Which Oil???

red89yj

New member
im running 10w30 high mileage now and its time to change it. the motor is running hot and sluggish, and some say the oil can help. ive seen people using 10w40, 15w30 and 15w40. what should i run in the summer months?
 

I guess a little thicker oil in the summer and a little thinner in the winter is what some folks do! I just run the same ol same oil "pardon the pun" year round. Try to pep up the octan a little if it is sluggish. tug
 
I run the high mileage stuff too. I run 10w40 year round. I also have an 89 YJ - 2.5L with 166K miles ... never rebuilt, so you know it's worn.

Corey
 
You should go with thicker stuff in the summer like a 40 weight and go back to thinner 30 weight in the winter.
As for being sluggish, it might be helpful to give it a tune-up with some new plugs and wires, fuel and air filters and maybe clean the engine out with that stuff you pour in the gas tank. They also make some stuff that you put in after you drain the oil and let it run for a few minutes. Then drain it out again and put in the fresh oil and new filter. It's good for cleaning sludge out of the oil galleries and everywhere else. I think it's called Restore.
 

redrooster said:
They also make some stuff that you put in after you drain the oil and let it run for a few minutes. Then drain it out again and put in the fresh oil and new filter. It's good for cleaning sludge out of the oil galleries and everywhere else. I think it's called Restore.

A friend of mine that's a mechanic says that stuff is a big No No. It loosens the sludge, which then lodges in other areas and actually blocks oil flow. He says he has rebuilt more engines after people use that stuff than for any other reason. He said the main problem occurs when the sludge ends up in the oil-pump intake and blocks it.
 
Is there any disadvnatage to running the thicker stuff in the summer. Or does it only provide extra protection. Its time for an oil change so I'm researching.
Mike
 
A friend of mine that's a mechanic says that stuff is a big No No. It loosens the sludge, which then lodges in other areas and actually blocks oil flow. He says he has rebuilt more engines after people use that stuff than for any other reason. He said the main problem occurs when the sludge ends up in the oil-pump intake and blocks it.
Yep that could be a downside. Ifyour engine has that much sludge in it then you're going to have other troubles as well though. That much sludge means you haven't taken care of it and running the oil for way beyond 3000 miles.
 

If you are having a heat problem I think I would look other places first. First change anitfreeze flush system put a good shot of water wetter and fresh fluid.
 
Ignition Switch

Water wetter? What's that? Seriously, I've never heard of it.......

Check your thermostat, too.....I had one on the ol' Toy that would only work about half the time. Cheap and easy to replace, and will save you a lot of grief!!

Also, this may have been mentioned earlier and I'm too lazy to look back for it, check your radiator for clogged, bent, and otherwise mangled fins. Last summer we had a big problem with grasshoppers.....really bad. Those things can trash a windshield in a heartbeat, and no amount of washer fluid would get rid of them. There were times I had to use an ice-scraper to get them off the windshield. Anyway, they got so bad that they totally clogged my wife's Camry radiator and caused it to overheat. Let the engine cool down and use a high pressure spray to blast the crud out of the fins on the radiator.
 

jeepmaster said:
hey sparky when the grasshopper thing happened were you the windshield or the bug? :mrgreen:

All I know is I'm glad I wasn't a motorcycle rider at the time!! It was just unreal! You'd see cars that had the entire front end coated in a nasty yellow slime! My black Camry was completely yellow on the front end, as was my wife's maroon Camry.
 
hey guys, im pretty new so i hope im not intruding on your conversation but, a good rule of thumb (at least for me) - run plain ol 10w30 in the summer months (depending on where you live)or 10w40 (there is not much difference in the two at operating temps), and a lighter oil such as 5w30 or even 5w20 in the winter months. 15w40 and 15w30 are soot control oils normally used in diesel motors. and 20w50 is basically for anything that smokes. hope this helps! happy jeepin
 

Water wetter is a product that helps lower temp in a cooling system it works best in a straight water setup (will lower temp by 20 to 30 degrees) but it also works with antifreeze. You can find it at pep boys autozone about 7 bucks a bottle.
 
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