As mentioned on the welcome page I won’t use big words or put up a bunch of graphs and charts to try and figure out. I will attempt to explain in the simplest way I can some of the information I have accumulated over the years. Hopefully, I will give you a new way to think about the basics of oil and a new outlook on things you have been doing for years.
MY THOUGHTS AND INFORMATION GIVEN ON VISCOSITY IS DONE SO WITH THE FLORIDA CLIMATE IN MIND.
LOW-SPEED PRE-IGNITION
This is a technical subject, not going into it very deeply. It most often happens in a direct injected turbocharged engine, but not exclusively. If you want to learn more just type ” what is low speed pre ignition” in your search engine. I am giving it a mention because it can cause catastrophic engine failure. I don’t want to try and scare anybody into buying a product. Oils play a part, oils get tested to see how they perform under various conditions. AMSOIL passed the test with no instances of L.S.P.I. Currently (like 2021 currently) it is believed that this condition happens towards the end of an oils service life. I imagine that the testing for L.S.P.I. will change and more testing with oils that have been used for a while will take place. So, if you have a car with a direct injection fuel system (probably every car built in the last 6 or 7 years and many cars before that). There is no need to panic, you just need you keep your oil service current and on done on time with a quality oil (AMSOIL!!) and you should be fine. As I have mentioned, I have a passion for oil and keep up with new information as it becomes available. When I know more, I will post it here.
UPDATE 8/22
It seems like the age of an oil does play a part in having an occurrence of L.S.P.I. Also, it is believed that L.S.P.I may be reduced when two particular additives are at compatible levels. (magnesium and calcium) This plays into a paragraph I wrote earlier about not adding additives to your oil because you can upset the balance of the overall additive package. I am not going into the step by step process about how it is thought L.S.P.I. occurs, as I would only be copying what I read elsewhere, it’s easy enough to search and read about on your own. If you know the basics of how the internal combustion engine works and you read about how L.S.P.I. occurs, I wonder if the regular use of fuel system cleaner would help. Just a thought to put on your mind. Amsoil P.I. is an excellent fuel additive that I use regularly.
*Additives make up between 0.1% and 30 % of an oil. The normal realistic range is 5%- 25%. It varies depending on what application the oil is intended for.
RACING OIL
This is something I did as a kid when me and my buddies were trying to make our cars go faster. We thought we would be cool and use racing oils in our cars. Maybe not as bad with those late sixty and early seventies model cars, but not something to do in today’s engines. This was before I found AMSOIL and was changing my oil what seemed like constantly. Racing oils have a different additive package and are intended to be changed more frequently. They are not intended to be in a car several months and therefore don’t contain as much of the additives that prevent rust and corrosion.
Viscosity
For starters, I am not trying to get you to change the viscosity of the oil you use. If you decide to purchase oil from me, buy directly from AMSOIL or have me change your oil for you, I make the same on a bottle of oil regardless of the viscosity. Lets say you want me to change your oil, I will ask if you have a preferred viscosity and if you don’t I will default to whatever the auto maker suggests. UNLESS……. you drive a truck. If you drive a truck I would engage you in a short conversation on some of the things I will talk about below.
The little number
The smaller number followed by the “w” is how well the oil flows when it is cold. The “w” actually stands for winter. The smaller the number, the easier it flows when cold. As an oil becomes warm, very quickly a 5w is flowing as well as a 0w. Shortly after that a 10w is flowing just as well. A 0w oil can always be used in place of a 5w or 10w. A well known brand has even put on their label that their 0w-30 oil provides warranty protection for cars requiring 5w-30 and 10w-30 oils. I wish AMSOIL would include that on their label but since they don’t I actually carry one of those competitors bottles with me in case I need to set someones mind at ease. Also, many owners manuals even say for example, “if a 0w-20 oil is unavailable a 5w20 oil may be used but must be changed back at the next service”. Remember, those cold flow tests are not done at Florida cold temps, they are done at Michigan, Vermont, Ohio cold temps. I see these tests preformed at 0 degrees and -40 degrees. Think about that, a 5w is going to flow better in a Florida winter than a 0w is going to flow in a Vermont winter. And once they are warm its not even an issue anymore. Same owners manual for Florida and Maine, very different driving conditions. My conclusion is that since we are in Florida and you find yourself having to use a 5w something in place of a 0w something, don’t let it ruin your day. Many owners manuals even state this, they just tell you to switch back at the next oil change.
The big number
The big number represents the film strength or the “thickness” of the oil that is preventing the metal surfaces of your engine from making contact with one another. The big number is the one that has a lot of different opinions from a lot of different people. I will present a few facts so you can form your own opinion. European car makers often list two or three different viscosities they recommend for different climates. U.S. manufactures do not. Europeans generally love their cars and want them to last. In the U.S. cars have to pass government testing and these test are easier to pass using lighter oils. A car gets tested with a 0w-20 then that is what gets put in the owners manual. There are a few owners manuals that specify that if your car is used under extreme operating conditions to change the viscosity of oil used. Florida, because of the heat and stop and go driving that we do is, by the owners manual’s definition a severe condition. There are fines, or taxes if you will that have to be paid when cars don’t pass these test. Example ” Gas Guzzler Tax”. Hopefully you have seen other parts of this site and have seen Callie’s car, it’s a 2013 Laguna Seca Boss 302. It has the same basic engine that the Mustang G.T. of the same year has. There are a few minor differences, the intake manifold is different, however no oil flows thru it. The computer “tune” is a little different which gave the Boss a very modest horsepower gain of about 30. So why did the oil spec go from a 5w-20 for the G.T. to a 5w-50 for the Boss 302 ?!?! Cars that are sold in different countries by the same manufacturer yet have different viscosity requirements?? That doesn’t even make sense, unless………… ah, regulations. Pick-up trucks and work vans that have 0w-20 on the oil cap??? My conclusion is that a 30 in place of a 20 in Florida is a good thing for your car. If you choose to look into this further on your own you will repeatedly see the same thing over and over…….. “degraded performance due to using higher than recommended viscosity oils”. Let’s discuss this.
Update. Someone who has looked at this site contacted me and let me know that Kia has different viscosity suggestions for different climates. I checked it, and would like to say thanks for the info!
PERFORMANCE
It will be said over and over in article after article that using a higher viscosity oil than the manufacturers specification will lead to performance loss. It will not be so easy to find out exactly what this performance loss is. Does it mean my car will lose some acceleration? Does it mean my truck will be unable to tow as much? After reading many articles on this subject what I found out is they are talking about fuel mileage. And not a lot of it. If you are willing to give up 1320 feet, a quarter of a mile per 100 miles traveled you will get in return a 50% stronger film strength of the oil protecting your engine. (going from a 20 to a 30) I’m talking about 1/4 of 1% of fuel mileage. I am a retired truck driver, we were required to take a driving class every other year given by a national driving school. They claim that bad driving habits contribute to additional fuel consumption. (captain obvious could have said that) I was surprised when they told us it could be as much as 30% MORE fuel consumed. Nobody drives perfectly, not punching the gas pedal between stoplights just one time during that hundred miles would save you more than 1/4 of 1%. By the way, AMSOIL claims increased fuel economy AND more horsepower and can back up that claim!
VISCOSITY’S SLIPPERY SLOPE
One of the things I am most often asked about is my thinking on viscosity. Some are amazed that I would even suggest straying from the manufacturers recommendation. ( Notice the word ” recommendation” usually owners manuals “recommend” a particular viscosity) As said previously, I’m not trying to get you to switch what you use, and I am happy to install or supply to you the oil of your choice. I read an article today 8/8/22 on a site called Carscoops, it was discussing a dealer maintained Toyota Camry that was burning a quart oil oil every thousand miles and the car only had a 120,000 miles on it. Oil consumption increased to three quarts every thousand miles at 150,000. This plays into my thoughts on why I often use a higher than “recommended” viscosity. I often hear that a customer will only use the manufacturers recommended viscosity because the manufacturer knows what is best for his/her car. As I have mentioned elsewhere on this site it’s not always the answer to your question that satisfies your curiosity, sometimes it’s time to ask a new question. I offer this example…. The Nissan HR16DE engine, which is a collaboration with Renault (Renault designates this engine H4M).This engine has been in use for well over a decade, the recommended viscosity from Nissan was 5w-30 (until 2017) and Renault recommends 5w-30, 5w-40,or 0w-40 depending on driving conditions. Nissan changed their “recommendation” to 0w-20 after 2017. Did the engine change? Did Renault also change their recommendation? NO and NO! You can look and search endlessly to see what changed with that engine and you won’t find anything, and you would be asking the wrong questions trying to find an answer. What changed ??? EPA requirements got a little tougher that year and those test are easier to pass with a lighter oil. Do I know for a fact that was the reason Nissan changed? No, I was not privy to that meeting of the minds, just placing some information in front of you. With that in mind , does the car manufacturer recommend what is best for your car, or does the car manufacturer recommend what is best for the car manufacturer?? For those who would say the higher viscosity oil would create more pollution I offer this thought, lets talk about that Camry at the beginning of this article. The dealer most likely used the recommended 0w-20. An oil consumption issue followed. It would not surprise me to find that the viscosity was changed to a 30 to help combat this issue, but I have no knowledge of that. I would argue that had a 0w-30 oil been used from the start(my opinion) this oil consumption issue may have been prevented. This surely would have would have created less pollution than adding and burning a few quarts every thousand miles. And the car would have stayed on the road for a longer period of time, one less car for the junkyard. The EPA test new cars, a car is only new until you drive it off of the lot.
8/14/22 I had a question asked about the above article. This is not the only engine or manufacturer that has done this.
Now you know why I think the way I do, I believe that a car manufacturer will do what’s best for the car manufacturer before they will do what’s best for the longevity of your car.
(YOUR CAR MANUFACTURER BRAND HERE) oil from the dealership.
This is the bomb I like to drop on folks who only use the car manufacturers oil. Your car manufacturer does not make oil. They are a large corporation that has to produce profits for shareholders, which is fine, that is how this country was built and it drives innovation. The oil they sell comes in a container that has the car manufacturers name on it, but was put in the container by a company that produces engine oils. The car manufacturer ask other companies for bids to put an oil that meets their specifications in a container with the car manufacturers name on it. ( This is why you should read the SCOTTY KILMER piece I wrote on the homepage ) Does the car maker choose the oil that exceeded their requirements the most or do they choose the lowest bid? I do not know, just telling you how that oil gets into the container of a car manufacturer. BY THE WAY, AMSOIL IS A PRIVATE BUSINESS that does not have shareholders. They focus on making the highest quality products and then price them at whatever price it needs to be to keep the company strong.
Update 7/8/24 I get a little friction from some people on the above paragraph. Nowhere in the above paragraph do I say car dealers have bad oil, I simply point out that perhaps you could get a better oil in the aftermarket. I am not alone. LINGENFELTER PERFORMANCE ENGINEERING is a company that will take a brand new Corvette, Camaro, and various other GM vehicles that already have 5 or 6 hundred horsepower and add a few hundred more. LINGENFELTER doesn’t fill their 1000 HP with oil from a GM dealership, they choose AMSOIL !!!
DEALERSHIP OIL CHANGES
In the above article (VISCOSITIES SLIPPERY SLOPE) I referenced something I read on Carscoops about a dealer maintained Toyota Camry. To start this article off I would like to say (and happily so) that the customers cars I have changed oil for who were previously going to a dealership in Brevard county, were getting the manufacturers oil filters. While there are many very good aftermarket filters that I would choose first, a dealer that is using OE filters is doing right by you. Obviously I have no way of verifying what brand of oil was used, but I have no reason to suspect foul play. There are numerous stories on the internet of people complaining they took there car to a dealership for an oil change and the dealer used a cheap “off brand” filter and they wonder what quality oil they got. I also personally know of a dealership in this state that uses the same oil out of a bulk container to process ALL of the used cars regardless of the recommended viscosities. Cost is the motivator.
A lot of (maybe all) dealerships service departments have several technicians, many of them are capable of doing various jobs on a car. There might be one tech that has a knack for transmissions, one may be efficient doing brakes, one may be a magician that can magically trace a fuel issue and so on. When a dealership puts out an ad for hiring an oil change tech there really isn’t much asked for in the way of qualifications. There’s not a problem with that, the mechanics of changing oil is not rocket science. Having someone to take a minute or two to check for recommendations other than what is printed on the cap can be priceless. (Actually you can put a price on replacing an engine prematurely)
I recently changed the oil on a Kia turbo four cylinder. The oil fill cap said two things, SEE OWNERS MANUAL. That’s what I did because oil is what I do. The owners manual had four different viscosities that were recommended, based on climate. 5w-30, 5w-40, 10w-40, and 20w-50. (In this case the w number can always go lower so the 0w-30 and 0w-40 oils that are now available would be fine choices as well) Does the dealership do this or is it more convenient and cost effective just to use the 5w-30 that is the most common? I would bet the drive through places that focus on how many minutes it takes to change your oil just look at the cap. You should ask them next time, or better yet give me a call and I’ll treat your car like it was my own. I would certainly discuss this with you.
Better Fuel Mileage With A Side Of Horsepower Please
This subject brings back memories* of my younger days. I got my driver license in 1980, as did the friends I hung out with. We had cars from the end of the MUSCLE CAR ERA. We figured out that as a general rule we could cut off about a second in the 1/4 mile for about $1000.00. After that, each 1/10 of a second would be another $1000.00. In 2017 HOT ROD magazine took a 2006 Dodge Charger with a 5.7L engine and did some testing. I’m not going to rewrite the entire article just going give the results. If you want to read the article simply type Hot Rod magazine Amsoil test in your search engine. They installed Amsoil engine oil, transmission fluid, differential oil and used an Amsoil oil filter. Fuel mileage increased by 0.9 mpg. Peak torque increased by 2.6 lb-ft. Peak power increased by 4.4hp. I don’t know the size of the fuel tank on that vehicle, but if it is a twenty gallon tank you’re talking about around a one gallon per tank savings while increasing power at the same time. I will agree that 4.4 hp will not throw you back in the seat noticeably harder when you stomp on it, but you will get a proven bit of an edge switching to Amsoil. To me, since the fluids should be getting changed anyway, it’s an easy upgrade.
*I’d like to say hey to Mark, Andrew, Henry, Joe, Sean, Tom, Jay, Todd, and Pat. Alex and Chuck, you guys are not forgotten.
Just Fluids Direct 