Originally Posted By: 45ACP
It seems my engine is ok then.
I will keep it 5w30 unless i simply *need* to go to a Redline 5W-20 one day (which is a 5w30 kind of) and i wanted to doublecheck im not doing my engine any disfavors. Thank you for confirming, all.
Im still amazed heat is being nice to my engine, and not destroying it on 5w30 or thinner. That is was why i asked about my warm-up.
Also, its more like turn-key, let idle a few seconds, then 60-90 seconds later depending on the light, 55-65MPH for 5-10 minutes, or longer. 5w30 i will likely stick with, i can get it locally.. 5W-20 Redline just does not make all that much sense, even putting in "one quart" with the fill though that makes more sense.. ?
My engine appears to be benefitting from the thinner is better argument. It does not have monster horsepower, and it runs with a good amount of heat but appears to be perfect for a 3-weight oil/HTHS of a 30-weight oil. OHV 5.0 302 i think it is a 302.
I know that you're coming from a Dallas frame of mind (with respect to both oil "thickness" and what constitutes "cold") but most of the rest of the world wouldn't consider 5W30 "thin". It's "average" or, for many people, "thick" since so many cars are calling for 20 weights these days.
Beware that SAE grades (like '30') span a quite noticeable range of actual measured viscosity. GC is rated 0W30 but is practically a 40 weight at 100C operating temperature. Anything with "Energy Conserving" in the API starburst is on the thinner end (both viscosity and HTHS) of that particular grade. Those with smaller displacement engines calling for a 30 weight can really feel the drag from GC compared to lower visc/HTHS 30s.
You may wish to browse the VOA forum or detailed PDS information from various kinds of oil available to you to determine which ones are "thin 30s" and which ones are "thick 30s". You can then further tune what you're looking for. There are high HTHS 30 weight oils out there but I think they are all synthetic (GC, BMW 5W30, one of the Maxlife I think, and a couple of others). If you find any 30 weight listing ACEA A3 (not A1 or A5) you've found one of the thick ones.
If you're worried about "cold" flow - go syn and get a 0W or 5W. It is most likely to have better cold flow than any 5w30 conventional. (note that I said likely, not definitely). If you're worried about hot spots in your engine coking up the rings etc... again go syn as they can usually withstand extreme heat better than dino. Note again I said "usually" and I'm thinking about hotspots, not generic Texas ambient heat. Modern high quality dinos should be able to handle Texas ambient temp fine.
In my summer weather my coolant can be almost up to operating temperature in 2 minutes of mostly downhill driving to the highway. At this point I know that the oil isn't fully up to temp. If you're hitting the highway after only 60 seconds of warm up driving I would personally be a little gentle on the throttle getting up to speed (avoid full WOT and redline unless required for safety) but wouldn't think another second about hitting 60mph after 2min of Texas city driving.
I personally wouldn't go mixing widely differing brands of oil, like pouring a quart of Redline into any old dino from the auto mart. Redline is obviously a great oil, with a price to match.
Are you planning to do any used oil analysis to look for any breakdown of any kind to see if your change is working out?
