5w30 vs. 10w30

[starbuck]

OK car guys, is there really much difference between these oil's?

[DawgFan3]

10w30 is a heavier weight..basically, meaning it's thicker. It's not a good oil for extreme cold, but can handle more heat. 5w30 is a better oil for cold weather climates, because when it's cold, it will heat up and flow a lot better than what 10w will, yet, it dosen't handle as good. My car calls for 5w, but I use 10w...just my personal opinion. You can use either one, there's really no difference in our kind of climate.

[TheBeast]

My truck calls for 5w, but with the new motor I am putting in it, going from a 4.6 to a 5.4 the man that builds and tests them for Ford told me to use 15w40 Ursa to get the maximum life out of it.

[NotSoSilentBob]

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question164.htm

[theWanderer]

The first number refers to the oils thickness at startup while the second number refers to warm (not exactly but in the simplest definition). So 5w30 would be thinner at startup which is good for cold weather, and at warm temps the oils are pretty much the same. Really not that much difference between the two, but if your car is under warranty using any weight oil not recommended can void the warranty.

If you you really want to reduce wear, you would need to put in an electric oil pump as most wear happens while the engine starts and the oil is in the pan.

[TheBeast]

A cheaper and good alternative to the electric pump is to use some Lucas oil treatment that coats all the parts and protects them during startup. Most people wouldn't just turn the key on and set there while the electric pump moved the oil enough to get a good coating on all the parts before they start the engine.

My point. 5w..10w unless you are in a cold climate, you are splitting hairs.

[BlueWahooChambordDevil]

dont know......never drank either one