Can a dealer determine what weight oil your using?

Unless you really make a spectacle of yourself no dealer is going to take it upon themselves to do this. The manufacturers may be interested and might ask for receipts. I would expect a UOA to be so rare as to not even be with discussing.

Some approvals do contain tracers which might facilitate a field determination that the oil was not approved.
 
Like mentioned they can try a UOA but as seen in many here oil can drop a grade pretty easily, or sometimes thicken for multiple reasons.
 
Patman said:
If they decide to do a used oil analysis they can, however even that is not conclusive because the oil could have thickened up or thinned out during that oil change interval. In reality I think very few dealers would go to that trouble
Click to expand...

Even in a warranty situation?
 
The car might keep track:
1737479660521.webp

1737479675269.webp


The Critic

Post in thread 'MB 229.71 vs. 229.72 vs. 229.52'

Jetronic said:
Is this customer doing long drains? the least bad option would be a higher viscosity oil for a shorter amount of time.
Click to expand...
He is rarely on time for service. OEM interval is 10K and is known to exceed it by a few thousand miles. All of his driving is highway, but still…

Also, even though the interval is fixed, the vehicle was to know which oil is being used. I found this to rather fascinating.
IMG_1557.webp

IMG_1558.webp
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The Critic said:
The car might keep track:
View attachment 259937
View attachment 259938

The Critic

Post in thread 'MB 229.71 vs. 229.72 vs. 229.52'

Jetronic said:
Is this customer doing long drains? the least bad option would be a higher viscosity oil for a shorter amount of time.
Click to expand...
He is rarely on time for service. OEM interval is 10K and is known to exceed it by a few thousand miles. All of his driving is highway, but still…

Also, even though the interval is fixed, the vehicle was to know which oil is being used. I found this to rather fascinating.
IMG_1557.webp

IMG_1558.webp
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Click to expand...
Despite being called a grade, the service intervals related to the approvals listed are relevant for long-drain performance.
 
kschachn said:
Despite being called a grade, the service intervals related to the approvals listed are relevant for long-drain performance.
Click to expand...
With that said, on certain applications, MB is starting to state that only certain grades within an approval are allowed.
 
The Critic said:
The car might keep track:
View attachment 259937
View attachment 259938

The Critic

Post in thread 'MB 229.71 vs. 229.72 vs. 229.52'

Jetronic said:
Is this customer doing long drains? the least bad option would be a higher viscosity oil for a shorter amount of time.
Click to expand...
He is rarely on time for service. OEM interval is 10K and is known to exceed it by a few thousand miles. All of his driving is highway, but still…

Also, even though the interval is fixed, the vehicle was to know which oil is being used. I found this to rather fascinating.
IMG_1557.webp

IMG_1558.webp
  • Like
  • Wow
  • Helpful
Click to expand...

What does grade 229.71? The viscosity?
 
The Critic said:
With that said, on certain applications, MB is starting to state that only certain grades within an approval are allowed.
Click to expand...
Nearly all approvals do that because the approval specifies a minimum HT/HS. Actually Mercedes-Benz is one that’s moving away from allowed grades, which makes sense because the approval specifies HT/HS and that renders a grade irrelevant.

Note that the approval dictates a minimum HT/HS which is there to prevent damage. If the approval lists a maximum that is to preserve a fuel economy or CO2 allowance.

Nevertheless the selection in the pictures you’re posting are there for the reason I stated. If they were there to “catch” you why would they list them all?
 
ChevJerico said:
Even in a warranty situation?
Click to expand...
Here are a few previous threads on this oft-asked question. At least one of them is identical to your question. There are many more if you look around.

This is a related question to the even more popular "thick vs. thin" debate. Be prepared for lots of conjecture with only a bit of substantive facts mixed in:

T

Thread 'Warranty Claims: How can dealer tell what oil was used?'

Hey guys-

I see a lot of people recommending the use of a specific weight oil because it's "manufactured approved" and you will "void your warranty" if you use something else. Say you spin a bearing and you go in for a warranty claim. How in blazes would a dealer EVER be able to tell that an incorrect weight was used? The oil is going to be full of metal and other junk and would probably be useless under analysis. What am I missing?

-Mike P
A

Thread 'Does oil type void warranty?'

Female here. Don't know much about cars but have been told by the shop that changed the oil of my 2011 Honda Accord that we had to use the 0W20 or else our warranty would be voided. Very expensive stuff. Anyone know if that's true? I've searched the internet and have found discussions stating yes and no. Any help would be appreciated!
GR_CoB

Thread 'Warranty denied due to oil viscosity.'

There are 10+ posts a day here about possible warranty denial due to oil viscosity, but how realistic is this fear? How often do you hear about a warranty being denied due to an oil viscosity that is different from the CAFE recommendation?
Realistically how often, if ever, do you see a daily driven car have an engine failure due to having 5w30/5w40/5w50, 0w30/0w40/0w50, 10w30/10w40, 15w40/15w50 or 20w50 instead of 0w20/5w20 listed in the owner's manual? Post examples here please, if you have any.



P.S. Please exclude engine failures that include complete lack of common...
B

Thread 'Warranty and oils...'

New member here, and I am curious about something... I've been stalking this forum for quite some time and I've seen where people say, "for warranty" you should use this kind of oil. Has anyone had their warranty voided or heard of a warranty being voided because of an oil issue? I work for a Chevy dealership and have never seen or heard of a warranty being voided because the customer was using the wrong kind of oil. I've personally had to void a warranty because the customer went 30k on his factory fill and wondered why his engine was making noises lol. I wish I could find the pics of the...
L

Thread 'Warranty claim with oil inspection performed'

Has anyone on this website had this done to them personally or actually know someone that has filed a warranty claim and had an oil analysis done on their vehicle?

I am not talking friend of a friend or I heard of this guy that had his warranty claim denied. But someone you actually know that had a warranty claim denied due to using the wrong oil viscosity or weight.

I personally follow what the manufacturer recommends very closely. Sometimes, I might slip some 0w40 in the Silverado or use 0w20 instead of 5w20 in the Honda Civic. But don't think I am about to challenge the engineers as...
ammolab

Thread 'Looking for first person story: My warranty denied because of oil used'

You know, you used 5w30 or such in a 0W-20 car or you used an unapproved oil (Amzoil / Redline etc) and had a warranty repair denied.
Not a story or warning from a tech or Service advisor, or an unverifiable tale from a forum.

Has this happened to you or someone you know? So many of you warn against the use of an unapproved oil during warranty this must have happened to a good number of people. Is the risk really worthy of the worry?
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F

Thread 'Oldie but goodie -Warranty voided over viscosity..'

tl;dr -
98 4.6 throws a rod at 27K. In warranty. First Ford says no problem. Then they do a UOA and say "sorry sir, you did use 10W30, correct?"
Guy said sure, since new. No warranty for you! 5W30 is the only oil speced in the manual, nothing else. Maybe synthetic if its very cold, but must be 5W30.
No sliding temp scales, just says "USE."

Doubt the oil caused that, but they do use it as an excuse.

Could they still pull something like this?

http://www.f150online.com/forums/v8-engines/5138-oil-issue-engine-warranty-claim-please-read.html
M

Thread '0W-20 vs 5W20 Warranty Question'

Hi guys!

I'm new here and have been lurking for just a bit also. And I can say is that I really learned a lot here in this community. This will be my first post here in this great forum and I really looking forward on your great advise and expertise.

I'm currently working here in Saudi Arabia in an oil company with a chain of quick lubes. Recently one of our branches received a 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe. The technician replaced the oil and filter and used 5W-20 synthetic oil.

After a couple of days, the customer came back and was asking for a refund, saying that he brought his Tahoe to the...
C

Thread 'Proper oil for warranty'

Let's say you buy a new car/truck and it calls for 5w30 and you decide to run 10w30 summer and 0w30 in the winter. Now let's say your new ride has a connecting rod failure or some other big engine failure but not oil related. Can or will a car company not cover your repair if the oil is not a 5w30 in this case you were running a 10w30? Or if the oil is in the recommended 30 weight range you are ok?
D

Thread 'Viscosity question'

New here, first post, been doing a lot of reading and searching but can't find my answer. There's a lot of info to dig through here.

My question is, and I'm sure it's been asked and addressed, I just can't find it...

I'm not a big fan of the 0w-20 oils, just seems too light weight to me. Can I use the 5w30 weight oil and not cause any issues with my engine/warranty?

I don't live in an area of extreme temps and no heavy towing.

It's a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500, 4X4 with the 5.3.

Thanks for any help.
T

Thread '2024 Ram 1500 w/ 5.7L engine requiring 0w-20'

I have a 2024 Ram 1500 - and it's requiring 0w-20 oil, which is a new surprise for me, ready for the first oil change.

I normally buy through Costco, and they have the Mobile 1 "Advanced Fuel Economy" oil stocked for $32/6 pack. Mobile 1 shares that it meets or exceeds the Chrysler MS spec. Any concerns on using this oil in a Ram 1500?

I've been using this in our Jeep Grand Cherokee for years, but it has the 3.6L engine - not the 5.7L.
cammyfive79

Thread 'Transcript of a conversation with Mazda regarding "recommended" vs "required" oil viscosity'

*Disclaimer: I work for a Mazda dealership and am a big Mazda fan. This conversation was with the "chat support" on the Mazda consumer facing (www.mazdausa.com) website. As a veteran of auto sales for two decades now I full well realize the person I was chatting with was not a service manager or an engineer, but rather call center type employee; realizing that makes this convo a little less frustrating but not much.

*Bold is the Mazda chat persons reply*


  • Hello Ed“Welcome to Mazda Customer Experience Center Chat. For quality assurance and training purposes, your chat...
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L

Thread 'Question about oil grades'

Quick question about oil viscosity specifications in cars. Are engines/cars designed and based around a specific viscosity of oil, and SHOULD run that oil, OR are oil specs only in relation to the environment/tempature/ style of driving that the engineers expect the engine to be used in, so you may use whatever reasonable oil viscosity you feel is fit. Always been curious about this, thanks
 
ChevJerico said:
Was wondering if there's anyway an auto dealer can determine what weight oil your using?
Click to expand...

They can do this while your car is under Warranty, and you are doing your own Oil Changes at home. If you do your oil changes in your Garage and there are no Windows, you will be fine. I would make sure your Garage Door is closed.

Let's say you want to do your oil changes outside, make sure you already have an empty jug of the specked oil for your vehicle, let's say it is 5W-20, but you really want to use a 5w30, 5W-40, or even a 0W-40. You might want to use a HDEO or Euro Oil, make sure you pour it into that empty jug of 5W-20.

Good Luck
 
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