cuvette said:
What is the best motor oil to use for a 2000 and we change the oil every ???? miles
Thanks Cuvette
Change the oil every 3,000 miles (or about four months if you don't drive it much) and use Mobil-1 5w-30. Some dealers will tell you to use Mobil-1 10w-30 but since it is a higher viscosity oil it will increase internal horsepower loss and result in lower fuel mileage. Their reasoning is that as you put revolutions on the engine (not necessarily miles, but revolutions per mile) the tolerances open up and the higher viscosity oil is preferred. My take on their theory is that they only stock Mobil-1 10w-30 and don't want to have to stock the 5w-30.
Having said that the owner's manual says if the temperature never drops below freezing then 10w-30 is okay. And if you have over about 70,000 miles on the car you
may want to use 10-w30.
Never use an oil with a higher viscosity for street use. If the car is used exclusively for road racing you
may want to go to 15w-30. But that's it.
Revolutions per mile is more important that miles driven. If you have a 6-speed for example, and spend most of your time driving on interstate highways, you are in sixth gear and at around 80mph only turning 1,850 rpms. So your revolutions per mile will be lower than if you drove a mile in 4th gear at around 2,500 rpm and 40mph. Daily commuting and around town driving puts many more revolutions per mile on an engine than interstate freeway driving.
The reason for changing it every 3-4 months (3 months is what the owners manual recommends for Schedule II severe duty/dusty conditions) is that water tends to condense in the sump over time and chemical reactions produce acids which are not good for the oil itself.
Just remember, oil is cheap (even Mobil-1) but engines are expensive. Warranty or no warranty, if they trace an engine failure to improper lubrication they will fight the warranty claim and you will have to slug it out with the Chevy Zone Manager.
If you want to change it yourself (which I highly recommend) go to my web site at
http://www.rjsmith.com/z06.html
for information and photos showing how to jack the car. There are several other sites that also have detailed instructions on the procedure and I have links to them on the page. My site is a combination of the two techniques (e.g., I use Rhino ramps at the front and jack stands at the rear).
But even if you don't do it yourself and prefer to take it to a Jiffy Lube, get it changed. Your reward will be trouble-free operation of a great powerplant.
Ray