Dodge Intrepid 2.7.If u owned 1.Had u used synthetic oil since new & still had...

[Victor]

...the engine fail due to sludge..? I just wondered:.... if there were anyone who had one since almost new or new that had an Intrepid with a 2.7 & Still had the engine fail due to sludge even after using synthetic mostly.

I have a 1999 Dodge Intrepid 2.7- I am using Castrol Syntec in it at the moment & used Mobil 1 before as well.......and it has 58,000miles/ 94,000km on it. The original owner was a family member who did oil changes every 3,000miles/5000km but I doubt they used synthetic. So I wonder if it will still sludge or not......any thoughts?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When they designed these things they made the oil galleries to small.....and cuz of the hood & grill shape not as much air gets in to cool the intrepids as it should. Which is why the need for synthetic to beat the heat

It runs fine & Cool enough for the temp guage. I am actually less concerned about the oil sludge problem being as I am using synthetic rather than I am more worried about the when the timing belt does & will fail and goodbye engine. I know all about the problems of these cars & it's our spare car we bought it cheap so I'll prob just run it till it blows being as it's hard to find anyone who will buy them even if the car is mint.
CARCOMPLAINTS.com

Link below shows all about the problems these poorly engineered cars had.

http://www.carcomplaints.com/Dodge/Intrepid/1999/engine/index.shtml
mdcbert - ya thanx for not answering my question and posting information about synthetic oils from another website.

 

[mdcbert]

The number one reason for oil changes is to prevent the formation of sludge. It's important to understand how sludge forms and how sludge formation is prevented.

How Sludge is Prevented
Additive in the detergent oils 'wash' any contaminant particles off of internal engine parts and hold these particles in suspension until the oil is changed. It's important to understand that these particles are too small to cause engine wear, but they do turn the oil a darker color. The key thing is to change the oil before the oil becomes too saturated with contaminants to hold any more, but color is not an indication of this condition.

How Sludge Forms
As explained above, modern detergent oils suspend contaminants so they do not settle on engine parts and form sludge. When the oil becomes saturated with contaminant particles new particles settle out of the oil onto the internal engine parts and form sludge. This is why it is so critical to perform oil changes before this level of contamination is reached. Remember that the contaminants come from the combustion process of the gasoline and and the air. Synthetic oil will not prevent these contaminants. Synthetics may be marginally better at suspending more contaminant particles, but not enough to prolong oil changes by much.

Oil change intervals with synthetic oil
Synthetic oils withstand higher temperatures before breaking down, and have more base stock and less viscosity modifiers. Synthetics wear out, become acidic, and eventually become saturated with suspended soot particles, just like regular oil.

Synthetic oil was originally developed for high performance racing engines. Mobil tried to popularize synthetic oil for passenger vehicles back in the early 1970's. At the time, Mobil was promoting 20K or 25K oil changes with synthetic, but they soon backed down from this. Synthetic oil is a good choice if you have a vehicle with a high performance engine (in fact synthetic is required for many of these engines). It is also a good choice if your vehicle is operated in extremely cold climates. It has higher resistance to breakdown caused by heat and it flows better in extreme cold. Unfortunately for the synthetic oil industry there is virtually no advantage to using synthetic oil in a non-high performance engine that is operated in moderate climates. You probably could go a bit longer between oil changes with a synthetic, i.e. following the normal service schedule even if you fall into the severe service category, but I wouldn't advise this. In short, synthetic may give you the peace of mind of knowing that you are using an oil that is far better than necessary for your vehicle, but it won't reduce wear or extend the life of the engine. The mistake some people make it to wrongly extrapolate these benefits onto normal engines operated in mild climates, with the ultimate lack of any knowledge being manifested with statements such as "synthetics provide 'Peace of Mind,' or 'Cheap Insurance,'" or other such nonsense.

Never use a non-API certified synthetic oil (there are many of these on the market). The problem with the non-API certified synthetics is that they contain too much phosphorus (in the form of the additive ZDDP (Zinc Dialkyl Dithiophosphates)). The API has limited the amount of phosphorus because phosphorus shortens the life of the catalytic converter. These oils are fine for snowmobiles, motorcycles, and older cars that don't have a catalytic converter, and the extra ZDDP does provide additional wear protection. Unfortunately, the marketers of some the non-certified oils do not explicitly and honestly state the reason for the lack of API certification. You can check the status of API certification on the API web site. Be certain to go not just by the manufacturer name but by the actual product as well. This is because a manufacturer will sometimes have both certified and non-certified products. Suffice it to say that Mobil 1, Royal Purple, Castrol, & Havoline all make synthetic oils that are API certified and that can be purchased at auto parts stores and other retail outlets. Amsoil has one product line, XL-7500 that is API certified, but it's other lines contain too much ZDDP to be certified and should not be used in vehicles with catalytic converters.