what 5w20 oil to use?

[Mike_dup1]

What makes anyone think that the 5W-20 oil is inferior?

I remember when people were afraid of multi-visc oils, 10W-30, 10W-40. A long time friend had a service station and he tells me every once in a while he gets a customer who is looking for 10 or 30 etc. They are old school and don't want to change. I still see people cring when I tel them I have been using 0W-30 oils since 1996 or so.

TooSlick
You say you can tell but I want to know if it can be done with certainty? Not just from experience. All this hype about non-api oils voiding warranties makes we want to know if they can prove it. I inquired of the analysis people but they have not or will not respond.

[ December 23, 2002, 01:01 PM: Message edited by: Mike ]

 

[satterfi]

Any other thoughts on this?

What takes more power?

Pumping a low viscosity oil at a high rate; or

Pumping a high viscosity oil at a lower rate?

Under real world conditions, which solution would you choose for your bearings?

 

[Ken2]

quote:

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Originally posted by Jay:
The theory that car manufacturers would sacrifice engine durability to get their CAFE numbers slightly lower doesn't hold water with me. It overlooks the simple fact that car manufacturing is a very competitive business. Which car manufacturer can afford to gain a poor reputation for reliability or durability? The manufacturers have tested the 20-weights and if they truly weren't up to the job they wouldn't recommend them.

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Jay, are you old enough to remember Cadillac's 4-6-8 cylinder engines?...where cylinders cut out to save gas, and many of those cars spent more time hanging on a wrecker's hook than driving on the road. How about Toyota's current 3 liter and 2.2 liter sludgemobiles? My nephew is an Oldsmobile tech, and he's spent many days doing warranty repairs removing engines and resealing a leaking crankcase joint. Ford's high CG Explorers? Years back Ford's Pinto with the exploding gas tank and the big Ford with the automatic transmission which slipped itself from Park to Reverse (and killed my wife's aunt).

The automakers have made many stupid decisions in the past, and nothing indicates that they've learned a whole lot.

Ken

 

[Patman]

GM is bringing back that cylinder shutdown technology though, and this time it's gonna work. Mercedes uses it on their V12 and it gets 30MPG highway.

My cousin is the engine test engineer for the LS1 assembly plant, and he tells me they are already working on a 500hp LS6 Corvette engine which uses this technology. It'll get 30 MPG highway too.

 

[Schwinn]

quote:

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Originally posted by Roger:
I now use 5W20 in my Escape for one reason, and one reason only...Ford's warranty.

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I have recently been looking into this matter as well, since my wife just bought a Tribute which calls for the 5w20 oil as well. Here is what I found:

1) http://www.syntheticoiltech.com/oil/jdupp/ford5w20.htm states that a car manufacturer cannot void your warranty, due to the Magneson-Moss Act. As long as the oil meets the manufacturer's stated API service rating, then they cannot void your warranty (I assume this implies that you use the correct grade of oil for your climate).

2) http://www.ford-trucks.com/dcforum/DCForumID24/44.html the third post mentions that Mazda put out a TSB "authorizing" use of 5w30 in the Tribute (same engine as the Escape). I would love to see a copy of that TSB - anyone able to get their hands on it? It's TSB #01-003/02, issued 02/06/2002.

Based on this information, I plan to talk to my Mazda dealer and ask them what oil to use in the car, then (when they say 5w20) ask them if 5w30 is acceptable. If so, I will ask for it in writing. And/or I will ask them for a copy of the above-mentioned TSB.

Anyone have any comments or corrections to what I have stated here? Seems to make sense to me that 5w30 is acceptable, since it was only a TSB that made 5w20 acceptable on engines that were previously 5w30 (Ford TSB 02-1-9)...

 

[buster]

Makes sense. I highly doubt they would be able to tell what oil it is anyway. I think for cars that call for a 20wt. should use Mobil 1. It's so close to a 20wt. as is. It's really all about emissions IMO> nothing more, nothing less.