Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: Jeffs2006EvoIX
Some very interesting posts. Thanks everyone.
So when does MRV values tend to have more impotence over VI? Right now outside my house it's 27F so my M1 0w40 in the crank of my VW siting outside is fine. If I drove to my nieces house in North Dakota where it is 5F as the high getting down to minus 20 to 30F at night I shouldn't use M1 0w40?
At this time what 502 approved oils would be adequate? Where is the line crossed when MRV values take over as to what oil to use?
Hope I'm not confusing anyone just trying to learn from you guys.
Thanks.
Jeff
MRV and CCS, as others have mentioned, are more important as you begin to approach the temperatures they are measured at. So for a 0w-xx, -40C and -35C (MRV and CCS respectively). For a 5w-xx, they are measured at -35C and -30C, for a 10w-xx, -30C and -25C....etc. I think you get the picture.
Just to give you an example as to how this works:
PU 0w-40 (not approved for your application):
MRV @ -40C: 22,500cP
CCS @ -35C: 5,700cP
PU 5w-40 (approved for your application):
MRV @ -35C: N/A
CCS @ -30C: 6,200cP
QS 5w-40 (approved for your application):
MRV @ -35C: 12,800cP
CCS @ -30C: 6,280cP
To compare the 0w-40 here to the 5w-40 lubricants, you need to roughly double the figures. So we end up with (approximated of course):
PU 0w-40:
MRV @ -40C: 22,500cP
CCS @ -35C: 5,700cP
PU 5w-40:
MRV @ -40C: N/A
CCS @ -35C: 12,400cP
QS 5w-40:
MRV @ -40C: 25,600cP
CCS @ -35C: 12,560cP
Here you can see the 0w-40 having a distinct advantage. Now the MAXIMUM viscosity for CCS @ -35C for an oil to be classified as a 0w-xx is 6,200cP, so you can see why the 5w-40's are 5w-40's
What this also means is that we KNOW that M1 0w-40 has a CCS of
What that means in the context of this thread is that you probably won't find another oil that will perform as well as M1 0w-40 at these temperatures unless you find some older SM or SL bottles of M1 0w-40, LOL!
Sticking to 502 oils does limit Jeff's options.
There are some European high VI 0W-30 oils on the 502 list that are lighter than M1 0W-40 on start-up but they are not readily available and of course are more expensive.
One cost effective way to run a lighter oil primarily on start-up is to use M1 0W-40 but top up with a 0W-20 like TGMO. Adding as much as 25% TGMO will still give you with a HTHSV of 3.5cP with a VI over 190. It can be done and still comply with your warranty if that's your concern.