So I saw the 0W 30 Mobile One oil today, and I decided to give it a shot. Supposedly it gives better gas miles and exceeds the requirements of MFG warranty where other oils are recommended. This is my 2nd oil change now (after the first one being free from Honda) and I've got 13692 miles...

Here's the specs on it:
Mobil 1 0W-30 Advanced Fuel Economy

What do ya'll think? I'll calculate my new MPG and see if I really see any difference...

 

I'm interested in your results but am wondering why you didn't use 0W-20 since the engine (at least the 5 speed automatic) is spec'ed for 5w20 oil.

 

 

There isn't a lot of difference between the 20 weight and 30 weight in practice. In fact, reports are that some synthetic 5W-30 thins down to a high 20 weight at the end of a normal OCI (Oil Change Interval) according to the Used Oil Analysis over at BobIsTheOilGuy.



Some stores don't stock the 20 weight. So I buy (and my three Hondas run well with) 5W-30 when there is a sale. When I can find the 20 weight, I buy it.

(Some will say that the 0 weights are more robust than the regular 5 weights. Maybe.)

 

I've used Mobil1 synthetics for many years and many miles. I use 0W-20 in mid-winter, 0W-30 now and will use 0W-40 this summer.

 

Honda specifies 5w20 for several reasons.

 

Right ---- and they specify 5W30 in most of the world (except North America) which is why I have no problems using either one.

I keep meticulous fuel mileage records and have not noticed a difference from the two oil weights.

 

any difference in engine feel (I doubt it)?

 

Nope.

I just checked under the valve cover on the V (I'm a compulsive maintenance freak) and everything was clean and adjusted properly (valves).

 

Oil thickens as it ages that is why you should use 0w-20, There is not that much difference but your mileage wont be better than 5w20. Thicker oil does not flow easy over hot engine parts esp at lower rpms. 0w-20 will have a noticable improvement in mileage.

 

Dont use 0w-40 in your honda it is not gf4 and will void warranty, they will know because of additive buildup. Its a extended drain oil for bmws and Porshes. Execellent oil, True synthetic but not needed in honda because there additives are in the piston skirts has imbedded moly, color of oil turns orange because of the additive, need carrier oil like mobil 1 0w-20,5w-20.

 

Huh? Moly coated piston skirts does not mean there's no need for additives in an oil. There are several other internals that benefit from extra EP additive. Honda breakin oil is typically loaded with moly. Whether that's assembly lube or something else is debateable. But Honda has, of late, been sparring with Chrysler over the next oil standard b/c Chrysler wanted to put upper limits on moly.

Regarding the OP, Exxon's new marketing (these oils have been around) is targeting folks that are using 5W and 10W (cold temp rating) in their spec'd grade. The "fuel saving" oil to buy for our cars would be the M1 0W20 vs. the normal 5W20. The 20 or 30 or whatever is thickness at operating temp. The gist of Exxon's claims is that the lower startup weight will allow the engine to run without as much drag at startup, when the oil is cold and thicker.

Sorry for digging up these oil threads. I may be a new Fit owner, but I'm an avid bitogger.

 

That makes sense, although I'm no expert. Using 0W-40 in temps 0f 60-100 F. would not seem to be putting the engine in a compromised startup state. In a 1990 Honda Civic Si I used 0W-30 as soon as it came out, each winter, and 5W-40 each summer, for ten years and 282,000 miles until I hit a moose and totaled it. No engine wear/valve guide/ring issues. Granted it was not a VTEC but still...

 

I tried the 0W-30 in my wife's Fit and noticed a decrease in mpgs. Just my experience. Let us know if you have better results.

 

There's no reason to use anything thicker than a 20 hot weight unless you're running a turbo or SC, which can cause higher oil temperatures. I run 0w30 Castrol Syntec (aka "german castrol" on BITOG) or 5w30 Mobil 1. I just had a used oil analysis done after 3500 miles on M1 5w30 and it ended up a little thinner than spec because of some minor fuel dilution (~1.3%). I had a little bit of iron show up in the analysis, but M1 has been shown to have a higher virgin iron content than some other oils so I'm not woried about it. It showed 16ppm. I have 1ppm copper (bearings) and 1 aluminum I believe. I had 88ppm of molybdenum, and the usual 0 of antifreeze and water.

In short, if my boosted motor is running happily with virtually no air filter (stainless mesh filter that came with my kit) and 5w30 M1 (which is indeed very close to a 20 weight when you really get down to it), there really is no reason to use a 30wt on an NA fit. Don't even think about a 40wt, that's unneccesarily thick for anything using the stock bearing clearances.

 

Thanks, potatoman, and if I do need assistance I will definitely PM you! How much did the turbo conversion cost you total, and why did you go turbo as opposed to supercharged?

 

No, it wouldn't be. The "0W" is more of what you need to look at for how well an oil will flow at startup. Granted, it's not an EXACT correlation, but generally, the lower the first number, the thinner the oil is at startup.

"0W" oils can be used year round if you are so inclined. They are typically not spec'd in most cars b/c they are pretty much exclusively synth. But SAAB specs 0W40 for its turbo cars.

The thing that scares people about "0W" oils is them being too thin. This is not really a valid concern and is usually based on a misunderstanding of how motor oils are numbered. Remember, even though the first number is a smaller number than the second, operating temp number, your oil is always thicker at startup than it is at operating temp. Oil doesn't thicken as it gets hotter, it thins. A 10W30 thins more than a 5W30 which thins more than a 0W30 when going from cold to operating temp. In effect, the 0W30 stays more stable when going from cold to hot. This is why, in the past, it has been hard to make good oils with a low "cold" weight and high operating weight. It's taken good synthetic chemistry...

 

Can you post your analysis? Or is it posted in the UOAs at bitog? Curious why you wanted to run GC in a Fit???

 

By the way, fuel economy is such an imprecise thing, IMO...for one thing I drive my car however I feel like driving it in a given moment, from full throttle up to 5 grand or so to nice and easy, so the only way to get an accurate fuel economy reading, especially measuring something as subtle as an oil viscosity change, would necessitate taking mpg readings over several months and averaging them, better yet over a year. "City driving" and "Overall" fuel economy are pretty slippery figures. I usually like to measure fuel economy over a long road trip, but then temperature and traffic can play a role. Having said that, I'm going to try and record fuel purchased and mileage over a year and see what that overall looks like, for the heck of it. Seems like the best oil to use is Mobil1 0W-30, so I can keep that constant, and I'm done with my engine tweaks now that I just installed the new PRM intake. Actually, since I just installed larger tires (205-55-15), that has influenced my mileage as well, as does the Megan axleback. I switch to OEM size snow tires in winter, so I think I'll pick June 1 to October 1 to record mileage and see what I get. Sorry to ramble...

 

So BKRELL, does that mean that a 0W-40 will thin the least from startup to hot?