I've got a 2008 Mazda3. I live in Houston where it's been around 100º everyday. It won't start cooling off till mid October. My car has only had 5w-20, mostly Pennzoil Platinum. I've had good UOAs. Last oil change was done at the dealer because it was too hot for me do it. This dealer features Quaker State products. I guess they put 5w20 QS according to the window sticker. My question is would there be any advantage to running a 5w-30 during this hellacious Texas summer? or should I just continue 5w-20 year round? The car runs just fine, has 36,000 miles and I the A/C is usually on full blast anytime I'm in the car.

It's only been 100 there? I need to head down your way to cool off a bit!

Hehe, it peaks to about 103.

I have asked a different version of this question, you will get about a 50/50 split of opinions. I have to stay with 5-20 in my Honda (warrenty), but as soon as its out, I will immeadiatly switch to 5-30. Thicker IS better in TX.

Just spent the past weekend in D-FW, and then back to the Gulf Coast. D-FW a degree or two hotter, Houston clearly FEELS hotter. 95% humidity, 100 degrees...Terrible.

PS: travelling to COOL Canada and NY in two weeks!

You guys in TX must be getting all of the heat this year.Up here were having the wimpiest summer i`ve ever seen!

No worries for us Texans. Summer will end in just 4 or 5 short months from now. I think Fall comes Dec 28th, Winter Jan. 3rd, then Spring on Jan. 11th.

I wouldn't do anything different because of the heat this summer. Its not a significant difference, really, when you think of it as a percentage of engine operating temperature. I never ran anything but xw30 oils in my cars from the 70s until just a couple of years ago and never had an engine that didn't last a *loooong* time. If a 1960s engine using 1970s / 1980s quality 10w30 oil can run 260,000 miles, then a modern engine on modern 0w20 should last longer than you want to keep the car that its in!




I'm a native Texan, and I don't mind the heat. I love it in fact, I HATE cold weather and start getting uncomfortable when the lows drop into the lower 70s. What's really starting to bug me though is that we've had no significant rain for a year and a half, but we're *still* having to suffer with higher than normal humidity. I went out to far west Texas (I live in Austin) and the high temps were exactly the same- ~100-105F, but the low humidity out there felt *wonderful*. On top of that, its actually raining from time to time out in the desert and they're not in super-extreme-double-secret drought like we are in Central TX :-(

QFT

I'm running 5w-20 for two years now in my 08 xb. So far so good.

I'm running PP 10w-30 in my Tacoma. No worries here. It's Texas, it's SUPPOSED to be hot. That's most Texans belief.

I would be more concerned with the tranny and differential fluid viscosity than the engine oil viscosity this summer.

Yes it is hot and I don't like it. Thank goodness for air conditioning.

I live in Shreveport but they let me cross the border every morning to work in Jefferson. 5W20 is sloshing away in my Fit. PS, Louisiana is no cooler. Matter of fact, Shreveport appears to be 3 degrees hotter (100 vs 97) than Jefferson at the moment.

There's tons of people out there running 20 weight in all those Accords and Civics and the like on the road.

LOL, you said it man. Nothing like wearing shorts and a tank top on Christmas day. I'll take the Texas heat over a northern winter any day of the week. I can cool off quicker than I can warm up. Can't go tubing when it's cold either. And if you live in Texas.. going tubing is a mandatory event at least once a summer.

It's 103 right now here at the house in San Antonio.

And Rams, Crown Vics, F-150s, Chargers, 300s, PT Cruisers, Avengers, Fusions, Tauruses, Challengers, Mustangs.........

Ah.. I don't miss the humidity(native Texan just moved in December ). It is in the high 90's everyday here where I work in Farmington NM . but at night at my house in Durango Co it gets down to the low 50's. I don't have air conditioning nor 400 dollar+ electric bills anymore. Just open the windows after the sunsets and the inside goes from 83 to 62 in a couple of hours with a simple attic fan Eat your hearts out fellow Texans http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=81301

As for the oil, there is no advantage in going to a 5w30. The 5w20 can handle the heat just fine I ran it all over Texas but mostly driving around San Antonio and to Corpus Christi.

Exactly! And if it runs okay in all THOSE poorly designed cars...

Just kidding!