Best short-trip dino for Mazda..More 5w30 vs 10w30

[hominid7]

I dont want to add to the 5w30 vs 10w30 debate, but i am curious about my specific situation....

I drive a 2001 Mazda 626. It has the Mazda (japan built-KL) 2.5 liter V6 with currently 53,000 miles on it.

My current driving patterns are 5 days a week i drive 1 mile to work in the morning, and then in the evening i drive 1 mile back, unless i run a few errands, but then 4 or 5 miles at most. However on the weekends i do make frequent 45 mile trips to neighboring cities, and maybe once a month or so get it out on the interstate for a 2 or 3 hour cruise. Sometimes with 'spirited' driving.

My car owners manual calls for 10w30 from -13*F on up OR 5w30 at all temps below 98*F.

I've experimented with both 5w30 and 10w30's from Havoline, Pennzoil, Shell, Motorcraft, Castrol, and Superflo. I change my oil at least every 3K miles, so synthetic is not a good option considering the price. Thus far i've not noticed a big difference between any of the oils with the expection of Castrol Synthetic blend 10w30 seemed a bit thick on startup in the winter. The thinner 5w30's "feel" good but i am concerned about them being too thin as Ive experienced slight oil usage when using 5w30 and none with 10w30.

So my question is, with all the fuel dillution i am likely experiencing with the short trips, does the weekly longer drives 'repair' the dillution? Regardless, would 5w30 be better for short trips and/or would 10w30 handle dillution better? Or in my climate (North Texas) are the two oils really interchangeable?

Right now i'm using Motorcraft 5w30, which seems to be on the "thicker" side of the various 5w30's on the market. I've also noticed the "new" Havoline 10w30 is about the same vis as Motorcraft 5w30, which may make it an attractive oil for me. I'd like to try a 'thin' 5w30 but also want to keep my Mazda for well over 100K.

Motorcraft 10w30 seems to be blended on the 'thin' side at cold temps, so that might be my next experimental oil. I should note ive also had good experiences with Superflo 10w30 as well as regular dino pennzoil 10w30.

I've tracked my gas mileage along side which oil im using and so far have been unable to see a big difference between the two. I may get slightly better city mileage with 5w30, but again, the biggest difference seems to be the weight of my right foot and not the oil in my crankcase.

I'd like to find a dino oil to use year-round. Here in North Texas I see temps from 15*F to 105*F sometimes without much warning of severe temp swings.

I should note this engine has not been back-spec'd by either Ford or Mazda to use 5w20. Ford stands by their orig 5w30 rec and Mazda stands by their 5w30 or 10w30 rec, depending on temp.

I tend to like the following choices in no particular order:
5w30 Pennzoil
10w30 Pennzoil
5w30 Havoline
10W30 Havoline
5w30 Motorcraft
10w30 Motorcraft
5w30 Castrol GTX
10w30 Castrol GTX
5w30 Superflo
10w30 Superflo

Ideas? Or should i just flip a coin?

 

[Black_Thunder]

i'd say any one of those brands that you can find readily and maybe throw Tropartic in there as well.

Weight wise.....either would be fine, there have been discussions on how 10w30 is more resistent in shearing down over the oci, could be worth running a search and doing some reading

 

[Ugly3]

5w30

 

[TomServo]

I've been using the tropartic 5-30 in my toyota 1zz-fe (1.8 L4) with no complaints.. I use an OCI of 2k as my engine is a known sludge monster (already replaced the rings once ****it!)... it's a syn blend and cheap at wally world (like $1.63 a quart)

 

[m2200b]

Most of the 5-30 will be 5-20 for half your OCI with a few exceptions like GTX. On older higher mile Mazda's the 5-30 may be needed to pump up the HLA quicker. I believe Mazda fixed most of the oil flow/ HLA issues by 2001.

I'd still use 5-30 in short trips. If you're using some up its proabably a fair trade off for 1/2 gt for less than buck for better mileage and protection for most of your short trip. I also think 10-30 is just grade that oil companies can use use lower cost components in.

 

[Gary Allan]

Quote:

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So my question is, with all the fuel dillution i am likely experiencing with the short trips, does the weekly longer drives 'repair' the dillution?

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It may remove the fuel ..but you'll probably still suffer the minor elevated wear that it causes. Your total wear over time will probably be like someone who accumulates real mileage over the same span of time. They just be getting more use out of the engine while doing so.

 

[hominid7]

Thanks for all the responses. I should mention that the "Motorcraft" oil I said i'm currently using was actually purchased as "TropArtic" from WalMart. I guess the only real way to combat fuel dilution is to change the oil... Or move further away from work

 

[Gary Allan]

A block warmer in Texas

 

[hominid7]

Quote:

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Most of the 5-30 will be 5-20 for half your OCI with a few exceptions like GTX. On older higher mile Mazda's the 5-30 may be needed to pump up the HLA quicker. I believe Mazda fixed most of the oil flow/ HLA issues by 2001.

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This is correct. My '01 has a solid lifter pack. I still have had a few ticks at startup in the cold using (old formula) Havoline 10w30, but not enough to make me worry. Perhaps they have lower pour/pump points, but ive had strangly good luck using Pennzoil and Superflo 10w30 in the winter. They act more like 5w30's. Castrol and Havoline (again the old version) act more like thicker 10w30's, at least on start-up.

I'm curious to give the "new" Havoline 10w30 a try some day... On Paper, it looks more like a 5w30 as well.

 

[dave1251]

5W-30.

 

[427Z06]

Quote:

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Quote:

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So my question is, with all the fuel dillution i am likely experiencing with the short trips, does the weekly longer drives 'repair' the dillution?

---

It may remove the fuel ..but you'll probably still suffer the minor elevated wear that it causes. Your total wear over time will probably be like someone who accumulates real mileage over the same span of time. They just be getting more use out of the engine while doing so.

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And to add to this, the 10w30 won't handle the fuel dilution any better than the 5w30 because the viscosity of gasoline is way lower than either of them.

 

[Max_Wander]

the KL is a tight tolerance engine that is spec'd for 5w30. Given your driving conditions, I'd use a 5w20. Since you drive one mile, it would be more than ideal ensuring excellent flow as the engine never wamrs up fully, although the KL does heat up fast. I would least likely use any of the 10w30 varieties you've mentioned.