A Basic Lesson in Motor Oil

Are You Sure You’re Using the Right Motor Oil in Your Corvette?

Our friends at SavageGeese have taken this week’s video seriously, tackling a topic that is quite polarizing among automotive enthusiasts. By using a scientific explanation, the video above hopes to instruct enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike on the differences between motor oils. How do the conditions of usage change which oil is appropriate for your car? What should you know about oil temperature and pressure? How are motor oils affected by temperature change? And most importantly, are you using too high a viscosity oil in the winter?

Using the wrong oil can be detrimental to your car’s engine, even if it is the “correct” oil, as prescribed by your factory manual. The correct oil could change if you’re operating the car in extreme cold or extreme heat. Two examples are given in the video. There’s a BMW M3 using a 10W-60 that’s too thick in the cold of winter. And then there’s a Toyota GT86 using a 0W-20 that’s too thin for the hot temperatures of track work.

CHECK OUT: What Forum Members Are Saying About Choosing the Right Oil

We like to consider ourselves savvy in the world of motor oils. But we learned even more just by watching this short video. There is a ton of oil information out there. But if you educate yourself, and learn the differences between oils, you may be able to better provide for your engine.

Video is a great medium to display this information in a basic format. It’s very easy to demonstrate what oil weights look like when poured through a funnel. The dramatic difference between a 10W, a 5W, and a 0W at freezing temperatures is dramatic indeed. And this video certainly helps drive that point home.

Via [SavageGeese]