Ill just go ahead and start with cliff notes:


2003 G35 coupe 6MT
Bought the car @132K now at 135K
Developed a slight clicking noise from engine as RPMs climbed above 3k (as of now, I am blaming this on the oil)
Burnt about a quart since date of purchase
Currently using synthetic 5w30


My question: is there a better oil type I can be using?

 

yes there are differences between synthetic oil brands. but i would definitely not attribute the clicking purely to the oil. if it is burning oil you need to figure out what its from. take out your coil packs and check your valve covers, if there are pools of oil in any of the spark plug wells replace your valve covers.

 

Interesting, Ill pull out the packs and plugs to take a look.

 

though the clicking could be something else as well

 

I switched from AMSOIL 5W/30 back to Mobil1 10W/30 and don't use less than a quart between changes! Keep a close eye on your oil level along with changing the oil/filter more frequently than Nissan advises. Clicking noise continues, take it in for a closer inspection...GCoffin

 

Nissan recommends conventional oil for the VQ for this exact reason. it's an issue of valve clearances. Try Castrol Magnatec if you feel like you must use something synthetic. It's a semi syn that I've had good luck with. Motors are designed for specifics; using synthetic oil is like using premium gas; just cuz a company markets it as "better" doesn't mean it's better for ALL applications.

 

I had good experience with castrol as well

 

Try replacing the plugs. I used to have a click in my engine for quite some time and I replaced the plugs and it went away.

 

I am a big fan of going the conventional route. As Scraggle mentioned the DE motor was designed for it and I haven't seen any benefit with synthetic ever. I just use a high mileage oil and my consumption has gone down a bit but it's still significant. And this is on an 05 5AT.

 

Just bought some 5w30 conventional high mileage oil and new oil filter. Will do the oil change this weekend.


Narrowed the clicking down to the releasing of the gas pedal.


By this I mean when throttle is applied there is no clicking, but when I begin to release the throttle the clicking noise initiates and ends when the throttle is fully released.