[rmay635703]

Just curious
our Volts brother the Ampera states 5w30 or 5w40 is fine,
Why the discrepancy?

 

[srmarti]

What discrepancy would that be?

 

[Guest]

What discrepancy would that be?

The discrepancy between the two. Either will work, the important figure is the first one as that's the one you are working with when starting a cold engine and it's the same for both. When the engine is up to operating temperature you are dealing with the second and 30 weight will give you better fuel economy plus it is more common to find and sometimes cheaper. People have gone even lower with synthetic but I'd recommend staying with 5W30. Even in hot Mediterranean climes the 5W40 won't buy you much but could be used if that's all you had.

 

[hellsop]

Just curious
our Volts brother the Ampera states 5w30 or 5w40 is fine,
Why the discrepancy?

Viscosity Grade
SAE 5W‐30 is the best viscosity
grade for the vehicle. Do not use
other viscosity grade oils such as
SAE 10W‐30, 10W‐40, or 20W‐50.
If in an area of extreme cold, where
the temperature falls below −20°F
(−29°C), an SAE 0W‐30 oil should
be used. An oil of this viscosity
grade will provide easier cold
starting for the engine at extremely
low temperatures.

So, no prohibition on 5W40 showing, just "5W30 is best". And your title says Synthetic 5W40, not just plain stuff. There'll be some boilerplate fussing depending on what's available in the targeted market too. I would be surprised if the Ampera manual mentioned the -29C option, because most places one drives Amperas basically don't get that cold. The UK has never recorded a temperature that low. They barely get snow.

 

[Guest]

Viscosity Grade
I would be surprised if the Ampera manual mentioned the -29C option, because most places one drives Amperas basically don't get that cold. The UK has never recorded a temperature that low. They barely get snow.

Missed the synthetic in title part. As for the -29C (which is getting pretty close to -29F, at -40 they are equal) are Ampera sold in the Scandinavian countries? They are pretty pro electric car, especially Finland.

 

[srmarti]

I still don't see where there is a discrepancy. 5-30 is the default oil. 5-40 is also ok. If you think you will regularly operating in a very hot environment, maybe you would prefer 5-40. If you were discussing different specs for a Volt vs an Ampera, then you could call it a discrepancy.

 

[brauliovieira]

Here in Norway we see few Amperas! I'm a happy owner of one. I use the recommended 5W‐30. No problems in very cold days!

 

[hellsop]

Missed the synthetic in title part. As for the -29C (which is getting pretty close to -29F, at -40 they are equal) are Ampera sold in the Scandinavian countries? They are pretty pro electric car, especially Finland.

Only officially sold in the UK. Cars move across borders pretty fluidly in Europe, though, so some COULD be there now.

 

[Guest]

Only officially sold in the UK. Cars move across borders pretty fluidly in Europe, though, so some COULD be there now.

I thought I read some thread where the continental Chevy (Opel?) sold Volts/Amperas, then there's the LH/RH drive thing. If only sold through UK would all continent cars be RH drive?

 

[Guest]

Volt was offcially sold all over the EU, including Finland.

2013 Chevy Volt GB/EN manual states:
SAE 5W-30 is the best viscosity grade for your vehicle. Cold temperature operation: If in an area of extreme cold, where the temperature falls below -25°C, an SAE 0W-30 oil should be used. That's actually exactly the same text that was in my '00 EU-spec Camaro manual too

The Volt manual also lists 5W-40 and 0W-40 as possible oils...

 

[JuneBug]

I recently returned from a trip to France, and I didn't see any Amperas at all. Did see a couple of Chevys, including a Cruze. Everyone I talked to had never heard of the Opel Ampera, but apparently the Renault Zoe (Leaf clone) is popular.

 

[KNI]

I would be surprised if the Ampera manual mentioned the -29C option, because most places one drives Amperas basically don't get that cold. The UK has never recorded a temperature that low. They barely get snow.

For your information - The low temperature record in Finland (where Amperas were sold and to where UK people fly over on Christmas to see Santa) is... -51,5'C (-60.7'F). Personally I've only witnessed the temperatures where the AGM battery freezes solid (about -49.5'C).

So you can bet that Ampera manual states the -29'C part. The manual also states to change the oils more frequently on road salt areas. Funnily enough the local Ampera dealer puts 5w40 into the cars unless you explicitly demand them to put correct oil. They also recommend to change by the schedule. It's like they're trying to blow up your engine.

BTW: Up north you keep firewood in the trunk at winters in order not to die if you end up with a broken car for some reason. Hit a raindeer in the night and your frozen corpse will be found at next morning