engine oil usage, oil consumption, 2006 dodge stratus

Mike
 About 18 months ago I changed my engine oil from conventional to full synthetic. I use Walmart brand full syn. 5W30,who the auto dept. at Walmart says that it is made by Mobil. Also I changed interval from 3,000 to 5,000 miles. Ever since the change over my engine has started to use oil about 1 qt. every 1500to2000 miles. My car is a 2006 Dodge Stratus 2.4L with currently 61,000 miles on it. Should I use a more well known brand of motor oil or go back to conventional?

Answer
    I take it that before the change your engine was using oil at a slower rate.  Any car maker will tell you that 1500 to 2000 miles is well within the allowable limits for oil consumption.  Synthetic oil is going to leave the engine quicker than regular oil, and changing back would probably slow down the rate of consumption.  To keep the good qualities of synthetic without having to buy so many replacement quarts you might want to switch to a 10W30 or even a 20W50 synthetic.  This would almost surely decrease your oil consumption.  I wouldn't do this if you live in one of the northern tier of states, at least not in the winter, but any other time it should do you a world of good.
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