5w20 instead of 0w20

[fdcg27]

You could also stock up on Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy and PP in the 0W-20 grade for just over $22 a change, and Quaker State Ultimate Durability at just over $20 a change.
You could also register for both the QS and Pennzoil engine warranty deals and get yourself twenty dollar MIRs on both Quaker State Ultimate Durability and Pennzoil Platinum 0w20s.

 

[TiredTrucker]

If a person is in such an extreme cold that it required the use of the 0w20, then an oil pan heater would be a wise investment. Cheap, easy to install, low power demand, and the oil is nice an warm at cold startup. Not sure why these are not more popular. I have put them on every vehicle, commercial truck, and ag equipment engine I have owned since 1982. Nice to have full pressure right at start up even at -30. Then it wouldn't matter if the OP used a 5w20. With the pan heaters on my stuff, even a 15w40 in my heavy diesel engines flows like as smooth as on a cool summer morning at -30F. Makes the little 3 cylinder diesel in a compact tractor start great with 15w40 that has been sitting in the shed for a couple of weeks without being run, again, even at -30F.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I got all you thin people beat. I just now filled my crankcase up with Wahl clipper oil.

I heard that's really repackaged SuperTech 10w30 synthetic.

 

[simple_gifts]

Originally Posted By: 01_celica_gt
Originally Posted By: timeau
Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I got all you thin people beat. I just now filled my crankcase up with Wahl clipper oil.

I've got a gallon of 85w-140 so ...

And this is almost same viscosity as 10W40. So you missed this time ;-)

huh?


Nuh uh.

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/viscosity-charts/

 

[John_Conrad]

i agree oil pan heaters are nice, but you better have electric power to run them besides at home,,,for example at work and any where else your vehicle is going to be starting in very cold temperatures with thick oil...

i'm in the midwest and jan feb and march can be brutal cold with days not likely over 0 degrees. I leave home in the minus temps and have to start car at work late at night once again in the minus digits. I adjust my oil thickness accordingly to the expected temps. now..
I used to run a oil heater when I lived in Nebraska, but i could not plug in at work and therefore ended up running thinner oil. Did not want to chance running oil pan heater after that on thin oil, thinking it may cook it.

just a few thoughts for food if that makes any sense

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: HKPolice
Not worth it. A 5 quart jug of 0w20 full synthetic is only ~$25 in the USA, is saving $5 a change worth it??

Exactly.
Aside from the fact that the 5W-20 is not the recommended grade and is an inferior lubricant to the princibly synthetic 0W-20 grade, some people just can't resist saving a few bucks on the initial cost of the oil. If you add up all the benefits of running the recommended 0W-20 grade, I think you'll find it's false economy to use the lower performance 5W-20 oil.

 

[Bloodknights]

I see no problems with your choice.considering that when your driving down the road at your operating temperature it's a 20 grade right.so if my public education serves me right,a 5w is much smaller then the 20 and will have no problems pumping through the oil passage ways and tube designed for a 20 grade.the so called fuel economy that u get from a 0w last about two or three blocks when the oil is warming up and is no longer a 0w anymore.

 

[wemay]

If 5w20 shows as an option in the OM, it is performance enough for the mfr and thus, enough for the vehicle owner not to worry about its use. More importantly, it would be in 'black & white' as opposed to suggestions from BITOGers based on insignificant, marginal performance differences seen in lab tests. Or put a different way, performance insignificant enough to still list 5w20 as another option to 0w20. We often time create chasms between products where none is proven exist in the real world of driving to get groceries or to a restaurant etc.

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: wemay
If 5w20 shows as an option in the OM, it is performance enough for the mfr and thus, enough for the vehicle owner not to worry about its use. More importantly, it would be in 'black & white' as opposed to suggestions from BITOGers based on insignificant, marginal performance differences seen in lab tests. Or put a different way, performance insignificant enough to still list 5w20 as another option to 0w20. We often time create chasms between product where none is proven exist in the real world of driving to get groceries or to a restaurant etc.

The difference between a 5W-20 and a 0W-20 is not "insignificant" especially if you compare an OEM 0W-20 with a 5W-20 which can be more than 50% lighter at 32F and 35% at room temperature. That's about double the viscosity difference between a 5W-20 and a 5w30 grade at those temp's. And even your typical OTC aftermarket 0W-20 will still be a good 20% lighter at 32F and 10% lighter at room temp's and that's not mentioning the other benefits of the synthetic 0W-20 grade.

 

[wemay]

Although i see and understand your point, in the real world, either allowable viscosity will get you to 300k miles with proper maintenance.

 

[Shannow]

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
The difference between a 5W-20 and a 0W-20 is not "insignificant" especially if you compare an OEM 0W-20 with a 5W-20 which can be more than 50% lighter at 32F and 35% at room temperature. That's about double the viscosity difference between a 5W-20 and a 5w30 grade at those temp's. And even your typical OTC aftermarket 0W-20 will still be a good 20% lighter at 32F and 10% lighter at room temp's and that's not mentioning the other benefits of the synthetic 0W-20 grade.


Obviously all these "other benefits" will have some significance to the users of the oil...mightn't hurt to list them, and the significance of said benefits.

Originally Posted By: wemay
Although i see and understand your point, in the real world, either allowable viscosity will get you to 300k miles with proper maintenance.

 

[geeman789]

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
Originally Posted By: wemay
If 5w20 shows as an option in the OM, it is performance enough for the mfr and thus, enough for the vehicle owner not to worry about its use. More importantly, it would be in 'black & white' as opposed to suggestions from BITOGers based on insignificant, marginal performance differences seen in lab tests. Or put a different way, performance insignificant enough to still list 5w20 as another option to 0w20. We often time create chasms between product where none is proven exist in the real world of driving to get groceries or to a restaurant etc.

The difference between a 5W-20 and a 0W-20 is not "insignificant" especially if you compare an OEM 0W-20 with a 5W-20 which can be more than 50% lighter at 32F and 35% at room temperature. That's about double the viscosity difference between a 5W-20 and a 5w30 grade at those temp's. And even your typical OTC aftermarket 0W-20 will still be a good 20% lighter at 32F and 10% lighter at room temp's and that's not mentioning the other benefits of the synthetic 0W-20 grade.


In the REAL world , you are splitting hairs.

Remember when every car ran 10w30 , and the engine lasted 2 or 300 000 miles...

And then 5w30 became the go to grade, and engines lasted 2 or 300 000 miles...

And then 5w20 stepped up, and you guessed it, engines still last hundreds of thousands of miles...

To argue that the differences between a 5w20 and a 0w20 are signifigant is purely a matter of technical data, with little real world impact on engine performance.

True, the 5w20 oil may be x % thicker than whatever 0w20 at whatever temp you care to reference, but in the grand scheme of things...both are thin oils, both work very well in the winter, and the engine doesn't care....

 

[gregk24]

Originally Posted By: Bloodknights
I see no problems with your choice.considering that when your driving down the road at your operating temperature it's a 20 grade right.so if my public education serves me right,a 5w is much smaller then the 20 and will have no problems pumping through the oil passage ways and tube designed for a 20 grade.the so called fuel economy that u get from a 0w last about two or three blocks when the oil is warming up and is no longer a 0w anymore.


Wrong....0w and 5w are both much thicker than the 20 weight at start up.

 

[Bloodknights]

wow then please educated me on this,i never knew a motor oil designed to be a 20 grade is thinker then a 20 weight when its cold????.....whatever, use 5w20 no harm will be done to your engine ,there both 20 grade when your driving down the road at the end of the day.for those saying your going to lose your warranty for using a 5w instead of a 0w is misleading,the fact is just starting up your engine and going down the block it no longer is a 0w anymore as the temp on the oil rises, cuz common sense says from a 0w it starts going up in grade to reach its goal of a w20 ,sooo as your driving it goes from a 0w,to a 5w,to a 10w etc till it reaches w20, just use what you like and lets use common sense no harm will come to your engine with 5w20.your never going to get a straight answer cuz everyone here has there own opinion and think they are right.

 

[Nate1979]

Originally Posted By: Bloodknights
wow then please educated me on this,i never knew a motor oil designed to be a 20 grade is thinker then a 20 weight when its cold????.....whatever, use 5w20 no harm will be done to your engine ,there both 20 grade when your driving down the road at the end of the day.for those saying your going to lose your warranty for using a 5w instead of a 0w is misleading,the fact is just starting up your engine and going down the block it no longer is a 0w anymore as the temp on the oil rises, cuz common sense says from a 0w it starts going up in grade to reach its goal of a w20 ,sooo as your driving it goes from a 0w,to a 5w,to a 10w etc till it reaches w20, just use what you like and lets use common sense no harm will come to your engine with 5w20.your never going to get a straight answer cuz everyone here has there own opinion and think they are right.


Its not clear if you understand or not because you are mixing up the 0w and 20 part that aren't really related. What he was trying to say is that a 0w-20 is thinner at cold temp than a 5w-20. He was also saying that as an oil heats up it gets thinner. Thus, a 0w-20 or a 5w-20 are both thicker at cold temp than at hot temp. Thus when you start a cold engine the oil is much much much thicker than it will be at operating temp. So by running a 0w vs the 5w you can reduce the startup viscosity which is great because it is so much thicker than needed.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: Bloodknights
the fact is just starting up your engine and going down the block it no longer is a 0w anymore as the temp on the oil rises, cuz common sense says from a 0w it starts going up in grade to reach its goal of a w20 ,sooo as your driving it goes from a 0w,to a 5w,to a 10w etc till it reaches w20, just use what you like and lets use common sense no harm will come to your engine with 5w20.your never going to get a straight answer cuz everyone here has there own opinion and think they are right.


You are completely confused as to how the viscosity system works.

The number in FRONT of the W is the "Winter" rating for the oil and is the measure of the oil's RESISTANCE to thicken as the temperature plummets.

The number AFTER the W is the SAE grade of the oil as measured at 100C.

Both a 0w-20 and a 5w-20 thicken as the temperature drops. This goes for any oil. They are both heavier at 90C than they are at 100C. They are both significantly heavier at 0C than they are at 100C. The difference is that the 0w-xx has to meet the CCS and MRV requirements for -35C and -40C whilst the 5w-xx has to meet the CCS and MRV requirements for -30C and -35C respectively. Ergo, the 0w-xx has better extreme low temperature performance.

 

[Bloodknights]

i'm pretty sure I know what the viscosity system works considering ford still recommends 5w20 in all there new cars and see no benefits of using 0w20 if it was that much of a differences,when I called sopus the other day to ask about there Pennzoil Ultra Platium 0w20 they said the difference in flow from a 5w20 and a 0w20 is milliseconds differences.so again unless you live in "extreme temp" that your living in the far north with santa and his reindeers they both flow just as well and synthetics not conventional is what I am talking about.youll be just fine to use either oil.u guys can use all the terms and throw out numbers left and right,the simpliest answer is that both will do him fine.and again according to sopus are we really fighting over milliseconds......I have a scion tc 2012 that requires 0w20 and have tried 5w20 also in it and no differences when it comes to mpg's or startup,i get my facts from sopus and yes my butt dyno that tells me both oil grades work fine.....can't believe people are arguing about milliseconds here.....

 

[ARB1977]

Originally Posted By: Bloodknights
i'm pretty sure I know what the viscosity system works considering ford still recommends 5w20 in all there new cars and see no benefits of using 0w20 if it was that much of a differences,when I called sopus the other day to ask about there Pennzoil Ultra Platium 0w20 they said the difference in flow from a 5w20 and a 0w20 is milliseconds differences.so again unless you live in "extreme temp" that your living in the far north with santa and his reindeers they both flow just as well and synthetics not conventional is what I am talking about.youll be just fine to use either oil.u guys can use all the terms and throw out numbers left and right,the simpliest answer is that both will do him fine.and again according to sopus are we really fighting over milliseconds......I have a scion tc 2012 that requires 0w20 and have tried 5w20 also in it and no differences when it comes to mpg's or startup,i get my facts from sopus and yes my butt dyno that tells me both oil grades work fine.....can't believe people are arguing about milliseconds here.....

The CRV see no difference either.

 

[hatt]

I don't see any reason to stock up on MC oil at full price. PP and M1 are only a few $$ more and usually have some rebate scheme going making them cheaper than MC.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: Bloodknights
i'm pretty sure I know what the viscosity system works


Your previous post would indicate that you don't.

I'm not trying to be argumentative, just help you out here. I don't care if the OP runs 5w-20 or 0w-20, I was just trying to explain to you what the difference was between the number in front of the W and the number after it, as you seemed to be confused as to their roles.