factory OIL in a 2016 2500HD 6.0L ??

Cowpie · April 5, 2017

Just about any full syn 5w30 will meet or exceed the dexos1 standard for the pickup. The dexos1 standard is not much different than ILSAC GF-5 and API SN RC, which most synthetics beat. Only in the area of anti oxidation, NOACK, and detergency does dexos1 go beyond the other two specs, and not by a major amount. GM even put out a TSB a couple of years ago that a API SN RC oil could be used in lieu of a dexos1 oil if the latter was hard to obtain. Many fleet and commercial users just throw in the same oil they are using in their other vehicles and equipment, like 10w30 and 5w40. Some of it diesel rated oil. GM isn't putting the pimp hand down on them for doing so and the pickups are not experiencing any more problems than any others. I use a 10w30 Pennzoil conventional in my 2006 Caddy that GM says should have M1 5w30. Even the oil cap says Mobil 1 5w30. 11 years old and doing great! My 2500 6.0 does get a full syn 5w30 from my commercial oil supplier. Not on the dexos1 list.

Revspan · April 6, 2017

What about really hot conditions and heavy towing. Anyone bump up the oil weight when in this situation...i.e., 95+ deg, and 9k load.

sdeeter19555 · April 6, 2017

5w30 is all you need, that is one of the most robust and refined grades of oils out there...it was 10w30 back in the day, but 5w30 is the new norm...the most I would do for hot climates is run a quality full synthetic and maybe change the oil more often.

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Cowpie · April 6, 2017

Well, there is no oil weight difference between a 5w30 and a 10w30. The only difference is the winter cold flow rating which is the number before the "w". The base oil of a 5w30 is not 5 weight oil when cold. A 5w30 and a 10w30, and even a 0w30, are all 30 weigh oils. A 5w30 just meets the -30c cold flow CCS standard. Just like 0w30 meets the -35c CCS cold flow standard and a 10w30 meets the -25c CCS cold flow standard. This is why I have no problem using a 10w30 in my Caddy that calls for a 5w30. There is no base oil used in motor oil that is a 0 weight or 5 weight. Even a 0w20 uses a minimum of a 16 weigh base oil.

Actually, Steve, within the same brand and product lineup, a 10w30 is more robust still than a 5w30. A 10w30 will always have a lower NOACK (burn off rate) than a 5w30. It needs fewer viscosity modifiers/improvers, which can shear under the right conditions, to get the rating spread than a 5w30 also.

A heavier oil would be going from a 30 weight to a 40 weight. And that is doable. Many fleet and commercial users fill their pickups with the same oil they use for their commercial diesels.

sdeeter19555 · April 6, 2017

Maybe, but that depends on the oil manufacturer.

I wasn't comparing a 5w30 to a 10w30 in physical attributes, but the fact that 10w30 was THE standard from the 70s through the 90s, and that standard had been replaced by 5w30...there is more interest in the 5w30s these days than most anything else because it is so widely used. I assume the 5w30 "standard" will be phased out by the 20w in the near future...

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Cowpie · April 6, 2017

I did stipulate within the same brand and product line. Guess you missed that. There is only more "interest" in 5w30 since most OEM's have recommended it so as to cover a wider range of environment temps their vehicles are operated in. You know.... that "global economy" thing.

The OEM may recommend 20w in a future vehicle I buy. Probably a 0w20 like they are doing now. If I choose to run a 20 weight in a future purchase, more than likely it will be a 5w20. I don't live in Canada or Fairbanks, so a 0w20 is definitely overkill for cold weather for me. I don't need to use an oil that meets a -35c cold flow rating when one that meets a -30c will do quite nicely and be more robust in NOACK and shear stability.

I view it the same as my heavy commercial stuff. Detroit Diesel is now factory filling with FA-4 HDEO oil. I won't use it. I will only use a CK-4 rated oil. It has a better high temp high shear rating than a FA-4. One has to keep in mind, the gooberment's fingerprints are all over what gets recommended. And we all know that the gooberment does not have everyone's best interest in mind.

FLORIDAMK · April 7, 2017

The first oil change was completed yesterday. 4500kms. I pickup oil when it is on sale, this time it's Castrol full synthetic. The Castrol comes in 5 litre jugs. I like the fact the truck takes 6 quarts , my wife's car takes 4 so if I buy 2 jugs of Castrol I can do both the truck and her car. Luckily their both 5w30. For some reason Mobil 1 comes in 4.4 litre jugs and the 1 litre bottles don't go on sale this makes it difficult and expensive to use.

Something to look out for- I did notice that the grease boots seemed empty, I just add enough grease to just barely see the boot move. The lower ball joints took a few pumps each and looked collapsed before hand. I suggest having a look at yours, I wished I did earlier. Everything else was good.

Good call on the grease fittings. I crawled under there yesterday and they obviously have not been addressed by the dealer. Took care of them. A few fittings were a little difficult to reach but removal of the skid plate helped out quite a bit. Thanks for the heads up!

Skeld · April 24, 2017

Cowpie, on 06 Apr 2017 - 2:51 PM, said:

I did stipulate within the same brand and product line. Guess you missed that. There is only more "interest" in 5w30 since most OEM's have recommended it so as to cover a wider range of environment temps their vehicles are operated in. You know.... that "global economy" thing.

The OEM may recommend 20w in a future vehicle I buy. Probably a 0w20 like they are doing now. If I choose to run a 20 weight in a future purchase, more than likely it will be a 5w20. I don't live in Canada or Fairbanks, so a 0w20 is definitely overkill for cold weather for me. I don't need to use an oil that meets a -35c cold flow rating when one that meets a -30c will do quite nicely and be more robust in NOACK and shear stability.

I view it the same as my heavy commercial stuff. Detroit Diesel is now factory filling with FA-4 HDEO oil. I won't use it. I will only use a CK-4 rated oil. It has a better high temp high shear rating than a FA-4. One has to keep in mind, the gooberment's fingerprints are all over what gets recommended. And we all know that the gooberment does not have everyone's best interest in mind.

FA-4 won't be backwards compatible to your older engine anyway. That's why there are simultaneous releases of CK-4 and FA-4.

Cowpie · April 25, 2017

Yes, I am fully aware FA-4 is not backward comparable. I was referring to new engines that are filled with FA-4 that I would not use a FA-4 oil in them, but use a CK-4. I have already discussed this with heavy truck engine OEM's and they state me not using FA-4 in one of the new engines, but using a CK-4 is fully allowed and not a warranty breaker.

redwngr · May 7, 2017

The 6.0l is still 5w30 from what I understand...

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This is correct.

From a Sierra 2017 OM:

"Use SAE 0W-20 viscosity grade for the 5.3L and 6.2L V8 engines.

Use SAE 5W-30 viscosity grade for the 4.3L V6, and 6.0L V8 engines."

SMiller · May 8, 2017

What about really hot conditions and heavy towing. Anyone bump up the oil weight when in this situation...i.e., 95+ deg, and 9k load.

I run synthetic 5w-30, having said that the serious GM LS guys say to use 10w-30 in LS based motors. I have zero issues using a GOOD 5w-30 in extreme towing conditions. Fact is these 6.0's are so bulletproof that they really don't care about oil or filter. Having said that I am anal and only use Pennzoil Platinum 5w-30 oil and Wix filters (57045).

Cowpie · May 9, 2017

Yeah, 5w30 or 10w30, no big deal. Both 30w oils. The 5w30 meets the CCS flow rate at -30c and the 10w30 meets it at -25c, but hardly something to worry about for most of us. I change the oil twice a year. I fill with 5w30 in the fall and 10w30 in the spring.

sdeeter19555 · May 9, 2017

Yeah, 5w30 or 10w30, no big deal. Both 30w oils. The 5w30 meets the CCS flow rate at -30c and the 10w30 meets it at -25c, but hardly something to worry about for most of us. I change the oil twice a year. I fill with 5w30 in the fall and 10w30 in the spring.

I recently started this practice also...truck has some miles, tow a lot more in the summer.

The only thing about using a 10w30 is meeting the Dexos spec if that is a concern.

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Cowpie · May 9, 2017

Most any major 10w30 synthetic that is API SN and ILSAC GF-5 will be on par with dexos1. GM, for some mysterious reason has had an aversion to 10w30 since dexos1 came out. Kinda short sighted to some degree when one considers that, within the same brand, a 10w30 will tend to have a lower NOACK and be more shear stable than a 5w30. But it is always a mystery what goes on in the cubicles at GM.

The key thing, GM could never tell if the oil was a 5w30 or a 10w30 if they pulled a used oil sample and tested it. Not possible with a UOA to determine that.

sdeeter19555 · May 10, 2017

Most any major 10w30 synthetic that is API SN and ILSAC GF-5 will be on par with dexos1. GM, for some mysterious reason has had an aversion to 10w30 since dexos1 came out. Kinda short sighted to some degree when one considers that, within the same brand, a 10w30 will tend to have a lower NOACK and be more shear stable than a 5w30. But it is always a mystery what goes on in the cubicles at GM.

The key thing, GM could never tell if the oil was a 5w30 or a 10w30 if they pulled a used oil sample and tested it. Not possible with a UOA to determine that.

The jugs of Mobil 1 5w30 and 10w30 I have are almost identical in specifications short dexos and some errant Ford specifications on the 5w30. They both have the same GM spec numbers too.

I'm considering running Mobil 1 10w30 in our 2017 Equinox during the summer, but I'm not sure how that will play in a DI engine?

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