VS oils

[Z()LTAN]

Hey all,
ive just done a servise on my car, now i was in repco and the penrite oils book stated that for a vs commodore i should b running 10W 50... Now ive put it in as i respect penrite oils but holden states u should use 20W or 25W...
Whats the deal?

 

[sixshooter]

My owners manual states 20W/50.

The numbers represent the viscosity of the oil....the lower the number the runnier the oil...oils which have 2 numbers such as 20W/50 are multigrades which means that their viscosity is suitable for use during different times of the year...10W is a runnier oil than 20W during winter... which is what the W stands for...hope that helps !

 

[Z()LTAN]

thanx man but is it going to damage my car using 10W?

 

[sixshooter]

thanx man but is it going to damage my car using 10W?

Nah...It shouldn't be a worry....Id be more concerned if you put 10W/30 in.... its the upper end that you need to pay attention to as that is what the oil's rated viscosity is under extreme temperature.

Having said that...the only time you really need to pay attention to the W end is when operating your car in extremely cold weather such as snow and sub zero tempuratures...which in Australia is fairly rare.

 

[Z()LTAN]

kool thanx man

 

[Scooter79]

Ok, here's the deal with engine oils. When the VS's were made the most suitable oil that was available at the time was a 20w/50 and has an API of SG or SH. As newer oils are developed the API increased to SJ, SL and now SM and as each new one become available, the older ones are discontinued like SG and SH which is recomended for the VS is now obsolete. The old model T fords had a rating of SA i believe. If you look at most oil companies websites and do a search for what is best for your VS, most will say 10w/30. Thats because most oils now have an API (American Petrolium Index) of SM. SM has the best protection rating available so you can afford to go a little thinner. I just got a VS calais with only 100,000k's on it and am now using Mobil 1 10w/30. Fully synthetic. The best thing to do is read up on oil company websites like Mobil, Shell, valvoline, Penrite, Castrol, etc

I hope you find this info helpful. Feel free to discuss further.

 

[sixshooter]

Feel free to discuss further.

Err... ever heard of oil dilution ?

This occurs when a car is used for alot of short distance driving. The unburnt fuel mixes with the oil on the walls of the cylinder and makes the oil even thinner and less protective.

This is more imperative for synthetic users to note as they change oil less often.

Car oil pumps are made with tolerances to pump certain grades of oil....the problem with going too thin in grade is that your oil pump will fail to hold pressure and bearing failure will result.

When your operating your motor in summer it runs hotter and the oil pump housings expand more making to even more crucial to run the right viscosity.

I wouldn't chance my motor with thinner oil than the manufacturer recommends... especially so if it were under warranty.

 

[Harvs82]

I've got 166,000kms on my VS, have always used Mobil 20w/50, and changed every 5,000kms. I have absolutely no rattles at startup, even in very low temps, and its also quiet starting up in the hotter weather, even when the engine has been running previously. A mate of mine ran 10w/30 in his VS, and all you could hear was ticking, especially when the engine was warm...

 

[Scooter79]

Harvs82, what 20w/50 are you running? 'Super HP' or 'Super XHP'? Is the Mobil Super a fully synthetic oil? I'm going to see how the car runs on 10w/30 this time and when it's time to change I may consider something else. Also in regards to your mates car, is he still running 10w/30 or what did he change too?

 

[Harvs82]

Harvs82, what 20w/50 are you running? 'Super HP' or 'Super XHP'? ...and even though I'm running the car on fully synthetic I still plan on changing the oil as frequently as I did with my last car on mineral oil.

I'm now running the 'Super HP' 20w50. It used to be 'Super XHP 20w50' but the 'Super XHP' is now a 15w/40 grade from memory.

I should also mention the car burns next to no oil, probably less than 100ml in the 5000 kms that it is in the engine.