I have noticed that several 0w-30 GC users plan on using this oil during the winter months but will switch to a different weight for summer. Being a heavy 30w oil why wouldn't this weight Castrol be great during summer also? What effect will the 0w have on the engine during the warm summer months?
GC for Winter Only?
- Thread starter yankees1
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I was concerned about running a 0w oil year round when I first started reading and thinking about using it. Gets pretty hot here in the summer, but very seldom gets below freezing, so I was trying to figure out if it was going to work, both physicaly and was somewhat concerned with the warrenty on my car (calls for 10w30, or 5w30 in extreme cold). But after reading more posts and asking a few direct questions, I have decided that it will be a great year round oil for my car.
I plan on doing a 7500 mile OCI with it for warrenty reasons, and was going to do an UOA on the batch I'm running just to see how well it does. I have no doubt it will do just fine, but it is nice to see some #'s since there have been no UOA's done on my motor with it in the UOA section.
I plan on doing a 7500 mile OCI with it for warrenty reasons, and was going to do an UOA on the batch I'm running just to see how well it does. I have no doubt it will do just fine, but it is nice to see some #'s since there have been no UOA's done on my motor with it in the UOA section.
Guys, I have got to ask about this whole "German Castrol" thing.
What is German Castrol? I have searched the board a bit and not found a clear description. You see, I never trusted ANY Castrol because of the idea that they were not making a true synthetic (Whereas Mobil was) but they were selling their oil at a synthetic price. I generally buy Mobil products.
Now it sounds as though there is some other type of Castrol (GC) that is a superior product. I live in Germany, so I should be able to get this. However, what is the difference between the undesirable Castrol and what everyone refers to as "GC?"
I would like to have a 0w-30 or 5w-40 for my Dodge Neon.
What is German Castrol? I have searched the board a bit and not found a clear description. You see, I never trusted ANY Castrol because of the idea that they were not making a true synthetic (Whereas Mobil was) but they were selling their oil at a synthetic price. I generally buy Mobil products.
Now it sounds as though there is some other type of Castrol (GC) that is a superior product. I live in Germany, so I should be able to get this. However, what is the difference between the undesirable Castrol and what everyone refers to as "GC?"
I would like to have a 0w-30 or 5w-40 for my Dodge Neon.
Patman
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Being rated a 0w oil won't hurt it at all in the summer. In fact, if you look at it's viscosity at 40c, it's thicker than most 10w30s at this temperature too. So it's not as if it's a super thin oil. It simply flows extremely well when it's extremely cold out, therefore it passes the cold cranking test required for 0w status.
I saw incredible oil analysis results running this oil in my C5 Corvette this summer, so I see no reason why people should limit their use of this oil to winter only, when it does such a good job in the hot weather also.
I'm doing a run of GC in my VW 1.8T and if the 5K uoa is favorable, I'll be using it year round as well.
Is this GC the same 5w-40 Castrol Syntec that is for sale at Canadian Tire??? Just trying to keep up here...
John.
John.
Nope. GC = 0W-30 Castrol Syntec. Specifically says made in Germany on the back.
So far Esso XD-3 0W-30 has been posting UOA's here just as good as GC, if not sometimes slightly better, so I wouldn't discount it as an excellent choice of 0W-30 oil for Canadian operations.
I find it kind of humorous that Castrol is simultaneously hammered for being the "fake" synthetic guys and deeply loved for bringing in GC.
Sort of a love/hate relationship, no?
Sort of a love/hate relationship, no?
I see that it says Made in Belgium on the back...
No, it's a credit where credit is due thing. And of course, that principle works in both directions. Some find the G-III marketing thing to be a non-issue, while others object. From what I've learned, it seems to depend in large part upon whether you apply the chemists' definition of "synthetic" or the non-technical one. On the other hand, GC produces outstanding results in most proper applications. I don't "love" Castrol for offering it (I know they aren't selling it out of genuine concern for my car. . .). Castrol is a large oil company, period. I purchase from them when it suits me to do so. And I will continue to check the back of every bottle to see that it is, "Made in Germany".
EDIT: Oh yeah, and to offer some info that responds to the original question, I've had very good results with GC in very hot summer conditions. As long as an oil holds its primary (hot) viscosity rating (i.e. does not shear), the Xw part of the rating is not important. With a high HT/HS and no signs of shear (look at all the damage-free UOAs), there's nothing that should cause fear about using this oil during the summer.
[ December 08, 2004, 07:08 AM: Message edited by: ekpolk ]
This is for the 5w40 formulation. The 0w30 says Made in Germany. Imo, the GC is a perfect year round oil for most vehicles out there.
In price, GC is about the same as M1, at least when comparing quart containers. The AZs around here sell GC for $4.79/qt, whereas I've seen M1 fluctuate above and below that. Then there are the constant promos that complicate things. I got a bunch of GC recently when AZ had a oil change special, in which you'd get a filter for 1/2 price with so many quarts of any Castrol. Since both M1 and K&N filters go for about $10, I got several changes worth of GC for $5 off the total price (or call it a free qt of GC...).
As to performance, check the UOA section. Across a wide variety of engines and vehicles, GC almost always is at the top of the heap (or shares top honors with M1 or maybe RL). All the oils you mention are fine products, but each has its quirks. M1 products are thin for their grades, while GC is on the thick side. Neither good or bad, just depends upon what you need. Amsoil products tend to thicken in use, etc. If you're considering using one of these, again, study the UOAs and maybe start with the one that seems to produce the best results in apps that are the same or similar to yours.
I've used Amsoil 0w30 in both my F150 and Jetta TDI in El Paso during the summer.
Don't worry a good synthetic 0w30 will outperform a conventional 10w30.
Don't worry a good synthetic 0w30 will outperform a conventional 10w30.
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