Originally Posted by pep808
hi !
in few european forums the 0w oils have very bad name, because people look on few parameters like :
lowish hths, generally lower tbn, saps.
modern engines have quite different materials and tolerances. than what was available just 20-30 years ago.
in my country 10+ year old cars is not uncommon, therefore i think 0w would do some damage to those engines.
I like to hear your opinion, is a modern 0w oil, in modern cars really a scary thing ?
They are not scared of 0W oils. They are scared of W20 oils or ILSAC GF-5 oils.
0W20 oils are used only for one reason: MPG.
People here will tell you that there is nothing to be concerned bcs. in the US 0W20 is common and 0W16 are coming.
First, average engine in the US is far more simple and with much bigger displacement than ones in Europe. In EU, 2.0ltr engines are already considered big, and 2.5ltr hair dryers that one can find here in Toyota or Subaru is something that is almost impossible to find in Europe except on the markets like Russian. Average European engine has small displacement and turbo. If they pack serious power, they are usually diesels with two turbos with two stages etc. Huge gasoline engines are rarity there for a long time.
Second, if you fallow threads here you will see also that people have bunch of issues here with smaller turbo engines (Asian and American made) that became common in certain vehicles. Those issues stem from various reasons, but some are related to oil choice by manufacturers.
So, I have Toyota, and I use one of those ILSAC GF-5 5W30 oils in it (it is specd. for 0W20). But in my VW, I strictly use ACEA A3/B3 B4, Castrol 0W40 or 0W30.
Now, in Toyota I have 3.5ltr V6 slow moving engine that is as dynamic as church bus. So yeah, it can make a lot of miles on 0W20 oil.
If you look at Toyota bestsellers in Europe, they have barely 1.6ltr, sometimes turbo (if diesel definiately turbo), and are specified for different oils. Besides being average in reliability department, because they are complex.