Well if you have no problems then I wouldn't switch. Did you mean 5w30? 5W20 wasn't being used when your truck was new. Either way don't fix what isn't broke.
Ok! temperature here stays over 30 degrees Celsius most of the day and we got few brands of oil: Castrol, Shell Helix, Quaker State, Mobil, Kendall, Agip, motorcraft, etc...
No 3 people on this message board are ever going to agree on the answer to your question. If ambient temperatures stay fairly warm, the cold weight of the oil would be much less important in your decission. I've been using 10w-30 in my truck here in the DEEP south and I'm not planning on changing.
I don't want to start the debate over again, but I would like to understand the "I live in a hot climate so I will use 10w-30 instead of 5w-30 because it is thicker" theory?
10w-30 is only thicker at sart up correct? 10w-30 and 5w-30 are the exact same thickness at operating temp correct?
So why would you want a thicker slower oil at cold start up just because you live in hot weather? Once the engine is hot and you need to restart it both oils are 30 weigt correct? So why wouldn't you want thinner faster oil at cold start up?
This 10w-30 VS 5w-30 in hot climates (Or anywhere for that matter) has never made sense to me.
Originally posted by Mland13 If ambient temperatures stay fairly warm, the cold weight of the oil would be much less important in your decission. I've been using 10w-30 in my truck here in the DEEP south and I'm not planning on changing.
True and I don't blame you !
guzman_marcos,
The Castrol SLX 0/30 would give you great wear protection and the potential for some VERY long drain intervals depending on how you drive. A very good primarily Ester based oil there with a high TBN.
hcmg,
All 30wt's are not equal in viscosity at 100C or 212F. They range from 9.3CST to 12.49. An example is Mobil Supersyn 10/30 is a 9.8 centistroke oil at 100C - Synergyn 5/30 is 12.2 and Chevron 10/30 is 10.8.
Pumpabilty is important in the 4.6 motors and other OHC motors,if the oil is already fairly warm it negates the need for a low pour point . The heavier oils like a 10/30 vs a 5/30 has potentially less VII's to shear and turn into sludge even though vast improvements have been made with VII's since the advent of group II and II+ oils. The group I's had a certainamount of solvency that kept the seals conditioned. The higher groups received more or less esterfied VII's that act a double duty role in that they are much more shear resistant and condition the seals.
Dino oils are not my favorite but there are a few that will get the job done very well. Some are lawnmower oils regardless of the API Donut IMO
In a hot climate you don't have cold start concerns. Yes you have cold starts, but the engine warms up quickly. I live in a cold climate, so I know well what a real cold start is, when you engine reaches operating temp on the freeway after 12 miles and 20 minutes.
I checked it today and the overhead thermostat read 96* sitting in the sun. I started it and it was 33*C at the head. By the time I got out of the parking lot and onto the road it was at the C mark which is about 47*C. It's less than a mile to the freeway iat it was 65*C when I hit the entrance ramp, and up to 89 by the time I merged traffic and settled down in my lane one mile later. It goes up to 94, then settles back down to 90 when the thermostat opens.
Typically, a 10w-30 dino oil will hold up better than a 5w-30 oil. Because less polymers are used to hold the viscosity over the tempature range. So if you don't have serious cold start issues you go for the oil that will hold up better in the heat. It's not like when its -7*F and you will take all the heat your oil can get.
Granted, oils are getting better and better, and the 5ws today hold up better than many 10ws did yesterday.
Yep, main concern is the use of additional viscosity improvers that are required for the greater viscosity spread of the 5w30 vs. the 10w30. Over time, these improvers are not as durable as the base oils, and they shear, resulting in a oil that doesn't demonstrate 5w30 properties anymore - namely thicker when cold and thinner when hot - not good. 10w30 contains less of the improvers, and thus has historically been more stable over the long term. Theoretically, the more stable oil will provide better protection over time.
Todays oils have come a long ways from where we were even a decade ago, so it is less of an issue than it used to be.
Once up to temp, the oils are at least in the same viscosity category.
For reference, the cold start properties of motor oil (there are two mechanical tests) are measured at -25/-30 C for 10w oils, at -30/-35C for 5w oils.
One other point that generally gets lost in the shuffle is that the 5w30 oil will net you slightly better fuel mileage, and I emphasize the slight, because it IS thinner than 10w30 at colder temps, which nets better engine efficiency while the engine is warming up.
If it were me, and there were no oil usage issues or other concerns, I'd keep on doing what I had been doing...
So let me get this straight, 10w-30 is better because of fewer modifiers correct? 5w-30 is better for a cold start up correct? The manufaturer reccomends 5w-xx 90% of the time for 90% of driving condidtions correct?
So it looks like to all you people out there that know a whole lot more about oil than I do believe that less modifiers/addatives make a better all around oil correct?
So then a oil with less of a spread would be better correct?
Now, if all of the above is true and 10w-xx oils are superior even in a moderen engine then why did they (The manufacturer) not go to a 10w-20? This oil weigt would have almost no modifiers correct? In most cases (As noted above) your engine heats up quickly when driven so the mileage gained would be negligable, correct? So most likely the manufacturer reccomends a 5w-xx oil to better protect the engine in 90% of start up conditions.
This also seems to answer another thread about 5w-20. Wouldn't it be better then 5w-30 just because it has less modifiers/addatives? That seems to be the main argument to keep using 10w-30 on an engine that doesn't reccomend it???
If thicker is better and a 10w-xx oil is better than a 5w-30 why not use 10w-40 in hot climates? Same start up properties just thicker when hot.
I am talking about oil weights only not brands or the debate over dino v synthetic
We should all pick one weight of oil, study it, and argue it's validity that way a neutral third party can make an educated guess (joke). I've got 10w-30.
Why is it better than 10w-40? Less polymers (less range over which to hold it together)
Why is it better than something weighted at 10w-20? In warmer climates where oil warms faster, the denser oil will better protect your moving parts (at a very fractional cost of fuel economy).
Why not a higher weight oil with less spread? Say... 20w-40? At some point you need to decide where the oil is thick enough to protect your engine, but still thin enough to flow freely... If i could fit inside my 4.6 I could probably better answer this question... right before my 1 nonometer body was burned beyond recognition.
ford says 5w30 right? Thats what mine says so thats what i use. I would use 0w30 if i lived in a ridiculously cold area but other than than id stick with what ford said.
We have a 97 Lariat with close to 200,000 miles. It has been run on Mobil 1 10W-30 for the life of the vehicle and it's still going. That is why I chose to run the 10W-30 viscocity. That is proff enough for me, at least.
OK, hcmq, lets see if we can answer those questions:
1. Yes, In general, a 10w30 is a more durable motor oil since its has less viscosity improvers in it.
2. 5w-30 is a better oil for cold start conditions due to its thinner properties at lower temperatures (ie: pumps and flows better when cold).
3. In this case, Ford recommends 5w30 or 5w20 for 100% startup conditions expected.
In the old days, when oil was not as well built as today, you would typically find a chart with temps and recommended oil viscosities. My '88 Jeep recommends anything from 5w20 to 20w50, depending on the expected outside temps. The same engine today carries a rating for 10w30 for anything above 0 Degrees F, 5w30 so long as the high temps stay below 100 and for low temps below 0. Of course, this is a very old engine design, but you can see how the oil recommendations have changed over time.
My old car specified 5w30 for year around use, 10w30 if temps were not going below zero.
In Ford's opinion, the 5wxx oils provide the best mix of startup protection, fuel economy (remember this is thinner than 10wxx oils on startup, so efficiency is increased slightly during warmup), and durability. IMHO, the 10w30 is fine to around 20 degrees or so, then I start wanting a 5wxx oil.
4. Careful not to mix up modifiers and additives. Things like Viscosity Improvers are modifiers (as they change the physical charecteristics of the oil) while additives are things like detergents and anit-wear agents. In general, as oil with less modifiers in it (meaning it has better base oils) will outperform an oil with more modifiers. However, an oil with more additives may actually be better in the long run. Amsoil, for example, is essentially a motor oil loaded with detergents and anti-wear agents (its more complicated than that, but bear with me!).
5. In general, an oil with less spread in the viscosity reating will be more shear stable over time, and thus, in general, a better oil.
6. Ford didn't go after a 10w20 oil because that would be a step backwards in fuel efficiency. Yes, when at operating temps, there would be little difference between a 5w20 and a 10w20, but when warming up, the 5wxx oils offer some fuel economy benefits. In addition, the 10wxx oil would provide poorer cold start protection (an I mean when the temps are below zero) than the 5wxx oils.
7. Yes, if your only arguement is viscosity spread, than the 5w20 should be better than the 10w30. However, many people feel that a xw20 oil is too thin to provide adequate engine protection, and thus stick with 10w30.
One other thought is that the 5w20, in general, is a higher quality motor oil because it has to pass more stringent tests than the 5w30 oils do to meet Ford's specifications. This usually requires better base oils that may or may not be used in the same brands 5w30 oils. For the most part, the quailty of the base stock has to be higher in the 5w20 to meet Ford's specification.
8. Some people do switch to a 10w40 or 15w40 oil in hot climates. If its warm, there doesnt seem to be much harm in doing so. However, you lose some fuel efficiency.
In general, the motor oil recommendations are made to find a balance between optimum fuel efficiency, acceptable engine wear (in this case 150,000 mile target - same as it was with 5w30 oils), and acceptable lubricant life. In Ford's opinion, this is met using a 5w20 motor oil.
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5W-20 or 10W30?
regardless of the API Donut IMO
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