M1 0w-20 AFE in Toyota 3.5L V6?

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: tpattgeek
Originally Posted By: Steve S
Originally Posted By: tpattgeek
Well, since cold start protection and engine longevity are all I'm really worried about, and it seems 0w is "thinner" at cold start than a 5w, I may give 0w-30 a shot.... thanks for the info.
What do you expect to see by going from a 5w to a 0w oil as far as cold starting goes in your climate.


I went from 5w-20 to 0w20 in my Civic and noticed better fuel economy and the sound of the engine when starting cold, especially in Winter, was much quieter. And no, it wasn't in my head. Others noticed that didn't know what oil was in the car.

About the warranty, Toyota says if you put dino, do 5k/6months. If you choose synthetic, do 10k and just reset the reminder at 5k.

Why do the new models "require" 0w-20 without knowing what your situation is? Is it environmental? Better protection? Can't be lower maintenance costs because of the difference in prices between the two.
I tryed dino 10w-30, 5w-30 and 5w-20 as well as Pennzoil pp 5w-20 and Valvoline synpower 5w-20 and 5w-30 and doing the math and with a Scanguage there was no noticeable increase in mpgs. Ford claims only a tenth of a mpg or so improvement running a 5w-20 over a 5w-30. Even diehard Amsoil users can't really claim 1 mpg.

 

[tig1]

SteveS,

When I first got the Fusion I used M1 5-30 for a while. I switched the 5-20 and didn't notice any MPG fuel differance, but after changing to 0-20 I do see a 1 MPG increase differance on interstate driving. Can't say about local driving as there are too many varibles from tank to tank.

 

[tpattgeek]

Right, the slight mpg gain I'm talking about came from moving to M1 0w-20 AFE.

 

[fsskier]

"Piston Slap" and 0W20.....

OK, first the 3.1 litre engine in my Lumina APV was notorious for piston slap, it seems to come with the territory of light and short skirted pistons - when cold. Many years ago, this was a sign of worn out engines, when the piston slap would no longer go away even when hot. Then as wear progressed, it became loud, scary, etc but by then oil consumption was excessive and an overhaul was in order.

The 3.1 had about the same cold startup noise its entire life (300,000 miles, towing 2.5 times its rated tow capacity) , and the 0W20 had little effect on it. On some quiet frosty mornings it seemed like a Cummins diesel, other days... not thinking about it, quiet prevailed. This is so subjective that perhaps the placebo effect explains most of the difference in startup and cold noise. Anyway, that van went to a friends son, and the motor still seems like new.

Sorry for such a long answer, but the Sienna seems the same, and I will not try to guesstimate noise levels...... I suspect that instrumentation would show most people find the results they expect, not actual values.