Should I run a thinner oil in the winter?

I have a 2006 2.7 Tacoma. Sometimes when it's getting colder outside it rattles a little when I crank it up. I've heard several 2.7s do this. Normally goes away after 15 seconds or so. Mine calls for 5-30. The newer (I think after 2008) engines call for 5-20 or 0-20. Would it prolong my engine life or make the rattling on a cold start go away if I ran a lighter oil in the winter. I live in North GA, the lows in the morning are 30-40 for a couple months a year and thats about when it starts rattling at 30. It might get down to 15 here about 5 days a year. Truck has 140k miles on it. Just wondering if anybody else with a 2.7 has done this with good results or if the newer engines with lighter oils still do this.

 

run 0-30 synthetic if it calls for 5-30 normally.

A fully warmed up watercooled motor will be the nearly the same temp regardless of ambient temps outside (so your 30 weight will be in effect) and during cold starts the 0w cold weight will be in effect. Best of all worlds.


FYI i run 0w-30 in my V6 and its great, easier starts in the extreme cold for sure.

 

No.
You will risk reduced oil pressure if you run a thinner oil. Your engine isnt brand new, dont invite trouble. If you are really worried, on those extra cold nights (like there is such a thing in Georgia... 8*) You can always put a plain old Shop light with an incandescent bulb under the car. The ambient heat alone will keep the oil warm enough for an easy start.

 

Too much ado about nothing. Don't worry about it.

 

Use what your manual says. mine 2007 trd sport manual says 5-30w.i use synthetic in winter and dino in summer. Don't worry about the funny noises. you wouldn't believe the noises an engine mostly the belts and pulleys make at minus 30.Noises go away in a few seconds and your ready to go.i only let mine idle for about 1 minute and then drive slowly until engine warms up.

 

I agree with the above... Stick with what the mfg suggests. Keep in mind that 0 wt is 0 and 10 wt is 10 and it's the viscosity improvers that make the oil act like a higher viscosity as it heats up. Also there's shear to consider. Your new oil will have a sharp downward trend ( viscosity loss) and then taper off to a much less severe downward trend. Meaning your 10wt will not be 10 wt for too long. Synthetics are obviously less susceptible to the more severe drop in viscosity but nothing lasts forever.

 

+1 to all of this.

 

How "extreme cold" can SoCal get? Maybe you are inland...

 

truck sees under 32* many times a year. Had 30ish days on snow skis last season at mammoth. Rolled to town one chilly night at -1*F

 

But most of the time its like 75* n sunny.... i live 15 mi away from the beach in ventura county.

 

Jeebus, I don't know where I got Georgia from. I thought your sig line said SoGA. My eyes must be going on me. Anyways, like everyone has said, don't worry about it. After living most of my life in upstate NY, I can tell you that cars don't start acting funny intil they spend a few nights in 14 degree weather.

 

Be careful............

In general that sticking with the book is a good concept. But things evolve and improve, making what was recommended in the past potentially outdated. His truck is already 11 yrs old.

IE the book will also recommend an API rating. At some point you won't find that on the shelf anymore, as it's been superseded with a new, better rating.

Same with the whole PS fluid using a certain Dexron #, which no longer exists.

10 years ago, 0w/ oils were neither common nor of the API grade they are today.

As far as the OP goes, the difference between 5w and 0w is miniscule in terms of 'helping', but it certainly won't hurt either.

 

I agree that technologies improve and the demands for oil mfgs to make an oil that will provide the best fuel economy possible is always being push to the limits. A 0wt and 5wt are still the same no matter what api changes. Those numbers are based off a physical measurement. None the less his truck is older and the tolerances of the rotating elements of the engine haven't likely gotten any tighter??? So why change to something thinner and risk a possible failure? Again the truck is 11 yrs old so its worked thus far? If he was in North Dakota or Canada I'd say go for it.

 

I already run 5-30 Pennzoil platinum. My truck does have 140k but doesn't burn any oil. I'd really like it to last as long as possible and the rattling sound it makes can't be to good for it. It's done it for several years now and hasn't blown up yet so I got that going for me.

And I don't think they had any of the 0 weight oil readily available when It was new. My dad has the same truck as mine except for a 09 and it calls for 0w oil. I'll have to ask him if he's ever heard it rattle, but he parks inside.

 

Try starting your truck at -25F on a normal winter morning! LOL Being at the freezing point of water isn't "extreme".

 

One time it got down to 7 in Georgia and they let all the kids out of school and I got a day off work because I worked outside at the time. It was supposed to be about -30 with the wind chill though

 

LOL The only time I've seen a school close here in Montana, in my 10 years, was because all the pipes froze in a building and were flooding the school.

Weather does not close schools in Montana during the winter. It just doesn't.

 

Lol. Those -25 starts are super noisy.

Seriously, you will cringe when you experience them.

It hurts nothing. My last 3.4 v6 went 300,000 miles. I just used 5-30 oil its entire lifespan. It used no oil when the body rusted out.

I still hate the sounds of our Toyotas on cold starts, but it's not so bad now with remote start.

My present Tacoma sound exactly the same as the previous.

You don't need to worry about changing oil weights.

 

Yeah I used conventional oil, whatever Toyota recommended (10w30?) in my 2005 Camry and it parked outside every winter I had it here in Montana. Sure it turned over hard each morning. But that car never had a single mechanical issue. Ran like a champ! I did kill the battery though!

For my Tacoma I'm using Mobile 1 Full Synthetic. Because she gets the best. And it's more fluid at low temps. So what the heck.

 

haha yeah... anything below 32*f is extreme for my socal pansy ass... if its +- 5*f from 75*F its either too hot or too cold