What is the difference between 5w20 and 5w30

Engine Noise : If you use the wrong kind of oil it's possible that your engine will sound louder than you're used to, and may even produce some kinds of ticking or knocking sounds that are not normal. This is because if you're using the wrong kind of oil it's causing all the parts to struggle a little bit more to get the job done. Consider it like trying to swim through Jell-O instead of trying to swim through water. You're going to have to struggle a little bit to get the same distance.

Oil Spots : If your oil is too thick or too thin for the way your engine is meant to operate, it may end up leaking from various valves, gaskets, and other parts of your engine. It shouldn't be a profound oil leak by any means, but you may see a few drops of oil on the driveway or in your garage that you're not used to seeing below your car. Burning Smell: The wrong weight of oil will not be able to properly lubricate all the parts in your engine.

If that happens, you're going to not only lose lubrication you're going to increase friction. That can lead to a burning smell because the oil that is present is not able to handle the job of keeping your entire engine properly lubricated. If you notice the smell of burning oil, or you're seeing any smoke coming from the engine, you definitely need to stop your vehicle right away as soon as it's safe to do so, and get your car into a mechanic.

Bad Fuel Economy: As we said, the difference between 5w20 and 5w30 can have a bit of an effect on your fuel economy overall. If you're using the 5w30 when you should be using the 5w20, that's going to cause your engine to work harder and your engine can only do that by burning more fuel. That's why you'll end up heading to the pumps more often as a result.

It may not be a significant amount, but especially over a long enough period of time you'll start to notice you're leaving to gas up more often than you used to. If you've realized you used the wrong kind of oil, you put in 5w30 when you should be using 5w20, then you don't need to panic too much.

Even if your engine isn't specifically designed to use the other kind of oil, the damage you're going to cause between now and when you need to have your oil changed next is probably not very significant. If you're worried, then you can go get an oil change and have the right oil used instead.

You're very unlikely to cause any noticeable damage over the course of a few days or even a few weeks using the wrong kind of oil. You just don't want to be consistently using the wrong kind of oil if you know for a fact that your car is not designed to be using it. It's possible you can even go in till your next scheduled oil change with the wrong kind of oil and suffer very little damage as a result.

The difference between 5w20 and 5w30 is fairly minimal after all. It's been said more than once that oil is the lifeblood of a car. There's a reason that there are so many businesses around town that do little else besides changing oil. It really is one of the most important things to take care of if you want to keep your car running smoothly.

That's why it's important to know exactly what kind of oil your car takes, and why it takes that kind of oil. Understanding the weight of the oil that your car needs and what the numbers mean helps you better understand how your engine works.

That in turn means it's easier for you to buy the stuff you need to keep your car running smoothly and ensuring you avoid problems down the road if something goes wrong.

Why Us? This translates into the strength of the 5W oil keeping it from breaking down as quickly as the 5W oil, providing better overall engine part protection. Designed to operate in a multitude of temperature ranges, a multiviscosity oil represents one of the best motor oils for cars.

The single viscosity oils of the past provided protection during either hot or cold weather, depending in large part on the weight, or lower temperature extreme at which they operated. This usually meant using a 5W oil in the fall and winter and a 10W in the spring and summer.

A multiviscosity oil, on the other hand, uses special additives to improve the viscosity of the oil. Called, ironically, viscosity improvers, these additives expand as the oil heats up, providing a higher viscosity at warmer temperatures. After the oil cools, these improvers shrink, making the oil thinner, best for use during cooler engine operation. Oil manufacturers use additives in oil for cars to improve the performance of the oil when it comes to lubrication.

In addition, some other affects of additives in oils include cleaning engine deposits from engine parts, inhibiting corrosion or rust inside the engine, and keep the oil from breaking down as bad either due to oxidation or extreme temperatures. When looking for a motor oil that works best in your vehicle, keep certain factors in mind.

While not a lot of difference exists between the protection provided by a 5W AND 5W oil, there is a slight difference in the viscosity levels of each. The thicker 5W should see a slight advantage when operating at higher temperatures, while the thinner 5W oil should provide better engine protection at lower temperature levels and has the added benefit of slightly improving fuel efficiency.

The flexibility of today's synthetic motor oil means that both 5W and 5W oils work equally well to protect your engine regardless of the climate or season. This article originally appeared on YourMechanic. Autoblog is partnering with YourMechanic to bring many of the repair and maintenance services you need right to you. Get service at your home or office 7 days a week with fair and transparent pricing. We get it. Ads can be annoying. But ads are also how we keep the garage doors open and the lights on here at Autoblog - and keep our stories free for you and for everyone.

An oil rating, such as 5W and 5W, indicates the viscosity of the motor oil. The viscosity rating is determined by the resistance to flow the oil exhibits under a given temperature. Higher viscosity ratings indicate a thicker oil, which therefore flows less easily. Low-viscosity oils are used in certain engines to minimize oil flow resistance and to maximize performance in cold weather conditions, while high-viscosity oils provide increased protection to engine internals, especially under high temperatures.

Many types of motor oil feature two numbers in the viscosity rating, such as in the case of 5W This is because these types of oil feature two different viscosity ratings under different temperature conditions. Multigrade oils feature a mixture of polymers in the oil substance. These polymers increase in size as temperature increases, thus raising the viscosity of the oil.

The first number in multigrade oil viscosity ratings is the winter rating, indicated by the initial W. This is the oil viscosity at 40 degrees Celsius.