UK oil grades in this hot weather
Discussion
Just had a thought that in this 40 degree heat that the engine oil in most UK cars might be getting a bit too thin at these temperatures? Mine runs on 0w20 which seems to have a max ambient temperature of 30 degrees and now I’m wondering if I should have avoided using the car this last couple of days? I’m sure a couple of days of light use won’t have done any damage but some vehicles will have been doing big miles. Or am I very wrong?
Is that on manufacturer spec?
Most cars I've seen using 0W20 list it for all temperature ranges:- The operating temperature of the oil itself is extremely high; oil manufacturers quote up to 200c+ so unless you're planning on an endurance race in a highly tuned car, you'd be more than fine.
Most cars I've seen using 0W20 list it for all temperature ranges:- The operating temperature of the oil itself is extremely high; oil manufacturers quote up to 200c+ so unless you're planning on an endurance race in a highly tuned car, you'd be more than fine.
I hadn’t actually checked what JLR recommend for all markets, so maybe it’s actually the same globally. The manual just says to ‘use the correct engine oil for the climatic conditions to be expected’ and then only recommends 0w20.
I’d just done a quick Google about operating ambient temperature ranges and the thinner oils had a lower maximum. But, like you say, the oil itself is going to hit pretty high temperatures when in use, certainly much higher than the ambient temps.
I’d just done a quick Google about operating ambient temperature ranges and the thinner oils had a lower maximum. But, like you say, the oil itself is going to hit pretty high temperatures when in use, certainly much higher than the ambient temps.
Crumpet said:
Just had a thought that in this 40 degree heat that the engine oil in most UK cars might be getting a bit too thin at these temperatures? Mine runs on 0w20 which seems to have a max ambient temperature of 30 degrees and now I’m wondering if I should have avoided using the car this last couple of days? I’m sure a couple of days of light use won’t have done any damage but some vehicles will have been doing big miles. Or am I very wrong?
Doesn't the oil get to 100+ when the engine is running or am I missing something really obvious?Smiljan said:
Doesn't the oil get to 100+ when the engine is running or am I missing something really obvious?
Yeah, maybe the lower cold ambient temperature is more important. I guess if the engine is sufficiently cooled it doesn’t matter what the outside temperature is unless really hammering it. Crumpet said:
Or am I very wrong?
Ambiant temperature has almost no impact in running temperature until the engine / transmission start overheating, and that can happen regardless of ambiant temperature and with the same effect regardless of what caused it.Just having an ambiant temperature 10 - 15C higher than normal wouldn't normally lead to overheating except in conditions where the cooling system was already marginal, and for a modern car in good working order that should be extremely rare.
HustleRussell said:
This is from my car’s handbook…
It isn't clear what that picture is trying to convey, but the only reason the ambiant temperature matters over that temperature range is for cold starting. That's got nothing to do with the behaviour when the engne is up tp temperature.GreenV8S said:
HustleRussell said:
This is from my car’s handbook…
It isn't clear what that picture is trying to convey, but the only reason the ambiant temperature matters over that temperature range is for cold starting. That's got nothing to do with the behaviour when the engne is up tp temperature.Incredible how people are reacting to this weather. Yep, it’s hot. Yep, not at all normal for the U.K. yet. But… are we all turning into scaremongering half-wits? Do we get our long-term winter forecasts from the front page of the Daily Exp****?
Back in the 50s running a Wolseley 4/50 on winter grade oil, you’d be right to worry. But modern oils for cars, aircraft, ships etc are incredible products. Forget about it.
We’ve had a tyre thread for this weather, how about brakes? Alternators? Smelly trees?
Back in the 50s running a Wolseley 4/50 on winter grade oil, you’d be right to worry. But modern oils for cars, aircraft, ships etc are incredible products. Forget about it.
We’ve had a tyre thread for this weather, how about brakes? Alternators? Smelly trees?
Re. my original mention of the manufacturer spec and the operating temp, as others are saying above - I like to have a little faith in OEM environmental testing having taken a few tours of the Ford Dunton environmental testing facility - If it's on the car, it's probably seen -40 to +40 at least, and that's before you get to the real world environmental tests
Haltamer said:
Re. my original mention of the manufacturer spec and the operating temp, as others are saying above - I like to have a little faith in OEM environmental testing having taken a few tours of the Ford Dunton environmental testing facility - If it's on the car, it's probably seen -40 to +40 at least, and that's before you get to the real world environmental tests
A few tours! I have been in it many times. You need a medical, before driving in it, especially at altitude settings (test is for haemoglobin levels), although there is a robotic driver now.To the original question, yes, trust the manufacturer’s oil, this ‘heatwave’ is not exceptional for vehicle testing.
Haltamer said:
Re. my original mention of the manufacturer spec and the operating temp, as others are saying above - I like to have a little faith in OEM environmental testing having taken a few tours of the Ford Dunton environmental testing facility - If it's on the car, it's probably seen -40 to +40 at least, and that's before you get to the real world environmental tests
A few tours! I have been in it many times. You need a medical, before driving in it, especially at altitude settings (test is for haemoglobin levels), although there is a robotic driver now.To the original question, yes, trust the manufacturer’s oil, this ‘heatwave’ is not exceptional for vehicle testing.
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