I was reading a post about 10W-30 being a good oil for Texas. Well, how about California? We've got some hot summers here. I also live in the mountains where the winters means snow and ice (below freezing, but not by much). My manual recommends 10W-30. I have 150,000 miles. What should I use? I was thinking about Mobil 1 10W-30. (I am aware of the risk of leaking seals) What do you guys think? Also, is it safe to use oil different from what the manufacturer recommends for the engine?
oil type for Southern California climate
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10W-xx is a no brainer good visc0sity for winter temps that don't get much below freezing.
The oil leaks when switching to synthetic were mostly in the early days of synthetic. There isn't much risk now.
As far as using an oil different from what the car manufacturer specifed, please be more specific. What did they specify and how different?
The oil leaks when switching to synthetic were mostly in the early days of synthetic. There isn't much risk now.
As far as using an oil different from what the car manufacturer specifed, please be more specific. What did they specify and how different?
I just started using Mobil 1 0w-40 (in a motor that calls for 10w-30) and I am very happy with it so far. I live 5 miles from Willow Springs Race Way, so I know about HOT!
Mobil 1 0w-40 might work great for you as well, it sure seems to cover all the bases in terms of start-up flow and high temp protection.
Darryl
[ March 24, 2004, 06:07 PM: Message edited by: Darryl ]
Mobil 1 0w-40 might work great for you as well, it sure seems to cover all the bases in terms of start-up flow and high temp protection.
Darryl
[ March 24, 2004, 06:07 PM: Message edited by: Darryl ]
What kind of car do you have? Mobil 1 10w-30 might be too thin. You might be better off with GC, Amsoil, Redline, or Mobil 1 0w-40.
I have a 1995 Subaru Impreza with a 2.2 litre boxer engine. Specified by Subaru is 10W-30 or 5W-30 (for below freezing temps). I was thinking about M1 10W-30. I also change the oil in a 1996 Chevy Corsica with a 3.1 V6. Chevy recommends 5W-30 for this engine. I've heard suggestions to switch to 10W-40 because of the mileage (about 110,000 miles). What do you guys think?
Forgot to add:
FYI:
I currently use High Mileage Castrol GTX 10W-30 in the Impreza and Valvoline Max Life 5W-30 in the Corsica.
FYI:
I currently use High Mileage Castrol GTX 10W-30 in the Impreza and Valvoline Max Life 5W-30 in the Corsica.
I would assume if an oil pressure gauge shows below specification oil pressure, one might want to move to a higer grade.
If the gauge were accurate and there weren't another problems causing the low oil pressure.
True. But, slightly loose bearings leaking oil also would warrant a tad thicker oil. Perhaps one area where caution would be warranted is if the low pressure is caused by a weak spring in the oil pressure relief valve.
I live in L.A. and I just use the recommended 5w-30 for my car. I'm using Mobil 1 and the bottle says it will protect up to 400 degrees, I doubt the oil will get that hot very often so I think there should be no problem. I'm having an oil analysis done in 2k more miles so I'll post the results when I get them back in.
Changing to a higher viscosity because of engine mileage alone, without any indications of wear is nonsense. I've seen engines where the cylinder bores and bearings still met dimensional specs for anew engine at 150,000 miles
If your engine has started using more oil or is making more noise, then consider a higher viscosity oil because of wear.
Or consider higher viscosity oil if your oil temperatures are running higher than recommended because of a hot climate, hard driving, towing or ???.
I have another question to add to this thread.
Is GTX good for this climate in the summer? Does it hold it's FP and anti-foaming properties for 4500 - 5000 miles?
Is GTX good for this climate in the summer? Does it hold it's FP and anti-foaming properties for 4500 - 5000 miles?
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