2001 Ford Taurus calls for 5w20 but i put 5w30

Correct me if I am wrong, but assume the time the car was under warranty. I was always under the impression - or read or saw, regarding this subject matter - that Ford would deny your warranty claim ? if it was found out that you used

5W-20 in a 5W-30 application
or vice versa. 5W-30 in a 5W-20 application
Regardless of what was spec'd "the year before"

Again, if I am wrong, please specify, I am here to learn as well as un-learn mistruths.
mrlawnguy is accurate in his response that the Ford would have to test the oil, but even then, oil grades have a range. There are some 5w-30's that start out on the thin side of a xW-30 and can end up in xW-20 range with use. For the most part, the bigger concern is whether or not it was changed recently and isn't outside of the recommended interval

Yes, Ford could deny the claim, but with the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, Ford would have to prove that the non-recommended oil grade caused the issue to be able to deny the claim, otherwise they would need to disregard that fact, or they would need to provide the specific oil grade for free. Some OE's, like Hyundai have pretty wide spreads in the oil viscosity they recommend depending on the temperature. Others just say "use this one, it's fine for all".
 
5w-30 is fine to use.

With the increased pressure of CAFE legislation around 1999-2000, Ford changed a number of vehicle's oil specifications from 5w-30 to 5w-20 without any changes to the engines themselves to get an increase in fleet MPG's to help avoid fines.

With Taurus' being a popular fleet vehicle like Crown Victoria's, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that some had been filled up with 15w-40 diesel oil.
Yes, for the Vulcan engine, the owners manual for the 2000 model year specified 5w30. For the 2001 model year it specified 5w20 and kept that until they stopped making them.
 
Correct me if I am wrong, but assume the time the car was under warranty. I was always under the impression - or read or saw, regarding this subject matter - that Ford would deny your warranty claim ?
Read just about any owner's manual and try and find a statement like "this engine requires XW-XX viscosity engine oil". I don't think you'll find many.... "Recommended" or "preferred" or other loose words like that are what they use.

I can't say what Ford manuals indicated in 2001 but more modern ones recommend engine oils that meet various Ford specs. Again, recommended.
 
If a dealer, repair shop, or quick lube place did this, there'd be screaming demands by people telling you to take it back and make them replace it with the "right" oil though !! :ROFLMAO:
 
My car calls for 5W20 but i figured its ok to use 5W30? Its summer here so i thought it would benefit using the 30 instead of 20. Its a 2001 Ford Taurus 3.0 v6 with 127K miles and i put the Castrol High Mileage Syn Blend 5W30 in it. what do you guys think is better to use?
5W30 is just a bit more viscous than 5W20.
Use your senses.
How did the engine respond and sound with the 5W30?
Have you checked the gas mileage yet? Did it take a hit?

I had some newer cars that didnt like a 5W30:
(2001 Bullitt modular) ,
2011 Ford Ranger with a Duratec 2.3
Toyota Yaris stick with VVTi, among others

But I don't think any harm would be done. They just get a bit soggy and sluggish.

So, OP. How did it run with the 5W30?
 
Read just about any owner's manual and try and find a statement like "this engine requires XW-XX viscosity engine oil". I don't think you'll find many.... "Recommended" or "preferred" or other loose words like that are what they use.

I can't say what Ford manuals indicated in 2001 but more modern ones recommend engine oils that meet various Ford specs. Again, recommended.
See, use of the word recommended is also why some people like to say to not buy any fluid that is not OE. Transmission or multi-fluids come to mind.

They say, that is only recommended. For the Manufacturer Only crowd. This is why I threw my hat in the ring with Motorcraft 5W-20 with the LTC motor oil thread.
 
5W30 is just a bit more viscous than 5W20.
Use your senses.
How did the engine respond and sound with the 5W30?
Have you checked the gas mileage yet? Did it take a hit?

I had some newer cars that didnt like a 5W30:
(2001 Bullitt modular) ,
2011 Ford Ranger with a Duratec 2.3
Toyota Yaris stick with VVTi, among others

But I don't think any harm would be done. They just get a bit soggy and sluggish.

So, OP. How did it run with the 5W30?
Let me just repeat, they get soggy and sluggish going from a 5W-20 to a 5W-30?
 
Read just about any owner's manual and try and find a statement like "this engine requires XW-XX viscosity engine oil". I don't think you'll find many.... "Recommended" or "preferred" or other loose words like that are what they use.

I can't say what Ford manuals indicated in 2001 but more modern ones recommend engine oils that meet various Ford specs. Again, recommended.
Well on the 2001 Taurus that I had, it did have 5w20 right on the oil fill cap. I wanted better gas mileage anyway so I used 5w20. Others want to protect the engine. Protect the engine from what? The transmission will probably go before the engine. My engine was fine when the transmission went at a little over 200k. Torque converter actually. Wasn't worth replacing.
 
Well on the 2001 Taurus that I had, it did have 5w20 right on the oil fill cap. I wanted better gas mileage anyway so I used 5w20. Others want to protect the engine. Protect the engine from what? The transmission will probably go before the engine. My engine was fine when the transmission went at a little over 200k. Torque converter actually. Wasn't worth replacing.
Protect the engine from.... themselves.
 
Manufacturers are required to strongly encourage the use of the oil grade that was used to obtain their CAFE credits, someone here posted an actual CAFE award letter and a described how this is necessary.
Seems I cannot upload the PDF :-(
 
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Others want to protect the engine. Protect the engine from what? The transmission will probably go before the engine. My engine was fine when the transmission went at a little over 200k. Torque converter actually. Wasn't worth replacing.
Exactly, it was a few years before this penny dropped for me
 
I read online that your engine can be damaged and other stuff can happen if your car calls for 5w20 and u put 5w30=

Due to the increased resistance of the thicker 5W-30 oil, your engine will produce slightly lower fuel economy and horsepower output. You also risk engine damage when using 5W-30 instead of 5W-20, as the internal engine components are specifically designed to be used with 5W-20 motor oil.

is this true?
My car calls for 5w-20 but I use everything from 5w-30 to 10w-40, even with dual continuously variable valve timing and everything it runs just fine. 5w-20 may give you an extra 1% fuel economy but it also may cause extra wear especially if you really drive it hard.
 
You also risk engine damage when using 5W-30 instead of 5W-20, as the internal engine components are specifically designed to be used with 5W-20 motor oil.

is this true?
No, it's not true. Engine clearances have essentially been the same for 50+ years. Pull out service manuals for a GM or Ford from 1971 and 2021 and compare clearances like journal bearings, piston to cylinder, etc.
 
I use 10w40 in Ford 4 cylinders of the same era that specs 5w20. One of them has about 210K miles. I'm also using 10w40 in my '16 Nissan Versa that specs 5w30. I had 518K miles on an '88 Ford Escort when I retired it, It spec'd 5w30 I used 10w40 in it with no problems. I started using 10w40 when I bought my first car in the 1970's, it has never caused any issues and my engines last well. I don't see any reason to change what isn't broken.
 
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