First off I searched for 'Gas in oil' and 'Fuel in oil' with no results. I live very close to work and my car barely has a chance to warm up on the drive to/from work. I recently noticed while checking my oil that I smelled very strongly of raw fuel, of which I am sure is due to the number of short trips I have. The heart of my question is this: Does this have a detremental effect on the performance of my oil? On a related note, does it have any more or less effect on conventional vs synthetic???

 

No one knows? No one cares?

 

Doesn't sound normal to me. I know that there was a problem with water getting into the oil when driving it like you do, causing a milky white substance to form on the dipstick.

Change the oil, and take your car out for a ride more often. Drive it like you stole it when you do. If you've got a manual, redline it. If you have a sport shift automatic, redline it too, to blow all the carbon off your rotors.

 

Search for "fuel dilution".

Yes, excess fuel dilution is bad for lubrication. It not only decreases viscosity and flashpoint, but weakens the film strength of the oil.

As far as I know, conventional vs synthetic is immaterial. If you have excess fuel in the oil it needs to be corrected. If you run only short trips you should change your oil more frequently. If you really want to know how much fuel is present, you'll need to get a "used oil analysis".