well i have a 1990 ford tbird with the supercharged v6. about 180k miles on the clock.i switched to Mobil 1 15w50 two oil changes ago, before that i have used castrol syntec 5w50.im about do for another oil change but im wondering if it would be best to stick with 15w50 mobil 1 and go through the winter with it( coldest temps i see is maybe upper 20's fahranheit for a couple of days at most)or should i go to an oil with better cold start characteristics such as 5w50?
gonna change my oil soon
- Thread starter supercouper
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5W20 or 5W30 has to be ok. Why ya want such thick goo in that thing?
Is it burning oil? Leaking? Real, real high mileage?
Is it burning oil? Leaking? Real, real high mileage?
want your turbo to perform better with less lag?
go to Mobil 5w30 or even better Redline 5w30
50 weight oil in turbo bearings bog them dooooooooown
go to Mobil 5w30 or even better Redline 5w30
50 weight oil in turbo bearings bog them dooooooooown
As far as I can tell the car calls for XW-30.
In the summer it does get blazing hot and maybe most folks would be tempted with a synthetic XW-40 in a car with over 150K.
Choose a good synthetic 5W-40 as middle ground, and maybe wean yourself over to XW-30 in the future.
In the summer it does get blazing hot and maybe most folks would be tempted with a synthetic XW-40 in a car with over 150K.
Choose a good synthetic 5W-40 as middle ground, and maybe wean yourself over to XW-30 in the future.
well after lurking on this site for a while i should have known someone would have suggested i use 5w20 on my car.this "thick goo" has been lubricating my engine since i purchased it from the original owner.the eaton m90 supercharger generates 12psi boost according to the boost gauge, but quickly becomes heat soaked, especially during the summer.as such i believe a higher viscosity oil such as what i have been using will offer better protection for my engine, and at 180+ thousand miles, it has perfomed well up to this point since i am still on the original shortblock.
no turbo here. i clearly stated supercharged, in my case a positive displacement roots blower, and as such i experience zero lag.a crack of the throttle is rewarded with instant torque.
I would definitely lighten up the oil for winter, but I'm a fan of heavier oil when temps are high. 5W-40 would probably give you the best of both worlds with easy cranking this winter.
Absolutely no need for a 50 here. And very little need for a 40 unless you run this powerplant exceedingly hard in very hot temps. You're just sapping performance and economy from that old Ford V6.
Go with a full synthetic 30. Nothing wrong with using GC here. You'll have all the protection you need.
Go with a full synthetic 30. Nothing wrong with using GC here. You'll have all the protection you need.
JHZR2
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The key is top-notch HT/HS performance, not just bulk viscosity.
A 5w-40 would serve well, or a 10w-40 synthetic (real syn, get redline or amsoil, etc.) would be a good year-round choice.
JMH
A 5w-40 would serve well, or a 10w-40 synthetic (real syn, get redline or amsoil, etc.) would be a good year-round choice.
JMH
I'd suggest trying 10-40 and seeing if your oil pressure is where it should be. If your OP is ok with 10-40 then just find a 10-40 that floats your boat and wallet. I have always had older HM cars. I used to use 20-50, 15-50 mobil 1 and such. I find it's best to run the lowest visc oil that'll give you proper pressure. Only way your gonna take advantage/need the 20-50 stuff is if the bearing clearanes are worn out. But being your car calls for xw-30, and has a lot of miles 10-40 should fit the bill.
i know more than a few people with rebuilt longblocks running xw30,and they still get heatsoaked. believe me, that has nothing to do with the fact that i use xw-50. ive driven lightning trucks with the similar but larger eaton m112 blowers, and with xw30 in the crank case, they quickly become heatsoaked as well. a positive displacement roots blower generates alot of heat, and when driven hard will get very hot.what im in the process of doing is installing a large front mount intercooler to replace the tiny factory one.
well im considering a fully synthetic 5w40. are there oils that are loaded with goddies such as zddp and/or moly?ive seen those additives thrown around on this forum a few times before, but not sure exactly what they do. can someone shed some more light on this? thnx.
Using 15W50 in that eninge, assuming it's in good shape (no oil consumption? running rich? or smoke out tail pipe?), seems a little bit strange. Old school mechanic?
In the summer I could almost see it (even though a supercharger does not create near as much heat as, say a turbo does).
But if it's been ran on that forever, maybe stick close to it.
Otherwise; I would go with the factory recomended viscosity.
My car burns some oil, and is turbocharged, but I still shy away from 15W50 in the winter. But here in NW washington it's colder than where you are I guess.
What are the manufacturer recomendations for your temps?
(But if you want to go thicker then what factory says): Just based on what info you have provided, I would go with either 5W40 or 10W40 for winter. Full Synthetic and every 4500 miles or 4 months.
In the summer I could almost see it (even though a supercharger does not create near as much heat as, say a turbo does).
But if it's been ran on that forever, maybe stick close to it.
Otherwise; I would go with the factory recomended viscosity.
My car burns some oil, and is turbocharged, but I still shy away from 15W50 in the winter. But here in NW washington it's colder than where you are I guess.
What are the manufacturer recomendations for your temps?
(But if you want to go thicker then what factory says): Just based on what info you have provided, I would go with either 5W40 or 10W40 for winter. Full Synthetic and every 4500 miles or 4 months.
Rotella 5w40
well thnx guys for the response. yeah ive always been "thick headed" (pun intended). i got this "thick headedness" from my pops who has always used xw40 or xw50.his truck is ran on 20w50, has nearly 400k miles on original shortblock.maybe if i stick around this site, i'll turn to the "darkside" and use these thin oils.ive used 5w50 during past winters with no problem.i checked my oil pressure with the 15w50 a few months ago, i had about 50 psi at 2500 rpm with the engine at operating temp.the spec is 40-60 psi.my guess is i'll fall below this threshold with xw30. i think i saw a gallon of rotella 5w40 at walmart for alot cheaper then the syntec 5w50 that ive been using, so ill give that a try, but ill have to double check my oil pressure to make sure it does not fall below specs.
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