[ubi_wampum]

Is it OK to use 5w-20 instead of 0w-20 oil?

 

[ubi_wampum]

a previous post answered this question;]

But any additional thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Resist]

Let's go over what the viscosity rating means. Mutli grade oil uses two numbers that indicate the thickness of the oil for certain temperature ranges. One being for cold temps and the other for warmer temps. The lower the number the thinner the oil. So for cold temperatures Honda suggests 0W, which is the viscosity of the oil before it heats up. Honda also doesn't suggest using oil viscosity greater than 20 weight. If the temperature outside is warm (or the engine is warmed up), the oil will get no thicker than 20 weight.

If you live in an extremely cold climate you may want to stick with a 0W oil. Otherwise going to a 5W oil will cost you in mpg during startup up through getting the engine warmed up.

What you need to do is look at the temperature ranges for the weight of oil you are using. You will find that 5W-20 oil is very useful in extreme temperatures. Especially Mobil 1 synthetic oil.

But basically you won't notice much of a difference, if any by using 5W-20 over 0W-20.

 

[ubi_wampum]

Thanks

Thanks resist for your helpful response! I think I made the right choice for the climates I travel in. Gracias. Tee Hota.

 

[Jim]

an additional thought

tjo - if you're having trouble finding Mobil1 0-20, start looking for Pennzoil Platinum 0-20. They're manufacturing it - should be on the shelves soon. Pennzoil claims they "designed" it for hybrids.

 

[Resist]

Re: an additional thought

Pennzoil claims they "designed" it for hybrids.

I'm not sure what Pennzoil means by the oil being designed for hybrids. Other than the oil having a viscosity rating of 0W-20 and having detergents, what do they mean?

 

[meow77]

you know I've never been a proponent of not using what Honda says to use on your car... I'd rather use 0w 20 non synthetic than 5w 20 synthetic... I live in Canada and would not venture using 5w during the winter months and am not thrilled with using it at all... why wait for your engine to warm up just use the right oil..

 

[Rick Reece]

So as long as the experts are providing answers is low oil pressure good or bad. Here is what I observe

1. I tried not topping off my oil level as had been suggested by another owner and my temp guage read higher than normal and my oil pressure was lower than normal but the mpg was slightly above normal but that could have been due to other factors as well. Because of the lower pressure I added oil to bring the oil level to full.


2. I also have a very extensive hot air mod that can get +75F on the temp at times. When the oil temp runs into the 190's my pressure drops as well. As a result I have removed some of the insulation to keep the temp lower pressure higher.

So my question is does a 10-20F increase in oil temp really reduce its resistance enough to lower the pressure by 5-10 PSI or is there some other factor at work. I do see my best mpg when the oil is above 180F have fun, Rick

 

[ScottH]

Oil 'designed' for hybrids

I wonder if that has something to do with the auto-start function?

Sounds a bit gimmicky, but maybe not....

 

[Resist]

The advantage of using synthetic oil (over non synthetic), far outweighs everything, even if you have to use 5W-20. The biggest gain is probably mpg improvements and superior engine protection. Synthetic oils handle heat much better also.
A 5W synthetic oil is good down to minus 55 degrees. Do you think a cold engine will feel the difference between 0W and 5W, probably not considering as soon as the engine turns over it starts creating heat, which changes the oils viscosity.

 

[meow77]

the only difference you will notice between synthetic and on sythetic with our cars is the frequency you have to change it... are cars are not race cars and don't require "high viscosity" espeically if you are doing regular oil changes...

Having said that my next oil change will be with synthetic 0w 20 however I would not go to 5w 20 synthetic... 0w 20 will suffice and if you did see fuel changes it would be between 5w vs. 0w 0w being the better choice for fuel mileage

 

[Resist]

the only difference you will notice between synthetic and on sythetic with our cars is the frequency you have to change it

You are incorrect. Synthetic oils also improve gas mileage because they are better lubricants. One thing you have to realize is there will be no noticable change in mpg between 0W and 5W oil. This is because the second the engine is started its heat changes the 0W oil to a viscosity of 5W. Heat increases oil's viscosity. Only if you live in areas of extreme cold (high minus temperatures), will you notice a mpg hit and then only at startup. Once the engine is running 5W is just like 0W oil, with regards to viscosity.

 

[Jim]

Re: an additional thought

Pennzoil claims they "designed" it for hybrids.

I'm not sure what Pennzoil means by the oil being designed for hybrids. Other than the oil having a viscosity rating of 0W-20 and having detergents, what do they mean?

I was just relaying what's on the packaging. If you want to know what they mean, you can read about it on their website, or you can ask them.

 

[Braxus]

As many have said, I don't think using 5W-20 will have any ill effects. Recently switched to 5W-20 on my Civic HCH and no noticable drop in gas milage or performance. Even cold starts are fine.

The HCH manual also says 5W-20 is ok to use if 0W-20 is not available (haven't read up on the Insight yet). Had to switch over to 5W-20 as 0W-20 Mobil 1 not available anymore.

Dunno if this has been posted recently, but Honda specs 5W-20 for the Accord Hybrid over 0W-20 when I looked under the hood. The sales rep said Honda will eventually switch all their hybrid models to use 5W-20. But then again, I don't have much trust on what they say at times. Still remember the time when I went to buy my Insight. One of the managers at a dealership said the 5spd version doesn't get a noticable MPG difference over CVT.