I like this video, although I'm not sure whether it is more suited to Car Chat or our Maintenance forum. The speaker gets a little carried away on one or two points, but he does an excellent job of explaining the different grades of engine-oil, their additives, and why they are or not recommended.

 

The consensus for quite some time is to "follow your owners manual." I think most people with new cars do this. The days of changing one's own oil have been on a decline.

 

MM, Thanks for the oil video. While it's basic info, it's always good to review the basics periodically. I'm the type of person who likes to understand the logic/reason/science behind the manufacturer's recommendations rather than simply following blindly.

For years now, I have been hearing from multiple tech sources that one can switch a vehicle from 5W-30 to 5W-20 without issues, in order to increase the gas mileage (to a small degree). Since I have 5 vehicles which all specify 5W-30, I've considered switching, but the (my) jury is still out. I'd be interested in hearing other's opinions/experiences on this for any vehicle not under warranty (not interested in hearing "follow the owner's manual"). My hunch is that most CL members will say the benefit is not worth the risk.

 

You would probably get better MPG results from simply adjusting the way you drive (consolidating trips, less pressure on the gas pedal, lower cruising-speeds, limiting stop-and-go action, unloading extra or unneeded weight from vehicle, etc...) than from the very small (less than 1%) increase changing oil viscosity would give you.

 

Simplicity sake use the Owners manual.

My take on select vehicles is you can bump up or down specs depending on your needs, as long as you know what your doing. Rotella t6 5w40 used to be a favorite of mine on older motors/motorcycles/FI systems that called for 5w30 that need a bit of Zddp love (now thats it been reformulated no longer useful). Another idea is running 0w30 if you find it on 5w30 engines (good for colder climates).

With anything 0w from the factory, you kinda are boxed in with tight tolerances, i have yet to see any movement up or down.

 

True, one can certainly make great gains in gas mileage by changing ones driving style and habits, and I do that already to the degree I'm comfortable with. I'm eyeing the change in viscosity as a way to make additional gains in all miles driven, without having to even think about it.

 

I liked the concept put forth in the video which said one could change weights, as long as one stays within the original boundaries. For instance, my vehicles specs 5W-30, so I could go to 5W-20, but not to 0W-30 or 0W-20.

 

I didn’t watch the video but I saw this comment. I wouldn’t change what the manual specs. Toyota actually says to go up, not down if your oil is actually not available. I don’t really pay attention to the other brands out there but for Toyota I think it is the cas





I think Toyota let’s you go 5W-30 or 0W-20 on some of the older engines. LX570 is one them.

 

they have to put a one size fits all oil so it can start in very cold conditions and whereever the car maybe. If you stay in the south where it doesnt get super cold you can get away with a thicker oil. I put 5W-30 in all of our vehicles here to standardize on one oil viscosity instead of having 5 different ones

 

Spec of 5w30 avoid going 5w20, as the 20 (hot temp) would not provide as much protection long term (one oil change or emergency use is fine). The other fun part of specing oils is how each of those numbers cold and hot are not a specific temp, but a range. For instance some oils in specs are quite comparable to each other while their official listing is 5w30 vs 5w40.

Again its a rabbit hole for those who want to explore.

 

No, you want to avoid going to a lower hot rating which is the second number because it is possible to cause more wear/damage on the engine at hotter temps/higher performance driving. It is also not good to go to a higher colder rating because it could effect startup in colder temps. You are generally okay with going with a lower cold weight and a higher hot weight rating so if your car was rated at 5W 20 you would be generally okay with going 0W 30 which gives you more leeway/better starting/thinner in the cold and better hot performance parameters at the expense of a little worse fuel economy on the hot end. Some of the same basic Lexus engines today were rated at 5W 30 in the past, then they started rating those same engines later at 0W 20 just for fuel economy possibly at the expensive of a little extra long term engine wear that a 30 would protect a little more.

 

Not so much anymore, Envirimental concerns are the top priority now instead of engine longjevity