0w30 vs 5w20

[Soundguy]

was doing a lil research on some of these oils and other 'energy savings' type oils.

have been reading some troubline issues with 5w20 in hot weather applications.


seen many situations where even with 3500m 'dealer' specified changes, people are seeing accelerated wear on engines and lube related (wear) failures in the 30-40k range.. and on larger engines in towing applications with extreme top end ( head / cam ) wear at 80-90k.

saw many recs to use a 0w30 vs a 5w20. was stated you are getting the lower cold pour point ( non issue ) and at temps.. actually seeing similar energy savings with 30 vs 20 due to reduced drag from wear


any opinions?

 

[dodge man]

I'm running 5w-20 in both my wifes 300C and my Challenger. Both have the 5.7 hemi and you don't really have a choice. To make the MDS run correctly (it switches to 4 cylinders), you have to run that weight oil. From what I've read on other forums, people aren't really having any problems with wear on the hemi. I also run synthetic in most of my stuff, but I don't know if that really makes any difference or not.

What engines are you hearing about early wear on?

 

[mjonesnh]

Running 2 Ford cars and a F-150 on the Motorcraft 5W-20 blend oil. No problems have shown up. The Fusion has 29,000 miles and the F-150 has 58,000. Temps were recently in the 105-110f range will no troubles apparent.

 

[greasemonkeyok]

Ford recommends 5w20 in my F150, but some of the time I run synthetic 10W30 when I can't find the 5w20 easily. Oil is not just for lubrication, it also cools. I'v read lubrication articles that say the synthetic 20 weight does a better job of cooling the internal engine parts.

 

[hank193]

Not sure if my experience relates. It does get hot here in Bama though. I run synthetic 5w -20 [Mobil 1] in my Toyotas {v-6s] and have for over 140K miles .Change oil and filters at 5-6 k miles. No issues and no noises. My tractors get Rotella 15w-40 turbo rated diesel stuff and so does all the 4 stroke small motors. . No problems noted .
Oil does several jobs ,as you know . Lubricates,cools [actually transfers heat] ,cleans [carries metal and byproducts crud to the filters/screens] , seals [around rings,etc] and prevents rust/sludge from forming inside due to moisture,acid formation. Oil is sooo much better now than in the old days !!
Old engines ,even when the old type, single weight,non detergent oils were changed, would produce a gunk and varnish that could destroy engines before 100 thousand miles on gassers. Diesel were better, but sludge still got them much quicker than today. Sorry to ramble on....

 

[Grateful11]

So far my wife has always used CaseIH No. 1 Diesel Oil 15W40 including the Kubota. She hasn't decided on what to use in the JD yet.

 

[Bob77064]

My 2007 Tundra 5.7 calls for 5W20 or 0W20. During the summer I use 5W20 and 0W20 during the winter. The Tundra has 108,200 miles ans has had no problems. Since 48,000 I have been using Mobil-1.

 

[Bob77064]

My 2007 Tundra 5.7 calls for 5W20 or 0W20. During the summer I use 5W20 and 0W20 during the winter. The Tundra has 108,200 miles and has had no problems. Since 48,000 I have been using Mobil-1.

 

[Soundguy]

interesting, thanks for the comments.

only info i have from the reading and rad program listed a f150 as the truck with top end issues, and I don't recall the car.

all were using non syn and non blended oils though.

 

[LD1]

When it comes to oils, the lower the first number is the better. That is simply how the oil performs at lower temps, not just pourability, but how well it gets where it is needed when the engine is cold. And even living in florida, 80 degrees is cold for an engine. A 0w-whatever oil will flow, when cold, roughly the same as a 40w oil does when hot.

A lot of people have a hard time grasping that 0w30 oil is NOT any thinner than a 5w30 or 10w30. Infact they are the SAME weight oils at operating temperature. And contrary to what alot of folks like to believe, the oil is STILL thicker (even 0w30) when it is cold.

The way I like to explain it is this: 0w30, 5w30, and 10w30 are all the same, it is just simply that the 0w oil doesnt thicken up as much when it cools off. Right now, 0w30 is about as close as you can get to not changing viscosity with temp fluctuations.

So, all that said, it is really just a matter of 20w vs 30w oil that is the issue. And sorry I cant help as I havent heard of the engine failures that you speak of. But what I do know is that I follow what the MFG calls for. Cause engines are designed (bearing clearences and such) with a specific weight oil in mind. If you go too thin, you wont have enough pressure to get everywhere it needs to be. If you go too thick, you will have good pressure, but maybe not enough flow to get to where it needs.