Can I run 0W30 all year?

[Oldswagon]

During the fall I switched over to Pennzoil Long Life 0W30 blend HDEO. I just changed the oil on the car, and now I am on the second interval of Pennzoil Long Life 0W30. So far I am very pleased with it's cold weather performance.

Now my question is, would this oil be a good choice to run year round? It has a vicosity of 11.8 cSt @ 100C, which is considerbly thicker than the Pennzoil 10W30 dino (10.5 cSt)that I used to run in the summer. It also has a HTHS of 3.45 which is better than that of 10W30 dino (3.2). Plus, since this oil has 45-55% PAO, it should hold up considerbly better than a dino or other lesser blends. I don't really see any disadvantage to running this oil year round, and it will certainly simplify the logistics for my oil purchases.

The oil is going into my daily driver/run around car, a '85 Olds with a 307 Olds V8 (similar clearance specs to a small block Chevy). It gets a lot of city use, a mix of short and medium trips (although usually several throughout the day). The car usually gets one or two good highway trips per oil change interval. I should note that I am not willing to step up to a full synthetic with this car. I also intend to drive it until the wheels fall off.

I can get this blend at a very good price, which is part of the reason why I use it. Additionally, winters in this area can go below -35C, so I think the 0W30 is a necessity during the winter months. Summers here typically don't see hotter temps than 35C.

So any thoughts on the above? Does anyone have a better suggestion as to what oil to use during the summer months?

Pennzoil Long Life 0W30 spec sheet:

http://www.pzlqs.com/Tech/Pdsheet/I...nzoil/English/EngineOils/pdf/LongLife0W30.pdf

Pennzoil dino multigrade spec sheet:

http://www.pzlqs.com/Tech/Pdsheet/I...ennzoil/English/EngineOils/pdf/Multigrade.pdf

[ February 09, 2004, 06:32 PM: Message edited by: Oldswagon ]

 

[buster]

You can definitely use this! I wish we had this here. It's a nice 11.8cSt so you should be A3 rated or close enough to it. Amsoil's HT/HS for their S2k is 3.4 This one is 3.45 so it's very similar. TBN of 9.0 isn't too bad either.

 

[williar]

A temp of 35 C. is pretty hot (nice), but the oil should be up to the task. I don't see a problem here unless your car is using lots of oil.

 

[Patman]

I started using 0w30 in my Firebird the end of last summer and my first UOA had a lot of hot weather (30C+) driving on it and my results looked great.


That Pennzoil 0w30 looks like a very good oil, and can definitely handle summer driving with it's thicker 100c viscosity. How much do you pay for that oil?

 

[pscholte]

Oldswagon,

I have used 0W30 M1 (that was BEFORE GC appeared guys...I haven't defected) year round including both very cold and very hot weather in demanding hilly high altitude driving in a Taurus Vulcan engine with nary a problem.

 

[Spector]

Yes, been using a 0W30 for three years now with good results, OCI of about 11,000 miles which comes to once a year for me.

 

[Motorbike]

Here is another sleeper 0w-30 Synthetic available in the N-NW part of the U.S. HD Artic

 

[Oldswagon]

Thank you all for the advice. It looks like I should have no issues with running this oil year round. I am sure this stuff will protect the engine better than the regular Pennzoil dino that this car used previously.

williar:

The car hasn't used any oil during an OCI with any oil, or at least I haven't noticed an significant movement on the dipstick. The engine in this car is in excellent shape and is spotless inside.

Patman:

I get 4 quarts of this oil for about $18 with taxes from a local parts store who is a Pennzoil dealer (this is lower than the list price). With a high percentage of PAO and a HDEO additive pack, I figure that this oil is a pretty good bargin.

 

[Schmoe]

Wait a sec....I thought that the lower the HTHS number, the better????? someone puh-lease school me here.

 

[Doug C]

Add another who uses 0W30 year round. Amsoil in the Tahoe, Mobil 1 in the Sable (only because I haven't changed the Sable yet.) Used Mobil 1 prior to Amsoil S2K.

No problems.

Cheers, Doug

 

[haley10]

quote:

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Originally posted by Schmoe:
Wait a sec....I thought that the lower the HTHS number, the better????? someone puh-lease school me here.

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In the same viscosity, a higher HT/HS is generally better. This can be mis-leading in spec. sheets, however. Some oils start out high and deteriorate quickly. Higher quality oils will maintain. Generally, higher is better.