Warming up to 5W20 for winter But 5w30 for summer

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Think about how many owners are running 1 grade higher from the manual all year around and their trucks are not blowing up

One goal for how an oil performs is how long the engine lasts before significant maintenance is needed. This includes stuff like wearing out timing chains and tensioners for example. I'd rather see my engine stay factory sealed for at least 150K-200K miles. If using a different from OEM specified grade oil helps that cause, I'm all for it, even if it costs me 0.2 mpg. The oil rating model of "my engine didn't blow up" is rather antiquated.
 
Originally Posted By: webfors
Originally Posted By: StevieC
My Dodge Journey runs 5w20 year round with oil temperatures of 250F. Beautiful UOA's and that is in a hard working 4 cylinder that does high rev's on the highway. No engine blown yet.


Have you calculated what your effective viscosity is at 250F? Probably low enough to make us cringe :p


Mobil 1 EP 0w20 at 150C/302F = 2.7 Not sure what it would be at 250F

If my summer oil temps go over say 220F think I will definitely go 5w30 in summer. Never had a vehicle that showed the oil temp, this one does (will keep an eye on in summer).

HTHS Viscosity, mPa•s @ 150ºC (ASTM D4683) 2.7

Is 250F a commonly seen oil temp? My current oil temps have been running around 195f
 
A topic I've juggled with much too many times. But like tig1 and 2015_PSD have stated, 5w20 will work just fine. If not for bitog i would never have questioned my oil cap (5w20) and would have been much happier for it.
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You are right Fallguy. Oil temp is highly unlikely to get that high unless you are driving super hard at a road course track event. You aren't planning on going to Road America anytime soon are ya ??
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I run 5W-20 in the warmer 6 months and 0W-20 in the colder 6 months in my 5.7L Hemi. I previously lived in the Great Lakes area and had some repeat issues during a polar vortex winter when ambient temperatures were below 10°F. Switching from 5W-20 to 0W-20 and a base end bypass oil filter stopped this from happening the following winter. I took my oil stash with me to Texas when we moved. This past year I used 0W-20 year round due to low miles driven, and have 0W-20 in my cranckcase now.

I had 5W-20 in my cranckcase when we moved last year towing a Uhaul trailer with the stuff the professional movers wouldn't move, like my oil stash, and my EVIC displayed oil temps maxed out at 216°F in 90+°F ambient temperatures on I35 once we got south of Dallas and I was doing 80 to 85 mph. I have no qualms towing my trailer mounted BBQ pit in summer here with either 5W-20 or 0W-20 in my cranckcase.

I run 5W-20 in my wife's 3.7L V6 Mustang year round, both when we lived in the Great Lakes area and here in South Texas. No issues thus far.
 
Originally Posted By: zeng
Originally Posted By: StevieC
Quote:
Lower viscosity engine oils can provide better fuel
economy and cold weather performance, however, higher viscosity
engine oils are required for satisfactory lubrication in hot weather.


I think this assumes conventional oil in use with the bare minimum MOFT that might be encountered not high quality synthetics.

I'm afraid this assumption is not valid.


Originally Posted By: StevieC
Do elaborate and consider that the vehicles are sold around the world where oil quality my not be as good as it is in certain countries.


MOFT is a property of
* bearing dimensions (diameter, length and clearance)
* applied pressure (load/projected area)
* RPM
* viscosity

If you change the viscosity, it doesn't matter whether it is conventional, synthetic, or vegetable oil vis/vis at the same temperature, MOFT doesn't change.

When you run out of MOFT, and asperite contact ensues, additives come into play as the wear reduction strategy.

The only "zero" wear option is full hydrodynamic.
 
Originally Posted By: Fallguy
Originally Posted By: webfors
Originally Posted By: StevieC
My Dodge Journey runs 5w20 year round with oil temperatures of 250F. Beautiful UOA's and that is in a hard working 4 cylinder that does high rev's on the highway. No engine blown yet.


Have you calculated what your effective viscosity is at 250F? Probably low enough to make us cringe :p


Mobil 1 EP 0w20 at 150C/302F = 2.7 Not sure what it would be at 250F

If my summer oil temps go over say 220F think I will definitely go 5w30 in summer. Never had a vehicle that showed the oil temp, this one does (will keep an eye on in summer).

HTHS Viscosity, mPa•s @ 150ºC (ASTM D4683) 2.7

Is 250F a commonly seen oil temp? My current oil temps have been running around 195f


250F in the summer and 212F-220F currently with just below 0 degrees Celsius temperatures.
 
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Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I'm old enough to remember when 5W-30 was the winter oil.
grin2.gif



I remember our 94 Dodge Caravan and 2000 Intrepid even called for 10W-30 in the summer and 5W-30 in winter.
 
Originally Posted By: Fallguy
My vehicle states 5w20 is the recommended oil but 5w30 is also acceptable.

Will run 0W20 for the winter, love the low MRV (9200 at -40C) and can get down to -15F where I live.

In summer thinking I will run 5W30.

Know 5w20 (0w20's) are stout oils, just cringe at running it on 100F days when summer rolls back around.
(using synthetic, M1 EP 0w20 currently).

Anyone else doing similar and swinging back an forth between viscosities. Maybe by summer I will just stay 0w20 (flip a coin I guess). Splitting hairs here but that is what we do here correct?

2017 pentastar 3.6L

Why not just use a good synthetic oil all year round?
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http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/how...ummer-10283951/

https://www.yourmechanic.com/article/do-i-need-to-change-my-motor-oil-for-hot-or-cold-weather
 
Originally Posted By: wemay
A topic I've juggled with much too many times. But like tig1 and 2015_PSD have stated, 5w20 will work just fine. If not for bitog i would never have questioned my oil cap (5w20) and would have been much happier for it.
whistle.gif



If not for Bitog, I too never would have questioned my 5w-20 oil cap. I do now though. And did the appropriate research on the whens and whys.

Bitog made me think back a bit and research what I had been doing. My earlier Lincoln (same engine) had a 5w-30 oil cap. I totally forgot about that...until I came here. Never even realized Ford back specced all those earlier years. It was good I came here to understand some of that. And I made the switch back to 5w-30 because that's what the Ford engineers originally designed for...and my earlier car went 230K trouble free engine miles on 30 grades. I'm much happier having found this out. My timing chains/tensioners/cylinder heads might thank me someday. And in the process realized the Quick Lube place was putting Mercon in my Mercon V specced transaxle. Never would have given it a 2nd thought if not for Bitog. Thanks Bitog.

The coolant or engine oil temps you see on the gauges are not the same as the highest coolant/oil temps in your engine. I prefer the additional high end viscosity protection at essentially zero additional cost/risk.
 
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
I never bought off on switching viscosity for summer/winter. There's a fair bit of overlap between grades.

Yes. We have multigrades for a reason, and minimizing/avoiding seasonal switches was one of the primary ones. I've run 5w-30 year round many times. I would never jump to a 5w-20 for the winter advantage. If I was that concerned, I'd run a 0w-XX, rather than mess with the "XX" part of things.
 
I don't switch around on my GM vehicles, but I do my commercial trucks. I run 15w40 in them during the warm months and 10w30 in them in the cold months. My personal vehicles just live on 5w30 for the pickup and 10w30 for the Cadillac year round in Iowa. The Caddy called for M1 5w30 and all it has gotten is Pennz conventional 10w30. 12 year old car that still runs great and is in great shape body wise. Holding on to this gem longer.
 
My new 4 runner will get synthetic 10w30 in March through September I will let them put the free 0w20:in for winter for the first two years and then probably just stay with a 30 weight after the free changes are done.

I run high altitude steep grades and some off-road shock loads happen in the summer while I play in the mountains and high desert.
 
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