M1 T&SUV....anyone with decrease in MPG?

[NewGuy]

I have been thinking about using M1 T&SUV in my 5.3L Tahoe after it hits 50K. 5W30 is the recommended oil, but I thought I would run T&SUV for 1 or 2 OCIs to see how it compares with dino and M1 EP. The 5.3L gets about 20 MPG on the highway and I am worried that the T&SUV will kill the gas mileage.

Has anyone seen their MPG be reduced drastically using the thicker T&SUV? Thanks.

 

[Mr Nice]

4 MPG decrease in a 98 Civic EX (5 speed trans), but thats a 1.6 engine.

[ December 14, 2005, 10:41 PM: Message edited by: LT4 Vette ]

 

[racer12306]

i researched this alot. vettes experience is the only one i have heard of that had significant (open to opinion) mpg loss. most people said it was minimal if anything.

 

[ruking77]

WOW that is like 11% 4/37 mpg for me in my 2004 Honda Civic. But Honda specifies 5w20, of which i use Mobil One 0w20.

I use M1 T&Suv in a TDI product and the mileage has only gotten better (range of 44-62 mpg!

This is with 25,000 OCI's.

I have been thinking of using it for my Toyota Landcruiser SUV. I am SWAGGing it might lose .5-1 mpg going from 5w30 to 5w40.

 

[Palut]

Honda Accord 2.2L 4 cylinder, no difference in mileage between 5W-30, 10W-30, 0W-40, 5W-40, or 15W-40.

 

[Ed_T]

05 Sube Legacy GT = lost about 1mpg which I attrib to a heavier foot of late...

 

[JHZR2]

kill mileage?? at 20 MPG, there's not much more to kill...

I didnt notice it in the number of vehicles that Ive run it in. In fact, in my older turbodiesel, it helped boost mileage a bit over standard dino oils. Granted, these engines had 15w40 in them before...

In the one vehicle that I ran it in, which was specced for 5w-30 (my 98 S10 ZR2, with 4.3L v6), there was no noticable difference.

Typically the differences from visosity changes are on the order of 0.01% to 0.1%. On an individual basis they are not really noticable. However, they are EXTREMELY necessary, as on a fleet basis, 0.01 to 0.1% means millions of gallons of fuel a year saved.

JMH

 

[NewGuy]

JHZR2....

20 MPG probably seems horrible to most folks, but I have gotten used to it over the past year. The Tahoe actually gets 21 or 22 on a long highway run, but that is still low compared to the Honda Civic EX Coupe (34+ MPG) I drove several years ago.

I drive about 3K/month, but my company pays for the gas and vehicle maintenance (plus a car allowance). The best fuel mileage I ever got was 24 MPG during my only M1 10W30 OCI. At about 4K the M1 10W30 became really loud in the engine and I change it out.

I recently went to trade the Tahoe for a Honda Accord, but I was too upside-down on my loan to make the numbers work. Now I am committed to driving the same car for as long as it will last.....hence my new desire to find the best wear protection oil. I currently have 5K on M1 10W30 EP and plan to run it out to 8-9K.

I have heard so many good things about M1 T&SUV that I thought I might give it a try when it warms up a bit. I think it would be interesting to compare the wear numbers from a 8-10K OCI on M1 10W30EP vs. M1 T&SUV.

Thanks for all of the comments and feedback.

 

[Ryan00TJ]

2002 LS1 SS Nope
2000 2.5L Jeep TJ Nope
98 4.0L Jeep TJ Nope

 

[JHZR2]

NewGuy,

Youre doing pretty darn well for the size/weight/power of the vehicle! My ZR2 only gets about 21 MPG!

I have read on here numerous times that a heavy 30wt or light 40wt is better for these low rpm engines.

M1 T&SUV has historically been easy to get, but since the hurricanes, its been harder.

Im using GC in my 4.3, and it does well... you might want to consider that oil too!

Good luck!

JMH

 

[-SyN-]

NewGuy:
Since it will be poured into a Tahoe, which has the 5.3L V8 and 5w-30 or 10w-30 is recommended.

M1 5w-40 Truck/SuV will not hurt your MpG.
The 5.3L will benefit more from this oil then the other 2.

Now if U lived up North where sub zero conditions are regular, I would maybe mix 3qts 5w-30 and 2qts 5w-40. or just run 5w-30 but being where u are at 5w-40 would work perfect all yr round.

 

[NewGuy]

Based on your comments, I believe that I will give the M1 T&SUV a trial. I have another OCI of M1 10W30EP left to run, but that should mean that I will switch to the T&SUV in early Spring. I will get a UOA of both T&SUV and 10W30EP. I do like the M1EP version better than regular M1 10W30...but I will wait until I see the UOA numbers to endorse if fully.

Thanks for the advice everyone!!

 

[Gary Allan]

The people that pay the most penalty for heavier oils are those that never reach peak normalized oil temps. The difference between 20,30,40 doesn't mean as much @ 100C ..but are very extreme as you move down the temp scale. You imply that you do a substantial amount of mileage. Unless it is perfectly broken into 10 mile trips (or less), separated by hours of cool down, you're not seeing the major impact of a heavier oil. That's not to say that there is none, just that the major load is experienced during initial warm up. Most of our national fleet falls on the shorter end of the commuting scale (and with massive droves moving out of the working soccer mom/pop status or into retirement - even more so).

To copy Ryan

02 2.5 TJ Nope
99 4.0 TJ Nope
92 3.0 Caravan Yes short trip 15w-40 15.X (+/-) mpg short trip 5w-20 18 (+/-) mpg
long (single/highway/200 mile plus/70 mph) trip 20w-50 24.X
long trip (ditto) 5w-20 24.x

 

[NewGuy]

Gary Allan....that is a great explanation on the impact of the 5W40 T&SUV relative to long and short trips. I do make a lot of long runs and don't typically have 10 mile drives. I will give the T&SUV a try in the Spring.

Thank you.

 

[Audi Junkie]

No probs for me in a few cars. It's a nice, silky oil.

 

[moribundman]

No change in fuel economy compared to Castrol 5W-50 and M1 0W-40. A couple mpg better than with DELO 400 15W-40.

 

[cb4017]

No change noted in my Jeep Liberty 3.7L.

 

[99]

No decrease in MPG here either. Use the oil, your engine will thank you.