Imo000

What's the significance of the 0w20 being used by GM or any other manufacturer? It's a thin oil but what else?

Gregster

Lower friction on parts, less drag on the crank, oil pump etc. Toyota is also almost all cartridge type filter now. The Yaris still uses a canister filter.

Most cars coming into my place these days are using 0w20. I go through a lot of it but some clients complain about the higher price and argue that they don't like such a "thin" oil. I reply that I use what it says on the cap and that the drain intervals are much longer now.. Got to cover my own behind if anything ever happens while under warranty

I sometimes wish that Toyota had thought out the oiling system on a 993 rather than Porsche..

Pags993

Gregster is bang on, based on the the much tighter tolerances traditional weights in the new engines would be sheared to death prematurely ie 5W30, 5W20. The extra benefit from a fuel efficiency standpoint is truly a bonus for OEM's.

The big issue will be cost for consumers. They are already bitching about the cost of 0W20 oil changes. Wait until the guy who buys an $18,000 Corolla gets his bill for a 0W16 full syn oil change in the future.

The OEM's will have a field day with future engine issues caused by owners using the wrong grade to save a few bucks on oil changes.

There is something very technical with GDI technology which is way beyond my tech skills that is changing the additive packs in these new thin oil grades as well and that is significantly driving up costs.

Gregster

i think you may start to see service packages broken down over X kms/monthly payment become more common on econo boxes because of this. As you said imagine the owner getting a bill of 200$ for an oil change when his monthly lease payment is 260$...

As it stands a good filter element on a Toyota is in the 6-8$ range, oil is another 7-9$ a liter.

Imo000

If everyone is going to use them, over time the price of these new oils should come down.

ronnie993tt

.....or if it's like the M1 V Twin I use, it'll be 1/2 the price in the USA. If so, pick up a couple of years supply next time you're down. Oil doesn't have a shelf life.

breakfast

tighter tolerances? last I checked most bearing clearances were the same they have been since the 80's...at least in japanese engines.
There is no benefit to making the engine extremely tight either. There is a balance to be had.

Though I always laugh at the "too thin" comments. Thicker oil != more protection.