15w-50 M1 in a 4 banger

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I was just wondering about this my buddy has a Chevy s10 with a 2.2L ohv 4cly and he runs 15w-50 m1 ep that seems way to much for the engine considering it calls for 5w-30 and the owners manual say not to use anything thicker than a 10w-30 (such as a 20w-50)
 
Originally Posted By: Zaedock
The ironic thing, is that his vehicle will probably outlast ours.

yeah its got 250K on it I think he said he put it in it starting at 80K r so

You would think the oil would be to thick to get between the piston and cly. wall causing wear unit the oil could get in there
 
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Uh oh,the CAFE police are gonna get him! How dare he use M1 15W50 to reach 250k on that motor......shame! :^P
 
250K on a 2.2L GM four which isn't a paragon of refinement and efficiency? Heck, I'd use just about anything. M1 15-50 is more than good enough for that thing.

He's probably taking better care of it than most people with nicer, more expensive trucks. Tell your buddy I salute him.
 
^^I agree with bretfraz

M1 15W50 is an excellent oil. It`s not as thick as most people seem to think. That engine will probably last forever on that oil.
 
If it's acceptable to use that grade of oil in the climate he operates the vehicle in, I suppose he can.
 
Isn't there a guy on here that says he uses M1 15w-50 in all his vehicles and has like over 200k miles on each of them?
 
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
^^I agree with bretfraz

M1 15W50 is an excellent oil. It`s not as thick as most people seem to think. That engine will probably last forever on that oil.


Agreed.
 
Originally Posted By: CharlieJ
Isn't there a guy on here that says he uses M1 15w-50 in all his vehicles and has like over 200k miles on each of them?


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That would be me. I put M1 15W-50 in my wife's Cavalier the day it came home from the dealer in December of 1998. It now has 209,XXX miles, is daily driven. I put M1 15W-50 in my 1986 Toyota with the 2.4L I4 engine at 40,000 miles. It now has 301,000 miles and is still in use, hard use. If we go back to 1990, when I started to use M1 15W-50, and nothing else, in every vehicle that me, my wife, my two daughter and their husbands have, or have had, we average 198,xxx miles per vehicle, with 3 of them over 200,000 and another that will likely go over 200,000 in the next month. There was in this group a 1.5l Kia, a 1.5L Mitsubishi, and a 1.8L Aveo. We have just over 2,000,000 miles since 1990, if you let me count the Toyota.
 
15W-50 will work fine in his (and my) motor, but is not optimal...

I personally wouldn't use anything heavier than 10W-30 in it since there is no need. If he really is intent on using syn, he'd be much better off running M1 10W-30 High Mileage in the summer, which almost surely is a PAO/Group IV based oil since it flows at -65F, yet is one of the thickest 10W-30s at operating temp...

Mine seems to run just a touch quicker using 5W-30 over 10W-30 (MaxLife in both weights). It also did very well with Pennzoil Platinum 5W-30 in it...
 
Feh!

HTHS is only 4.5, and it will no doubt shear a few points with use. The bearings, pistons, rings, etc. will barely notice a
Barring extreme cold weather, M1 15-50 won't hurt a thing. The stuff is designed for flat tappet applications, with significantly more Phos/Zinc and, AFAIK, Boron, than most other M1 mixes. I've got a small stash of EP, and add a Qt to the usual 10w30 my Accord runs. It also gets used as a mid-change top off, about 1/2 qt at 4K.

It's a shame Mobil will be discontinuing the oil in May; I've set aside one of my $10 rebate forms in the hopes of snagging some at closeout prices.

Having said all that, I've got to admit that I'd be a little shy of using it straight. I wouldn't lose too much sleep running 100%, but would prefer to throw in a Qt of 0W20 if filling my Honda. :)
 
Would 15W-50 be used typically for diesel applications? I always see varying brands of diesel application 15W-40 for sale, and it makes me wonder if the oil would have any use in a normal gasoline car.
 
the 2.2L runs forever with maintenance. it's not refined and the piston slap you have to get used to. I got 162k on my 2.2 OHV and I just topped off with 15w-40 mobil delvac SL
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