how come so many people change to a thicker oil or think there oil is too thin?

[AutoMechanic]

Thanks for the input!! Yeah I think I’m going to switch to 5w20 in the summer cuz we do get plenty hot and then back to 0w when we get super cold in the winter.

For your older cars are you changing the second value as in the one after the w? Or the first?

cuz the first makes sense to me cuz that depends more on the temperature we live around as in super super cold then 0w is a good bet. Super hot then 5w and 10w is good. However I don’t understand the movement of bumping up from a w20 to a w30

Oh yeah I’m changing the W Value in my beetle I run 20W-50 in the summer and spring and in the fall and winter it runs either straight 30 or 10W-30/40 and in my truck it runs 10W-40 and 20W-50 then in the winter it runs 10W-30. The only thing I run a 0W-20 in is my moms car because that’s what it calls for I wouldn’t put a 0W anything in my cars that are 30+ years old.

 

[OilReport99]

Oh yeah I’m changing the W Value in my beetle I run 20W-50 in the summer and spring and in the fall and winter it runs either straight 30 or 10W-30/40 and in my truck it runs 10W-40 and 20W-50 then in the winter it runs 10W-30. The only thing I run a 0W-20 in is my moms car because that’s what it calls for I wouldn’t put a 0W anything in my cars that are 30+ years old.

And because you wouldn't mess with your mom's car warranty while you're living with her

 

[AutoMechanic]

And because you wouldn't mess with your mom's car warranty while you're living with her

Lol heck what warranty? Both times it had something go wrong they wouldn’t fix it I was a little angry the radiator was faulty from the factory and the serpentine belt was fraying after awhile so I had to change those on my own dime I wasn’t happy at all. And I worked there when this happened.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

There's been a lot of ford Modulars run pretty hard in everything from a Crown Victoria to a F53 that racked up a lot of miles in a long life on 5w-20. Unless an engine burns or leaks a lot, or has a propensity to, I can't see a reason to change away.

 

[JohnnyJohnson]

I'm not a thickie or a thinee I'm an on salee that's all that matters

 

[Kuato]

Why do people do it? #1 IMO is that a different viscosity is specified in other parts of the world with the same climate. This is due to CAFE.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I'm not a thickie or a thinee I'm an on salee that's all that matters

Same! Though I've been having a harder time finding cheaper oil. However, there's always Supertech!

 

[mazda3lover]

Why do people do it? #1 IMO is that a different viscosity is specified in other parts of the world with the same climate. This is due to CAFE.

Oh yeah that makes sense and in that case I completely agree with it too! However is that even the case for many vehicles? For example my 2006 Mazda 2.3L seems to be the same across the board unless I’m looking in the wrong places

 

[ZeeOSix]

However I just don’t understand tinkering with the second number like the 20 and bumping up to a 30 etc

Higher viscosity = a larger MOFT = larger gap between moving parts = less wear and more headroom from metal-to-metal contact occurring. Trilogy 101.

 

[kevperro]

You either have a gap between moving parts or not. But hey..... I use 5W-30 in all of my vehicles and they all call for 5W-20. LOL....

 

[ghost31711]

Why do some people believe switching to a thicker oil is ok and that thinner oil is recommended here in U.S. only for fuel efficiency reasons?

Because some manufacturers, for example BMW, on many models specify the use of 5w40 ( or was it 10-40w? I forgot ) in Europe, but change it to 5w-30 for US
Same goes for 2010 Ford Focus from what I've heard. In Europe, the same car with he same engine use 5w-30, but in US it uses 5w20

So with that in mind, and if one happens to live in a state with very hot climate... I can see how they would come to the conclusion that using a havier weight oil is better for their car.

 

[blingo]

Higher viscosity = a larger MOFT = larger gap between moving parts = less wear and more headroom from metal-to-metal contact occurring. Trilogy 101.

Much too coarse to be of much value answering his quest; too loose a connex with viscosity grades and not even "HTHS" will help out instead, too far off actually in several areas and regards. This depicts an often completely wrong track as if it were to be followed.

The more robotic this sad activism becomes, the more urgently it needs to get treated – which probably makes for the most precise first response possible in this thread. It came that way. Sad narratives superspreaded in basic disinterest, ignorance, exaggeration, mission, misheard lyrics Karaoke & group dynamics et al.

Regarding cooler areas or winter fills "upgrades" over 5W-20 but basically 0W-20 would be complete nonsense (unless pumpability and crankability were all that could ever interest).

 

[demarpaint]

Higher viscosity = a larger MOFT = larger gap between moving parts = less wear and more headroom from metal-to-metal contact occurring. Trilogy 101.

Bingo.

 

[CourierDriver]

Thick oil, thin oil, its a never ending story brought to us by Men with thick brains or thin brains and not much to back them up,,,lol,,,my funny way of explaining it....Its like colored bottles of oil,,like a lure in a tackle box, some men like the pretty color of the bottle.....red and green I hear are great oil colors....hey Happy Turkey Day guys and girls....

 

[blingo]

In comparison to the bingo the usual operation manuals are literature (and they can be poor enough and deceptive).

 

[4WD]

Thick oil, thin oil, its a never ending story brought to us by Men with thick brains or thin brains and not much to back them up,,,lol,,,my funny way of explaining it....Its like colored bottles of oil,,like a lure in a tackle box, some men like the pretty color of the bottle.....red and green I hear are great oil colors....hey Happy Turkey Day guys and girls....

The lure body color is to attract the Fisherman … the chartreuse paddle tail is for the Redfish

 

[4WD]

In comparison to the bingo the usual operation manuals are literature (and they can be poor enough and deceptive).

That’s what I was thinking - I think

 

[02zx9r rev2]

You guys fell for it.
Happy Thanksgiving to all

 

[FordSVTGuy]

I think people here are looking for the oil that can best protect their engine. There are a lot of factors that must be weighed in that decision and oil weight is but one.

 

[blingo]

The more viscous oil may contain VM and base oils and else. Therefore such upgrade in viscosity grade can mean weaknesses, problems, less protection (and also mean reduced MOFT btw). Against the bingo lessons the insinuated upgrade can read like a clear downgrade and the funniest 1/8W-12.3456 can beat the 5W-50 in MOFT. This of course mazda3lover himself should do: start to read! Instead of watching bingo until MOFT is stripped of all meaning.