Temp no, Chain driven engine yes. I've been using 0w20 Petronas 7000 for two years now and cant fault it, especially the price. I watched many "Chain Rattling" threads on the Vectra forums due to people not using the correct oil. Mind you it doesn't help when dealers want to sell people 10w40 when 5w30 is the correct standard. Most chain damage happens at start up so the thinner the oil for faster lubrication the better as far as im concerned.Personally I'm using 5w-30 currently (1.8 9th gen), no need whatsoever for a 0w in the UK as far as temps go
Interesting question. It is also further compounded in the new generation of TGDI engines that suffer from low speed pre ignition (LSPI), that can be fatal to the engine. It can be engineered out, but the cost is fuel efficiency/economy and emissons, so other solutions have had to be found to stop these little puppies blowing up. The main change is in the additive pack in the oil used in TGDI engines.Yes - emissions standards & economy seem to be the reason, I do wonder what our MPG could be if the standards for emissions were less stringent - more miles on less fuel = less polluting. Diesels seem to be particularly compromised - 40mpg is about the best I can hope for from my Freelander 2 with all its gubbins to deal with emissions - not great for a diesel at all IMHO. I do agree with reducing emissions in cities and built up areas (and diesels never were suitable cars for a city), but then when I lived in a city I hardly drove within the city, Diesel emissions in rural areas are really not a problem - and I'd speculate less MPG due to stringent standards is less green than more MPG & slightly more emissions. Would be interesting to see a calculation of the difference..
What you classing as recently? There's a Castrol/Honda leaflet in my handbook wallet that states 0w/30. So thats going back to at least 2009, In fact its the oil they are pretty much recommending. 10w40 if nothing else is available.until relatively recently Honda did not spec a 0w oil
I have been blaming Johnny Chan for year for that!Id have most likely stuck with 0w/40 but wanted to see if the 0w/20 did improve mpg. It didn't, but I was that happy with the 0w/20 Ive stuck to it. There is no "Weight" in oil btw, I blame Johnny Tran in fast and the furious for that one. The first number with the W is the Winter rating. The second is the viscosity rating at 100 degrees C. The higher the second number the better it is at staying stable at high temperatures.
Its not meaningless. Back when M8TJT was a boy there were no such things as Multigrade oils like we have today. You ran a thin oil in the winter months and in the spring swapped to a thicker oil for the summer. As an example with 10W/40 the 10W being the Winter rating and the 40 the Summer rating. When Multigrades came along there was no need to do this.incidentally the 1st number (0w, 5w or whatever) refers to the viscosity of the oil in an engine that is cold, ie new start in the morning - once the engine (and more importantly fluids) is up to running temp that value becomes meaningless - so calling it "winter" is as misleading as "weight"
Normally a worn chain shows itself as a Rattle from a cold start. Its not the chain that is the issue but actually the tensioner. Oil pressure puts tension on the tensioner which in turn takes up slack in the chain. Without the tension the chain slaps about inside the housing. Chains are technically designed for the life of an engine. However if people cop out on oil and filter service, using the incorrect oil and/or quality oil sludge can block oil ways that send pressure to the tensioner which in turn leads to play in the chain, which will lead to a broken chain. Its normally only a momentary thing, maybe a couple of seconds. I forget if you have had the valve clearances done? Mine is absolutely silent at start up, even this winter when I saw -9 one morning, and I haven't done the valve clearances.What constitutes a chain issue?