5w50 in 5w30 car?

[BuickGN]

Originally Posted By: rclint
Originally Posted By: BuickGN

My experience with a worn engine and I have lots of it is a thicker oil does help cushion things. Very noticable in the amount of noise it makes. On the extreme end of things was a rod knock that I nursed for a year on Valvoline 60wt until I had the funds to rebuild. On a 40wt I was afraid to stand next to the car with it running.


However the OP is talking about a good running engine, with no loud noises, nor any abnormal wear that he can tell. In your case I agree a thicker oil may work, however in the OP case, and from the information he gave I think sticking to OEM spec or close (he is already using an outstanding HDEO 5w-40) would be a good choice, however changing oil, different brands, weights, synthetic, dino, even mixing your own is a freedom we all have, tis what makes it all worth while.... Would you have gone that thick in your engine if it was in normal good operating condition, just high miles ?


A grade higher, yes. A few grades higher, not on a stock engine.

 

[Gannet167]

I realize the copper and lead numbers are high. This is why I am thinking of using a heavier oil. I know oil doesn't "fix" things, but it could prolong the car's life a little. Conversely, using 0w20 is probably not going to do me any favors.

 

[JohnBrowning]

It is going to blow up no.......run for your life the sky is falling?

Stop and ask yourself why this would in any way damage your engine? It might help to read up on how oils are rated so you know what 5W50 actualy means.

 

[oliveoil]

Originally Posted By: JohnBrowning
It is going to blow up no.......run for your life the sky is falling?

Stop and ask yourself why this would in any way damage your engine? It might help to read up on how oils are rated so you know what 5W50 actualy means.

Thisthis is not a mean spirited web sit, nor is it a know-it-all web site JB

 

[Gannet167]

JB, I know how oils are rated. I've read up. I am asking if one oil might be better than another one in my particular situation. It may not damage it (although some oils on the market might) and I'm not worried that the "sky is falling" I'd just like to milk as many miles out of my old car as possible. I thought this might be a valid way of supporting the car with its high mileage. I could run straight 60W and the sky wouldn't fall. I could probably drive around with 0w20 and it might work for a while. My question is not how oils work, it's if one oil might work better than another.

I bought a car at an auction once that had completely shot bottom end bearings. It must have had 90W oil in the engine. It ran fine up to about 4000 rpm when it started to make a horrible rattling noise, like machine gun fire. When I tore it apart, the connecting rods were so loose I don't know how it ran. The clearances were like 1/8 inch. You could grab a con rod and rattle it against the crank. It was a recovered stolen car and I'll guess was run dry of oil by the thieves.

My Mazda is no where near as bad. But if the honey like consistency of the oil in that car worked so well to hide a major engine problem - it just might help my car keep going another few thousand miles. 90W is not going to work in -30C weather, but 0w40 or 5w50 might be pretty good.