I have a reasonable understanding of what all the numbers mean on an oil bottle, but I'm still not clear on a few things.
Here's what confuses me; correct me if I mis-speak:
With a 0w30 oil, the oil must have the cold flowing properties of a "0" weight oil at very cold temperatures, & the performance characteristics of a 30 weight oil at operating temperatures. Right so far?
When referring to 0w-XX oils, I commonly see people saying things such as "The oil is thin when cold & thickens when hot".
Isn't the exact opposite true? If I pour GC at -20°F, it's going to be thicker [pouring] than it would be at 80°F.
So, the best scenario I've been able to come up with in my thick wooden skull is this:
Even though a 0w30 oil is thicker [pouring] at cold temps than at warm temps, it would be even thicker [pouring] at cold temps if it were a 5w-XX, 10w-XX, etc.
Lastly, isn't it possible for a 0w-XX, 5w-XX, & 10w-XX to all be the roughly same thickness at say 80°F? Don't the "W" numbers only come into play when the temps are extremely cold?
Thanks in advance for your replies.
WW
Here's what confuses me; correct me if I mis-speak:
With a 0w30 oil, the oil must have the cold flowing properties of a "0" weight oil at very cold temperatures, & the performance characteristics of a 30 weight oil at operating temperatures. Right so far?
When referring to 0w-XX oils, I commonly see people saying things such as "The oil is thin when cold & thickens when hot".
Isn't the exact opposite true? If I pour GC at -20°F, it's going to be thicker [pouring] than it would be at 80°F.
So, the best scenario I've been able to come up with in my thick wooden skull is this:
Even though a 0w30 oil is thicker [pouring] at cold temps than at warm temps, it would be even thicker [pouring] at cold temps if it were a 5w-XX, 10w-XX, etc.
Lastly, isn't it possible for a 0w-XX, 5w-XX, & 10w-XX to all be the roughly same thickness at say 80°F? Don't the "W" numbers only come into play when the temps are extremely cold?
Thanks in advance for your replies.
WW