Oil Viscosity and Weight

[JesseG]

I know this topic has been discussed before, but I wanted to get a better idea of what oil you all are using. Specifically the viscosity and weight. After watching the Mighty Car Mods episode where they turbo the BRZ it got me thinking. The very knowledgeable guy from SME mentioned they don’t use 0W20, especially in a turbocharged car. He recommended 5W40 for a turbo, and 5W30 for NA.

Sooooo, which oil types are you using? I’ve only used the Toyota recommended 0W20. Which is almost like water. And I live in a very warm climate.


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[BigTuna]

Stock 2013 w/ 103k miles. Regularly autocrossed.

I've used 0W20 up until the last oil change, I thought I'd try 5W30 this time as I planned a track day but Covid changed that. I haven't noticed a difference at all. I sent the last 0W20 sample to Blackstone and the results came back totally fine. The notes said that there is no mechanical need to switch to 5W30.

[WNDSRFR]

I use 0W20 because that's what the manufacturer says to use.
I think they should know. Lately I've been using Amazon oil cause it's cheap.

[Th3rdSun]

Originally Posted by WNDSRFR

I use 0W20 because that's what the manufacturer says to use.
I think they should know. Lately I've been using Amazon oil cause it's cheap.

Funny thing is the same manufacturer says you only need to change your oil every 7500 miles,yet there are those that still do the old 3k oil change. If you track your car,then I could understand changing it more frequently,but if it's a daily,what's the point?

[Ohio Enthusiast]

Changing oil (or any other preventative maintenance) more frequently can't cause any harm to the car (except perhaps stripping the oil pan), and may offer some benefits in the long term reliability of the car. Using a different oil grade/weight (or other non spec'd consumables such as filters, spark plugs or what have you) may very well be detrimental to the car. Basically one is being stricter than the manufacturer recommendations, while the other is deviating from those recommendations.

The only downside of frequent preventative maintenance is cost, and since most folks here DIY theirs anyway the difference between 7500 miles interval and 3000/5000 interval is pretty small and gives peace of mind that we're treating our car better.

This also reminds me of some European brands that went with almost 20,000 miles (30,000 KM) and 24 months oil change interval, advertising as low-maintenance and cost-effective. After several years and the resulting sludge they went back to the typical European ~10,000 miles (15,000 KM) and 12 months interval. I guess the DIYers who kept the old interval on their cars would have been fortunate...

[YamahaR86]

0w20 when I was stock.


FI, I'm using 5w30.

[pope]

5w30

I'm fine with sacrificing a fraction of a percent of efficiency for a fraction of a percent better hot protection and wider availability. (Summer only car, so 0w vs 5w is irrelevant).

[Spuds]

Should have just made a poll.

Mobil 1, 5w30 in the summer, 0w20 in the winter, usually changed in April and October.

My car is NA. I notice a difference between the two weights, but it's probably just in my head.

[DarkPira7e]

I ran 0w-20 and 5w-30 and saw no difference in temperatures on my turbo build, I plan on running a 5w-30 on my new engine to keep oil pressure up a little higher on cold starts and during high temperature operation with the turbo.I change my oil every few thousand miles to check on its condition and see if I need to make adjustments / send it in for analysis with Blackstone.

I would not do that under normal circumstances- if my car was not turbo, I would run a 0w-20 and change the oil every 5k, unless something felt strange.

[Grady]

0w20 stock,
5w30 when I installed the turbo,
Switched to 0W40 last 100 deg track day, probably not necessary, still did not see oil temp over 250.

There is only 1 correct answer when someone asks what type of oil to use.... “New” is the correct answer.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Spuds

Should have just made a poll.

Mobil 1, 5w30 in the summer, 0w20 in the winter, usually changed in April and October.

My car is NA. I notice a difference between the two weights, but it's probably just in my head.

Yep, back in the day, we would put 30W in cars in the summer and 20W in the winter. There were only two basic types of oil - detergent or non-detergent.

Spuds, noticing a difference being in your head? Now, THAT is a distinct possibility -

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by DarkPira7e

I ran 0w-20 and 5w-30 and saw no difference in temperatures on my turbo build, I plan on running a 5w-30 on my new engine to keep oil pressure up a little higher on cold starts and during high temperature operation with the turbo.I change my oil every few thousand miles to check on its condition and see if I need to make adjustments / send it in for analysis with Blackstone.

I would not do that under normal circumstances- if my car was not turbo, I would run a 0w-20 and change the oil every 5k, unless something felt strange.

Just as a note regarding oil temperature in my car. On similar days, the oil temperature will be about 5-10 degrees hotter with the 5w30 than it would be with the 0w20.

[DarkSunrise]

I typically use Mobil 1 0w30 for the summer since it includes track and canyon time. For the winter I used to switch back to 0w20, but now that I live in a temperate climate, I don't bother.

If I was only street driving the car, I'd use the recommended 0w20 and not even worry about it.

[DarkPira7e]

Originally Posted by Spuds

Just as a note regarding oil temperature in my car. On similar days, the oil temperature will be about 5-10 degrees hotter with the 5w30 than it would be with the 0w20.

Do you have datalogs to support this? I actively monitored my temps with both and didn't see a difference. Granted, I only got to drive my car mostly between 45f and -15f.
Perhaps at high summer temperatures, there's a difference. This is the first I've heard of this though, why would the temperature differ so much?