Instead of 5w 30....
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wbloomfield
- Posts: 85
- Joined: Wed Nov 28, 2007 4:59 am
- Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL AWD
Instead of 5w 30....
I was thinking about putting in Mobil syn. 0w 30 oil to boast fuel economy. What do you think about that? Do you think it would be too thin in the warmer summer monthes?? I do know only one, 5w 30 oil is only recommended but... Hope to hear your two cents worth..
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philipa_240sx
- Posts: 3808
- Joined: Thu Jun 21, 2007 7:30 am
- Location: Canada
Re: Instead of 5w 30.... (wbloomfield)
A little primer on multi grade oil before answering your question:
First off, oil weights are a measure of viscosity range. The higher the number, the heavier or thicker the oil. The weight is a actually a range so some are thicker and some are thinner. Oil weights are tested at 100°C or 212°F... similar to the operating temperature within the engine. Multi viscosity oils have 2 numbers. The 'W' stands for winter and is the equivalent weight at a low temperatures.
Example: 10W30
10W - This is the oil weight when cold (-25°C for 10W, -30°C for 5W and -35°C for 0W ). This oil will have a similar viscosity when cold to a 10 weight oil at 100°C. This number is especially important during the winter where lighter weights (lower numbers) make starting easier.
30 - This is the oil weight at 100°C or when the engine is warmed up. We need higher numbers here to adequately protect the motor during hot summers. Lighter weights can be used during winter and also give slightly better fuel economy but may increase engine wear.
Armed with the above info, we can answer the question: 0W30 and 5W30 have similar viscocities when hot. There should little difference in fuel economy. Now typically Mobil 1 5W30 tends to be on the thinner end of 30 weight and the new 0W30 'Advanced Fuel Economy' formula may be even lighter. This may translate into slightly better fuel economy than whatever type of 5W30 oil you are using now.
IMHO, stick with a 30 weight oil and do not go lighter. Nissan engines seem to prefer the heavier weights. If you really want to experiment with oils do the following:
1) Read up on the forums at bobistheoilguy.com lots of great info.2) Start doing used oil analysis. This will tell you how your engine is wearing. Blackstone labs is a good source.
First off, oil weights are a measure of viscosity range. The higher the number, the heavier or thicker the oil. The weight is a actually a range so some are thicker and some are thinner. Oil weights are tested at 100°C or 212°F... similar to the operating temperature within the engine. Multi viscosity oils have 2 numbers. The 'W' stands for winter and is the equivalent weight at a low temperatures.
Example: 10W30
10W - This is the oil weight when cold (-25°C for 10W, -30°C for 5W and -35°C for 0W ). This oil will have a similar viscosity when cold to a 10 weight oil at 100°C. This number is especially important during the winter where lighter weights (lower numbers) make starting easier.
30 - This is the oil weight at 100°C or when the engine is warmed up. We need higher numbers here to adequately protect the motor during hot summers. Lighter weights can be used during winter and also give slightly better fuel economy but may increase engine wear.
Armed with the above info, we can answer the question: 0W30 and 5W30 have similar viscocities when hot. There should little difference in fuel economy. Now typically Mobil 1 5W30 tends to be on the thinner end of 30 weight and the new 0W30 'Advanced Fuel Economy' formula may be even lighter. This may translate into slightly better fuel economy than whatever type of 5W30 oil you are using now.
IMHO, stick with a 30 weight oil and do not go lighter. Nissan engines seem to prefer the heavier weights. If you really want to experiment with oils do the following:
1) Read up on the forums at bobistheoilguy.com lots of great info.2) Start doing used oil analysis. This will tell you how your engine is wearing. Blackstone labs is a good source.
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wbloomfield
- Posts: 85
- Joined: Wed Nov 28, 2007 4:59 am
- Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL AWD
Re: Instead of 5w 30.... (philipa_240sx)
Thanks!
philipa_240sx wrote:A little primer on multi grade oil before answering your question:
First off, oil weights are a measure of viscosity range. The higher the number, the heavier or thicker the oil. The weight is a actually a range so some are thicker and some are thinner. Oil weights are tested at 100°C or 212°F... similar to the operating temperature within the engine. Multi viscosity oils have 2 numbers. The 'W' stands for winter and is the equivalent weight at a low temperatures.
Example: 10W30
10W - This is the oil weight when cold (-25°C for 10W, -30°C for 5W and -35°C for 0W ). This oil will have a similar viscosity when cold to a 10 weight oil at 100°C. This number is especially important during the winter where lighter weights (lower numbers) make starting easier.
30 - This is the oil weight at 100°C or when the engine is warmed up. We need higher numbers here to adequately protect the motor during hot summers. Lighter weights can be used during winter and also give slightly better fuel economy but may increase engine wear.
Armed with the above info, we can answer the question: 0W30 and 5W30 have similar viscocities when hot. There should little difference in fuel economy. Now typically Mobil 1 5W30 tends to be on the thinner end of 30 weight and the new 0W30 'Advanced Fuel Economy' formula may be even lighter. This may translate into slightly better fuel economy than whatever type of 5W30 oil you are using now.
IMHO, stick with a 30 weight oil and do not go lighter. Nissan engines seem to prefer the heavier weights. If you really want to experiment with oils do the following:
1) Read up on the forums at bobistheoilguy.com lots of great info.2) Start doing used oil analysis. This will tell you how your engine is wearing. Blackstone labs is a good source.