Valvoline XL-III 5W-30 - in 2.4L Hyundai Theta II GDI Engine - Should I use it?

[Deleted member 89374]

As many Hyundai owners know, the Theta II engine is not Hyundai's finest engineering effort. To add insult to injury, Hyundai specified 5W-20 for North America, then they quickly turned around and sent out updated service bulletins to dealers that they should use 5W-30 in these engines. Per a friend of mine who is a Hyundai Certified Tech, he also recommended that I use 6 quarts of oil instead of the 5.1 quarts listed in the owner's manual. I followed his advice and never had any issues. I also switched to oil with an HTHS greater than 3.5. Hyundai allows for 0W-40/5W-40 in these N/A engines in Europe and other places. In the Middle East, they won't even allow the use of 0/5W-20.

Per Owner's Manual, I'm allowed 5W-20, 5W-30, or 10W-30 oil. Now, 0W-40 fits the bill nicely in place of 10W-30 (viscosity-wise, plus better cold-flow). However, I am hearing that Hyundai has become a royal PITA to deal with when it comes to warranty claims. I have a lifetime warranty on this engine.

Looking around, Valvoline XL-III 5W-30 seems to tick all the right boxes for me, including price. It has an HTHS of 5W-30, it's API SP licensed, and has a boatload of approvals, including MB229.52, that tells me that this has to be a good oil.

My question is: should there be any reason why I shouldn't use Valvoline XL-III 5W-30 in a 2.4L GDI engine that's a known soot factory and notorious fuel diluter?

 

[HyundaiAbuser]

it'll work just fine

 

[SR5]

Valvoline XL-III 5W-30 is a great oil, it's rated ACEA C3, MB 229.51/52, BMW LL-04,Porsche C30, VW 504.00/507.00 and API SP.

Here is a link to the approval sheet (pdf) for the USA

US_Val_EuroVehicleXLIII_5W30_MO_EN.pdf - Docusign CLM

sharena21.springcm.com

It sounds like a good choice to me

 

[PimTac]

It’s a 30 grade. It should run fine. Don’t confuse winter rating


Confirmation complete.

 

[JustinH]

I don't think the oil matters too much so long as it meets grade.

I would keep the interval to 3750 miles.

I had a couple Theta II engines and had problems with none of them. The dealer used to put Quaker State in mine.

If you are worried about a warranty, I would have it serviced with someone who can do a carfax service entry, not DIY.

 

[Deleted member 89374]

It’s a 30 grade. It should run fine. Don’t confuse winter rating

In my OP I was comparing cSt @ 40 for 0W-40 and 10W-30, and in fact, most 0W-40 lubes are thinner at that temperature. The problem is that when you walk into the dealership with an engine-related issue you deal with people who couldn't care less about oil viscosity, nor do they understand it very well. I told once a service advisor that I'm using 0W-40 and his reply was: "OMG, that has no viscosity to it! You should use at least 0W-20!"... Since Hyundai started using any excuse lately to deny warranty claims, I'm just being cautious. I still won't service it at the dealership though. They only allow their bulk oil, and it's bad stuff.

I would keep the interval to 3750 miles.

I do 5K miles or less OCIs with an ACEA A3/B4 oil currently (Castrol 0W-40). This engine will dirty up any ILSAC 5W-30 in a heartbeat, and that's very telling as to why so many people have had issues with them. Mine runs like clockwork.

I would have it serviced with someone who can do a carfax service entry, not DIY.

www.carfax.com - I can do a service entry just fine, including receipts. It says DIY of course.

 

[Blinker]

To add insult to injury, Hyundai specified 5W-20 for North America, then they quickly turned around and sent out updated service bulletins to dealers that they should use 5W-30 in these engines. Per a friend of mine who is a Hyundai Certified Tech, he also recommended that I use 6 quarts of oil instead of the 5.1 quarts listed in the owner's manual.

Not quite. The Theta II 2.4 allows for both 5W-20 and 5W-30. The Theta II 2.0T also allows for 5W-30, so to make the process easier on dealers, Hyundai states to use 5W-30 when an oil change is required per one of the many TSB’s they have open. It also eliminates the likelihood of a technician mistakenly putting 5W-20 in a 2.0T engine when doing a TSB. Yes, it has happened by mistake.

Also, your Hyundai Certified tech has no basis for recommending 6 quarts of oil. Another reason I avoid the dealership.

 

[blufeb95]

In my OP I was comparing cSt @ 40 for 0W-40 and 10W-30, and in fact, most 0W-40 lubes are thinner at that temperature. The problem is that when you walk into the dealership with an engine-related issue you deal with people who couldn't care less about oil viscosity, nor do they understand it very well. I told once a service advisor that I'm using 0W-40 and his reply was: "OMG, that has no viscosity to it! You should use at least 0W-20!"... Since Hyundai started using any excuse lately to deny warranty claims, I'm just being cautious. I still won't service it at the dealership though. They only allow their bulk oil, and it's bad stuff.

Unless we're talking about CK-4 Diesel oil 10W30 PCMO is generally thinner than 0W-40 at 40C because 10W30 is generally not available in euro approvals and most 10W30 is resource conserving and is very thin for grade, at 40C 10W30 generally has a KV40 of 60-70, with full syn being closer to 60 and conventional being closer to 70, where 0W40 is around 70-75CSt usually

 

[Deleted member 89374]

Unless we're talking about CK-4 Diesel oil 10W30 PCMO is generally thinner than 0W-40 at 40C because 10W30 is generally not available in euro approvals and most 10W30 is resource conserving and is very thin for grade, at 40C 10W30 generally has a KV40 of 60-70, with full syn being closer to 60 and conventional being closer to 70, where 0W40 is around 70-75CSt usually

You're right, however, I think that overall 0W-40 fares better when it comes to flow. M1 EP 10W-30 is 64 cSt @ 40C, while M1 FS 0W-40 is 70.8 cSt @ 40. Of course, VII is another matter. Under high heat, 0W-40 won't fare as well as 10W-30. However, this isn't a turbo-charged application, but rather a glorified grocery-getter, my daily driver.

 

[kschachn]

You're right, however, I think that overall 0W-40 fares better when it comes to flow. M1 EP 10W-30 is 64 cSt @ 40C, while M1 FS 0W-40 is 70.8 cSt @ 40. Of course, VII is another matter. Under high heat, 0W-40 won't fare as well as 10W-30. However, this isn't a turbo-charged application, but rather a glorified grocery-getter, my daily driver.

If only “flow” mattered, right?

 

[BMW Dom]

If only “flow” mattered, right?

I think that someone should develop a cold pump-ability rating. Maybe they would label with a a number starting at 0 and increasing by 5. Like 0W30, 5W30.
I know, it's some pretty lateral thinking.

 

[Gene K]

I think that someone should develop a cold pump-ability rating. Maybe they would label with a a number starting at 0 and increasing by 5. Like 0W30, 5W30.
I know, it's some pretty lateral thinking.

All joking aside it would be nice if we had published viscosity at 0C as well as the 40C and 100C numbers.

 

[Deleted member 89374]

If only “flow” mattered, right?

All joking aside, I was just curious if there is anything I'm missing about Valvoline XL-III 5W-30 that would prevent me from using it in a GDI engine, as this oil seems to be geared more towards light-duty diesel engines.

Of course, flow matters. If you go down in temperature, then 10W-30 will lose fast compared to 0W-40. The same goes for 5W-30 when compared to 0W-40. My viscosity comparison was at specific temperatures. I live in the south, so I see maybe 20F in January and a few times in February. Cold flow is not as critical for me as someone who lives up North.

All joking aside it would be nice if we had published viscosity at 0C as well as the 40C and 100C numbers.

You can estimate viscosity at any given temperature using this calculator:

Temperature-Viscosity Chart – FluidPower.Pro

fluidpower.pro

 

[Gene K]

All joking aside, I was just curious if there is anything I'm missing about Valvoline XL-III 5W-30 that would prevent me from using it in a GDI engine, as this oil seems to be geared more towards light-duty diesel engines.

Of course, flow matters. If you go down in temperature, then 10W-30 will lose fast compared to 0W-40. The same goes for 5W-30 when compared to 0W-40. My viscosity comparison was at specific temperatures. I live in the south, so I see maybe 20F in January and a few times in February. Cold flow is not as critical for me as someone who lives up North.


You can estimate viscosity at any given temperature using this calculator:

Temperature-Viscosity Chart – FluidPower.Pro

fluidpower.pro

Having actual 0C numbers would give us a bit more info on base stock VI and estimated VII levels.

 

[Deleted member 89374]

Having actual 0C numbers would give us a bit more info on base stock VI and estimated VII levels.

True.

 

[OVERKILL]

You can estimate viscosity at any given temperature using this calculator:

Temperature-Viscosity Chart – FluidPower.Pro

fluidpower.pro

Keep in mind, visc calcs are not designed to be used below 0C (32F) and begin to lose their accuracy at that point. The lower you go, the further they are divorced from reality. This is because the behaviour of the blend doesn't track properly below that point due to wax crystal formation and the response of other additives to temperature. PPD's work to push-down the wax crystal formation point, but that whole process doesn't track with a calculator.

PAO also behaves completely differently from other bases here, which, if you look at the XOM PDS sheets for the Spectrasyn series, will give you real KV values at certain temperatures.

Short version: don't depend on a visc calc to give you valuable data for below 0C, but they are great for 0C and above to plot lubes.

 

[Deleted member 89374]

Keep in mind, visc calcs are not designed to be used below 0C (32F) and begin to lose their accuracy at that point.

Yes, I agree. However, it is fun to plug in the numbers and see what comes out, as a hobby, of course. I believe it indicates the lines of oil A flows better than oil B, or vice-versa, but you're right, nothing precise. For instance, it shows that at -35C, Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 flows better than Castrol EDGE 0W-40. I know a YouTube video out there that compared the cold flow of eight 0W-40 lubes at -35C recently, including the two above. Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 was only second to Ravenol SSL 0W-40, which came in first, while Castrol EDGE 0W-40 came in second to last, with Red Line Oil 0W-40 taking the last spot (no surprise there, I guess). While not precise, I believe it's a decent enough general indicator.

 

[kschachn]

Yes, I agree. However, it is fun to plug in the numbers and see what comes out, as a hobby, of course. I believe it indicates the lines of oil A flows better than oil B, or vice-versa, but you're right, nothing precise. For instance, it shows that at -35C, Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 flows better than Castrol EDGE 0W-40. I know a YouTube video out there that compared the cold flow of eight 0W-40 lubes at -35C recently, including the two above. Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 was only second to Ravenol SSL 0W-40, which came in first, while Castrol EDGE 0W-40 came in second to last, with Red Line Oil 0W-40 taking the last spot (no surprise there, I guess). While not precise, I believe it's a decent enough general indicator.

Again the "flow" thing. It's not about flow, it is about cranking and pumpability. All of that above is for the most part irrelevant.

 

[Deleted member 89374]

Again the "flow" thing. It's not about flow, it is about cranking and pumpability. All of that above is for the most part irrelevant.

I know you work in the lubrication industry. However, I don't. For me, it's just a hobby that started with wanting to learn more about proper vehicle maintenance. As I understand it, it's not about cold flow under the force of gravity but instead cold-cranking (ASTM D5293) and cold-pumpability (ASTM D4684). Unfortunately, fewer and fewer motor oil manufacturers publish these numbers. So I appreciate the correction.

 

[addyguy]

Can’t really go wrong with a slightly ‘stronger’ Euro-Spec 5W-30…should work well.