10 W 30 instead of 5 - should I care?

I see this so much. 10w30 is a better oil for a older engine and unless it gets below zero a lot it is all the oil you need. 5w30 can cause problems long term in some engines because the VI in the oil can cook out in time and be mistaken for carbon in rings (just look around some Saturm forums for stuck rings issues) 10w30 has less VI and more oil than 5w30. You will notice that GM is about the only car maker that still uses 5w30 while others have gone to 5w20 (which has less VI too and more oil). ALso some may disagree but now is not the time to change to SYN oil with a 11 year old engine. Just keep using good conventional oil and change it every 3K miles or so (not recommanded interval) and it should last a long time still. I would stay with

10w30 because what works best in a new tight engine vs one with 11 years of wear is a differnet matter.

----------------- TheSnoMan.com

Not at all. The only time you need the 5W30 is when the temperature is below zero Fahrenheit (minus 18 Celsius).

Naaah. Leave it alone. It's fine. Depending on where you live, it might be fine year-round. It's certainly not a problem in the summer; in fact, it's recommended.

Just keep changing the oil and filter every 3K miles.

My opinion: 10W30 is a better summer choice anyway. You may actually burn less oil, but could also get slightly worse gas mileage too.

Bob

I've been using 10W30 in my '95 SW since I bought it - about 6 years now. My driving is primarily in-town, in San Antonio, where the weather runs from warm to hot year-round. No problems.

Thanks, all, for the 10 W 40 advice - now, I'm trying to figure out why my 'service engine soon' light is on all the time since the oil change.

I wanted to wait the 4 ignition cycles (?) before complaining, because I've had a few 'one-time' indications and it seems to turn off after the 4 drives, but now I've driven the car 9 times. =(

Thanks, all, for the 10 W 40 advice - now, I'm trying to figure out why my 'service engine soon' light is on all the time since the oil change.

I wanted to wait the 4 ignition cycles (?) before complaining, because I've had a few 'one-time' indications and it seems to turn off after the 4 drives, but now I've driven the car 9 times. =(

Take it someplace and get the codes read. Many auto parts stores will do this for you free of charge. Any AutoZone store will loan you a code scanner (with appropriate security deposit, of course) so that you can read the codes yourself. There isn't really any other way to "figure out" why the light is on. It's on because the computer detected something amiss and stored a code. You need to find out what the code is, and that will tell you why the light is on.

Last time this happened to me, they had disconnect the hose form the PCV valve while checking it, forgot to reconnect.

In Canada, the smart people use 5W30 oil year around.

Our old '75 has nearly 300,000 Km in it, and still runs great on 5W30.

10W30 does not circulate as quickly, and the bearing clearances are usually too small to allow enough oil flow. Our mechanic went to Mexico last year to help locals with their vehicles. The biggest problem was using heavy oil, 10W40 or 20W50, which resulted in engine failures due to insufficient lubrication. He instructed them to use 5W30 all the time.

Hole this helps, David

I bought a 97 with 90k and have always used 5w30 mobil 1 synthetic, I know have over 161k and change my oil 3 time a year. I do mostly city driving. I use about a quart betwen changes. The mobile circulate better and my city driving is right arounf 28mpg whereas my on the highway is around 37 - 40 mpg