Havoline Synthetic performed well this morning...

[The_Oz]

Engine: 88-91 B16A Honda
Oil: Havoline Synthetic 5W40 (Group III if I'm not mistaken).

I've been running this oil for the last 5 months now. Mileage unknown because I've had speedometer reading problems, but I approximate at roughly 4000km. Recently the Montreal area has been slammed by a windchill advisory. Yesterday was -21C with a winchill index of -35C. This morning (Jan. 22, 2003) was a lovely -27C with a windchill of -40C.

I removed the battery and took it inside my home overnight, so I know I'll have at least a quasi-fresh battery in the morning. Anyway, popped it in this morning; engine of course, cranked sluggishly (just like the rest of the cars I was hearing startup this morning), but I only needed to crank it once and she started up. For some odd reason though, when I let go of the clutch, the engine couldn't handle the load and stalled immediately. So, I held the clutch engaged for 30 seconds before letting it go.

I have been lazy this month for not changing my oil down to a 0W30 for situations like these, but I was also curious as to how it would perform at this temperature. I'm sure when it comes time for the oil analysis, my results will be shot to hell

Regards,

Oz

 

[scirocco16V]

Wow !! That's cold. Here in PA we have been going
below freezing for the last month. I use the same grade Rotella Synth in my car. It starts fine but having used 10W-30 and 5w-30 before, I would avoid 5W-40 with sustained temps of -5C and lower.

 

[FowVay]

I have had similar experiences when I lived in Wyoming. When the temperature hit -30ºF the oil in my transmission was so thick that it would kill my engine when I let the clutch out. The horror of this is that the engine was using the exact same lubricant - nonsynthetic 10W-40. This was years ago before I'd even heard of synthetic oil. That was one tough little car because it is still running today with over 310,000 miles on the odometer.

 

[Idrinkmotoroil]

I did an oil analysis on that oil in my 02 Civic SiR, seemed to work pretty good in terms of low wear, too bad they don't use moly in it though.

 

[The_Oz]

quote:

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Originally posted by Idrinkmotoroil:
I did an oil analysis on that oil in my 02 Civic SiR, seemed to work pretty good in terms of low wear, too bad they don't use moly in it though.

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Unfortunately, your Havoline sample was 5W30 which seemed to indicate different levels of Zinc and Calcium. Don't forget also that I'm using a thicker weight oil that - on paper - should perform poorly versus the 5W30 during winter conditions such as -40C. I did a Virgin Oil Analysis of this same Havoline 5W40 API SJ/SH in the Virgin Oil Analysis section. You might want to take a peek at it.

Regards,

Oz