I am greatly confused about one main thing: Air and climate temperature, vs grade of oil selected for a car. Please let me explain.
In almost any pre-2001 car manual (and some after that) i see, i see charts of temperature vs grades listed for the engine. Most charts list 10W-40 from around 10 or 20 degrees, those graphic arrow charts (the lowest ambient temperature i saw listed acceptable to 10W-40 was "4 degrees," i forget in which manual) - up to 100+. Then 10W-30 is listed as 0 or -5 on up, with 5W-30 going to approx. -20, on up. This is reason number one for the confusion.
Reason number two is how much the cooling system does, or does not, keep engine temperature in check! Lets say i am in Eagle Pass, TX which was 113 degrees on July 14th, and then a month or two later went up to Maine where it was ten degrees in the morning. Would the 5W-20 motor oil be fine in both applications , would the engine cooling system be keeping the engine cool even in the hot hot heat? Why, then, different grade recommendations?
I presently have a mix of 5W-20 and 5W-30 in my vehicle. It is an older vehicle. It is a V6, a midsized one with an automatic trans in a last-year 1995 Sable LS (not the GS, and not the SHO that was in the Ford models.) I decided to go as thin as i was comfortable with, since 5W-20 and 5W-30 debate is also a fierce one (If 5W-30 turns to 5W-20 anyway, etc etc.) My engine revs freer, and i ask if i have more power, yet i do not go full 5W-20 since i am worried about if i am accelerating wear by going thinner.
I do know that "as long as minimum Oil pressure is maintained, i will be ok." I also know that i want to be "As thick as necessary, but as thin as possible" and i think i have achieved this, i do not know my oil pressure. I also know that "Thinner oil when the engine is hot is best, since it transfers heat better, makes the oil pump work easier, and provides maximum lubrication as long as the flash point of the oil is not reached." I think i have reached the as thin as possible point with the 5W-20 of 2.5 quarts, and 5W-30 of the same amount.
But what about the ambient temperature? I dont understand this at all. I could be either doing burnouts in a parking lot, or cruising on the highway for hours at a time. Is my 5W20/5W30 mix ok in either situation? I use conventional Nextgen oil, mixing the 20 and the 30 of that oil. TY
In almost any pre-2001 car manual (and some after that) i see, i see charts of temperature vs grades listed for the engine. Most charts list 10W-40 from around 10 or 20 degrees, those graphic arrow charts (the lowest ambient temperature i saw listed acceptable to 10W-40 was "4 degrees," i forget in which manual) - up to 100+. Then 10W-30 is listed as 0 or -5 on up, with 5W-30 going to approx. -20, on up. This is reason number one for the confusion.
Reason number two is how much the cooling system does, or does not, keep engine temperature in check! Lets say i am in Eagle Pass, TX which was 113 degrees on July 14th, and then a month or two later went up to Maine where it was ten degrees in the morning. Would the 5W-20 motor oil be fine in both applications , would the engine cooling system be keeping the engine cool even in the hot hot heat? Why, then, different grade recommendations?
I presently have a mix of 5W-20 and 5W-30 in my vehicle. It is an older vehicle. It is a V6, a midsized one with an automatic trans in a last-year 1995 Sable LS (not the GS, and not the SHO that was in the Ford models.) I decided to go as thin as i was comfortable with, since 5W-20 and 5W-30 debate is also a fierce one (If 5W-30 turns to 5W-20 anyway, etc etc.) My engine revs freer, and i ask if i have more power, yet i do not go full 5W-20 since i am worried about if i am accelerating wear by going thinner.
I do know that "as long as minimum Oil pressure is maintained, i will be ok." I also know that i want to be "As thick as necessary, but as thin as possible" and i think i have achieved this, i do not know my oil pressure. I also know that "Thinner oil when the engine is hot is best, since it transfers heat better, makes the oil pump work easier, and provides maximum lubrication as long as the flash point of the oil is not reached." I think i have reached the as thin as possible point with the 5W-20 of 2.5 quarts, and 5W-30 of the same amount.
But what about the ambient temperature? I dont understand this at all. I could be either doing burnouts in a parking lot, or cruising on the highway for hours at a time. Is my 5W20/5W30 mix ok in either situation? I use conventional Nextgen oil, mixing the 20 and the 30 of that oil. TY
