Talk about cars and motoring here!

You shouldn't use bigger tyres in the first place!

 

More comfortable ride due to thicker tyre wall, doesn't handle so well, slightly lower fuel consumption and better performance (but probably not noticable).

 

Narrower tyre lower fuel consumption

 

I think larger tyres will affect the accuracy of your speedometer and comfort level...

 

Hmm.. I didn't know that.

I thought thinner tyres only mean poorer traction? Of course, the thinner tyres would mean thinner (and lighter) wheels, right?

 

thinner tyres = less friction too i think ..

well .. gotta sacrifice something for another right ?

 

Hmmm,

Never really drove in mud.

But it slows you down and you have to be very light on the gas and brakes or else...

Ice....

 

Hmm.. I see.

What about engine oil viscosity? The lower the viscosity, the less "drag" to the pistons in the engine, right?

If so, what would be the optimal engine oil viscosity for a car in Malaysia? I used the 15W50 with my old Wira but I think that's too thick.

Would something like 10W30 or 20W40 be better?

 

I thought the warmer temperatures would mandate a higher viscosity oil because of thermal breakdown of the oil at hi temps.

The only reason to use the "thin" stuff is when it's always below freezing.

 

I thought the higher the # the more thin the oil is.


For example, 10w30 thicker then 10w-40.

 

maybe this will help : http://www.sizes.com/materls/engineOil.htm

 

Yup. But just how much higher?

 

Nope, the higher the SAE number, the thicker (more viscous) the oil.

 

Hmm.. Thanks for the link but it doesn't say how thick we should really use.

I mean, it's safe to use 15W50 over here but it's really overkill, I think. Probably reduces fuel consumption because it's too thick.

So I'm wondering.. what would be the best viscosity for our tropical temperature which usually maxes out at 38oC, I think?

In addition, I read on one site that multigrade oil (i.e. 15W50) reduces fuel consumption, compared to single-grade oil (i.e. SAE50). Is that true?

I always thought it's not good to have more polymers. Besides, since Malaysia is so hot, we don't need the low temperature performance of multigrade oil, right?