Re: switching oil
Synth. do smoke a bit less, but some find the smoke smell more irritating. In theory the sync is supposed to offer better lubrication. This does not guarantee a longer engine life, if a part fails then they fail; but if all goes good you should get more hours prior to rebuilds; due to the superior film. I have a 1977 outboard for the past 6 years, myself and the owner prior only ran mineral based oil; it is still on its original build and still running good compression. Living on the 25 parallel (like your Miami) I run the engine weekly, most of the time offshore, not sure how many hours, but I would imagine heaps. Im not sure which oil base offers better residual protection. If you have several weeks between trips, I was told mineral oil keeps the film for longer, but hopefully someone one here will have facts to prove which one is better.<br /><br />So I guess for good oil there are 3 factors<br />1. Sheer factor whilst running<br />2. Smoke amount / smell<br />3. Time of protective coating whilst engine if left <br /><br />Sorry if I diverted too far from the original post.