[dan0954]

Hi:

I was wondering if anybody has checked their oil yet? Mine is not the color of oil that I am use to. It has an orange color to it. I do not remember my 2010 Caliber oil looking like this nor any other car that I have owned. Of course it is Sunday and the dealer is not open to ask about this.

I am a little color blind, but not this bad as I do know what oil normally looks like. This is the first one that has 0-20 weight oil. The Caliber was 5-20 and looked like normal oil.

Thanks Danny

Edit: I have the Limited with a 2.0 motor.

 

[dana44]

If not mistaken it should be some type of synthetic oil and may have a weird color.

 

[Christopher Judson]

Yeah that sounds about right. When it gets dark it obviously needs to be changed. Idk how much oil these burn but you may have to add some, seeing as you can "never exceed 10,000 or six months." which is insane.

 

[dan0954]

Well I went into the dealer as I had other problems and I got confused by the answers given about my fuel gauge problem and the navigation questions.

Anyway she brought out Pennzoil full synthetic oil and it had the same color as what I was seeing. Everything I have read has that the 2.0 is conventional oil and the 1.4 is synthetic. So I'm a little confused, but it was the same color, and then as we all know that everything on the net is not accurate.

 

[UN4GTBL]

Don't they put in a special "break-in" oil at the factory?

 

[Doug D]

Don't they put in a special "break-in" oil at the factory?

The following is straight out of my 2006 Ram Owner's Manual:

The engine oil installed in the engine at the factory is a
high quality, energy conserving type lubricant. Oil
changes should be consistent with the anticipated climatic
conditions under which vehicle operation will
occur. The recommended viscosity and quality grades are
discussed in Section 7 under Maintenance Procedures,
Engine Oil.

From my 2010 Journey Manual:

The engine oil installed in the engine at the factory is a
high-quality energy-conserving type lubricant. Oil
changes should be consistent with anticipated climate
conditions under which vehicle operations will occur. For
the recommended viscosity and quality grades refer to
“Maintenance Procedures” in “Maintaining Your Vehicle”.
NON-DETERGENT OR STRAIGHT MINERAL
OILS MUST NEVER BE USED.

 

[B10alia]

Non-detergent oil is basically lawnmower oil. Straight oil is a non-multiviscosity oil. Keep whatever's in it in there until your initial interval is up. Then use whatever you like, synthetic or conventional. Oil color is not a good indicator of how "worn" the oil is. Yes, oil does reach a "carrying capacity" of contaminants, but changing oil because it's dark brown is a waste of money. Oil is considered "used up" when it goes over a certain point in thermal breakdown or when it is too contaminated to hold any more junk. Synthetics handle thermal stress much better than mineral oil; both can hold about the same amount of junk. I would be inclined to trust the oil change indicator in the display rather than an interval. Cars are designed to last over 100k now, the computer will not give you advice that will result in you making a warranty claim for a new engine. Intervals are necessary for cars that have the computer power of a mid-range calculator (like my '95 Spirit) but your Dart is much, much smarter.

 

[PCRMike]

I may be wrong, but my Journey 2.4 (WGE relative of your Tigershark) calls for only synthetic oil. Orange oil is Pennzoil synthetic provided for Mopar. Manual specifies "no mineral oil".

 

[Doug D]

From my 2010 Journey owner's manual:

Engine Oil Viscosity (SAE Grade) – 2.4L Engine
SAE 5W-20 engine oil is recommended for all operating
temperatures. This engine oil improves low temperature
starting and vehicle fuel economy.
The engine oil filler cap also shows the recommended
engine oil viscosity for your engine. For information on
the engine oil filler cap location, refer to “Engine Compartment”
in “Maintaining Your Vehicle” for further
information.
Lubricants that do not have both, the engine oil certification
mark and the correct SAE viscosity grade number
should not be used.

Synthetic Engine Oils
You may use synthetic engine oils provided the recommended
oil quality requirements are met, and the recommended
maintenance intervals for oil and filter changes
are followed.

Engine Oil – 2.4L Engine
Use API Certified SAE 5W-20 Engine Oil, meeting the requirements of
Chrysler Material Standard MS-6395. Refer to your engine oil filler cap for
correct SAE grade

No where does it say the required engine oil must be synthetic. At best it indicates you may use synthetic.

 

[PCRMike]

Mine is a 2012, and it is currently 200+ miles away. It may be a different set of specs for the 2012. I wish I had the car here so I could check it for ya.

 

[stevenspeaking]

From The Mopar service manual.


♦♦ Engine Oil (2.0L Engine)
MOPAR® API Certified SAE 0W-20 engine oil, meeting the requirements of Chrysler Material Standard MS-6395.
1 Quart - 68152004PA 5.0 Quarts 4.7 Liters

♦♦ If 0W-20 engine oil is not available, SAE 5W-20 API Certified engine oil may be used as a temporary suitable alternative.

Steven