Engine ??Do you have to use 5w-30 oil??

??Do you have to use 5w-30 oil??

Since living in so cal means warm temp year round wouldnt 10w-30 be best for the car? I dont know can someone please educate me on this. Thank You All

i our new corolla is highly recommended.

there is a lil something that i know about changing oil weight..... if anyone know more please feel free to correct me.

in the older cars is ok to change the weight depending on the weather. older cars have "bigger" clearence between parts that why it will not "harm" the engine if we change it to a heavier oil. but it still have to be the recommanded one. usually people just change to a one step up oil (i.e from 5w-30 to 10w-30) the higher the number the heavier or thicker the oil.

in the newer car it more complicated. because of the little clearence that we have in between parts it is not good for the engine if we change to a heavier weight oil "thicker" oil. it will cause more fiction between parts hence decease of engine efficiency. this could cause decease in gas milage, increase engine wear and etc.

also another reason why people change to a thicker in older car because the engine part start to wear out and the thicker oil could "fill in the space" so to say.

just think if this make sense to you

Both 5W-30 and 10W-30 have the same viscosity once the engine warms it up. It's under cold conditions when they behave differently.

For warm weather I would think the two are interchangable. For cold starting conditions, though, stick with the lighter stuff.

I just get 5W-30 all the time since that's what's recommended and there's no real advantage to going heavier.

If you really need to go heavier (old pistons, burning oil, etc.) go with something that's heavier at operating temperature, like a 10W-40. Chances are in our new cars that won't be an issue for a while, though... and if it is we can get it fixed for free for the next 4 or 5 years. 8)

Same here.

3 years / 30,000 miles unless you buy the overpriced extended warranty. NOTE TO ALL: Your car insurance company should be able to offer you mechanical breakdown insurance that is more comprehensive and is much cheaper than the dealer extended warranty.

5 years / 60,000 miles for powertrain.

The dealer extended warranty just takes the bumper-to-bumper coverage from 3 years to 5 years as well, and you're right, it's not really worth getting.

Our two Corollas run just fine on Mobil 1 10W30 in the central Texas climate. No, you don't have to use 5W30. That is strictly for CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards. M1 10W30 is on the thinner side of allowable 30 weight oils. If cold starts below 0 Fahrenheit are common use 5W30, if not 10W30 will be all you will ever need. It actually has less viscosity improvers and tends to stay in grade without shearing to a lower weight better than the 5W30.
If the climate is moderate where you live 10W30 will be just fine, I do recommend Mobil 1 TRUE synthetic for what it's worth.

Neither car has used any measurable amount of oil since changing to Mobil synthetic and my oil change intervals are 7500 miles. The first change from dino oil should be no more than 5000 miles then 7500 therafter.

Note: I traded my "Rolla for an '04 Accord, she still has her '03 Rolla. I'm basing my above statements on educated research and real life usage.

here.. this might help you alittle

Oil Viscosity

The way that oil viscosity is referred to is by its weight. In this case, "weight" refers to the thickness of the oil and is usually measured with a Zahn cup. Any liquid has some viscosity and that viscosity changes depending on its temperature. Usually, viscosity (thickness) decreases as temperature increases. This also is true of engine oil. Engines need a thin oil at startup, so that it can get to the engine components quickly, but it needs a thicker oil when the engine is hot because a thin oil becomes too thin. This is why engine oils are supplied as dual-grade weights. When you see 10W-30 on a quart of oil, it means that it acts like 10 weight oil when it is cold (the "W" means winter, say -10^C), but acts like 30 weight oil when hot (100^C). This is not to say that it is actually thicker when it is hot. Hot 30 weight oil is thinner than cold 10 weight oil. Even so, it still helps provide the benefits of both types of oil depending on its temperature. So 0W-30 oil acts like 0 weight oil when cold, but maintains a 30 weight viscosity when hot. Think of it this way: when your engine is hot, there is basically no difference between 0W-30, 5W-30, and 10W-30 oil. They are all acting like 30 weight oil at this point. It's at cold startup, when almost all engine wear occurs, that the viscosity is different. The 0 weight oil will get to the engine components quicker than the 10 weight oil, but in reality cold 0 weight oil is still thicker than hot 30 weight oil. On the other hand when the engine is cold, there is no difference between 10W-30 and 10W-40 oil. However when the engine is hot, the 10W-40 oil is thicker than the 10W-30. This is why single-grade oils are very bad. Straight 30 weight oil is way too thick when cold to properly lubricate the engine. The only way to use single weight oil is to have an oil pan heater to bring the oil up to operating temperature (about 140^F or 60^C) before the engine is ever started. If you simply must use it, this type of oil should only be used in race engines with pan heaters.

As far as what oil viscosity is best, it depends who you ask. The fact is that engine oil maintains its viscosity better than ever and synthetics maintain it the best. In my opinion, the best viscosity for all weather is 5W-30. The reason is that both 5W-30 and 10W-30 breakdown at about the same point. Lighter oil can get into places that the heavier oil cannot and will get there more quickly, even when cold, so why go heavier? The only reason would be leaks. If you have oil leaks, a heavy oil will go through them more slowly. That is why you can buy "No-Smoke", which is basically sludge to thicken your oil. If your engine is sealed well, feel free to try Mobil 1's 0W-30 oil. If that "0" really makes you nervous, stick with 5W-30. 10W-30 is unnecessarily thick when cold.

http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oil.html