I don't think this is tech...? Is it? Oh well. Just looking for opinions. I know there is an oil weight thread floating around somewhere, just don't know where. So anyway, is 5w20 too "light" to run in our cars? I usually use 10w30, but had a brain shat the other day and accidentally got 5w20. If anyone knows where that thread is feel free to post the link.
you can't pull as much power from 5w20 as you can from 5w30, supposedly.. Its what the car came with and i'm sure someone at ford got paid pretty good to make that call
20w is said to get better mileage, Exactly why ford put 5w20 on everything so mileage would be better so the CAFE rating would work to their advantage better $$
Is that what the manual says? Hmmm I thought it said 5w-30. Couldn't really remember. It just seems awful thin
This whole thread is a wreck. 5W-20 is what the factory recommends and they recommended this oil for better fuel economy. Ford would not have recommended it if they couldn't stand behind the warrenty... the engine is the single most expensive part to replace, so they did the research before specifying this oil. Remember, tolerances are tighter than the older cars. My opinion is... long as you have oil in the engine and change it somewhat regularly (before it turns to tar), your engine will be perfectly fine. I would argue a good oil filter is more important; don't buy frame. I normally run a motorcraft filter and mobil 1, oil and go around 6,000 miles between changes. It's working well so far, since the engine has 165k miles and I never see blue smoke. As for oil not being a performance item: of course oil effects performance. A thinner oil is easier to pump, and with less viscosity it helps everything turn over with less resistance. There is a slight mileage improvement on thinner oil for these reasons, and if your mileage is improved, then very obviously the overall power should be slightly higher. Yes, we are only talking about a few hp, but still. A full synthetic oil is a good investment. You can get slightly better gas mileage and with extended oil change intervals, you can get your money back.
Thanks for the post. I understand your point completely. I just couldn't remember what the factory oil was. I was making sure I didn't put something completely wrong in there. I also normally use Mobil 1 and a Motorcraft FL-820, but this time the damn store didn't have the motorcraft, and the Mobil 1 came with a free filter, so... I'm just paranoid when it comes to maintaining my car. I want it to last forever, ya know.
Its what I do Anyways, I understand what bhuff30 is saying about thinner oils making less drag on the engine. However changing weights is not going to make enough difference to see a change in performance IMHO. The only way you get more performance by manipulating oil is when you interfere with the oil's ability to cling excessively to the rotating assembly using scrapers, slingers, or baffles. I do not agree with the 6000 mile change interval.
I had the same problem finding a motorcraft filter last time too. I also went with a mobil 1 filter because it was free with the purchase of oil, but it would be a lot more expensive if I have to buy it myself. For 2008+, Ford recommends and oil change interval of 7500 miles using a synthetic blend. I think I'll be fine changing my full synthetic oil every 6000. I would consider 5-7k miles just fine on a synthetic and 4-5k miles fine on conventional. Again, the worst is a bad oil filter. At my local ford dealer, there is a fram filter and a motorcraft filter cut open. First, the fram has about half as many paper folds, for half the filtration capacity. Secondly, the fram has a crappy drain back valve, allowing very dirty oil to flow back to the engine under certain conditions. Somewhere online, there is a very detailed article by an individual who openned oil filters to compare the areas and also did chemical analysis of nearly every oil available. It is interesting and well worth the read. However, I don't have the time to locate it now. The moral: run a full synthetic like mobil 1 and a quality filter, like motorcraft.
I remember that write up. It was very detailed, and is why I now only run a Mobil 1 and normally a Motorcraft filter.
Go to http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/faq.php?faq=haas_articles It's a long but very interesting read. You may be surprised what you find. I've been running a Mobil 1 0W-30 now for months. Previously a 5W-30. Still use the Motorcraft filter. 6K intervals. Wish I had done it earlier. Oil pressure at start-up is instantaneous. GT
