Oil Weight Question

[cristphoto]

I'm new to this forum and the science of oil so please forgive my "dumb" question. I'm reading that oils that are rated the same can be thicker or thinner. I'm using 5-20 weight oil which is recommended for my Acura. I'm wondering which of these 3 oils - Mobil 1 5-20, Pennzoil Platinum 5-20, Castrol Syntec 5-20 is the thickest (once warmed up). What other qualities should I watch for or is the state of the art today such that any good quality oil is sufficient for normal driving conditions? I'm old school and grew up on 10-30 and 10-40 weight so the 5-20 takes some getting used to. Thanks. Steve

 

[sxg6]

Syntec is the thickest when warmed up.

 

[Mitch Alsup]

The way you find out this kind of information is to get the MDS sheets for the oil in question and look at the viscosity numbers.

The operating temperature (100dC) viscosity number will tell you the thickness of the oil after it warms up. And then you can compare various oils.

You can also find many oils in::
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=009433

 

[GMorg]

cristphoto wrote: "is the state of the art today such that any good quality oil is sufficient for normal driving conditions?"

Modern oil that meets the required specs for a modern engine is easily sufficient for normal driving and reasonable oil change intervals (OCIs).

 

[Rodbuckler]

All of the 5W-20 oils are excellent oils, so try them all and find the one you like best. Some viscosities of a few synthetics worth a try:

code:

---

Castrol Syntec 5W-20 9.0cSt @ 100C

Mobil 1 5W-20 8.9cSt @ 100C

Quaker State Advanced 5W-20 8.7cSt @ 100C

Pennzoil Platinum 5W-20 8.5cSt @ 100C

---

My 4.6L Ford loves the Syntec. PP was a little bit harsher.

 

[chewbacca]

As you can see you will get plenty of useful input on this site. If your vehicle is new and in warranty, go with what ever weight is recommended by the manufacturer. From what has been said about 5w-20, you should be fine. Our new Dodge Charger patrol cars with the Hemi use 5w-20 as original fill.

 

[b_rubenstein]

For oils of the same viscosity and same API Engine Service Classification I would only care about the viscosity after being used in your engine, they way you drive your car.

 

[cristphoto]

Thanks for the posts guys. This forum is very helpful. I'm going to go with the Mobil 1 oil in 5-20 weight since it's so readily available. I'll be using the Mobil 1 oil filter also since I'm hearing that it's well made.

 

[androbot2084]

0w oils are the future of synthetic oil. My philosophy is that if you are going synthetic then you might as well take advantage of a synthetic oils wider temperature range. I use 0w30 and I get instant lubrication at startup. My engine should last hundreds of thousands of miles.