I'm seriously curious as to why there is so much discussion about changing to a different motor oil weight for different seasons.
I drive a water cooled internal combustion powered vehicle that uses a thermostat to control the coolant temperature. Regardless of the outside/ambient temperature, the coolant temperature is maintained at 195 degrees. It doesn't matter how hot or how cold it is outside, the thermostat keeps the coolant at 195 degrees. Once the engine achieves normal operating temperature, that thermostat maintains that engine temperature.
So why therefore do people think that in the summer they must run heavier/thicker motor oil and in winter they must use lighter/thinner oil. Ninty-nine out of 100 people I talk to seem to believe this thick-oil/ thin-oil is reality.
Back in 1965 I bought a new Dodge Polara 500 with a 383 cu in 2-bbl engine. People told me that Chrysler engines had a soft crank shafts, and that I should use a heavier oil. I was working for Atlantic at the time (predecessor of Atlantic Richfield). Our premium line of motor oil was named Atlantic Imperial which was sold in two different grades, 5W-20 and 20W-40. I bought the car in late fall and began to run the 5W-20 and never changed to the 20W-40. It ran great, got good gas mileage, never used a single drop of oil, and was one of the best cars I've ever owned.
My father drove Studebakers in those days. He had a 1956 Power Hawk with a 259 cu in engine and ran 20W-20 year round. When it had 176,000 miles on it, he traded it because it was using one quart of oil every 1500 miles (valve seals were worn), and because his new job required a lot of driving. He traded it on a Mercedes diesel.
So tell me again why one should switch between motor oil weights with the changing seasons~????????
I drive a water cooled internal combustion powered vehicle that uses a thermostat to control the coolant temperature. Regardless of the outside/ambient temperature, the coolant temperature is maintained at 195 degrees. It doesn't matter how hot or how cold it is outside, the thermostat keeps the coolant at 195 degrees. Once the engine achieves normal operating temperature, that thermostat maintains that engine temperature.
So why therefore do people think that in the summer they must run heavier/thicker motor oil and in winter they must use lighter/thinner oil. Ninty-nine out of 100 people I talk to seem to believe this thick-oil/ thin-oil is reality.
Back in 1965 I bought a new Dodge Polara 500 with a 383 cu in 2-bbl engine. People told me that Chrysler engines had a soft crank shafts, and that I should use a heavier oil. I was working for Atlantic at the time (predecessor of Atlantic Richfield). Our premium line of motor oil was named Atlantic Imperial which was sold in two different grades, 5W-20 and 20W-40. I bought the car in late fall and began to run the 5W-20 and never changed to the 20W-40. It ran great, got good gas mileage, never used a single drop of oil, and was one of the best cars I've ever owned.
My father drove Studebakers in those days. He had a 1956 Power Hawk with a 259 cu in engine and ran 20W-20 year round. When it had 176,000 miles on it, he traded it because it was using one quart of oil every 1500 miles (valve seals were worn), and because his new job required a lot of driving. He traded it on a Mercedes diesel.
So tell me again why one should switch between motor oil weights with the changing seasons~????????
