance when hot is just as important if not more so. If it's super cold, I'd run the 0-40 and use an oil pan heater to ensure my oil has the viscosity to get to all the engine parts as quickly as possible.

ImStricken06 wrote: 0w-30 is an upsell. its called synthetic. they'll pass the costs along to the consumer. they dont use it, and charge you for the cheaper 5w30. you're being a little dramatic about this.... no?

Possibly...you never know. Again, service departments are in the business to sell you services and upsell whenever they can. I don't know what goes on "in the back". I can only "trust" that the guys/gals in the back are doing the right thing.

Why would a dealer limit themselves to only two types/weights of oil if they service cars that span a multitude of oil weights? I don't have knowledge on every oil spec'd for every Nissan engine in the last 10 years, but it would make sense to have each type on hand. If possible, have a conventional and synthetic of each type (if possible). If the 0-20 is only a synthetic and that is the oil for your engine, well, then I guess you'll be paying for synthetic oil changes regardless and that just goes with the ownership/maintenance costs of the car. I understand the upsell concept with synthetic oil vs conv. I don't know what the dealer's cost per quart is when bought in bulk, but if they get the "good" stuff at $3/qt, as an example, and then can sell it to you for $10/qt, well, more power to them. I guess we should be glad that the automotive business does not have as much markup as the diamond business (as a whole).

ImStricken06 wrote: why would they pour your oil down the drain, and waste their own oil - just to charge you the same amount??? dude, where do you come up with this stuff? lol

I see black helicopters almost daily . I never said they would pour the oil you brought in down the drain. There's nothing wrong in asking for your old parts back. They are your parts/property...yes, so why not? [This is just my thought process.] However, if there is a core charge for the old part, e.g. alternator, then you don't get the part back, but you do some credit...fair enough. I asked for parts back when I had my timing belt changed. The only part I didn't get back was the tensioner as there was a credit for the core so it could get rebuild and resold as a reman'd part. If the dealer is going to throw them away, I can do that too. Or, if you are a bit eccentric you can keep the parts and make 3D art to hang on the wall of the garage. No, I do not ask for my old tires back. If I did, I would have at least 12, maybe 13 and no where to put them.

I call'em like I see them; like a one-eyed umpire. Thanks for the conversation, but if you will excuse me, I'm making a new foil hat for my camping trip this weekend.

disallow wrote:was there an engine change between 2013 and 2014? Why the change on spec on the oil? My manual say 5w30 for my 2010.

There was no engine change but epa mileage for 2010 rogue was 22city/28highway while for 2014 rogue its 26 city and 33 highway so I guess engine oil type somewhat contributes to higher gas mileage on 2nd gen rogue. I consistently get 34-35 on 70/30 highway/city driving. My best mpg is 39.5

K03sport wrote:I never said they would pour the oil you brought in down the drain. There's nothing wrong in asking for your old parts back. They are your parts/property...yes, so why not?

get your tin foil hat ready....

what if..... they pour your expensive sythetic oil into their own jug, and give your engine the cheapo 5w30; then give you back your empty jugs. and they save the expensive oil for their own car???

(i can see your face right now lololol/jkjkjk)

Oil makes a big difference. I've got 234.5K miles on 5-30 walmart synthetic.