30W in a Dodge Cummins; is it ok?

[Howard]

I have been thinking of running Esso XD-3 0W-30 in my 95 Dodge Cummins. I presently run it in my TDI and would like to keep just one oil around. Do you think this oil should hold up in the Cummins?

Thanks.
HL

 

[wwillson]

HL,

We run either Delo 10w-30 or Rotella 10w-30 in a couple of our Cummins ISB's all year without any negative effects.

Wayne

 

[Ramblin Fever]

I run Delo 15w-40 year round in Colorado

 

[olympic]

XD3 0w30 is just shy of a 40wt anyways at 12.1cst, so I'd feel comfortable using it in any engine spec'd for a 40wt. XD3 0w40 has shown to shear a bit so you you might as well use the 0w30.

 

[Howard]

We used to run nothing but straight 30W in all our Cat rig engines so I figured it should be ok in most diesels. The slower RPM ones may have some issues with the thinner oil but as you said, the XD-3 is a thick 30W. Looks like I will give it a try.

Thanks
HL

 

[JR]

I run a 5 yard ford dump with a 350 cummins and a 18 speed eaton. All we use in it is straight 30Wt. Have nevver had a oil related problem. We had a Ford tractor with the same motor and tranny that we sold this spring with almost a million miles on the clock it was gettin over the hill but it had never been overhauled. That tractor had never seen anything but a straight 30Wt. Noone here can tell me that they could of taken that same tractor new and ran nothing but 15W-40 or syn 5W-40 or 0W-30 and get much better results.

 

[Joseph Fihn]

I don't know ifthis is relative, or not, but, my neighbor recently burned-up his '04 Powerstroke while using 10w-30 that was installed by the dealer. He had a chip on it and runs it hard, so no warranty!
The bearings and pistons were badly scored & he had to rebuild the engine, himself. I saw the damage, myself.
Maybe it's OK to use the non-recommended oil weight but, I wouldn't want to risk my two Cummins engines.
I admit that I am not an oil expert but, why would a person want to use a 30w or 10w-30 when the 15w-40 is what's recommended by the manufacturers? There are many good 15w-40's out there. Are the 30's & 10w-30's that much better than the 15w-40's?
After seeing my neighbor's experience, I would be scared to death to use the non-recommended oils. His experience made a believer out of me.

I'm sorry if this reply sounds confrontational. It's not meant to be. Just curious why some of you are willing to accept this risk? What's the advantage to the other oil weights?

Thanks.

Joe Fihn

 

[DaveJ]

Ok, if it were me and I wanted to have only one oil around and had a VW TDI and a Dodge CTD then I would have just 15W40 and run it in both. But I use 15W40 in all my power equipment and 5 out of 6 cars/truck and in my motorcycle too, so I am opinionated

. DaveJ

 

[Ramblin Fever]

What do you all feel of a 5w-40 versus the 15w-40?

 

[TooSlick]

I"d only run the 0w-30 in cold weather - say when the ambient temps are < -10C. I'd run a 5w-40 or 15w-40 synthetic for most of the year, particularly if you pull heavy loads.

I think the Esso XD-3/0w-30, is actually a better extended drain, gas engine oil than it is a HD diesel oil....

TS

 

[reyjay1]

quote:

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Originally posted by Ramblin Fever:
What do you all feel of a 5w-40 versus the 15w-40?

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I use 5w-40 as my winter oil and 15w-40 as the summer oil.

 

[JHZR2]

run delvac 1 5w-40 in both of the engines and be totally fine.

Id bet that tdi would stay a lot cleaner in the intake and egr areas with delvac 1 5w-40.

Rotella 5w-40 is a decent oil, Id consider it as well.

People ruin their engines by using them too hard or being dumb about what they do to their engines. If you dirve gently and dont kill it, you could surely get good life from a heavy 30 wt oil, but I think 40wt would be more optimal.

JMH