The confusion about what oil to use comes from people’s car usage and opinions. Of course, the car manufacturers will state the recommended oil to be used for their specific Dodge Charger.
However, there will be a handful of people with extensive automobile experience. For those people, they can go against certain recommendations because they have decades’ worth of experience and they know confidently which oils would best suit their lifestyle.
And that is the key. It suits their lifestyle. Even if they are wrong about their choice, it’s a lesson learned to move forward with. Newer drivers or people who are not aware of the intricate history of car oil performance would follow the manufacturer’s recommendations until they develop a high interest in cars.
Typically, a 4 cylinder passenger car will use conventional oil compared to muscle cars with V6 or V8 engines, which will use full synthetic motor oil.
However, you need to keep in mind of which engine you purchased with your Dodge Charger.
Older engines prior to 2006, are definitely smaller and drastically different from even engines made the the last decade.
So, in this article, we will discuss the best types of oils for your Dodge Charger and whether or not you should get synthetic or conventional motor oil.
Best Oils for Dodge Chargers
For seventh generation Dodge Chargers (2011-present), SXT/GT/RT versions with a 3.6L V6 or 5.7L V8, it is recommended to purchase either the Pennzoil Full Synthetic 5W20 Oil or Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 5W20 Oil.
For Hellcat/Scat Pack versions with a 6.2L V8 or 6.4L V8, it is recommended to purchase the Pennzoil Ultra Platinum Full Synthetic 0W40 Oil. A more economical version for the 0W40 oil is the Mobil 1 FS European Car Full Synthetic 0W40 Oil.
A sixth generation Dodge Charger (2006-2010) follow similar, but a different set of oil changing rules.
For a sixth generation Dodge Charger with a 2.7L V6 and 5.7L V8 engine, it is recommended to purchase a SAE 5W20 synthetic oil. For a 2006-2010 Dodge Charger SXT with a 3.5L V6 engine, it was recommended to purchase SAE 10W30 synthetic oil, Pennzoil Full Synthetic 10W30 Oil. The 6.1L V8 Hemi SRT8 Hellcats used SAE 0W40 synthetic oil.
After conducting my research of fan favorites along with checking manufacturing recommendations, it’s safe to say that Pennzoil is by far the more popular and used brand.
However, this does not mean that Mobil 1 isn’t shown any love. There are plenty of Dodge Charger lovers that are taking care of their babies with Mobil 1 synthetic oil as well. Royal Purple is the 3rd most popular brand but it’s not as popular as Pennzoil and Mobil 1. Royal Purple does produce its own 5W20, 10W30, and 0W40 oils
With older Dodge Charger versions, many manuals and operation booklets are not currently uploaded online. With much older non V8 engines, it is recommended to use conventional oil. Do not use any mixtures.
It is also well-regarded that synthetic oils leak in older, higher mileage engines since older engines are not adapted with synthetic lubricants. Unless the engine was rebuilt or had been using synthetic oil during its entire lifetime, conventional oil would be the go-to option here.
Dodge Chargers By Engine type
Typically, seventh generation Dodge Chargers will have 4 engine types. Technically, only the 6.2L V8 and 6.4L V8 engines require a synthetic oil. However, many Dodge Charger owners are very satisfied with the performance using 5W20 oil and have not looked back.
- 3.6L V6 (SXT/GT) – SAE 5W – 20, holding 5.9 quarts
- 5.7L V8 (RT) – SAE 5W – 20, holding 7 quarts
- 6.2L V8 (SRT Hellcat Widebody/ Hellcat Redeye Widebody) – SAW 0W – 40, holding 7 quarts
- 6.4L V8 (Scat Pack/ Scat Pack Widebody) – SAW 0W – 40, holding 7 quarts
Is synthetic oil worth it dodge charger?
Why should you use the correct oil for your engine? For example, if you own a 2017 3.6L V6 Dodge Charger GT, why should you use 5W20?
Using the correct oil is required for operation of the multiple displacement system (MDS). Any other oil can be used but will disable the MDS.
The MDS is used to help improve your vehicle’s fuel economy. Using the best oil available will give you piece of mind when about your engine’s health and longevity, at least in terms of oil lubrication and consumption.
Now, there is some discussion on whether or not you should use conventional versus synthetic oil. Is it worth the extra cost of a more pure and higher quality motor oil?
Again, only the 6.2L V8 and 6.4L V8 engines require synthetic oil. Customers are free to choose whether or not they want to use conventional or synthetic oil for their Dodge Chargers.
While some people opt to go for the conventional oil, seeing practically no functional difference, most Dodge Charger owners will pick the higher quality synthetic oil as part of their expenses of owning a beautiful muscle car. There is also a train of thought that the more expensive, premium oil will protect your car for longer versus using regular conventional oil, essentially sealing your car’s fate when it reaches over 100k+ miles.
Can you mix 5w20 and 0w40 oils?
There is no harm in mixing conventional 5W20 oils with 0W40 synthetic oils. However, the impurities from the conventional oil will affect the performance and quality of the synthetic oil.
Especially with a Dodge Charger, you do not want to mix your conventional oils with synthetic oils. Oil is relatively cheap and it ensures that your engine is healthy.
Why save a couple of bucks when you already have a Dodge Charger to take care of?
Conclusion
Most likely, you will run into a sixth or seventh generation Dodge Charger that requires an oil change.
Asides from the type of oil you should use for your Dodge Charger, it used to be recommended that oil changes happen after every 3,000 miles. With better oil lubricants, having an oil change every 5,000-8,000 miles is also very common now.With so many competitors also aggressively pricing down the cost to purchase oil, it makes owning a Dodge Charger a little cheaper… every little cost counts!
