[RmTrice07]

Hey guys. So I started doing oil changes manually early this year. Generally, I know exactly what I'm doing. Yesterday, however, I wasn't thinking when I went hunting for a good, inexpensive oil at the store. I found a great deal, grabbed the fuel and proper filter, then went about my business.

As soon as I put the oil cap back on, I saw the letters recommending 5w20 oil. Praying that I got the right grade, I looked at the bottle I just poured in. It said 10w40. That cant be too good, can it?

What should I do? Am I good for a quick 3,000 miles? Should I get the stuff out today, or can I wait a week or so?

I drive a 2009 Ford Focus SES in Orlando, Florida. My driving habits are 80% interstate as I have a 54 mile round trip commute to work.

 

[COSVT03]

Give it time to warm up before driving. 30sec-1min.
It will slightly hurt your gas mileage.

 

[SkyPilot]

wayyyyy to heavy of an oil. the engines are designed to really tight tolerances hence the real light weight oil required. With that heavy and viscosity of an oil it cannot reach into those tight lubrication points as well. You should be ok for the week, but personally I would be changing out the oil pretty soon for 5w-20.

 

[Miller88]

Flow, NOT pressure determines lubrication.

If you're burning or leaking oil - fix the cause .. don't bandage it.

Most modern oils are designed to run on a 20grade oil - and most-if-not-all modern engines have NO bottom engine problems and are capable of reaching 200k without problems from lubrication.

Modern engines do much better on lighter oil. If any different grade of oil was to be used - I'd recommend a 0w-20. I use that in my Focus to help with cold starts. It flows better cold (and no way is a 0 grade oil going to be too thin at startup) and lubricates quicker on a cold start.

 

[RmTrice07]

Thanks, guys. From the way things are sounding, I think I'm going to go re-change my oil right now. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Miller88]

Thanks, guys. From the way things are sounding, I think I'm going to go re-change my oil right now. Better safe than sorry.

It's not terrible terrible since you're in a warmer climate, but it's not ideal.

If you were up here in Central NY in February, then it'd be serious

 

[Grinder]

I agree with previous posts. It's not good....but not REAL bad either. Considering it's about $20 to replace it with proper oil and several thousand if that oil causes a problem....wouldn't be a tough $20 decision for me.

 

[Blue5ive]

10w40 too thick for start up when cold which is the 10#. When it gets warmed up then its flowing like a 40 weight which is too thick. Lose a little gas.mileage and lubrication is not as good plus it puts more strain on the oil pump. Never go thicker than a 5w30 and that would be more for an older higher mileage engine in warmer climates. So go change it back to 5w20.

 

[Elizabeth]

Agree in Florida it is not as big a deal.
You should still change it right away. (and do the change while the engine is still as warm as possible. Hot oil flows way better than cold.
You can let it cool off enough so you do not burn yourself.. but keep it near hot does the best.

And a 10W40 would invalidate your warranty... just so you know.
============================

In a 5W20 engine. You could use a 0W20 oil (I use 0W20 oil) in cold weather and it would be Ok by Ford. (they will not say it is good, but they will still honor the warranty..)
But a 5W30 is stretching it.. they probably would consider it a mistake, and it the oil did not directly cause the failure,, they would be Ok IMO with the warranty
.
But 10W40 is way off, and I bet they would be not so happy over any engine problems if they found 10W40 in a failed engine.

PS the first number is the viscosity when cold, and the second number is the viscosity when hot... So the hot number is really the important one..

 

[FordService]

As soon as I put the oil cap back on, I saw the letters recommending 5w20 oil. Praying that I got the right grade, I looked at the bottle I just poured in. It said 10w40. That cant be too good, can it?

Hi RmTrice07,

I completely understand getting swayed by sale prices and not really looking at the purchase. [] Gotta agree with everyone else on changing it out. Varying from the recommended weight can cause damage, so it's better to be on the safe side.

Agree in Florida it is not as big a deal.
You should still change it right away. (and do the change while the engine is still as warm as possible. Hot oil flows way better than cold.
You can let it cool off enough so you do not burn yourself.. but keep it near hot does the best.

PS the first number is the viscosity when cold, and the second number is the viscosity when hot... So the hot number is really the important one..

Nice and informative! [thumb]

~Natasha

 

[1turbofocus]

I have never read so many silly post in one place , you CAN 100% run your 40wt oils all you want and it would never hurt a thing to do

People need to think that these cars were ment to do after groceries and back and forth to work , when you start running them harder then that then you also need more protection ,ie higher grade oils , 180 thurmostat , 103 spk plugs all of this in turn makes the engine safer SAFER

You your engine fails with 10-40 it would of failed with any other WT oil out there even the stock WT oils

I run 50wt in mine in the summer and 40wt in the winter and ALL (hundreds) of these engines I build start life with 40wt and I never like to see them go lower then that unless they live where it gets below-0 and then go to a 30wt

Tom

 

[Djzx3]

Question about oil since were on the topic, and the OP is done. I have a oil pressure gauge, and a water temp gauge tapped into the thermostat, and I have always use 5w-20 in my Zetec.

Well I have noticed that with my water temp gauge at 180 degree's that sits about normal for the car, with reading coming from the top of the thermostat, but when it starts getting up to 220 you can anticipate a problem (a leak or something).

But anyways, I have noticed that with 5W-20 oil, that when the car is sitting right at a normal temp reading of (180), the oil pressure is right around 18-20 PSI, but when the temp gauge gets around (200) from idling or W/E, the oil pressure at idling will go down to about 8-10 PSI, is it normal for the oil to thin that much when the engine gets hot?

 

[1turbofocus]

Normal yes , Would I want that light WT oil in my car NO again your car wasnt built for Intake , 2.5 exh , and other mods add some higher WT oil in , you will still see a psi drop but the heavier oil will give you added protection

Tom

 

[Grumpy]

Yes, actual oil viscosity decreases with oil temperature and your oil pressure readings don't surprise me. I'll use XX-20 when hell freezes over. Low oil viscosity and high engine loads will kill an engine quicker than using a 10W-whatever, everytime. In the rest of the world Ford recommends 5W-30 in the Focus. If you check the Castrol UK or Castrol Australia websites for example, they show the recommended oil viscosity using any Castrol oil including the full synthetic EDGE as 5W-30 for the Focus or Fiesta Duratec HE 2.0 (our version), 2005-2011. This recommendation is not a mistake but will be the same as Ford UK and Ford Australia. If you check other Fords like the Fiestas along with Mazdas and Hondas that also use 5W-20 or 00-20 here in the US/Canada, the recommendation is for 5W-30.

 

[Djzx3]

So on my 2.3l Duratec that is running a CAI, 2.5 diameter exhaust an now a Exedy flywheel/clutch kit, should go up in oil weight? What oil weight should I use on the modded D23?

And the readings I was talking about^ with the temp gauge and the oil pressure gauge are from my stock Zetec auto.