Mobil 1

[Andy Rodgett]

I usually buy 2x5l Mobil 1 from Halfords when suitably discounted and take them to my dealership for the cars annual oil change or service but as only 9 litres are required I am ending up with a number of 1litre amounts in the larger containers.
My question is simply when does the oil (now effectivley open to the air) begin to degrade and at what point should it be disposed of?
I also used to carry a sealed single litre of oil when abroad and when does this also need replacing ie after 1,2 or 3yrs?

Andy

 

[majorporsche]

I would love to be able to give you a scientific answer, but cant ! We will wait for a real expert to come on here. In the meantime, IMHO the sealed 1 ltr bottle would last for ever almost, and the opened ones, I'm assuming you decant the remaining litres into a 5 ltr bottle and try to fill it as far as possible over many oil changes, IMHO that should last a few years at least. What's to deteriorate in Fully Synthetic Oil ?

 

[guitarplayer63]

I wish my oil lasted long enough to have this problem!

I get the oil from Costco (under £30) for 5 litres. The litre that's left over doesnt last that long, I put in probably 1/3rd of a litre every 1,000 miles (it's a 997.2 DFi engine).

From the Mobil 1 website I found this specific answer:

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Car_Care/AskMobil/Shelf_Life_Opened_Bottles_Mobil_1.aspx

An 8-month-old oil, even opened, should work well in your engine. As long as the bottle is capped and kept dry, the product is safe to use for up to 5 years. Keeping it cool and dry are the key conditions to control degradation and additive drop-out.

Hope this helps!