- Joined
- Jun 2, 2003
- Messages
- 23,591
Not if you want your rod bearings and cams to be happy.quote:
If I wanted to get the ultimate gas mileage from my econobox 1.8L BMW, would it be advisable to use a 0W-20 oil like M1?
Not if you want your rod bearings and cams to be happy.quote:
If I wanted to get the ultimate gas mileage from my econobox 1.8L BMW, would it be advisable to use a 0W-20 oil like M1?
How sure...?quote:
It isn't going to kill the engine....that's for sure.
I still don't understand your logic here. Why is it that you seem to think a thin oil is going to leave the engine more dirty than a thick oil would? And if anything, a good 5w20 or 0w20 should keep things even cleaner since chances are very good that it has little to no VII in it.quote:
Originally posted by Dr. T:
(sorry got cut off)
using this grade in temps over 30F, you will most likely get gradual increased consumption followed by carbon deposits on the rings, valve seals and stems, followed by sticking of the lifters, and accelerated wear of the pistons/walls, etc. which will DECREASE HP and acceleration. So is it really worth it? The process will begin immediately, but take about 60-100k to become noticeable with respect to the butt-meter...
EXACTLY! There is no long-term data to base any wear assumptions on using xW20. Every single Ford and Honda owner using xW20 is a long-term experiment in progress...quote:
So, I dread to see how long a 20 weight will hold up past the warranty period...
Dr T,quote:
Originally posted by Dr. T:
As was mentioned, it's probably safe to use this grade in extreme cold, but from experience in my 1994 DO NOT use this water-like grade in the summer. The most likely explanation I can come up with is that extreme heat will cook the oil in the engine and you will shorten engine life considerably. German cars are designed to last a very long time. However high speed, high rpm, 10k mi. intervals and water-like oil grades do not mix....trust me, the fuel economy or HP difference is not worth much. Use an A3 oil.
You are missing the point again Sir. There isn't much "burn off" if at all with a quality 20 wieght....as Patman stated, they don't contain a lot of VIIs. Castrol 5W-50 on the other hand, must be loaded with it.quote:
Originally posted by Dr. T:
Patman, it's called burn-off. VI's shearing and floating around are less of a concern to me than using an oil that will ultimately burn off along with it's encompassing VI's because one is using an oil that doesn't have the balls to take the heat.
I still don't understand your argument. My next door neighbor has almost 400,000km on his Sunbird, and has used nothing but 5w30 synthetic since new. It doesn't burn any oil. My wife's car is almost at 80,000km now, using nothing but 5w30 so far (and 0w30 right now) and her engine uses no oil between oil changes. There are many people on here who have used nothing but 5w30 or 10w30 since new and have no oil consumption issues, even with higher mileage. So if these people are getting no consumption, how is it they are going to end up with any problems?quote:
Originally posted by Dr. T:
It's like this. All oils have VI's. All oils will shear. All oils will thin out as they shear and then thicken as they become contaminated. However, if you start off with water-thin oils, you will get burn off and ensuing consumption. Where does the burnt oil go? Out the tailpipe? All of it?
But you always tell people no matter what car they drive, that a 30wt oil is too thin for them, you don't only mention this when German cars are being discussed. That's my point, even though I used this thread about BMWs to air my views on your thoughts.quote:
Originally posted by Dr. T:
Well, there you go then...
We are talking about BMW here...that was the original post hence, other cars manuf. aren't pertinent.
So then would you agree with my assertion that if you aren't seeing any consumption with a 5w30 or 0w30 oil, and your UOAs are showing good numbers too, then there is no reason to go with a thicker oil?quote:
Originally posted by Dr. T:
True I'm guilty of that. That's because I hate seeing consumption. I've had consumption with 5-30 in every car I've owned or had experience with...from 1.6L Honda's to 2.3L Fords to 4.6 DOHC V-8's to 6.0 V-12's. New or old.