Is it safe to use 5W30 oil instead of 5W20 ?

[oilnoob425]

Hi. I have 02 Honda Civic LX with about 48k miles. Manual specifically say that oil should be 5W20. It says that 5W30 could be used as a temporary solution but should be switched back to 5W20 ASAP. What would happen if I put 5W30 in and run it?? Would something brake? Why is manual so anal about it?
The reason I'm asking is because I started changing my own oil recently(using 5W20) and car seem to started growl and lost some power. Before I used to go to Fast Track oil change chain. They said they put 5W20 Mobill 5000, it was ok. Now car revs louder and feels a bit underpowered. Could it be possible that lube service was putting 5W30 all along instead of proper 5W20. That's why I'm experiencing such change all of the sudden? I just thought since I'm doing it by myself now, I would experience change to better, not to worse. Oils that i used so far were Mobil 1 5W20 and Castrol GTX 5W20. Thank You.

 

[Colt45ws]

There is no harm in using 5W30 instead of 5W20.
They are pretty close.

 

[02zx9r]

maybe a slight drop on mpg but nothing drastic.

 

[oilnoob425]

What would be the difference? Benefits or drawbacks, if any? Except already mentioned possible mpg drop. My car is economic enough, I just can't stand all that growling. Air filter is fine BTW, I checked.

 

[Tones]

If you do a search, there were some letters posted here some time ago. The language about switching back to 5w-30 asap was required by the EPA when Honda petitioned to use the fuel mileage economy numbers based on 5w-20. It is all about meeting cafe. There is no harm in using 5w-30. In fact, some dealers around here do it anyway. They get the bulk 5w-30 cheaper.

 

[OriginHacker21]

I use 5w20 in my 2.2L Ecotec that asks for 5w30.

 

[Merkava_4]

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The reason I'm asking is because I started changing my own oil recently (using 5W20) and car seem to started growl and lost some power.

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In that case, you'll probably notice a quieter engine when going to a 5W-30, but whatever you do, don't use Mobil 1 5W-30!

 

[oilnoob425]

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but whatever you do, don't use Mobil 1 5W-30!

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Why?

 

[oilnoob425]

Also could anybody translate what GC oil means? is it short for some brand name of oil?

 

[Merkava_4]

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but whatever you do, don't use Mobil 1 5W-30!

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Why?

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A lot of noise complaints from guys running Mobil 1 5W-30 on this board. And since you're already having noise issues with 5W-20; I didn't want you pouring in M1 and then freaking out from the noise.

GC is German Castrol. Their 0W-30 is a heavy 30 weight; right around 12 centistokes at 100 degrees Celsius (212F). For your Honda, something between 10 and 11 centistokes would be ideal.

 

[tsmay51]

Shouldn't hurt anything but I would just look for a different 5w20. I'm sure someone can chime in with info on different 5w20 oils on the market. I'm running gtx 5w20 in the wife's new camry and seems to be fine. No undesirable noise.

 

[oilnoob425]

So what is the best oil for Honda and Hyundai cars and what OCI I should use with dino and synthetic oil? Is it safe to go 5k/6 motnhts OCI on dino oil? My manual says that even if I use synthetic I should still go the reccomended intervals. Contrary to what most people say here, that synthetic oil can give you longer intervals.

 

[OriginHacker21]

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Also could anybody translate what GC oil means? is it short for some brand name of oil?

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GC oil is basically Castrol 0w30 that was Made in Germany. The early bottles were green colored making them very special. I think the 20 weight oils kinda killed the GC 0w30 craze - also because it was hard to find. Some of us older BITOG folk have huge stashes of the stuff (including me) that will probably never get used.

 

[OriginHacker21]

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So what is the best oil for Honda and Hyundai cars and what OCI I should use with dino and synthetic oil? Is it safe to go 5k/6 motnhts OCI on dino oil?

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Dino oil usually does not last as long as Synthetic oil due to the base stock (what the oil is made up of). Synthetic oil lasts quite a bit longer if oil filtration is up to par.

To answer your question - only a Used Oil Analysis will tell you how your engine is using/wearing the oil. Every engine is different and will use oils differently. Find an oil you like - run it for 3,000 miles and get a UOA. If it comes back fine - you can run the oil longer.

My golden rule: synthetic = 5,000 miles. More only if you get UOA. Dino = 3,000 miles - more only if you get a UOA.

 

[mfisher1967]

Could you provide a few more details? How many miles are on your Civic's engine and how frequently did you have the oil changed at the "Fast Track" chain?

It sounds as though you may have Oilitis, a condition that commonly occurs when one begins to focus heavily on automotive engine lubrication. Symptoms include buying oil well in advance of actually needing it, hoarding oil and spending way too much time obsessing over what brand of oil/filter to use for the next drain/fill. Other common, but less frequent, symptoms include heightened auditory and motion perception. Chronic sufferers report being able to notice .5 hp differences when changing from one brand of oil to another.

Two of your observations seem to contradict one another. You state that there was a noticeable increase in engine noise after changing the oil with 5W-20. You then go on to state that the engine seems to have less power as well. Thin oil may cause more engine noise, but if it did, I would expect that a small, but corresponding increase in power would also be present. I would not expect a loss of power.

Anyway, it should take about 4 quarts to perform an oil change on your Civic. Why not try a decent 5W-30, such as Pennzoil Platinum, to see if your engine feels and sounds better. Use a Wix, PureOne, Mobil 1 or K&N oil filter, as they are usually easy to find. If you don't like the results, shorten your oil change intervals and try other brands/weights. As for extending your drain interval, do what makes you feel the most comfortable. 6,000 miles on Pennzoil Platinum is very doable. Catch oil samples for UOA if you want to see how your engine is wearing.

Remember....recognizing your addiction is half the battle!

Above all else, Have Fun!

 

[oilnoob425]

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Could you provide a few more details? How many miles are on your Civic's engine and how frequently did you have the oil changed at the "Fast Track" chain?

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I already mentioned my car's mileage in my first post. it's 48 thousand miles. I did 3k oci at fast track, but then got tired of overpaying and their constant attempts to sell stuff. I realy don't have that much od an obsession about it. it just there is way too many opinions and i want to get a general idea about safe OCI without oil analysis.

 

[oilnoob425]

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Dino oil usually does not last as long as Synthetic oil due to the base stock (what the oil is made up of). Synthetic oil lasts quite a bit longer if oil filtration is up to par.

My golden rule: synthetic = 5,000 miles. More only if you get UOA. Dino = 3,000 miles - more only if you get a UOA.

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If synthetic oil last longer like you say, then why my honda manual says I should use same intervals for dino and synthetic?

Your reccomedation about oci is different from many people here that say 5k is safe for dino. my honda manual says: 5k oci for severe and 10k for normal condition.

 

[Colt45ws]

My default fallback OCI without a UOA is 5,000. Why dont you try Motorcraft synth blend. Its inexpensive to acquire at walmart, especially in 5 quart containers. 5W30 or 5W20, pick one. Although I also dont know what to make of losing power with 5W20. Usually it makes it rev freer and a slight probably immeasurable boost in power compared to 5W30.

 

[Auto-Union]

Just leave the 5w-30 in until it shears to a 20 weight.

 

[tsmay51]

Oilnoob425, I would just run conventional while under warranty. Once out of warranty switch to a synthetic and stretch your intervals out a bit if you want. I think a good rule of thumb is 5k on conventional and 7.5k on synthetic. I think them numbers are very easy to reach on the oils we have available today. That's what I plan on doing with the wife's camry.