Oil Change for winter on 2019 Laramie V8

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GreenF8

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I have read a lot of oil change, synthetic oil, etc. threads on here, but have a question about performing the second oil change on my 2019. Going to try and do this myself as I want to cost-effectively move to synthetic oil. The truck is at 7500 miles and approaching the 8400 mile change mileage on the sticker. The oil life reading on the truck shows 47% so that is a bit off of the sticker mileage from the dealership's first oil change. Either way, I will be changing the oil before it gets too cold here in WI; probably late October or early November based on both mileage and oil life reading expected.
With this being a winter session of oil; would you put in 5w30 or 5w20? Planning on Mobil 1 with Royal Purple filter. Thank for any and all feedback!
 

smurfs_of_war

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What he said.

Going from 5w20 to 5w30 will give you no benefit in winter as the low temperature viscosity is identical (5w). That's already a decent low temp viscosity. You will reap far more benefits going to a quality synthetic as you suggested.

Going from a 20 to a 30 won't really make a sniff of difference, so I wouldn't bother deviating.

Moons ago, I used to switch from 5w30 in winter to 10w30 in summer. Our winters are blistering cold and you could tell the difference by watching how long it took for the oil pressure to come up. Definitely not necessary now.

*Disclaimer* I am not Bob the Oil Guy. This opinion comes with zero warranty with a chance of no knowledge.
 

mikeru

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As mentioned, I'd stick with the manufacturer's recommended oil viscosity.
 

Burla

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0 winter rated oils are now best effort oils, in other words because of demanding oils specs such as dexos, merc, porsche, vw and others oil blenders use much better base oils and higher quality vii's for these "stay in grade" specs.

Look at the operating temp viscosity, 0w20 will likely be just as thick as 5w20 while the truck is at it's 212f operating temp, however it will give better lubrication at start up. Now, 5w20 and 0w20 do not have a large cold temperature performance swing, so staying with 5w20 will likely serve you well.

Where the conversation gets interesting is 0w30 versus 5w30, where the difference in cold performance is much larger. So if it were me, I'd reframe the question, should I run 5w20 versus 0w30. Since it is only your second oil change and you are considering cold performance, I'd stick with manu's recommendation 5w20. Just know if you ever get cold piston slap don't be afraid of using winter rated oils. And if you want the hemi to run a little smoother, go 0w30 m1, maybe add a 10 ounce bottle of lubegard biotech for the moly.

As you see below, this graph ends at 32f, but at colder temps these differences grow much larger. Note 0w20 and 5w20 are similar in cold performance, and while 5w30 looks close, at a closer look the viscosity difference is rather large in the cold. As the temperature gets cold, no matter what oil you have in there is will be thicker then molasses in winter time. But it is worth while to use one that performs well. More and more ram owners are using block heaters at a minimum, or magnetic sump heaters before starting the truck.

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Elkman

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Times change and so had motor oil but people still go by what was best practices a decade or more in the past. Since 2017 motor oils were completely reformulated to provide good performance with low viscosities to improve fuel economy. This should not be news but apparently many people missed it completely.

Ram recommends 5W20 and only to use 5W30 if you cannot obtain 5W20 motor oil. Look for oil that has the API SP designation at that means it meets the new API specifications. With 5W20 you do not have to make a seasonal change to the oil in the truck.

If it does stay below freezing in your area for days at a time then invest in an engine block heater. New Ram trucks have a $95 option for adding a block heater at the factory.
 

Ram 1970

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It's been said a million times already, but I'll add another voice to it: FOLLOW THE MANUFACTURER'S SPECIFICATIONS. They've already done all the homework on their engines and the requirements to keep them on the road. An army of Chrysler engineers have figured it all out. If in doubt, call your local dealership and ask them.

And, as has been said already, you can buy a block heater if you don't already have one installed.
 
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