Pennzoil Platinum Oil Seems Watery

[Lurch]

I decided to finally run my motor oil 12 months, after changing my own oil 2x a year for quite a few years, since I now run full synthetic which my Prius calls for, so I no longer need to change my oil 2x a year and I only drive 3-4k miles per year. I now run Pennzoil Platinum FS 0w20, and it seems kind of too watery. It's supposed to be great oil, but I've been thinking about using a thicker FS oil like Castrol Edge or Quaker State FS at my next oil change, which will be this fall.

When I check my oil now, it's hard to check because the oil tends to run off the dipstick too easily. I could try checking it when the engine has cool.
Or maybe I'm overthinking this again and should just run the rest of my stash of Pennzoil Platinum 0w20 anyway.

But by any chance, have any of you ran this Pennzoil oil and kind of wished you were running a thicker oil?

https://vehiclefreak.com/pennzoil-pl...ich-is-better/

[Easto]

Trust me, it's way too easy to overthink motor oil, changing frequency and which one is the best. If you're only driving 3-4k per year I think you're doing the right thing by changing your oil once a year. Pick a quality full synthetic oil in the rating that your engine calls for and use a quality filter. Then check the level every couple of weeks.

If you want to take a deep dive into the subject check out Bob is the Oil Guy.

[Lurch]

Trust me, it's way too easy to overthink motor oil, changing frequency and which one is the best. If you're only driving 3-4k per year I think you're doing the right thing by changing your oil once a year. Pick a quality full synthetic oil in the rating that your engine calls for and use a quality filter. Then check the level every couple of weeks.

If you want to take a deep dive into the subject check out Bob is the Oil Guy.

I'm going to run some QS or Castrol this fall, just to see how I like it. Both great oils.
As long as I change my oil with a good quality FS oil and a good filter, I think that's the main thing.
I'm sure there are people that would run their oil longer than 1 year but I don't think I would.

[Philip]

Newer/smaller engines tend to run much thinner oils, they're fine even if they seem watery. As to the frequency, with new full synthetic oils you can go over a year easily imho if you don't make the miles.

What I've also done on my cars is take a syringe and pull out the brake fluid from the master cylinder, then fill with a fresh one, as brake fluid is hygroscopic and after a few years it can absorb quite a bit of moisture. I rarely do this, usually when installing new brake pads, as you push a lot of brake fluid out of the system with new pads.

[Lurch]

Newer/smaller engines tend to run much thinner oils, they're fine even if they seem watery. As to the frequency, with new full synthetic oils you can go over a year easily imho if you don't make the miles.

What I've also done on my cars is take a syringe and pull out the brake fluid from the master cylinder, then fill with a fresh one, as brake fluid is hygroscopic and after a few years it can absorb quite a bit of moisture. I rarely do this, usually when installing new brake pads, as you push a lot of brake fluid out of the system with new pads.

I checked my oil when the engine was cool and it's much easier to check that way.
I'd be hard pressed to find an oil that outperforms Pennzoil, and any flavor so I might as well run it.
Now as to me running it over a year, I'm not sure about that, but I know I could.
I don't think I've got 2000 miles on this oil yet.

[YeOldeStonecat]

Penzoil 0w-20 will be the same "viscosity" as any other brand 0w-20.
When reading oil weights, the first number is the viscosity when it's cold (the W came out to stand for winter). The second number is the viscosity of the oil when up to engine temp.

So if you had Castrol or Quaker State 0w-20...it would be just like water too when you pull the dipstick when cool.

In the older days, we used "thicker" oil, like 20w-40 or 20w-50. Esp on older engines with lots of miles that started to burn a lot of oil, the belief was, the thicker the oil...the less oil would sneak past worn rings 'n stuff and burn. Also back then engines were not manufacturer with such tight tolerances as they are today.

However, these days engines are made with such tight tolerances, and advancements in metallurgy ....they run much better and last longer with thinner oils. Using oils thicker than what the manu recommends actually makes them run worse (it affects the variable valve timing..as well as the multi-displacement efficiency)...and too thick of oil may not get into all the nooks and crannies it needs to due to the engines tight tolerances.

As for brands, doesn't really matter what brand you choose. As long as it meets the manufacture specs for the engine....no brand will protect that engine better than another brand as long as you get the correct specs and change it at recommended intervals. I see people get into pissing contests...I use Amsoil, I use Rotella, I use Mobile1, I use (blah blah)...so my engine is in better shape..blah blah.
Tons and tons and TONS of studies proving all of that fan-boi-ism to be incorrect!

And..much like automotive batteries...most of the brands of oil out there are made by a small handful of manufactures.
Quaker State....made by Shell
Pennzoil....also made by Shell
Rotella...also made by Shell

In the 70's and 80's..Quaker State or Castrol was my "go to brand".
In more recent years, I pick up either Pennzoil or Mobil 1 synth..depending on which is on sale. Also Walmart branded synthetic oil....some of it is made by Shell or Pennzoil...there's a 3rd manu who might make it. You can tell by the labeling on the jugs....where it came from..and save a lot of money.

Oil filters...now there's where I have a huge preference. In the old days, Fram was the brand. Cheap overseas junk now...hang out at any engine wrenching forums and you'll see people talk about how cheaply made they are now and how they can fail. I'm a huge brand of WIX for quality oil filters, you can buy the WIX brand itself...or if you have a NAPA near you, the NAPA Gold oil filters are made by WIX.

Frequency of changing oils? Stick to the car manu's recommended specs as a baseline...
Due to synthetic oils being able to last much longer and the ability to "not get acidic" like dino oil did...many now support much longer change intervals, you'll see some that state every 6k or 10k or even 12k.
I also like to think about long term storage. When I had my boat, I'd change the oil/filter in both engines and do one run before winterization....so that both engine blocks sat all winter with nice clean oil. As..after a summer season, the oil was dirty and would have acid buildup in it. I'd use a cheap oil and cheap oil filters for the winter storage. And then in the spring, after one or two runs, I'd change the oil again...good brand and good WIX filters...for the heavy summer season. I did a similar thing with my Harleys when I used to collect and restore Harley Davidson motorcycles.