Tips for switching to synthetic motor oil for 2005 Dodge Dakota 4WD?

Just change the oil and pour in the synthetic, that's all there is to it. I would upgrade to Mobil One filter to get the best effects from the synthetic oil. Personally, I would just use petroleum-based oil and change it frequently (3000 miles). I use synthetic oil in my Dodge car as added insurance against sludging. This wouldn't apply to your truck

people are so out of touch with conventional that they don't realize it is every bit as good as synthetic. The only thing you need to do is change your oil on a regular basis and keep your air filter changed which helps keep the oil clean. I have owned and operated 3 quick lubes for 18 years now and I have seen and heard about everything. Some guy will come in and want synthetic oil and the whole time he is in he brags how he can get 300k miles on his car with synthetic. The next car will have 300k miles on it and the customer is using conventional oil. Point is don't waste your money synthetic oil is not the answer to making an engine last long preventative maintenance is the key.

I am an assistant manager for an automotive repair shop. Here is what we recommend:

1. It is not necessary to clean out the regular oil, just start with Full Synthetic oil on your next oil change. The best is Mobil One.

(My boss has a new Dodge truck with around the same mileage as yours, he also runs full synthetic - it is great oil for your engine and all the rubber parts no matter what the mileage).

2. DEFINATELY use FULL SYNTHETIC

3. You can go 6,000 miles between oil changes. Just remember to check your oil level a couple of times between oil changes since you will not be having the oil changed as often.

Some other tips:

Rotate your tires on a regular basis. The recommendation is every other oil change. Since you will basically be running the mileage of two oil change intervals, you may want to get the tires rotated every oil change. Of course this will prolong the life of your tires. Did you also know, regular tire rotations help with gas mileage?

Keep up on regular maintenance items. Every dealership has a list of mileage intervals which list what you should have checked. Example: 30,000 mile check might include checking the brakes, etc...

PLEASE MAKE SPECIAL NOTE: IF YOU ARE GOING TO SWITCH TO FULL SYNTHETIC OIL, DO NOT CHANGE BACK TO REGULAR OIL. THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR YOUR ENGINE.

I would put the synthetic in next oil change, and add some Restore Oil Additive...to restore compression. i'd also use a Bosch filter to really keep out grime and sludge in your engine...it's like a dollar more but it's worth it. for best results, change the synthetic oil about every 3,000 miles just like normal oil. good luck to you, i hope you put many miles on your new truck, but i must warn you the rear ends tend to have problems on dodges. happy trails.

Engine cleaners are designed for vehicles with high mileage - which yours is not. Just go to a synthetic oil at your next oil change. But your question (15 years and 200K to 300K miles) is not going to happen just by using synthetic motor oil since your vehicle is a series of systems (engine, transmission, cooling, electrical and fuel, etc) going down the road! Here's how to get a vehicle to go long distance.

Start using a synthetic lubricant but I recommend staying away from Mobil One since the only synthetic product they make is engine oil and Mobil One is primarily a "consumer product"! Amsoil on the other hand is a fleet product and Amsoil has a complete line of synthetic products (engine, tranmission, differential, chassis and even wheel bearing lubricants).

Two things that synthetic lubricants do far better than petroleum lubricants is to absorb and remove heat from engine and transmission components and they don't breakdown. For example, replacing your petroleum transmission fluid with synthetic transmission fluid will reduce the operating temperature by approximately 50 degrees. So, when your transmission is due for service based on Dodge's recommendation, replace it with Amsoil transmission lubricant.

As for the engine, as I said, go directly with Amsoil engine lubricants and DO NOT add anything to the oil, it is not needed. Use a quality oil filter such as Wix or Hastings! If you use Amsoil change the oil as recommend by your owners manual which will be more than sufficient since Amsoil is an extended range lubricant. Amsoil claims that ther engine oil will last 12,000 - 15,000 miles, they're products are good but this claim comes with some condtions, one of which is taking engine oil samples and sending them to a lab. Skip this step and just change according to the owners manual.

As for the differential, change to Amsoil lubricants here, too! Ford for example specifies and uses synthetic lubricants in all of their rear drive differentials.

A few more tips, don't forget to change engine coolant since the coolant protects the cooling system and it also removes heat from the engine. Over time, coolant breaks down, too! Use the coolant recommended by Dodge since some vehicle manufacturers have gone to extended range coolants and putting in something from the discount auto parts store or Wal-Mart auto department may not be right for your truck and in fact can cause damage.

Use quality filters such as Wix or Hastings and change the air filter every 15,000 miles will help too! This also goes for the fuel filter, too. Change it as recommended and use a quality fuel filter! One last item on fuel. Find a gas station that pre-filters their gas before it is pumped out of the ground into your truck. Most new stations do have dispensing filtration systems. Most old ones do not. Ask the manager how often they change the filters in their dispensing filteration systems. If a station has a dispensing filteration system, you can tell if they regularly change their filters if the gas is being dispensed and the pump is running slow.

In short, read the owners manual and follow it, use quality filters such as Wix or Hastings, lubricants like Amsoil and other quality parts (brakes, hoses, belts, etc.) when you do need these replaced and your truck should last you. Good luck!

your truck is still young to feel the effects of a full syntetic oil due to the mileage that it has at present,it would be like using full premium gas at the same miles ,syntetic oils work best when cars are past the 50.00 miles margin ,since the tolerance betwen the moving parts have been worn to perfection of viscosity and thermal breakdown,,this terminology is used when cars are broken in like your new pair of shoes,due to the open tolerances since your vehicle was new oil lubrication is at it,s optimum potential and may need a superior oil with better suspension properties to prevent premature wear on your engine parts,syntetic oils serves you best when you are over the miles required as mentioned and combined with proper factory maintainence,read your vehicle manual and know what to do at every mileage interval so as not to waste any more money on unnessacary repairs to your vehicle,hope that I was able to help and good luck,delmy d

Skip the additives, don't need em......

Just switch over to synthetic and run it up to six months or more (without a oil analysis to prove how long you can safely go with that engine, I can't tell ya exactly)

And no need for special oil filters..... just run a good name brand like wix or purolator.... and skip the cruddy frams. And please don't beleive the "you can't switch back" BS...... yes you can.

just switch to the synthetic oil and stay with the same brand for the life of the vehicle.