Have you checked the oil level? Oil type shouldn't make such a noticeable difference in pressure. I've checked mine with a mechanical gauge with both conventional and much thinner full syn (lower weight). No pressure difference.

 

Oil level is fine so far, its only been 3 days since i changed it. The guy at the parts store where i bought the oil said it was a bad idea but i ignored him Lol...He did mention i should run a synthetic oil filter too if i was going to start running synthetic oil?

 

Conventional oil is fine. As others said, Dodge never specified synthetic oil. I'm at almost 200k with conventional and still go 5000+ without adding (5w-30).

BS on the synthetic filter.

A bit related, my folks were using M1 on their vehicle. It leaked like a sieve. Going back to another oil stopped the leaks. I'm not knocking M1, I've used it in other vehicles.

 

Thanks for all the information i appreciate it!

 

I changed my oil shortly after my post and went back to conventional oil. The smoking at start up and under hard acceleration has tapered off, the engine ticking is completely gone and my oil pressure is back up to the mark before high on the gauge again .

So for my personal experience with synthetic oil was horrible! A huge waste of money and I really do believe if I would have kept running it engine damage would have occurred, again I'm saying this is just my personal opinion after switching from conventional oil to synthetic oil.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE !

 

Guess I missed this thread. A Small tidbit on Synthetics - They tend to contain cleaning agents. As these cleaning agents do their job removing sludge and such, "small gaps" now become "large gaps" and thus you end up with all kinds of wild things - even at the same viscosity rating.

I was always told to never switch from conventional to synth. Either stay conventional, or start as synth and go back to conventional if ever required.

TL;DR - Stick with one type.

 

You are exactly right and i should of done more research. I found some pretty convincing testimonials from people being told to switch from a conventional oil to a synthetic oil, even semi-synthetic like i did. The cleaning properties in synthetic oil cleaned or loosened particles in the engine clogging oil passages, oil pumps ect...My Dakota has really low miles but still, synthetic obviously was a big No-No.
I know there are people that have no problem with this switch from conventional to synthetic but man i sure did! They also said never switch from a conventional oil to synthetic in a high mile vehicle.

 

I've been using M1 5w-30 for years and never had a problem. How often have you changed your oil before you switched?

 

I haven't owned the truck very long but i purchased it from the original owner which kept meticulous maintenance records from the dealership and he had the oil changed every 2500 miles i believe. He always used conventional oil. I just recently switched to synthetic which is when all the problems started. I plan on keeping the 2500 mile oil change regiment. A Tech at the Ram Ranch said that in reality most oils start braking down after 2000 miles but are filled with so many additives they can be stretched out between changes.

 

I can't personally comment on the Mobil 1 product but I have seen they have a huge customer complaint base. Everything from engine's grenading to horrible customer service. The majority of the people said Mobile 1 was so popular because of the advertising hype years ago or people just wanted to tell their buddies "I use Mobile 1" because it is an overpriced oil. You will always have good and bad reviews for anything we purchase but i have heard more horror stories about Mobile 1 than good.