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Do I need 50w oil?

Paul McWhiskey

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Depends on where you live. If your south like AZ the 5W is all you need. If you are north like Canada and drive in cold temps the 0W.

Cold start oil flow is very important.
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Hifiguy

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My local shop carries 0w-40 in the PUP and 5w-30. I know your comments about not needing anything above 30w but I am curious if the 0w to 5w make any difference if I err on the side of using 40w?
Depends on where you live. If your south like AZ the 5W is all you need. If you are north like Canada and drive in cold temps the 0W.

Cold start oil flow is very important.
A common misconception, but 0w-40 is actually thicker than 5w-30 at both cold and hot temperatures, about 25% thicker overall if you compare the viscosities. So with your logic 5w-30 would be better in the cold. I would go 0w-40 personally.
 

EFI

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but I am curious if the 0w to 5w make any difference if I err on the side of using 40w?
It does, and 0w40 is perfectly fine to drive on even in the winter...just that for your use case it won't really matter or make a difference over 30. It might offer a tiny bit extra protection, but not much especially compared to the same exact oil but in a slightly thinner viscosity. Either are fine to run.
 

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I know your comments about not needing anything above 30w but I am curious if the 0w to 5w make any difference if I err on the side of using 40w?
The 0 or 5 won't make any difference. The advantage of the 40 weight (I hate that term) oil is better cam control. Some speculation is the Ford recommended 50 weight for the Boss and track engines is for cam control and not protection.
 

shogun32

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A common misconception, but 0w-40 is actually thicker than 5w-30 at both cold and hot temperatures,
if you don't actually look at the MSDS for the # CsT@YY, relying on AwB is just silly. The dumbed-down shorthand for the uneducated consumer has no real standard.
 
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Jose1962

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My local shop carries 0w-40 in the PUP and 5w-30. I know your comments about not needing anything above 30w but I am curious if the 0w to 5w make any difference if I err on the side of using 40w?
I run AMSOIL 5w 50 boosted on e 85 n I change oil every 4000 miles. Oil gets milky at 5000
 

furdfan2018

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5w30 in OP's case as 40w or 50w is overkill bigly.

He rarely goes WOT and I doubt the oil ever gets to full operating temp.

Should probably run 20 weight like the original coyote spec called for.
 

shogun32

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Should probably run 20 weight like the original coyote spec called for.
you mean back in 2012 wth the 1st gen Coyote? Or when Ford changed their "recommendation" in 2018 for CAFE cheating, and then changed it again back to w30 in 2021'ish?
 
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Ptrug

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The 0 or 5 won't make any difference. The advantage of the 40 weight (I hate that term) oil is better cam control. Some speculation is the Ford recommended 50 weight for the Boss and track engines is for cam control and not protection.
Is cam control only an issue if you track the car or is there a benefit for someone in my situation?
 

furdfan2018

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Is cam control only an issue if you track the car or is there a benefit for someone in my situation?
You will not notice a difference in how the car drives or feels as it relates to cam timing from phaser action due to oil viscosity lol. That I can guarantee you.

In theory he is right, the heavier oil adds stability to phaser action and theoretically allows for more precise cam timing.

In practice? You won't notice anything whatsoever.
 

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jpjr501

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Hell, I didn't know there would be this much variety in weight. Stock 2018+ shows Motorcraft 5W-20 Synthetic and most used 5W-50 Synthetic on a power adder. Guess this has changed over the years. Good information you all wrote here, interesting.
 

Racin4ds

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These motors should have never had 5W20 in them.. that was all a CAFE/Fleet MPG ploy, which is the reason Ford went back to 5W30 in all coyotes when the noise complaints went up as well as warranty rates.

5W30 is good if you drive normally and mostly street mileage, if you run it hard or track it go with a 40/50 WT oil
 

furdfan2018

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These motors should have never had 5W20 in them.. that was all a CAFE/Fleet MPG ploy, which is the reason Ford went back to 5W30 in all coyotes when the noise complaints went up as well as warranty rates.

5W30 is good if you drive normally and mostly street mileage, if you run it hard or track it go with a 40/50 WT oil
Not correct. Ford did not "go back to 5w30 in all coyotes". Engines that work hard, sure, use 30w, 40w, or 50w. But a daily driver that rarely goes WOT -- 20w is MORE than enough.

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2019/MC-10169811-0001.pdf
 

xcm77

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5W-20 blend and runs perfectly fine (on the street). 5w-30 full synt for the track tho (also recommended to go with higher temp diff and brake fluid)
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