Which oil?

[DaFinksta]

I am going to be changing the oil in my 95 p/u this weekend, and I was wondering which I should get? What brand, SAE, etc. It gets pretty cold where I live (below 20 degrees sometimes), so I need something that can withstand the cold. Thanks a lot.

[Bakemono]

I use Mobil Clean 5000 in my truck. 130,000 miles and it hasnt died yet.
A lot of people like Castrol as well.
As for what grade you should use, it depends. You can use 5w-30. That will save you a little gas and will make your engine start easier in the cold. However, if you do any towing I would use 10w-30. You wont get as good of milage and you engine will turn over a little bit harder when its really cold, but 10w-30 has a higher flash point (point at which the oil vaporizes) than 5w-30, so when you are towing you are giving yourself a larger margin of protection for your engine.
I wouldnt worry about your truck not starting in the cold. 20 degrees isnt cold. Where Im from, thats considered a heatwave. I use 10w-30 and my truck starts right up even if I park it outside on a -20 night. Granted, it turns over a little slow, but it starts.

[nikita]

I agree with the Captain here. 20F is not very cold in relation to engine cranking oil viscosity. While the SAE J300 ratings are in degrees C, the temperatures are -20C for 15W -25C for 10W -30C for 5W and -35C for 0W. "W" BTW stands for Winter, not weight. The higher number without the W, 20, 30, 40, etc are all tested at the same temperature, 100C, the boiling point of water.

I also agree that Mobil Clean 5000 is an excellent product, superior to the more highly advertised Castrol and Valvoline. I use Chevron for its very high specifications and low price. "Gas station" brands, like Chevron, Conoco, Mobil, Shell, "76", etc. dont get much respect compared to some others, due to race sponsorships and adversising. The big oil companies are the ones that have the chemists and make all of the ingredients. Small oil compaines just blend and bottle what others make. Other well-known brands, like Pennzoil, are owned by big oil companies anyway, like Royal Dutch (Shell).

[LLMiller]

I'm the proud owner of a 1996 T100 with the V6 and automatic trans. It seems to be a great truck (with just over 100,000 miles on it). My question is simply what weight of oil I be using if I don't know the owner history, (synthetic, ect). Is the low reading on the oil pressure gage (between 1/8 and 1/4) normal for this vehicle? Will the type of oil I put in influence oil pressure?
LM

[nikita]

Low idle oil pressure on the gauge is normal for these trucks. Resist strongly the temptation to use 20W-50 because of it. 5W-30 is recommended, and if you are in a mild winter climate, 10W-30 would be fine. If the oil pressure does not come up at higher rpms, then you have a problem. 15W-40 Chevron Delo 400 is what I use in "high mileage" engines that use some oil between changes, which means closer to 150,000 than 75,000 in Toyotas.