awdVibeNoobie wrote: ↑Fri Aug 02, 2019 12:33 pm
Bookworm wrote: ↑Thu Aug 01, 2019 9:24 pm
Mark wrote: ↑Thu Aug 01, 2019 5:27 pm
I use
this filter and Mobile-1 0W-30 oil in all three Vibes.
I personally won't run the 0- series oils in my Vibe, and I'm not sure I like my wife's Mazda using them. We're in Houston, and considering the temperature is very rarely below freezing - and often into the 100's - extremely low weight oil won't actually protect well. So, consider where you are. Heck, if I only used the car during the summer, I'd run 30 weight
What year is your wife's Mazda? If it's fairly new, there is a reason why car manufacturers now a days use very thin oils in their engines is because of the tighter tolerances these engines are made. You can cause damage if using thicker oil.
2013. After the 2012 redesign, they apparently gave more leg room, so my wife, who is 5'11 with very long legs (and overweight), was comfortable in the 2013, but marginal in the earlier years.
The weird part about it is that some places say 5-20 for the Mazda, others say 0-20.
I'm trying to figure out exactly which is _really_ intended. Their default is 0w20, but Mexico is 5w30, or 5w20 in a pinch. I'm suspecting that considering where we are, I should be putting 5w20 into the sucker.
Oh - a "Cold Start" is not the same in 20 degree weather as it is in 60 degree weather. The low number is the viscosity level at some arbitrary minimum temperature (the 0W means 'winter'). The high number is the viscosity level at operating temperature of the vehicle (roughly 212F). It has nothing to do with the ability of the oil to coat the cylinders when sitting - rather it's the ability to be pumped through the engine when at nominal ambient temperature
https://www.rymax-lubricants.com/blog/w ... ally-mean/
So, in Houston, in the winter, I could use a straight 30 weight oil most of the time. In summer, I could probably get by with a 50 weight oil. However, if we hit a cold snap, then 30 weight wouldn't cut it. It's only good down to about 50 degrees before it's mud. Conversely, if it gets above 85 or so, then it starts getting too thin for the pump. So, you use a 5w30 for the Vibe. HOWEVER, Toyota apparently released a TSB saying you could also use 0w20. I'd suggest 0w20 for cold weather zones, not the Gulf Coast.
In short - if you use too low of an oil weight, it'll thin down too much to keep oil pressure up. If you use too high of an oil weight (or base oil weight), then the pressure will be too high, leading to an assortment of nasty problems.
Fun fact. Briggs and Stratton engines, like that in my lawnmower, are straight 30 weight, and doesn't even have to be SAE.