Syn vs Dino cold start

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I have only used synthetic oil in the winter in the several SUV's I have owned over the years and always 5w30. Is there much of a cold starting difference between a 5w30 conventional oil vs a synthetic at say below zero? Has anyone here ever compared and noticed any difference?
 
I prefer synthetics at sub-zero temps but its been so long since I used a Dino that I couldn't offer a comparison.
 
I am certainly not an expert but I would say that it's below 0* F where the advantages of synthetic become apparent....
 
I notice a difference when it gets down below -10 F. Synthetic 5W30 seems to crank faster than dino. Years ago I put a synthetic fluid in the differential of a rear wheel drive car and I though it rolled easier at very low temps.
 
Hard to say but when we had a cold snap in February a couple of years ago in the mid -20's Celsius my dino 5w30 cranked over fine. However, if my winters were consistently at or below that temperature then synthetic would be my choice.
 
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Originally Posted By: Camprunner
I have only used synthetic oil in the winter in the several SUV's I have owned over the years and always 5w30. Is there much of a cold starting difference between a 5w30 conventional oil vs a synthetic at say below zero? Has anyone here ever compared and noticed any difference?

By "below zero", I assume you mean Fahrenheit, not Celsius. 0 deg F = -18 deg C. We Americans seem to be the only ones on this forum who still use F.
Your freezer is about zero deg F, so put some in there and pour to compare. I think a dino would be noticeably thicker due to more waxy stuff in it.
 
Cold Comparison:

I did this a few years ago when I finally went 100% synthetic:

- 2 identical paper cups - 1 with 5W30 Dino the other with 5W30 100% synthetic same amount in both
- stick 'em both in the freezer for 2 hours (side by side for identical temps)
- take 'em out tilt the cups over 45 degrees and see how they flow
- results: 100% synthetic flowed freely! Dino oil was almost as thick as molasses! Figure it was 3-4x thicker!

More scientific method is use a Viscosity meter to measure the samples.

In Car:

In car you don't get to do a side by side comparison of Dino and Synthetic oil cold start for obvious practical reasons.
But you can notice a quicker turn over if all other factors are the same, ie battery not weak, etc.
For me, quick starts and obviously lower wear during starting with oil at the bearings as fast as
it would in the summer is a plus!
 
Originally Posted By: WobblyElvis
I notice a difference when it gets down below -10 F. Synthetic 5W30 seems to crank faster than dino. Years ago I put a synthetic fluid in the differential of a rear wheel drive car and I though it rolled easier at very low temps.


Unbelievable. Like you could qualify a statement like this..........
 
The very reason synthetic motor oils were invented in the first place is because the US army wanted a motor oil that would not turn to concrete for the vehicles operating at bases in the Arctic in Alaska and such, the colder it gets the more pronounced the difference between synthetic and dino gets, at 0C ( 32F ) the difference is very small, either a 5W-30 Dino or a 5W-30 Synthetic oil will flow more than adequately.
At -40 though the difference will be more pronounced, as it gets colder and colder the waxes in mineral oils thicken considerably more.
 
Originally Posted By: Ammofirst
When the temps dip below -10, I'll only use synthetic underwear. It helps me flow a little faster
 
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Originally Posted By: Camprunner
I have only used synthetic oil in the winter in the several SUV's I have owned over the years and always 5w30. Is there much of a cold starting difference between a 5w30 conventional oil vs a synthetic at say below zero? Has anyone here ever compared and noticed any difference?



I believe the difference becomes more distinct when you get below -20F, but not at zero.

Spark ignition engines really don't have a lot of resistance to starting, although some of the new DI engines do have higher compression (up to 12:1). But that's not nearly as bad as a diesel at 17:1 with a 15w-40.

Honestly, in a gasser, dino 5w-20 or 5w-30 is going to do just fine in MA, and I don't think you'll discover much of a starting difference whatsoever versus syns at the temps you'd see.
 
There are plenty of synthetic 5W30s that don't have especially impressive CCS test results.
The data is a bit old, but in 2011 the PQIA had Mobil Special 5W30 conventional at 5836 cP at -30C for CCS while Royal Purple 5W30 was at 5562 cP and Castrol Edge tested at 5544 cP in 2013. These all meet the spec for 5W30 (6600 cP at -30C), of course, but M1, Pennzoil Ultra (RIP), Shell Formula, and Havoline synth 5W30 were all under 4000 cP in CCS testing. RP 5W30 was 45% more viscous in -30C CCS testing than that killer Penn Ultra 5W30 (which also had a super low 6.6% NOACK loss) and over 40% more viscous than M1.

It's just one data point at a low but not insanely cold temperature (-30C is -22F), but there is a lot of variation among synthetic 5W30s and not all of them knock it out of the park against conventional oil.
 
I never seen a diff at up to 10 below F. The dino could exhibit better lubricity and less noise even with less overall flow. I do tend to use pseudo syn or real syn. On winter I used QSGB in the ill fated 2011RANGER and it was fine.
 
When I used Maxlife blend 5w30 at -10F or below, the engine shook like mad and made a heckuva noise! When I use M1 or PP 5w30, it starts smooth even at -20F. Also, the synth did not make the oil cap look like it had a bunch of mayonnaise in it during winter like the maxlife did.
 
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