- Joined
- Aug 27, 2020
- Messages
- 2
You will be ok 
2013 Sienna dealer put in wrong weight
- Thread starter DanielinTheLions
- Start date
Bearing clearances for your engine didn't change at all. I would bet on it. In fact, there has been no significant change in bearing clearances for 20 years.
The BS that is spouted that lighter oil is needed for the tighter tolerances of modern engines, is just that, BS. Will the car run fine on 0W-20? Yes, but it will run equally well on 5W-30.
Tight Engine Tolerances Change Lubrication Needs
One quote I’ve seen lately in the field of automotive lubrication is “. . . due to tighter manufacturing tolerances . . .”. In this magazine and others, I have seen this phrase appear in articles...
www.machinerylubrication.com
This article is incorrect. He is off by a factor of TEN on his clearance range !Bearing clearances for your engine didn't change at all. I would bet on it. In fact, there has been no significant change in bearing clearances for 20 years.
The BS that is spouted that lighter oil is needed for the tighter tolerances of modern engines, is just that, BS. Will the car run fine on 0W-20? Yes, but it will run equally well on 5W-30.
Tight Engine Tolerances Change Lubrication Needs
One quote I’ve seen lately in the field of automotive lubrication is “. . . due to tighter manufacturing tolerances . . .”. In this magazine and others, I have seen this phrase appear in articles...
The clearance range (tolerance) have - for over a Century - measured from a bit below one-thousandth of an inch to a bit over
two and one half thousandths for pressure lubricated plain bearings. ( 0.0007 > 0.0027" )
The larger clearances, demanding a more viscous oil (and higher oil volume - NOT pressure) are spec'd in
very high power density (KW/L) engines which subject reciprocating parts to high angular velocity and jerk/jolt loads.
These will induce harmonic resonances and flexing of the crank ( and block) in which it will not run true in certain instances.
Designing plain shell bearings for a less viscous lubricant an the concomitant reduced min oil film thickness would typically increase the bearing length (and possibly diameter) to increase the loading surface AREA.
Then there are considerations for low mass Forged pistons with slipper skirts, hydraulic lash adjuster bleed-down rate, Chain tensioner loading, oil pump and drain back rate, and valve control lubrication.
- Ken
Perfectly fine logic there moving forward!!!
Thicker oil flows more slowly. If you compare viscosity at 40C, a 5w- is about 1/3 more viscous.
The 0W20 runs off the dipstick as you pull it out. So when it's out you can actually see the reading changing on the dipstip. Then when you wipe it stick it back in and pull it out again the dipstick has oil all up and down it from what ran off on the first pull plus you can see the reading changing again. It can be madening to try to figure out the actual level.
I use Mobil1 5W30 EP in my Sienna.
Here is last year UOA:
So does 5W30. It is dipstick material.
Dump a cup of ARCO Graphite in the 710 hole, now cant miss that inky black on the stick!
Then you mechanic will pull the DS and say, "man your oil is dirty - past due for an OC, buddy!"
0w20 is almost always a synthetic oil while the 5w30 could be conventional oil. I wouldn't run the full prescribed 10,000 miles OCI on unknown 5w30 but instead 5k miles.
Probably slides off the dipstick too easy. I'd be worried that there isn't sufficient dipstick protection using 0W20.
It is not weight. It is dipstick material and color of it. While oil is new, it is pretty much transparent on that dipstick. Once oil becomes darker, it will be easier to read.