sebastian944

I always put 20w50 oil in the car but i'm wondering if i should put a lower viscosity oil in for my next oil change.. which will be monday morning. The oil will be used from now until March/April 2010 but will be in storage from Nov.2009. I want to be able to start it up every 3 or 4 weeks in storage and i'm worried that weather will be too low (can get as low as -15 degrees celcious on average) for 20w50.. The car will be in a carport with a cover on. Should I use 10W-40? I want to drive it from September to October in 20 celcious average weather (i need 20w-50 for that temp) I don't have a lot of experience with oils any input would help with my choice. I'm leaning towards just putting 20w50 in and drive it like i stole it from now until end of october and then just keep it in storage and don't start it up until the weather is plus 5 degrees.

I don't drive it enough to warrent a second oil change in november either.

sebastian944

i think i might have answered my own question.

Castrol 20w50 requires 20 degrees Fahrenheit = -6.66666667 degrees Celsius

-7 degrees Celsius is pretty cold .. i thought that would be too low for this oil. I guess i'm putting in the same oil and wait until is above -7 to start her up

ritzblitz

The problem with cold temperatures and heavy oil is the fact that the oil is too heavy to actually lubricate the engine right away. So even when you go in to the storage area and start it just to keep it "healthy," you're causing excessive wear on the engine components due to lack of lubrication(until the oil heats up and can freely flow through all of the engine's nooks and crannies).

Maybe go with a lighter oil if you're planning to start it during the cold months.

choinga

or...if you can get power in there buy something that you can heat the block with for awhile and then start it up.

sebastian944

yeah... no power really, i rent a garage a few blocks away from my home. I would have to bug the owner to get a cord from his house to the garage area (not close) How bad is it to just leave the car for 4 or 5 months? I take the insurance off anyway so I can't drive it around the block to properly "get the kinks out" I left it last winter and it started up no problem in the spring .. but i had some regrets leaving it out there without starting it up.

ritzblitz

imo its not a bad thing to let the car sit. When you go to start it up again you can always add a little oil to the cam box to get things lubricated again.

I think you might do more harm by cold starting it with heavy oil than letting it sit instead

choinga

if you have a spare battery you could buy an inverter and could probably get a couple hours on a block heater. Definitely enough time to get the oil gooey again.

TurboTommy

I do not like letting a car sit for more than a month. It's best to keep parts moving; not just the engine, but the belts, suspension components, wheels, brakes, etc.
I'd run redline 10W40 synthetic oil. The 40 weight from redline is just as good viscosity as a dino 50, and oil is fluid enough for cold weather.
If you don't like running straight synthetic for whatever reasons, then mix it 50/50 with dino.
Also, in the dead of winter, I'll pull the fuel pump fuse, and turn the engine a bit until oil pressure shows. Then when you start it, at least the oil is instantly at the moving internal parts, even if it is a bit thick.

smlporsche

0W-40 synthetic...

It would be insane to use a 20W-xx oil for winter storage in Canada after letting the car sit there for several weeks and ALL the oil has drained out of it...

sebastian944

Where do you buy your 10W40 Redline oil?

There is so many opinions .. i don't know what to do. Now i'm leaning towards mixing the oil's like you say but the car never had synthetic oil in it and i just know the synthetic oil is going to leak.

seattle951

I realize others have bad experiences with moving to synthetics but this is not always the case. I moved by 1987 924S to 0W-40 synthetic, and my 1989 928S4 to 0W-40 synthetic without incident. The 924S had about 70k miles. The 928S4 had 120k miles. I drove the 924S for about 4 years and the 928S4 for about 1 year. However, prior to driving the 924S and changing oil, I had my mechanic replace the head gasket, timing belt, waterpump, tensoiners, and reseal the oil cooler. The 924S had been sitting for years before I bought it.

OntarioTurbo

I live in Canada and I run 5w40 Porsche approved synthetic (also rated for diesel use so high ZDDP) all year. The low winter number gives me lubrication right away at start-up and the 40 weight allows for good good lubrication when warm/hot. The oil pressure is a measure of the resistance to flow in our engines. Just because you have great oil pressure does not mean you have great lubrication. I show 5 bar at start-up and between 3-4 at idle. The lowest I have seen it go is 2 bar after competting in successive runs at an auto-cross and waiting in line for my next turn to go. Well above Porsche reccomendations. This also told me that my oil was up to temperature. If oil does not reach the proper operating temp. (not water temp. by the way) it will not provide the proper lubrication and will build up sludge.
For these reasons I use the low winter weight numbers either a 5w40 or 5w50. Personal preferance and just my 2 cents.
Sebastion, you could also consider fogging your engine or adding a few squirts of oil through the spark plug holes and then turning the engine over by hand a couple of times. Then you wouldn't have to start it at all. IMO frequent cold starts just to let it run for awhile is not healty for your engine. The engine (read oil) never really gets to operating temp and will start to build the aforementioned sludge.
Last year I was able to still get the car out a few times in November so you might not need to put it away until Dec., which would really only be 4 months of storage.

333pg333

Which Porsche approved oil is also rated for Diesel use?? Sounds strangely like something a certain Mr H. suggests to all that listen. Beware.....

sebastian944

5w40 rated for diesel is more for new engines that need to be broken in through right?

Where do you buy your oil? I only see 10w30 Redline at Canadian Tire.

sebastian944

The manual says you should never idle your car. It specifically says to start it and drive it right away or it could cause damage to your engine. Is that true?