startup experience last night at 7 degrees

[daman]

It's been cold as [censored] here in MI last few days single digits days bellow zero mornings nasty wing chills.

no problem with AFE in the pan car starts and sounds fine,little ticking for a second or two but that's to be expected when it's this [censored] cold out!!

 

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: Mokanic
I fired off one of my old farm trucks with 5W40HDEO in the sump this morning(+10F)and it sounded ugly for about 5seconds before it quieted down to normal. So much for the tree-huggers global warming foolishness...
G.W causes cold weather

 

[jstutz]

I started my c1500 4.3 two years ago while i was camping and it was -5 F and it had rotella 15w40 in it. Cranked a little slow but fired up, idled for about 5 mins then we went on way. I really didnt seem to affect it that much. It did idle a little rough for a min our two but nothing terrible. I know plenty of people that use 15w40 year round in PA in many vehicles they probably shouldn't and they dont have issues. I think most engines can tolerate some pretty thick stuff. 15w40 at 0F is very very thick.

 

[Motohead]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
How can you guys run on plain water in the cooling system? My normal operating coolant temp is 97C... that's pretty much boiling point.



Boiling point increases with pressure. I run straight water in several applications as we rarely see below 32F. God bless (south) Texas! We're back in the 70s tomorrow.

I had a rental in St. Louis one cold week a few years ago- maybe 9F in the a.m. Not only did it make some interesting sounds upon start-up, the suspension (shocks/ struts) was extremely stiff until it got warmed up.

 

[Ben99GT]

Originally Posted By: Steve S
]G.W causes cold weather

Yeah I know, that movie The Day After Tomorrow told me so.

 

[SLCraig]

Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Originally Posted By: SLCraig
Was 3-5F this morning when I turned over the 96SL2 with PP in the crank and Petro Canada in the gearbox. Felt almost like summertime

You mean your Saturn clunks in the summer as well?

This one doesn't! It's been worked over pretty good since I got it almost 2 yrs ago. This car runs great!

 

[synthetic_crazy]

Originally Posted By: Mark72
Car sat outside all day at a shop when I picked it up around 9pm. It was 7 degrees out, and that car was slow to start and the geers were so hard to shift. It's an automatic, but I couldnt beleive how tight everything was. Would I have noticed much of a difference if I had synthetic oil and transmission fluid in it?


Absolutely! Synthetic lubricants are known for their superior cold flow abilities. I originally used 5w30 Castrol GTX in my Corolla and upon start up in the winter, it would have some chatter until operating temp was reached. Now I am using Pennzoil Platinum 5w30 and what a world of difference it makes! No chatter on start-up...just nice and smooth! Try some PP on your next fill, you'll be glad you did.

 

[Mokanic]

Originally Posted By: Ben99GT
Originally Posted By: Steve S
]G.W causes cold weather

Yeah I know, that movie The Day After Tomorrow told me so.

If Hollywood said it, it must be so.

 

[lui]

it was -15c (4f?) the past few nights around here (newmarket ontario)

everything cranks over slow but still works....even the cheapest dino 5w30 wont have an issue with that temp...i don't know why anyone even bothers making a post about it....are you new to the climate or environment?

it's like drivers on the road when the first snow fall hits....they drive like they never seen the stuff and have no clue how to maneuver the car so they end up causing an accident.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: lui
everything cranks over slow but still works....even the cheapest dino 5w30 wont have an issue with that temp...i don't know why anyone even bothers making a post about it....are you new to the climate or environment?


Quite right. People used to think of 10w30 as a winter oil, for that matter. I've used 5w30 dino for many winters. Sure, under the worst conditions, it's not as good as a 0w-xx oil. It isn't, however, the end of the world. I've started vehicles in -40 with 5w30 conventional, and they still run, after many, many miles. The 0w-xx synthetic might flow better, but I don't think that the existence of winters (which is nothing new) should be the primary tipping point for someone using synthetic.

If one is terribly concerned about flow at those temperatures, one should have an oil pan heater. 15w40 in a heated oil pan will flow better when it's -40 out than will any unheated 0w-xx synthetic.

 

[GhostFlame]

Originally Posted By: justinf89
You can have your 7 degrees. It got to a high of 28 today and 18 last night. I forgot to add antifreeze to my van which is running straight water, and inside the reservoir was frozen. Luckily all was fine. I'm taking a trip up to Chicago early January and I'm sure it will be plenty cold then.

To answer your question, I'd at least run a 0w30 if not synthetic. I'm going to be doing that specifically for the trip. Hey, maybe I'll see you around.


What the heck... straight water. I didn,t know you could do that with modern cars. I know my dad used to do it back in 1940 when his 30's dodge would "boil" over and he would stop at a stream and get some water in a bucket and dump it in.
I wasn't around but, I heard the stories. I visulaize a Bonnie and Clyde scene with white shirt, wide ties, sleeves rolled up, brown Fidora and my mother sitting in the car drumming her fingers cuz they are late for Sunday dinner and he is being watched by a bunch of cows at the stream.

Back when there was cows... milk comes from a factory now. But, I have seen pictures of cows outside.

 

[tig1]

Originally Posted By: Garak
Originally Posted By: lui
everything cranks over slow but still works....even the cheapest dino 5w30 wont have an issue with that temp...i don't know why anyone even bothers making a post about it....are you new to the climate or environment?


Quite right. People used to think of 10w30 as a winter oil, for that matter. I've used 5w30 dino for many winters. Sure, under the worst conditions, it's not as good as a 0w-xx oil. It isn't, however, the end of the world. I've started vehicles in -40 with 5w30 conventional, and they still run, after many, many miles. The 0w-xx synthetic might flow better, but I don't think that the existence of winters (which is nothing new) should be the primary tipping point for someone using synthetic.

If one is terribly concerned about flow at those temperatures, one should have an oil pan heater. 15w40 in a heated oil pan will flow better when it's -40 out than will any unheated 0w-xx synthetic.


It might be kinda hard to plug in a pan heater in the middle of a parking lot where you might work all day or night. Yes, synthetic oil flows much easier at extreme temps than your 5-30 dino. Every advantage helps starting a cold engine. Lets not forget about the wear issue on cold starts either. Quicker oil flow, less wear on start.

 

[cchase]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
How can you guys run on plain water in the cooling system? My normal operating coolant temp is 97C... that's pretty much boiling point.



I agree on the "why run plain water" aspect but boiling point of water is 100C at atmospheric pressure, not the 15+ psi in a cooling system.

EDIT: Also, I've never noticed a difference in cranking speeds between subzero starts and 30F starts. I must be missing something.

 

[GhostFlame]

5w30 is good to -30 f. I think we worry too much. me included

 

[tig1]

Originally Posted By: GhostFlame
5w30 is good to -30 f. I think we worry too much. me included

Does -30 mean PP, or exceptable oil fow for start. The M1 video showed M1 5-30 pouring at -40, but that doesn't mean it was flowing through the engine very well. The synt blend wouldn,t flow at -40 at all. So again, I want every advantage to starting a cold engine. I agree there is too much fretting over oil.

 

[daman]

Originally Posted By: tig1
Originally Posted By: GhostFlame
5w30 is good to -30 f. I think we worry too much. me included

Does -30 mean PP, or exceptable oil fow for start. The M1 video showed M1 5-30 pouring at -40, but that doesn't mean it was flowing through the engine very well. The synt blend wouldn,t flow at -40 at all. So again, I want every advantage to starting a cold engine. I agree there is too much fretting over oil.

Exactly^^

PP is nothing,,compared to actual flowing and cranking ability's,i want instant flow on cold starts OR any start no matter how minuet it is.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: tig1
It might be kinda hard to plug in a pan heater in the middle of a parking lot where you might work all day or night. Yes, synthetic oil flows much easier at extreme temps than your 5-30 dino. Every advantage helps starting a cold engine. Lets not forget about the wear issue on cold starts either. Quicker oil flow, less wear on start.


I certainly agree. I'm relating more to my own personal experience, where I do have a heated garage and/or can plug in at will. As for cold starting when not being plugged in or indoors, that's what got me started running M1 5w30 exclusively a few years back. As an aside, it was really nice having the M1 and an oil pan heater at the same time.

The only real issue I have is that we might be being a little too OCD about the whole issue. I like the idea of having the thinnest possible oil in the pan at startup. That's a no-brainer. However, even in the Great White North, our roads aren't littered with vehicles disabled by spun bearings because they used a conventional 5w30 or 10w30 in the winter, either.

Aside from that, when it's -40 out, the weather will focus you on the real issues, real fast. Running the freest flowing synthetic in the world isn't going to help you when your battery is on its way out, your cables have been neglected, your engine is terribly out of tune, or you're running a severely diluted coolant mix and it's frozen solid.

 

[shpankey]

Changed my daughters 2.2 ecotech coblat to M1 0w30 w/ a k&n filter and she cited it was "much much better" now. Starts up almost instantly.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

I think its funny that you guys think you are buying synthetics off the shelf in US of A! A real syn only make a noticable difference below -35C by reducing the cloud point and improved cold viscometrics. Good luck finding that 85% PAO cold syn these days other than Motul or Amsoil. Loo9k for MRV better (less) than 10K cP at respective multigrade 5w or 0w test temp.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
I think its funny that you guys think you are buying synthetics off the shelf in US of A! A real syn only make a noticable difference below -35C by reducing the cloud point and improved cold viscometrics. Good luck finding that 85% PAO cold syn these days other than Motul or Amsoil. Loo9k for MRV better (less) than 10K cP at respective multigrade 5w or 0w test temp.


I`m with you on this one Arco. Unless you`re getting a genuine PAO or ester based synthetic(RP,Amsoil,RL,Motul,etc),just go with the dino,since most "over the counter" synths are dinos anyway,right? I just don`t see how a "cleaned up" dino could protect any better than a regular high quality dino,especially where you`re seeing engines going 400,000+ miles on Pennzoil yb and Valvoline wb.