Jump to content

Best Engine Oil For 2011 Silverado?

gizzardshad

Recommended Posts

gizzardshad New Member

gizzardshad

Posted
  • Author
Posted

It just seems that on a 2011 truck, it should be "smart" enough to calculate when I need an oil change. Not down to the week...but it doesnt make any sense when I'm almost 5k on a new truck and oil life says 43% remaining.

Dave4x4 Enthusiast

Dave4x4

Posted
Posted
It just seems that on a 2011 truck, it should be "smart" enough to calculate when I need an oil change. Not down to the week...but it doesnt make any sense when I'm almost 5k on a new truck and oil life says 43% remaining.

 

It all depends on how your drive it, how long its running, whether your gassing it, cruising, etc... I know mine seems fairly accurate. I was planning on changing mine every 7k and its right about that time so i'll be doing mine next month. I think mine says about 20%.

tanked_darren Senior Enthusiast

tanked_darren

Posted
Posted

I use penzoil platinum and napa or gm filters, whichever I can get for cheaper I get discounts for both. Generally go with the napa.

 

 

 

INSERT DEAD HORSE GETTING BEATEN PIC HERE

Mulaka Enthusiast

Mulaka

Posted
Posted
...but it doesnt make any sense when I'm almost 5k on a new truck and oil life says 43% remaining.

 

Why does this not make any sense? That's about right. 9-10,000 mile OCI is what you generally get from following the OLM.

shagadelic Enthusiast

shagadelic

Posted
Posted
Oil change once per year? I've always run synthetic and always have had my mileage changed every 3k.

 

 

"Engine wear actually decreases as oil ages. This has also been substantiated in testing conducted by Ford Motor Co. and ConocoPhillips, and reported in SAE Technical Paper 2003-01-3119. What this means is that compulsive oil changers are actually causing more engine wear than the people who let their engine's oil get some age on it. "

 

 

From the website...

Oil Study

 

It's a good read, been a few years since i read it, but take it for what its worth.

Is it a bible?....no, is it an end all, tell all...no.

 

It's just something to make you think, and assist you in some of your decision making on the oil subject.

The SAE tech paper is real however.

 

I personally won't touch my synthetic oil for 8-10,000 miles. I don't care what the sensors say. No reason to.

Engines built today are a whole helluva lot different than 30-40 years ago. IMO 3,000 mile changes are a thing of the past....distant past. Specially using synthetic.

Nytemare Senior Enthusiast

Nytemare

Posted
Posted
Oil change once per year? I've always run synthetic and always have had my mileage changed every 3k.

 

 

"Engine wear actually decreases as oil ages. This has also been substantiated in testing conducted by Ford Motor Co. and ConocoPhillips, and reported in SAE Technical Paper 2003-01-3119. What this means is that compulsive oil changers are actually causing more engine wear than the people who let their engine's oil get some age on it. "

 

 

From the website...

Oil Study

 

It's a good read, been a few years since i read it, but take it for what its worth.

Is it a bible?....no, is it an end all, tell all...no.

 

It's just something to make you think, and assist you in some of your decision making on the oil subject.

The SAE tech paper is real however.

 

I personally won't touch my synthetic oil for 8-10,000 miles. I don't care what the sensors say. No reason to.

Engines built today are a whole helluva lot different than 30-40 years ago. IMO 3,000 mile changes are a thing of the past....distant past. Specially using synthetic.

 

Interesting!!

 

I use Dino...and I don't touch it till the OLM says so...or 6 months...whichever comes first. That's what the dealer, the warranty, and owners manual wants....so thats what it gets. As I don't put 10K miles on the truck in a year...I may talk to the warranty rep and ask if I can extend my oil changes to 1 year or OLM. Synthetic oil change is 15 bucks more up here...so 65 instead of 50, and I think the extra 15 bucks is well worth not spending another 50 a year.

  • 2 years later...
20Silverado11 Enthusiast

20Silverado11

Posted
Posted

Since I've only been driving my truck about 6-7k mi/yr, my annual oil change day (Apr 15) is coming up (see post #4 in this thread). I just found a great deal on the Mobil One Extended Performance 5w30 over at my local Wal-Mart and thought I'd share it with you. If you buy the 5-qt bottle, it runs about $27.50, which works out to about $5.50/qt. Not bad considering my local auto parts store is selling it for about $9.50/qt. I loves me a good deal and figured I'd share my findings here.

  • 3 weeks later...
Cowpie Senior Enthusiast

Cowpie

Posted
Posted

I don't use an "approved" dexos oil, but one that is compliant with the spec. And it is not any of the stuff off the shelf. I use Schaeffer 9003D 5w30 full synthetic. I get it thru my supplier for my commercial oils cheaper than the stuff off the shelf and it gets shipped to me for free. I would probably be using QS Ultimate, Mobil 1, or any of the other oils on the list if my supplier did not have a dexos compliant oil already. It has a real strong zinc and moly package as part of the oil, and I have grown fond of that performance in my commercial stuff. I really have no concerns that this oil will do the trick. Schaeffer is the oldest lubricant manufacturer in N. America, since 1839. And they developed the lubes for the Apache attack helicopter and are a primary supplier for the M1 Abrams tank. And they even make a few products for other oil companies, Shell in particular.

 

As for the OLM and the oil change intervals, it is pretty spot on about when you should change. But you do have to interject some common sense. it cannot tell what the environmental conditions you are operating in. For instance, in my case, substantial time on dusty gravel roads. No way the OLM can detect that. So, for most, the OLM is a good indicator. Just use that gray matter between your ears and adjust the time based on if you are operating your pickup "outside the norm". In my situation, I usually drop the oil at about 25% life left on the OLM because of the dirtier conditions mine has to live with.

 

The last time when my OLM got to 25%, I had 6200 miles on the oil when I changed it.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Latest Articles

  • Posts

    • riddler
      Oil Consumption

      By riddler · Posted

      Your right on. 👍🏻
    • c4racer2
      Trim level custom/pro

      By c4racer2 · Posted

      Seats matter a lot.  I would start there - good advise here.  I had a 2018 LT Colorado before my 2026 LT Silverado, and the seats are so much better in the new one it's not even a contest.  That was one thing I always hated about the Colorado and I owned two of them spanning 10 years - but I did it so I could park in the garage mainly.  Now I have a much larger property and a huge barn so I have plenty of parking options and a full size is more useful for maintaining the property and current hobbies as well.  I wasn't evenb thinking about the seats as part of the reason for the move to the Silverado, but after two back to back 700mile road trips I am sold on the LT seats w/ leather 100%.  The other LT features are also nice - one thing I really like is the power rear window on the back window by the bed.  And the lighting in the bed is also very nice to have - I doubt that comes on the lower models.  Power tailgate - also quite useful - it's a heavy slug!  What else - I could take or leave the screen - but heated seats and steering wheel and cruise control on the steering wheel is very useable - I would never want to live without that.  Even the colorados had that.
    • c4racer2
      Oil Consumption

      By c4racer2 · Posted

      I think the ship has sailed on the fuel injection type - everything is getting direct now.  Does it help with mpg?  Not really and nobody buying a HD truck really cares anyway.  But that is what it is at this point.  Piston rings is something they may well adjust over time to get them right.
    • Another JR
      Ac not keeping up

      By Another JR · Posted

      I don’t have detailed measurement data, but this past March we were hiking and camping in Death Valley and the Las Vegas area when this Spring’s heat wave hit with 105 plus temperatures and our 2021 L8T system kept our crew cab as cool as we wanted it (68F setting) with no trouble. Fan flows on auto once stabilized were fairly low. It seems like the OP’s system should be performing better. 
    • c4racer2
      summer road trips in the 2026 2500HD

      By c4racer2 · Posted

      Yes that's correct on the route to Durango - we just followed what google maps recommended.  That is quite the pass btw - very steep going back down.  I didn't even need manual mode - I just used cruise control and set the truck at 50 I think when it was a 45 posted speed and for the most part it just held it there by keeping it in the right gear - everyonce in awhile there is a sharper turn that I just braked for - but it was pretty smooth going down it on both sides.  Amazing views around there for sure - we had no real time to stop, were on the clock for a set-up time, but we did stop in some 2 horse town somewhere a couple hours oustide of Durango in the middle of nowhere for burgers.   And yes - lots up up and downs on the Durango trip but I think it's a big difference going 70 vs. going 80-83 with the aero in play with these big trucks.  Even the much smaller Colorado does reallt bad on gas going up over 70, I think I would have been lucky to get 18 on that trip in the Colorado honestly.  The full size is definately more comfy for a long road trip too, and the amount of gear we had would have meant two vehicles if I still had the Colorado.

  • GM-Trucks.com Clubs

  • Popular Contributors

×
×
  • Create New...