Anyone run 0w20 Redline oil ? | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Anyone run 0w20 Redline oil ?

Rase

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Joined
February 4, 2004
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City, State
South Dakota
Year, Model & Trim Level
'95 Explorer Sport
Thinking about trying Redline's 0w20 in the 95 Explorer v6 for the winter.
Has anyone ran this oil before? The reason I ask is,they specify a 30-weight oil for this year of explorer.

I have ran Redline's 0w30 last winter,but was told,it's a "thick" grade of 0w30,so was curious of trying out their 0w20.
 



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Curious what your rationale is for wanting a 0W-20 or 0W-30, other than just to try it? Is there some specific problem you're trying to fix?
 






Magic oil won't make a difference at this point. 5W30 dino oil is a fine solution for winter, or summer given today's oil quality. I take that back, if you lived much further north, 0W oil could be more important.
 






-15 F degree temperatures for daytime highs in the winter months here, is enough reason for me personally to consider a "0" weight oil.

Hopefully some ya'll aren't afraid of "0" weight oils? Anyways,I've found my info I needed as it seems the oil pump on the earlier 4.0's weren't designed to pump a 20-weight oil. Thanks.
 






^ Your average winter temps are not -15F.

Buy what you want to, but don't pretend you live in Antarctica.
 






^ Your average winter temps are not -15F.

Buy what you want to, but don't pretend you live in Antarctica.

Before you show anymore of your ignorance,last winter we had 2 weeks straight of -10 to -20 degrees below zero.

I'm sure the tow truck companies would gladly show you their logs of how many jump starts and tows they receive every winter because of our cold temps.

Stay with what you know,because your not doing so well at this point.
 






ignorance? up to you how to pick an oil but I don't pick based on a few days, I pick on average temp
 






Do you think that running the redline oil was better for you X in the winter? I live in Moorhead Minnesota and its my first winter with my X and im looking into what I need to do to winterize. Well we may not live IN Antarctica it sure feels like it at times in the winter. I probably experience similar temps here as you do in SD(-15 is quite easy to achieve in these parts if you factor in wind chill and some days its -15 without it).

This is the reason I got my X. I was tired of my car being a snow bank.
IMG00031.jpg
 






For the extreme temps we see here,the lighter the oil,the better. The reason I chose Redline was,they use esters in their oil,which help the oil cling to metal surfaces better then a conventional oil provides,and when you are doing a startup,when it's -15 F or colder,the added protection is always a plus.

In my case,I'll be going with Amsoil AZO 0w30.

As far as winterizing your Explorer,

1)Flush the radiator and cooling system.If you dont want to do it yourself,bring it to a service center in your area.

2)Check your battery! If your battery has never been replaced,I'd grab yourself a new one.Not having enough juice to crank the motor is what gets alotta people in trouble during the winter. Again,thinner weight oil helps alot here as well.

3)Install new wiper blades.

4)Check tires. Are they weather cracked? Tire tread pretty low? Now's the time to pick up a set before the ground gets white.

This should get you on the right track ;)
 






Thanks for the winter tips :thumbsup:
 






First number is for the viscosity in a cold engine (start-up). 0W should be great for that.
Second number (20 or 30) is the vascosity with th eengine at nominal temperture. If your water temperature gauge shows normal temperature, there is no reason to go lower grade there! 20, being thinner, it will lower the oil pressure and with Fords you need all the oil pressure that you can get, since they are not so great from the beginning.
Stay with 0W30! And change it more often than the 5W30! The difference between the two oils is that the 0W one has more additives that the 5W one. Those additives wear out and the oil will become more as the stock base that it started from. So, the 0W30 will "go" down faster that the 5W30 to reach after 5000 miles some 0W10 as opposed to some 5W20 for the second one.
 






0w30 should be fine for the winter months. I would invest in a block heater also.
 






Maintenance and forethought can be good, but an otherwise properly maintained vehicle needs nothing done to be ready for winter except maybe a tire swap if there will be extreme snow or ice. Of course you should check tires, coolant temperature capability, etc. and if your wiper fluid has sat the alcohol in it might have evaporated so it needs a /boost/.

The difference in viscosity between 0W and 5W oil is not much, what little you theoretically gain in cold weather starting resistance reduction you lose again in pressure and film strength. This is not an exotic vehicle with special requirements, all the other cars on the road demonstrate that 5W oil is fine for north american winters. If your vehicle won't start in NA, it's not because there's 5W oil in it.
 






If your vehicle won't start in NA, it's not because there's 5W oil in it.
Or because you have 10W-30 or 15W-30 in it, either. And if it's a decent oil (as in nothing you'll find on the shelf) that actually has good boundary protection, you'll see no scuffing on anything in spite of the temps.
 






Sure... use even transmission oil, that will be fine. Forget about what manufacturer say in the owner manual about 5W, those enginners have no clue.
 






Sure... use even transmission oil, that will be fine. Forget about what manufacturer say in the owner manual about 5W, those enginners have no clue.
No, they have a clue...but you don't know why the shift was made to 5 weight oil in the first place. So, to give you a clue...it was done for two reasons:
1. Meet CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards. There are mileage benefits from using a lower viscosity oil.
2. Meet tightened emission standards.

There are no valid engineering concerns that drove the change, engines don't have any tighter clearances than would have been seen 20 or more years ago.
 






As I said above, the shift from 30 to 20 was due new fuel economy standards. 5W means nothing for fuel economy. When the engine is running and the oil is at 180F only the second number matters (the 20 or 30 weight). Temperature of oil gets there in minutes, especially with the oil heater that they installed.
5W matters for the first 5 minutes after start-up - not because the insignifiant fuel economy, but for the lubrication with the given oil pump. Thicker oil than 5W won't flow sufficient in winter temperatures with the stock oil pump.
 






As I said above, the shift from 30 to 20 was due new fuel economy standards. 5W means nothing for fuel economy. When the engine is running and the oil is at 180F only the second number matters (the 20 or 30 weight). Temperature of oil gets there in minutes, especially with the oil heater that they installed.
5W matters for the first 5 minutes after start-up - not because the insignifiant fuel economy, but for the lubrication with the given oil pump. Thicker oil than 5W won't flow sufficient in winter temperatures with the stock oil pump.
Horsefeathers. Lets see some proof. If that was the case, no engine in the last 40 years would have lived past its first winter. And you're wrong...there are significant mileage improvements to be had with a 5W-whatever oil. That's why you're now seeing it in fleet use with OTR trucking in a 5W-40 CJ4+ oil.
 






I live north of u in mn I run ford oil 5w 20 in all my cars and trucks my 2000 f150 7700 5.4 has 243,000 runs great I boightit new 5 20 ford oil every 3000. Best oil I have ever used. Also used 5- 30 in my drag car 428 596 hp 590 tq on Line perfor
ance dyno did over 600 pass one year no problem. 5 20 in my 2000 MM 5.0 with TMH 21 plus mpg hwy @ 70 ford oil and ford filter only way. Just M O
 



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I live north of u in mn I run ford oil 5w 20 in all my cars and trucks my 2000 f150 7700 5.4 has 243,000 runs great I boightit new 5 20 ford oil every 3000. Best oil I have ever used. Also used 5- 30 in my drag car 428 596 hp 590 tq on Line perfor
ance dyno did over 600 pass one year no problem. 5 20 in my 2000 MM 5.0 with TMH 21 plus mpg hwy @ 70 ford oil and ford filter only way. Just M O
If Ford's synthetic blend is the best you've ever used, I'd sure hate to see whatever you used to run. It's OK for a mediocre oil.
 






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