Is 0W-30 that much better?

[Scott P]

Thanks to Pep Boys a minor donation to MADD, I will be stockpiling Mobil 1. My Grand Prix calls for 10W-30 most of the time or 5W-30 in below zero degree range. The wife's Envoy requests 5W-30.

I bought much of the GC from Autozone when it was on sale. That stash is down to 1.5 quarts, so I'm back to M1. I run six month intervals (6,000 miles) on both vehicles.

Am I losing anything of value in going with M1? I pretty much know I'm not, but I think I just need the reassurance.

 

[ToyotaNSaturn]

quote:

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Originally posted by Scott P:
Am I losing anything of value in going with M1? I pretty much know I'm not, but I think I just need the reassurance.

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You will not lose a thing except direct phone support from the GC elves.

Both are excellent oils! The 0w will give you a tad better MPG when cold at startup, but that's it. GC or M1..you can't go wrong with either of them.

 

[pitzel]

The M1 0W-30 is a bit on the thin side overall, and I think the UOA's here have shown it tends to promote a bit more wear than say higher viscosity GC or XD-3 0W30 oils.

You should be able to correct for this by mixing a quart of Mobil-1 or Esso XD-3 0W40 with 2 or 3 quarts M-1 0W30. The 3800 and even the 3100/3400s like a slightly thicker oil overall and I've noticed personally that Mobil-1 5W30 makes these engines noisier (M-1 5W30 is on the low end of the xW30 viscosity scale).

 

[Dr. T]

Reassurance? Yes, you are losing value on a product that is not A3 rated compared with the GC. In other words, it qualifies for more/higher specs.

 

[BlazerLT]

always use 5w30 year round.

Starts faster and will improve cold pumpability and will warm up faster.

 

[427Z06]

In Rochester, NY I'd use M1 5w30 in both vehicles year round. If my engine likes a little thicker oil, mix in 1 to 1-1/2 qts of M1 15w50 during the summer months. M1 0w40 is another option if you can get it at the same price.

 

[Blue99]

When cold winter temps are a factor, keep in mind that GC 0W-30, with a cold crank viscosity rating of 6200 @ -35C, is not at the top of the list for "cold start" performance.

M1 5W-30 is rated 3600 @ -30C and would probably score mid-low 4000's at -35C.

The xW viscosity ratings are ranges and some 10W's can qualify as 5W's & 5W's as 0W's, etc.

 

[Ugly3]

quote:

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Originally posted by Scott P:
Thanks to Pep Boys a minor donation to MADD, I will be stockpiling Mobil 1. My Grand Prix calls for 10W-30 most of the time or 5W-30 in below zero degree range. The wife's Envoy requests 5W-30.

I bought much of the GC from Autozone when it was on sale. That stash is down to 1.5 quarts, so I'm back to M1. I run six month intervals (6,000 miles) on both vehicles.

Am I losing anything of value in going with M1? I pretty much know I'm not, but I think I just need the reassurance.

---

Mobil 1 5w30 will serve you well.

 

[Patman]

quote:

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Originally posted by Blue99:
When cold winter temps are a factor, keep in mind that GC 0W-30, with a cold crank viscosity rating of 6200 @ -35C, is not at the top of the list for "cold start" performance.

M1 5W-30 is rated 3600 @ -30C and would probably score mid-low 4000's at -35C.

The xW viscosity ratings are ranges and some 10W's can qualify as 5W's & 5W's as 0W's, etc.

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There is no way that Mobil 1 5w30 is going to be better than any 0w30 in the -35 cold cranking test, otherwise it would be a 0w30 itself, not a 5w30.

 

[Motorbike]

quote:

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Originally posted by Scott P:

Am I losing anything of value in going with M1? I pretty much know I'm not, but I think I just need the reassurance.

---

Nope at 5 bucks a quart not to mention the great deal @ Pep Boys you got for those that bring price vs performance into the mix .

Blue99's post pretty much sums it up about the Mobil 5w-30 during extreme winter . It would have to get pretty cold for Mobil's 0w-30 to be an "absolute must" .

 

[Patman]

quote:

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Originally posted by Blue99:
Patman,

I’m going to back off & agree with you that GC should easily beat M1 5W-30 in cold crank rating.

After some checking, the GC ASTM 5293 rating listed in this thread is most likely the 0W grade max viscosity of 6200 and not the actual GC cold crank number. With a -63C pour point, GC should be in the 3-4K range.

I frequently refer to the Castrol SLX 0W-30 (German) Data Sheet, but of course, cold crank per ASTM 5293 is not listed. It would be helpful if someone could obtain the actual -35C value for us.

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I've got the PDF at work which was sent to me from Castrol in Germany and IIRC the cold cranking number at -35C was something around 3500cp. I will double check tomorrow at work.

 

[BlazerLT]

I use 0w30 all year around.

*Hugs his bottle of Esso XD-3 0w30 Synthetic*

 

[Blue99]

Patman,

I’m going to back off & agree with you that GC should easily beat M1 5W-30 in cold crank rating.

After some checking, the GC ASTM 5293 rating listed in this thread is most likely the 0W grade max viscosity of 6200 and not the actual GC cold crank number. With a -63C pour point, GC should be in the 3-4K range.

I frequently refer to the Castrol SLX 0W-30 (German) Data Sheet, but of course, cold crank per ASTM 5293 is not listed. It would be helpful if someone could obtain the actual -35C value for us.

I still think M1 5W-30, with a cold crank of 3600 cP @ -30C and a -45C pour point, will also meet the 0W rating of max 6200 cP @ -35C. From looking at a number of ASTM 5293 cold crank ratings, the viscosity curve hits a wall & takes off at about 10 degrees short of pour point. The 0W rating of -35C is just 10 degrees from the M1 5W-30 pour point of -45C.

 

[Patman]

Sorry for the delay in posting this, but I looked up the PDF file I got from Castrol Germany and it's cold cranking specs for the Formula SLX 0w30 are given at -30C instead of -35 for some reason. The spec is listed at 3200cp at -30C

 

[jsharp]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Blue99:
Patman,

I’m going to back off & agree with you that GC should easily beat M1 5W-30 in cold crank rating.

After some checking, the GC ASTM 5293 rating listed in this thread is most likely the 0W grade max viscosity of 6200 and not the actual GC cold crank number. With a -63C pour point, GC should be in the 3-4K range.

I frequently refer to the Castrol SLX 0W-30 (German) Data Sheet, but of course, cold crank per ASTM 5293 is not listed. It would be helpful if someone could obtain the actual -35C value for us.

I still think M1 5W-30, with a cold crank of 3600 cP @ -30C and a -45C pour point, will also meet the 0W rating of max 6200 cP @ -35C. From looking at a number of ASTM 5293 cold crank ratings, the viscosity curve hits a wall & takes off at about 10 degrees short of pour point. The 0W rating of -35C is just 10 degrees from the M1 5W-30 pour point of -45C.

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I can't find the cold cranking viscosities of M1 5W-30, but using the calculator here -

http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/3655/VI.html

I get a viscosity 6065 cSt for M1 5W-30 @ -30C and 10701 cSt for the same oil @ -35C

Using the Castrol datasheet here -

http://www.castrol.com/liveassets/b...local_assets/downloads/p,q/pds_syntec_usa.pdf

It has the cold cranking viscosity listed as 6200 @ -35C and using the calculator above it has an actual viscosity of 6766 @ -30C and 11698 cSt at -35C

As far as the actual viscosities, not the cold cranking numbers, they don't look a lot different do they...

edit: as far as the Castrol datasheet, I believe this to be the correct one since it lists the 0W-30 as having a 100C viscosity of 12.1 cSt and claims it "Exceeds European ACEA: A3, B3, B4; VW 502 00, 505 00, 503 01; MB 229.1, 229.3; BMW LL-01", etc.

The old Group III 0W-30 wasn't that thick and didn't meet those specifications iirc...

[ January 19, 2005, 03:03 PM: Message edited by: jsharp ]

 

[Terry]

jsharp, indeed that 6200 @ -35C is correct for the GC tests listed in the thread. Thats what was tested independently. I will verify with the lab.


Your are correct that is right at the spec for the requirement.