Review Pennzoil Ultra 5w-20 vs. 5w-30 Acura RSX

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Hi All,

Just wanted to share my experience of using Pennzoil Ultra 5w-20 vs 5w-30 in my base 2006 Acura RSX (k20a3 engine).

Bought a car 1 year ago with about 30k miles. Previous owner used dealer for oil changes and receipts show oil used was mostly mineral Acura's 5w-20, except a few cases where QS 5w30 was used. Base model calls for 5w20 weight, RSX-type S calls for 5w30.

I didn't like how the engine sounded and switched to M1EP 5w30 and engine felt significantly quieter and smoother. After 4k miles decided to try Pennzoil Ultra, again 5w30 and didn't see any significant difference (maybe engine was a tiny bit smoother) with PU.

I'm actually a big fan of 5w30 synthetics weight (pretty much any brand) in general and think that this is probably ideal weight for the most cars (though not all) because it give good start up protection, engine smoothness and high-temperature protection.

This week 5k miles later, my itch got to me and I switched back to recommended weight Pennzoil Ultra 5w20. I wanted to see if engine would sound louder or rougher with synthetic 5w20 vs 5w30.

Well... just as I've expected there is absolutely no difference at all in engine noise or smoothness or anything else for that matter. Still very smooth and quiet operation. I was thinking on using 5w30 in that engine, but since there is no difference I can notice and my commute is only 3-4 miles one-way I would be going with the recommended 5w20 in a hope that might save me a gallon or so of fuel over the OCI. I'll be doing UOA to see how 5w20 held up.

I'd love to hear from other people who did similar experiments and what were your experiences.
 
Try some M1 0w20 in there and chk the sound. Very significant noise increase in my Mazda 6. Meanwhile the PYB that was in it when I purchased the vehicle, and a couple of runs on Schaeffers 7000, and the PU 5w20 I'm running now - very smooth and quiet. I ran M1 0w20 for 11k miles, so I knew what it sounded like - in this vehicle it had a cheap, hollow loud sound (I'm otherwise an M1 fan.) One thing I liked about the M1 0w20 - it sounded like it was spinning absolutely free right from start-up. Can't say that about any of the 5w20s.
 
Comparing different visc's when you switching brands makes it some what inconclusive imo. I don't mind a bit of noisier engine if I feel my engine is revving easier with better/crisper throttle respose. Best oil is the thinnest oil that provides a compareable protection vs thicker oil imo.
 
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