[94birdnj]

Hey guys,.....i live in NJ and the summer has been pretty hot ('round 90s) and i can expect the winter to be pretty cold (probably snow a few times and less than 40s) so anywho it's about that time to change my oil right now and i need to know which i should go with. I'm runnin 5W-30 simply because the sticker on the engine compartment said to. The car runs perfect, good starts, everything fine 141K on the odo but you'd never know. However, i've heard that this shortens the life of the engine somewhere and to use 10W-30 which i would have normally used. Can someone give me a good explanation on what to use and why?

p.s. purolator or motorcraft is the only way for me to go as far as filters, don't trust anyone else

 

[M10N]

well, its been good so far

i'd say you've done just fine with the oil you've been using, since your climate changes you should continue to use it, the 5w is essential for colder climates to get oil up in the engine faster, in the winter the 10w may not be good for you, im in TX and its always hot here 90-100 just about all the time, so i opt for the 10w , city traffic driving and heat , i need protection

 

[392Bird]

5w-30 is only good for a new engine. Ford uses it to get the highest possible mileage in the EPA test. All Ford Engineers cringe at this. It would be fine at -10 degrees, where higher numbers would not flow
as well at start up.

My old 5.0 had 180,000 miles on it, and still ran fine. I used 10w-30 year around until it got over 125,000 miles on it, then since the clearances were larger, went from 10w-30 year round, to 10w-30 in the Winter, and 20W-50 in the Summer. I live in Tennessee, and the daily 90+ in the Summer is not conducive to long engine life with the lower protection you would get from 10W-30 with aggressive driving.

The only reason I am not running the 5.0 now, is I wanted a BIG HP increase, and 180,000 is a little late for doing that. I have never needed to add any oil between 3,000 mile oil changes. I did a compression test on the engine, and it was still within 10% of specs. I did this with a guy that wants to buy my old engine and trans.

 

[94birdnj]

so should i change it now and keep 5W-30 and then in the winter (maybe 'round oct or so) switch to 10W-30 for winter?....I know that's what the manuals from Haynes (shudder) and chilton says so is that my best bet?........As far as synthetics,......i don't mind changing every 3000 miles ,.....gives me something to do when i'm bored. hehe.

 

[392Bird]

If you are going to use 5w-30, use it only in the coldest part of Winter, and 10w-30 the remainder of the year.

 

[Blitzcat]

I'd not use synth-oil in a well used engine

it will eat the seals and you will have leaks.
Flip side I run Mobil 10W40 year a round with no issues.
I use Fram(say what you want to but I have NEVER had a cold start issue with Fram filters EVER) filters and change the oil every 3200-3500 miles depending on how much highway driving I have done.
Staw away from Penzoil and Quaker State. Honestly I'd use $.89 cent gas station cheep crap over Quakerstate or Penzoil(then change it ASAP when I could get good stuff).
I have used Valvoline and Mobil 1 for 15 years now and have never had a clogged pickup or that nasty scum build up that you can get with other oils(see above bad ones). I also saw a 1-2 mpg increase with the Mobil 1 over the stock 5W30 that was in the car when I got it.
My 14.8 pesos worth.