Does Thinner Oil Heat an Engine Up Faster?

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I have a beater Buick LaSabre with the venerable 3800V6. As it's very good in the snow, I'm thinking of using it again as solely a "winter car." The only problem is that it seems to take forever to heat-up. Last winter, I used 10W-30 MaxLife, and it only uses about half-a-qt. in 5000, if that.

This year, if I keep it, I was thinking of using 5W-30 in hopes the engine heats up a bit faster.

Would it make any tangle difference?
 
I've also considered this question and I think that a thicker oil would heat the engine up faster, since it generates more internal friction. Of course you'd still want easy cold starting, but something like a 5w-40 or 5w-50 might be worth a try.
 
When I switched from heavier cold weight dino oils to 0-30 XD3 group 1V POA syn oil my aluminum block in Nissan warmed up even quicker. Last winter my son got a cast block 3.1 V-6 olds engine with dino in it, seemed to take forever to warm up, put in 0-30 syn XD3 and it reduced idle time/gentle drive warm up too. This is my experience with lighter cold 0 rated oil syn oil, it get as low as -45C here.

My layman theory is if oil is a thicker based dino with a higher cold weight, the oil will take longer to heat thus so will the engine. An oil comparable to XD3 0-30 in the States is GC. Good Luck.

Cyprs
 
You may have a bad thermostat. My wifes grandparents have this engine. It heats quick.
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One time I switched from a 10w30 PCMO to a 15w40 HDEO. (With the climate we have here, you can get away with using 15w40 during winter in some engines.) In any event, this engine warmed up considerably quicker with the 15w40 HDEO in it. You could tell, by how far into the commute when heat came out of the heater, the rate at which the temp needle moved up to normal. It was distinctly obvious to even the casual observer.

Besides the increased viscous friction, I believe your using more gas to maintain the idle speed and to achieve the same rate of acceleration. More gas burned, more heat put into the engine.
 
quote:

Originally posted by N2OIL:
Also where on the temp gauge is your needle running?
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HA! I wish I had one!
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There's actually no temp. gauge on this fine GM product.
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I've thought of the thermostat, that may well be a problem. But the people I bought the car from had recently had the radiator changed at a garage, so I'd hope they'd have changed the thermostat.

The car also has over 177,000 miles on it too, the engine runs like a top, but I'm wondering if the tolerances have loosened up over the years (as with most older cars) causing less friction. The engine heats up alright, but it takes at least 15-minutes to get much heat in the cabin. I think this may be the case because the car also has a tendency to accelerate rapidly and gain lot of momentum when going down a steep hill, more so than any other auto. trans I've ever driven.
 
quote:

Originally posted by 427Z06:
One time I switched from a 10w30 PCMO to a 15w40 HDEO. (With the climate we have here, you can get away with using 15w40 during winter in some engines.) In any event, this engine warmed up considerably quicker with the 15w40 HDEO in it. You could tell, by how far into the commute when heat came out of the heater, the rate at which the temp needle moved up to normal. It was distinctly obvious to even the casual observer.

Besides the increased viscous friction, I believe your using more gas to maintain the idle speed and to achieve the same rate of acceleration. More gas burned, more heat put into the engine.


Hmmm, I have 10W-40 ML in it now, maybe I'll just leave it in there since it looks fairly clean, and this thing is gone in spring, probably to charity, no matter what.
 
FWIW, we have a '87 Century with the 3.8L engine. Several years ago the thermostat failed (open) - so it can happen (ours does have a temperature guage, so it was pretty obvious). I just did an OCI with Havoline 5w30 for winter (use Havoline 10w30 for summer).
 
Nope just because you change the radiator, unless the thermostat fails. If it takes 15 mins then it sounds bad. Also what is your mileage you get? If your car is running too low of op temps the fuel curve will be rich as well. May be worth the few bucks to change.
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Also fresh antifreze may not hurt either.
 
Done, thermostat is coming out when I get the chance.

The mileage has been unexpectedly great --all things considered. I've gotten up to about 27-30mpg in some summer highway driving I did with it.

The radiator fluid is almost new, so I'll probably just top that off (I replaced the leaky water-pump when I first got it, and ended up flushing the system for all practical purposes as it was very low initially and I topped it off for a while).

I may just keep it and change to 5W-30 anyways. I don't why, this car's beat and a little ugly at this point, but I really like it for some reason.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Nickdfresh:
Done, thermostat is coming out when I get the chance.

You are putting a new one in, yes? Taking it out will not help your engine warm up faster, may cause it to overheat, and will make your transmission shift funny. Ask me how I found out my thermostat was not working properly.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Dave Sherman:

quote:

Originally posted by Nickdfresh:
Done, thermostat is coming out when I get the chance.

You are putting a new one in, yes? Taking it out will not help your engine warm up faster, may cause it to overheat, and will make your transmission shift funny. Ask me how I found out my thermostat was not working properly.


Oh rest assured, a new one will go in! (if I do decide to keep it for winter) I'm not taking something apart just to skip out on a $4 thermostat.
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Remember, this motor is ALL IRON and is more difficult to warm from full cold than some of the little Alu block/head motors out there now. However, once warm, it holds its heat much better. Just dress warmly and make sure you run a 180F or 195F thermostat.
 
If you do get a new t-stat make sure it is what is OEM spec I believe 195f is but double check.
A quick way to see if your stat is leaking is feel your radiator hoses for temps. Or you can open your radiator cap to see if you have flow during a cold cycle.
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