The Nissan Path

Hi fellow members

I just wanted to ask what's the best engine oil to use? And how often do i need to change it? I have a 2010 Pathfinder it has 86,000 miles and just bought it in July 8th 2014. Thanks!

Boy did you just ask a loaded question! "What's the best engine oil?" You will get a boat load of answers on this one! It really comes down to what your motor likes and how long you run your oil. The best thing to do is pick up a quality synthetic oil and run it for 5,000 miles then take an oil sample and send it off to have it analyzed and the lab can tell you what condition the oil is in and if you can run it longer they will recommend like "ok your oil looked great and it still had plenty of active additive in it so now try running it for 7,000 miles". If your truck is still under warranty don't go over the max recomended oil change millage. My Pathy is still under warranty so I will prob change mine at 7k I am still waiting for the results of my oil analysis. By the way spending big $ on some synthetics is a waste for a 7,000 mile oil change there are many less expensive synthetics that will take you to 7k just fine. I run either Wall Mart brand synthetic or Shel Full Synthetic that I get on sale. This proved to be a real good combo for my Toyota 4Runner for 200,000 miles and it ran fantastic when I sold it.

Nissan specifies 7500 mile intervals on 5W30 conventional oil. I follow the 7500 miles schedule, but use synthetic oil with a genuine Nissan oil filter. I use Walmart's Syntech Full-synthetic, which is made by Royal-Shell (the makers of Rotella) and it run's about $18 for a 5 qt. jug. My feeling is for less than $4/qt., it doesn't make any sense not to use synthetic. I've been using it for over seven years in several vehicles and have no complaints. I wouldn't necessarily it's "the best," as that's highly debatable, but for me, it's the most practical considering cost. If money were no object, I would probably use Pennzoil Ultra Platinum full-synthetic, which is made from natural gas.

Thanks guys for all the info

smj999smj wrote:Nissan specifies 7500 mile intervals on 5W30 conventional oil. I follow the 7500 miles schedule, but use synthetic oil with a genuine Nissan oil filter. I use Walmart's Syntech Full-synthetic, which is made by Royal-Shell (the makers of Rotella) and it run's about $18 for a 5 qt. jug. My feeling is for less than $4/qt., it doesn't make any sense not to use synthetic. I've been using it for over seven years in several vehicles and have no complaints. I wouldn't necessarily it's "the best," as that's highly debatable, but for me, it's the most practical considering cost. If money were no object, I would probably use Pennzoil Ultra Platinum full-synthetic, which is made from natural gas.

Has to be one of the best answers I've ever read on any car forum, in my opinion.

Need more guys like you on other vehicle forums.

our local Costco sells 5W30 Mobil 1 for $36.39/6qt case
when they have a "coupon" for $10 off, it brings the net cost down to $4.38/qt
they offer these coupons frequently, right now they have one in their coupon book, good until 10/26/14

Has to be one of the best answers I've ever read on any car forum, in my opinion.

Need more guys like you on other vehicle forums.

I also moderate on NissanForums.com and answer posts on NissanHelp.com. How much so depends on how much time I have to do so, of course.

eieio wrote:our local Costco sells 5W30 Mobil 1 for $36.39/6qt case
when they have a "coupon" for $10 off, it brings the net cost down to $4.38/qt
they offer these coupons frequently, right now they have one in their coupon book, good until 10/26/14

Exactly. I just picked up a box to do my oil change as well. Can't pass up that deal.

Where can I buy the genuine Nissan oil filter? Dealership? And how much do they run for? Thanks in advance!

pathfinderspot10 wrote:Where can I buy the genuine Nissan oil filter? Dealership? And how much do they run for? Thanks in advance!

dealership, eBay, Amazon.com,.............about 8-9 bucks

10 pack of genuine Nissan oil filters with drain plug washer and free shipping for $68.24 on Ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Genuine-OEM-Nis ... c7&vxp=mtr

smj999smj wrote:10 pack of genuine Nissan oil filters with drain plug washer and free shipping for $68.24 on Ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Genuine-OEM-Nis ... c7&vxp=mtr

By the way I have cut several open and they are a quality filter.

Not to hijack your thread. If you've run traditional oil for years (2008 until now) can you transition over to synthetic without issues? I've been told you can and I've also been told you can't.

You can switch from conventional to synthetic without issues. Just make sure you the oil meets the specifications per the engine manufacturer.

I often argue with myself on why I spend good money on quality synthetics? My father has run whatever conventional oil that is on sale and always gets 2-300,000 miles out of his cars. ..lol.. He also runs the cheep Fram Orange can filters. I say just run what meets the specifications and change it according to what the owners manual says and the engine will most likely outlast the rest of the truck.