Originally Posted By: wemay
https://noln.net/2017/06/30/skinny-ow-16-oil/
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I'm sorry, but I've gotta laugh here, it states:
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0w-20 showed higher fuel economy than 0w-20 engine oil. It will also give you remarkable quick engine starts at cold temperatures.
First off, Mobil already noted that even their Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy oils only showed very small gains over heavier grades. So any sort of incremental gain going from an already thin 0w-20 to a 0w-16, while real, isn't going to be measurable outside a lab.
Regarding the 2nd statement, versus what exactly? My SRT fires up fine when it is -20C on 0w-40, in fact, it fires up at the same speed it does when it is +20C, so I'm having a hard time with this statement. Will a 0w-16 result in a quicker start than a 20w-50 when it is -30? Yeah! But so will 5w30. The implication is that it will be an improvement over 0w-20 in this respect, but I doubt outside of Sibera, parts of the NWT, Yukon and other northernly locations in Canada, would that even be measurable.
Then it states:
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There are several concerns [about 0w-16 oils] due to their lower viscosity, like increased wear, increased oil consumption and lower pressure. But our long history [with 0w-16] has addressed these concerns.
That statement implies that these were legitimate issues that presented engineering challenges, which is supported by information that Shannow has presented from Honda about dealing with boundary lubrication conditions and using wider bearings.
The 2% figure, for a Honda fit, is likely a very specific example, cherry picked, vs the average gains, which would be more in-line with Mobil's statement on their Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy lineup, which provided a range of potential gains.