[Shawn]

Anyone have an opinion on using Mobil one 0w-20 in extreme heat in the summer. I see that it is listed as an alternative(On the Mobil site) to Ford/Mazda's recommendation of 5w-20. I live in Arizona and we consistently see temp's in the 110+ range. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks...

Shawn

 

[lexterminator]

No problem there, the Mobil 0w20 has a higher flash point than ANY regular 20w50 oil !

 

[raitchison]

That's what I put in my car this weekend, we see temps over 100 most summer days.

After I get over 10k miles I will do a test of Mobil1 0w20 and 5w30, complete with used oil analisys and determine what I will use from then on based on the results.

Mobil1 0w20 will likely protect your car better in the heat than the 5w20 semi synthetic your Mazda dealer would use. The only other oil I would consider for my 3 is Mobil1 5w30.

 

[Titanium]

Putting in a thinner oil for higher temperatures goes against everything I know about engine oil. Traditionally you would want to put a thicker oil in your summer and a thinner oil for winter. 0w in the heat of summer will offer little or no protection to your engine. The thicker oil will protect better at higher temps. You would want to put in a thinner oil in the winter to make it easier for the engine to turn over etc. I believe that you would only consider using a 0w20 in extreme cold, like Alaska. Just my two cents.

 

[raitchison]

Look at this thread http://www.mazda3forums.com/viewtopic.php?t=2840

For some earlier discussions.

 

[rippinbyu]

Anyone know where you can get the Mobile 1 0w-20 in the large container? I seen the large container for about $20.00 at Walmart but theydon't carry the large one in 0w-20...they only carry the one quart containers. Thanks!

 

[raitchison]

I've never seen one in a 5 quart bottle.

 

[rippinbyu]

Wheres the cheapest place to buy Mobile 1 0w-20?

 

[raitchison]

I just picked up 6 quarts at Pep Boys for $4.49 a quart plus a free Purloator Oil Filter (got the oil filter for my wifes car) but that was a coupon special.

I hear that Wal-Mart has good prices on Mobil1 but I don't shop there.

 

[SBTanMan]

Costco has Mobil1, and at good prices for a case at a time.

 

[raitchison]

Costco does have Mobil1 but I;ve never seenm 0w20 there, they only carry 5w30 and 10w30 AFAIK.

As a matter of fact I've written to them asking them to start carrying 0w20.

 

[SBTanMan]

They carry 0w20 around here, I'm pretty sure. I could have sworn I saw it when I was there the other day. On the other hand, it might have been 5w30, which should be a good enough substitute for the 5w20 our cars want.

 

[MZ3_GS]

Why the hell do you guys so far down south use 0w 20 oils.

NOT EVEN IN CANADA DO WE USE IT HERE.....except maybe really far up in the artic region.

Makes no sense to me how 0w provide "better" protection.

 

[raitchison]

If you want to see why I'm using 0w20 look at the thread I referenced above.

It seems that Mobil1 0w20 has an addative package that's quite a bit better than the package in Mobil1 5w30. The used oil analisys of Mobil1 0w20 shows that it does a good job of protecting the engine, at least as good as 5w30.

I'm running 0w20 until I get over 10,000 miles, after which I will do a comparison test with used oil analisys of 0w20 and 5w30.

 

[MZ3_GS]

I skimmed through it breifly...Don't make sense to me why you would choose 0wX.

Anyways that one guy was right Mobile one changed formulas and their oils now a just hydrocracked dino oils.

I'll stick to Dino oils......its cheaper.

 

[darkside3]

hmm...

i got free oil changes forever from my dealer so im not gonna worry about this..

 

[Shawn]

Raitchison, you at 10k miles yet? :lol:
I look forward to seeing what the oil analysis looks like.

Shawn

 

[raitchison]

I skimmed through it breifly...Don't make sense to me why you would choose 0wX

It's not about "0wXX" it's specifically about Mobil1 0w20. The used oil analysis I have seen show that this particular oil does a very good job of protecting the engine, at least as good as 5w30. I know that the 0w20 is the newest Mobil1 out there (other than their new "SUV" oil which is merely repackaged Devlac). It's likely that Mobil developed an entirely new addative package for 0w20, one thay aren't using in the 5w30 as of yet, which is likely responsible for the surprisingly good UOA results for 0w20. Especially since the car is new I don't think there is any significant risk in using it for now. When I get to 10k I will test them side by side.

Anyways that one guy was right Mobile one changed formulas and their oils now a just hydrocracked dino oils.

Do you have a source for this? Based on something that Mobil has said or on lab results. I know the new SuperSyn forumla does have a higher pour point compared to the older stuff, which is somewhat alarming but I have yet to find anything amounting to significant evidince that it is using anything but a 100% PAO base stock.

I'll stick to Dino oils......its cheaper.

If your running 5w20 dio I wouldn't run anything but Motorcraft/Mazda 5w20 which is a semi synthetiic.

 

[raitchison]

Even if I had free oil changes I would still change my own oil, it's cheap insurance to make sure the car is being serviced correctly and that the best materials are being used.

No I'm not at 10k yet thankfully, only a bit over 2k. I won't be over 10k until late 2004 probably.

 

[sykikchimp]

Mobil one and pennzoil I think had a big court case a while back about what can be called "synthetic". Mobil lost, and the case determined that hydrocracked dino oils are also "Synthetic." So now Mobil has taken to the addage, "if you can't beat'em, Join'em" They produce hydrocracked dino oils that are "synthetic" by the governments standards.

Also, I read an article from Amsoil a while back that said 0w-20 oil was a way for automakers to reduce emmisions, and increase fuel economy. It said that taxes are based on average fuel economy of their entire lineup. So the lower any single car is, the lower their taxes overall.

Amsoil 0w-30 is honestly the best oil money can buy. I run it exclusively in everything I own. Their oils have always tested better than Mobil1 in every category.

Also, the 0w is the cold starting viscosity. the 2nd # is the one that you should really be concerned about, unless you live in extremely cold environments.