oil change for 06 GXP

**DirtDog** · 10-21-2012

So about 3 months ago i purchased my 06 pontiac grand prix gxp with the 5.3L LS4. Some people have said I should use fully synthetic and others have said conventional motor oil. Right now i believe it just has conventional oil from the dealer ship in it but i was wondering what type of oil and filter yall would recommend for best performance and long engine life. I dont drive it like a maniac as this is my daily driver car. And another thing. Ive put just over 3000 miles on it since i purchased it and the oil life gauge in the car still says it has 60% oil life left?? How many miles should i go between oil changes or should i just go by what the gauge says? Any and all advice is welcomed.

**DirtDog** · 10-21-2012

i also forgot to mention the car has 43000 miles on it

**dsmuts** · 10-21-2012

I change mine every 3000 in my gtp with the cheapest oil and filter I can find

**stealthee** · 10-21-2012

With the way GXP's are known to eat oil I would use conventional. Oil changes and top offs will get expensive fast if you go with synthetic.

Also, don't go by the gauge. I basically drop 1% for every 100 miles driven. When I do my oil change at 5000 miles the gauge still says I have 50% oil life left. Oil gets contaminated by use as well as time, the gauge doesn't factor that, it only factors running conditions.

**jteske88** · 10-21-2012

i changed mine from the get go with synthetic, but ive put around 2k on it since then i have added around maybe 1/4 quart of oil.

**DirtDog** · 10-21-2012

Any performance differences with synthetic

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**jteske88** · 10-21-2012

if there is you prolly wont notice anyhting, prolly in my head seams like it runs smoother.

**The Guz** · 10-21-2012

Use whichever type you prefer but there are plenty of good deals on sythetic.

**Fivefingerdeathpunch** · 10-21-2012

Not to say I'm picking on you, but I am going to pick on you.

These questions are pretty common knowledge nowadays.

Run oil in the motor and change it.

The oil life monitor is never 100% right, ever.

Maybe this quote by me will help you figure some stuff out. Dont take this in a bad way, I'm just picking on you.

Originally Posted by Fivefingerdeathpunch

**DirtDog** · 10-21-2012

na im not taking that as picking on...actually all those links were kinda useful i read thru alot of them. and your probably right i should try searching around on here for topics more than i have been

**GMCustomerService** · 10-22-2012

marines542,

Your vehicle has a computer system that lets you know when to change the engine oil and filter. This is based on engine revolutions and engine temperature, and not on mileage. Based on driving conditions, the mileage at which an oil change will be indicated can vary considerably. For the oil life system to work properly, you must reset the system every time the oil is changed.

When the system has calculated that oil life has been diminished, it will indicate that an oil change is necessary. A CHANGE OIL SOON message will come on. Change the oil as soon as possible within the next 600 miles. It is possible that, if you are driving under the best conditions, the oil life system may not indicate that an oil change is necessary for over a year. However, the engine oil and filter must be changed at least once a year and at this time the system must be reset. Your dealer has GM-trained service people who will perform this work using genuine GM parts and reset the system. It is also important to check the oil regularly and keep it at the proper level.

If the system is ever reset accidentally, you must change the oil at 3,000 miles since the last oil change. Remember to reset the oil life system whenever the oil is changed.

I hope this information is useful. If you have additional questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me privately.

Louis
GM Customer Service

**DirtDog** · 11-15-2012

just going to throw this out there for the heck of it. I ended up using Valvoline SynPower Full Synthetic 5W-30. Its been running on it for a week now and theres nothing noticeably different at all with it. I am going to keep using this permanently for now. In 3000 miles im gonna change it just to try and get whats left of the non synthetic out then prolly go 5000 miles between oil changes. I know that the DIC pretty much would let me go between 8-10 thousand miles between changes but i just dont feel comfortable going that long with out changing it even if its made to.

**DirtDog** · 11-27-2012

Yea I knew it had to be reset...that wasn't the question I was asking. But doesn't matter

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**Buggsy** · 11-27-2012

I do changes every 6K with synthetic. I forgot to reset the monitor and the trip meter once. I left the trip meter running because it was more obvious for me to change again at 12K than some odd ball number like 4300 miles. Anyway, I ended pushing that oil change because I'd hurt my back. As I'm rolling over 14K on my trip meter, the Change Oil message finally appears on the DIC. I'd always wondered how long that would take to show up. I've always chickened out and changed the oil before the message came up. It took over 14K for that to show up. If I'd waited for 14K real miles, I'd have ended up topping off more than 4 quarts anyways!

I know what you're saying. I don't trust the oil monitor, and I never will.

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