Just bought my "new" 2002 Z28 convertible. Two questions - 1. This is an early (August 2001) car - the owner's manual doesn't mention synthetic oil anywhere. I believe regular 10W-30 has been used for the 32600 miles. Car runs fine - should I change to synthetic or leave well enough alone? 2. I pulled the dip stick out of the Coolant reservoir - looks like a beige paste substance on the end of the stick. Radiator coolant looks ok under the cap. Can the reservoir be sucked out? Don't want to flush this stuff through the engine - Thoughts or suggestions? Thanks - JPC

 

If you wanted to, you could suck the stuff out of the reservoir and refill it w/ good Dex. The gummy stuff is what happens when Dex Cool sees air. (correct me if I'm wrong).. It gums up. If under the cap is clean, with no sludge, your main coolant system is good. Just flush the reservoir, if you'd like. -No harm in it..

I allways run synthetic oil and a Mobil 1 filter in my baby (2k Z28). 10/30 or 5/30. depending on the season. It gets wicked hot here in the summer and I like to have the peace of mind that I have some of the best oil protecting the engine.

Hope that helps.

 

Use Dino or synth, it doesn't matter. Just so you have regular oil changes. If you want longer oil change intervals then run synth. People swear by many brands, just get what you feel comfortable with. Mobil 1 tends to need topping off more than other oils. For filters I use Wix, Delco, or even the walmart supertech.

W/just 32K miles I wouldn't worry about the coolant, but don;t let it go to the 150k limit either. 50 or 60k it all I'd let it go.

Change the trans and rear fluids also. Most people forget about them.

 

I've used the synthetic for years now and have seen much improvement in the "life of the car" as opposed to before when I was cheap and used regular.. definitely think the synthetic is worth the extra what $2 per qt

 

Had the same problem with the gummy substance in the resivoir when I bought mine. Just take your battery out and the resivoir comes right out. Then you can rinse it out and dump all the water and whatever you use to clean it out with right out of the resivoir with out having to suck it out. As for oil I always use Mobil 1. Why just because I know its a good brand and I trust their oil just go with what you want.