- Joined
- Jul 2, 2023
- Messages
- 6
Hi all,
This forum is very knowledgeable. Please help me check if my current oil is the best oil for my 2004 Volvo V70R.
I read a lot of posts on here, and a lot of responses are saying that “best” depends on the conditions, so let me be as complete as possible. Things that I think are notable:
Where I live, a lot of the recommended oils on this forum are not easily available. Castrol is recommended by Volvo, and is also widely available, so I’d like to limit my options to Castrol Edge A3. The question is 0w-30, 0w-40, or 5w-40 or something else entirely. All seem to fit my temperature requirements according to the Volvo owner's manual. Of these, only the 0w-40 is easily accessible in A3 form, the ‘unlabeled’ (= C3) of these variants is easily available.
These oils all seem very similar to me. Considering the mileage, use, and oil use of this car, you might be able to recommend one over the other for me, or recommend a different oil brand altogether.
Thanks!
This forum is very knowledgeable. Please help me check if my current oil is the best oil for my 2004 Volvo V70R.
I read a lot of posts on here, and a lot of responses are saying that “best” depends on the conditions, so let me be as complete as possible. Things that I think are notable:
- Oils I put in before are a hodgepodge of whatever 0-30 or 0-40 i could find at a gas station, mostly Shell Helix 0w-30 or Motul (in France).
- Recently switched to Castrol Edge 0w-40 A3-B3.
- This is the performance model with a 2.5L turbo engine with 300 hp and a redline of 7.000rpm.
- I push it hard. At least a couple of full-throttle pulls from 0-80 mph almost every drive. I do drive calmly for 15 mins before doing this.
- The engine has run 300.000 km / 180.000 miles.
- Oil consumption is quite high at 0.6 L per 1000 km or 0.25 gallons per 1000 mile. The highest I’ve recorded was 0.75L per 1000km / 0.31 gallons per 1000 miles. That was during continuous 60-100mph highway driving for 10 hours in the mountains while fully loaded with people and luggage.
- The B2454-T4 engine is known for cracking a specific cylinder wall. The cylinder wall is too thin, and then deforms into an oval, and during in that process, tears open. However, at this mileage, it has probably already grown slowly into its final oval shape and will not tear anymore. This oval shape might also explain the high oil usage. My gut says that whichever oil is best at keeping things coolest (thinnest?) will be best, but a thicker oil might seal better.
- Ambient temperatures will be in between 0C to 30C / 32F to 86F for 95% of the time. The other 5% will be between -15 C to 40 C / 5F to 104F.
- The owner's manual calls for ACEA A3 oil.
- My goal: I do not care about maximum power, or low fuel or oil consumption at all. As for price, all premium type oils cost pretty much the same here. My only interest is keeping the engine running as long as possible. A replacement engine or rebuild costs at least $7k, so whatever I can do to prevent that will be worth it.
Where I live, a lot of the recommended oils on this forum are not easily available. Castrol is recommended by Volvo, and is also widely available, so I’d like to limit my options to Castrol Edge A3. The question is 0w-30, 0w-40, or 5w-40 or something else entirely. All seem to fit my temperature requirements according to the Volvo owner's manual. Of these, only the 0w-40 is easily accessible in A3 form, the ‘unlabeled’ (= C3) of these variants is easily available.
These oils all seem very similar to me. Considering the mileage, use, and oil use of this car, you might be able to recommend one over the other for me, or recommend a different oil brand altogether.
Thanks!