0W20 vs. 5W30 Test Data

[zdr93523]

Originally Posted by ApexEight

What oil temps and pressures do you see with the 10W-60 during cold starts and also during race conditions?

I have since switched back to 5W-30. While I'm confident the 10W-60 would be fine in an NA car, it is too thick and creates too much heat in an FI race environment.

[ApexEight]

Originally Posted by zdr93523

I have since switched back to 5W-30. While I'm confident the 10W-60 would be fine in an NA car, it is too thick and creates too much heat in an FI race environment.

Have you considered a 0W-40? I'm running 0W-20 but am looking to make a change.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by ApexEight

Have you considered a 0W-40? I'm running 0W-20 but am looking to make a change.

Don't fix what ain't broke

[zdr93523]

Originally Posted by ApexEight

Have you considered a 0W-40? I'm running 0W-20 but am looking to make a change.

Mosul 300V 5W-30 is about the best oil on the planet.

[smg1138]

Originally Posted by zdr93523

Mosul 300V 5W-30 is about the best oil on the planet.

Is it advisable to use Motul 300V for a car that does street and track duty? Or does it need to be changed so often it's only best for dedicated track setups?

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by smg1138

Is it advisable to use Motul 300V for a car that does street and track duty? Or does it need to be changed so often it's only best for dedicated track setups?

300V is great for street driving!

[JIM THEO]

Originally Posted by zdr93523

Mosul 300V 5W-30 is about the best oil on the planet.

There is no such oil, for what car, what use, what oil change intervals etc...IT IS a great oil but many UOA show better results with Redline 5W30!

[DandoX]

Originally Posted by kster1

My data is here from a Thunderhill event on March 21, 2015. I believe my best laptime was a 2:08 from that day which is pushing a naturally aspirated car fairly hard. I do avoid track events in the peak summer which keeps the car running cooler.

http://photos.imageevent.com/kster1/...tc/aimData.JPG

I'm curious as to your set up for how you recorded this data? Did you have a small laptop connected to the ODB2?

[Dzmitry]

Have read as much as I could to understand it better, but was looking for a little feedback to warm my heart. Currently running 0W-20 on my stock 2018 BRZ. Will soon be monitoring oil temperature and other information through Torque App. In the mean time I have used the oil temperature reading the car provides. I have consistently heard/seen that the peak temperatures for 0W-20 should be no more than 225-235F. In my case, I tend to do moderate to somewhat aggressive street driving when given the right conditions. Overall, my temps seem to float around 210F. When cruising to work on the other hand (about 1 to 1.5 hours of driving), I run around 65-75 mph. At higher constant speeds, sometimes the oil temperature will center out between 190-270, which would be right around the 230 mark. This can hold constant for a while as I am running the same speed. This hasn't really changed with the warmer or cooler temperatures much, I have never seen the oil temp go above that, so I'm not worried about that (yet). I'm more curious if I am safe to be running this oil grade at that temperature? I know there are many factors, but just wanted a little feedback.

I run Idemitsu Full Synthetic 0W-20. Should I just stick to it or consider going 0W-30 or 5W-30? Would that help put me in a safer spot? One thing I haven't quite been able to determine from all the reading is where the safe oil pressure level is (in terms of the low end). Based on the data from the OP, my oil pressure may be hanging a little low in the 230F range. 5W-30 might help fix this problem, but then there's a teeny bit more wear on the cold starts. Thoughts?

Does any of this even matter since I am only cruising on a highway and not sprinting around with high variation in RPM's? Should I not be worried at all?

Any input is appreciated, thanks!

P.S.
If the oil I am using sucks, let me know. I am mainly trying to stick to a cheap/average priced oil since I do 3000-5000 mile oil changes and DD the car and want it to last.

[prandelia]

TMG Racing in Germany switched to 5W50 the past two years on NA cars, with oil coolers, as it seems to provide better oil pressure and protection in their races, however, most VLN races are endurance based, which is also the reason for the 50, as by the time the race is over, it may already be down a grade or two in viscosity. Regardless, they rebuild motors and adjust the oils accordingly, and that's what I based my decisions from.

For my sprint racing, I chose to go with slightly lower, 5W40 (or 0W40), but top off with either 40 or 50 that I have in my trailer. I'm going to play with both weights to see which one is better for my oil pressures at the typical temps I see, which are mild. I don't mind some additional drivetrain (hp) loss due to heavier oils, the tradeoff is better IMO.

[mkodama]

Originally Posted by Dzmitry

Have read as much as I could to understand it better, but was looking for a little feedback to warm my heart. Currently running 0W-20 on my stock 2018 BRZ. Will soon be monitoring oil temperature and other information through Torque App. In the mean time I have used the oil temperature reading the car provides. I have consistently heard/seen that the peak temperatures for 0W-20 should be no more than 225-235F. In my case, I tend to do moderate to somewhat aggressive street driving when given the right conditions. Overall, my temps seem to float around 210F. When cruising to work on the other hand (about 1 to 1.5 hours of driving), I run around 65-75 mph. At higher constant speeds, sometimes the oil temperature will center out between 190-270, which would be right around the 230 mark. This can hold constant for a while as I am running the same speed. This hasn't really changed with the warmer or cooler temperatures much, I have never seen the oil temp go above that, so I'm not worried about that (yet). I'm more curious if I am safe to be running this oil grade at that temperature? I know there are many factors, but just wanted a little feedback.

I run Idemitsu Full Synthetic 0W-20. Should I just stick to it or consider going 0W-30 or 5W-30? Would that help put me in a safer spot? One thing I haven't quite been able to determine from all the reading is where the safe oil pressure level is (in terms of the low end). Based on the data from the OP, my oil pressure may be hanging a little low in the 230F range. 5W-30 might help fix this problem, but then there's a teeny bit more wear on the cold starts. Thoughts?

Does any of this even matter since I am only cruising on a highway and not sprinting around with high variation in RPM's? Should I not be worried at all?

Any input is appreciated, thanks!

P.S.
If the oil I am using sucks, let me know. I am mainly trying to stick to a cheap/average priced oil since I do 3000-5000 mile oil changes and DD the car and want it to last.

Your oil temperatures and driving conditions sound like a perfect candidate for 0W-20 or 0W-30.

I have an oil report showing significantly less wear metals going from 0W-20 to 0W-40, but then again I'm in California and do a lot of tracking in hot weather. I can also say Redline oils aren't measurably affected by continuous 270F temperatures.

[bellwilliam]

another data point. I am in southern California. tracking in 100F weather is the norm here.

without an oil cooler, I hit 280F max oil temp. with a Jackson Racing oil cooler, I hit 255F max. This is with bone stock engine/drivetrain.

[Dzmitry]

Originally Posted by mkodama

Your oil temperatures and driving conditions sound like a perfect candidate for 0W-20 or 0W-30.

I have an oil report showing significantly less wear metals going from 0W-20 to 0W-40, but then again I'm in California and do a lot of tracking in hot weather. I can also say Redline oils aren't measurably affected by continuous 270F temperatures.

Interesting and makes sense. I am curious then of whether holding a temperature of 230F has a good amount of negative effects for me to consider a Forester oil cooler, or if this temperature is fine to continue running at as long as I don't exceed it much (I know this is an endless debate everywhere between what the ideal temperatures are to run an engine and at what temperatures the damage starts to occur or increases significantly). I have also done quite an extensive amount of reading on research and anything I can find on oil in the past couple of days.

https://www.minimania.com/Motor_Oils..._Misunderstood

Though, this specific article I am posting isn't direct research, it boasts a load of interesting and important information. It's a good 1-2 hour read. Makes me wonder if 0W-30 would be a slightly worse alternative to 0W-20 from the larger differences in viscosity on an engine start. And how would that compare to the wear of my engine at a constant 230F. These are all just thoughts in my head, I am not expecting an answer as I know this is an endless debate that has been disputed on just about every forum. Just some interesting stuff.

Basically I am just curious if it would benefit me to have a Forester Oil cooler with the way I run my car for long term BRZ survival, or if it would be of little to no benefit or unworthy.

[mkodama]

Originally Posted by Dzmitry

Interesting and makes sense. I am curious then of whether holding a temperature of 230F has a good amount of negative effects for me to consider a Forester oil cooler, or if this temperature is fine to continue running at as long as I don't exceed it much (I know this is an endless debate everywhere between what the ideal temperatures are to run an engine and at what temperatures the damage starts to occur or increases significantly). I have also done quite an extensive amount of reading on research and anything I can find on oil in the past couple of days.

https://www.minimania.com/Motor_Oils..._Misunderstood

Though, this specific article I am posting isn't direct research, it boasts a load of interesting and important information. It's a good 1-2 hour read. Makes me wonder if 0W-30 would be a slightly worse alternative to 0W-20 from the larger differences in viscosity on an engine start. And how would that compare to the wear of my engine at a constant 230F. These are all just thoughts in my head, I am not expecting an answer as I know this is an endless debate that has been disputed on just about every forum. Just some interesting stuff.

Basically I am just curious if it would benefit me to have a Forester Oil cooler with the way I run my car for long term BRZ survival, or if it would be of little to no benefit or unworthy.

I've heard/read some engine builders talk of 110C or 230F being often an ideal oil temperature to aim for(maximum power, protection, and mileage), so I would be happy in that case.

I tried out the Forester oil cooler for a while and I was not very impressed with it; no noticeable difference. I definitely recommend the throttle body heater plumbing path option over the heater core plumbing path option(what I did) if you decide to try it out.

If you want additional endless reading on engine oil, https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/ forums cover everything.