so this mornin there was a sale on castrol high milage gtx oils and i bought some and change the oil totally forgot to check oil weight! so i poured in the 5w-30, is this bad for the engine? its got 60k miles on it with 5w-20 oil all its life.

 

still using 5W so it should be fine me thinks.

 

you'll be fine

 

You're screwed! Do a 3x3.

 

No worries.

 

the only reason the 02-03 dont use 5w30 any more is for CAFE reasons. 5w30 will be just fine and there is NO reason to be worried.

 

like kris said- it was for govt mileage testing bs- which has been changed on how they calculate it~
we can safely run
5-30 normal operation
5-20 normal operation

0-20 extreme cold below freezing all winter
the first number is critical in cold temps

the 30 actually provides more protection against wear since its a little bit thicker
You will find it in many gen2, and even gen3 has wised up to the 20 scam

 

I run 5w-30 every time.

 

Used 10w-40 for thousands of miles.

 

02-03 has exactly same engine as 01, why would 5w-30 be a problem?
5w-20 is a gimmic to save gas by .00001% or something like that

 

arite thanks a bunch for all the answers guys. i also heard that there is less engine wea with 5w-30 dude to higher viscocity. maybe ill stick with it.

 

5w-30 since i've owned the car for three years now...

 

the only reason NOT to run 5w30-- would be in the winter and you live in sub freezing temps.
then a good synthetic 0w-20 would help the engine protection on startup,
with its thinner more flowing 0 viscosity- as measured at 32f

I am not aware of a 0w-30 so 20 is good enough for winter

Its all about additives on multi weight oils; to make them work `as if they were the stated viscosity`- but isnt really either one- see internet for info

 

really no 5w-30 in winter? i have been running 5w-30 on my other cars over the years in -20c winter no problem.

 

what are you guys talking about, my wife's 2008 RDX is Mobil1 5w-30 factory fill. 5w-30 is the best protection for wear for critical components such as turbo and etc.

 

5w30 is more than fine in sub freezing temps.

 

iv heard this as well but not to fully switch to 0-20. but im not tryna get in the middle of an expert debate. i run 5-30 all winter, all summer, all day and night without any problems. methinks if you were doing winter races or sumthing it could be beneficial but just for our plain old acuras 5-30 wrks. fsttyms1 don't you have a ice race car? what kind of oil do you use in it?

 

the 5w is good enough to get oil flow to critical parts in a reasonable time in most climates
IF you live where no man should drive when its that cold~ then the extra protection of faster flow of oil from the 0 weight is going to be of help over the years in lessening bearing damage etc
While its a minimal thing for most areas--extreme oil for extreme area!!

Unless you have torn the engine down and inspected every part - you cant say if there is damage or wear

turbo cars have different needs

 

lol well it seems my engine is ok and that it is not showing signs of blowing up anytime soon

 

I run 5w30 in that as well. I probably should run something a little heavier since the car spends most of its run time at or around 7k rpm.

 

This is where a good Syn helps out. It doesnt turn into sap like consistency like Dino when its cold

 

I have to drive up a large hill early into my "commute" every morning - 20*+ grade.
Would synthetic offer any positives?

I think synthetic just sounds like its "better".
In reality, I only need change my oil to follow my maintenance light correct?

I've never seen this asked, how is the maintenance light's memory kept? - does it loose its mem when there is no power? or is it hard flashed into the mileage chip?

 

synthetic will be flowing and protecting sooner for your uphill battle in the morning

no idea on how it holds the mileage minder, just how to reset it and drive~

its set at 7500 miles to stay on, average oil change as suggested by acura
those in harsh temps hot or cold may want to do sooner

 

Really-! Most of the time the engine's rpm is around 7000-? Why is that?

 

I think because he races it... ?

 

have you heard of anyone running mobil one 0w-40 in j series engines?

 

his ice racing car runs 7000 rpm, not the street car..it stays below redline...hopefully
(no he doesnt have a normal TL anymore)

 

OIC....

 

his street TL now sports a CL-S engine and 6 speed manual--
thats why I said he keeps it below redline- hopefully..there is no ecu control for overrev protection anymore~

note: fsttyms1 decodes to Fast Times Won

 

Never realized that!

 

5w-30 or bust!

 

:shakehead

Keep running 5W30, no need to use thicker oil.

 

Are there any cons to using a thicker oil?

 

It makes the engine, more specifically the oil pump, work harder to circulate oil. The engine was built to circulate 5w30 through minimal tolerances throughout the motor. When you add thicker oil the amount of lubrication decreases because the oil does not flow into those small crevices as easily as the thinner oil does. At least that's how it was explained to me once, I think.

 

Makes sense to me .

 

Is there a specific weight you should use for a lot of highway driving?

 

No. Just stick with what the manufacturer recommends.

 

consult the owner manual/service book for details on severe ambient temp suggestions
the rest of us run 5w-30 for best engine protection
5w-20 is ok too if thats what you put in last time

 

Thanks for the input.