Moving from CA to ID..what oil?

We're leaving California for good and moving to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho next month. We're driving both cars, one of which is the recently resurrected 89 XJ (wish me luck.....)

It's an 89 with 149K HARD miles. From the looks of the oil when I first started working on it, my father in law didn't know you were supposed to actualy change oil. Plus it sat for 3+ years...Oreo Smoothie comes to mind.

I've run Mobile 1 through it for 2K miles since I got it running. I changed the oil after the first 1000 and it's was REALLY bad...and it leaks like a sieve now.... ;-)

Anyway, I'm going change the oil again before we leave. I'm going back to dino and run a bottle of AutoRX through it on the trip up there. Once I change the oil when I get there....what should I use? It's still a little cold up there. It's about 35 today and has been in the single digits... What oil should I start using in the winter? 5w-30?

Opinions please...

Use something nice and thick for the trip there, 10w40, I wouldnt add any oil treatments for the trip on the slight chance that you would blow out a "pseudo" seal. I run 10w30 year round in my Jeep 4.0 and Ford 5.0. Ive never had a vehicle fail to start even at -20 actual temp with 10w30 in it. I live in iowa it was -10 the other day and +62 a week ago. 5w30 is a better bet if its going to stay sub zero for a long time.

Depends upon what the temperature will DROP down to...
From what I have heard from a few people that live in that area... the temperature can drop way below ZERO easily...
With continual temperatures like that... even synthetic oil can thicken up...
I would suggest you use either the 5W-30 or 0W-20.

Charles "Displaced New Yorker"

Biernuts said:

We're leaving California for good and moving to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho next month. We're driving both cars, one of which is the recently resurrected 89 XJ (wish me luck.....)

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I think I can answer this one! I happen to live in Spirit Lake which is about 20 miles north of CDA, and have an 89 MJ with 210k miles. I generally run 10W-30 in summer and 5W-30 in winter and don't have any issues. You're looking at mid 80's in summer with some peaks of mid 90s in August and getting maybe -5*F a few times in winter. Generally winter temps are 20-40 during the day.

Oh and when you get here, ignore all the locals bitching about the Californians coming up here and ruining the place.

lawsoncl said:

I think I can answer this one! I happen to live in Spirit Lake which is about 20 miles north of CDA, and have an 89 MJ with 210k miles. I generally run 10W-30 in summer and 5W-30 in winter and don't have any issues. You're looking at mid 80's in summer with some peaks of mid 90s in August and getting maybe -5*F a few times in winter. Generally winter temps are 20-40 during the day.

Oh and when you get here, ignore all the locals bitching about the Californians coming up here and ruining the place.

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I run Mobil1 5W-30 in both my vehicles, 96 Cherokee and 2000 GMC Envoy.

Don't ignore the comments, respect them!!
If you are leaving California, then leave California there. It is a different place up here and let's keep it that way by respecting the way you are treated and not trying to change them.

I used to live in Coeur d'Alene for 10 years. 10-30w is just fine.

I use Mobil 1 10-30 year round, normally the weather is tropical here as compared to Montana and the Dakota's. I lived in Ca for 47 years (Huntington Beach) I love it here and wouldn't go back if it was free. No smog checks, $30 licence plates and nobody hassling you about what you can do and can't do to your vehicle.
Eastern Wa and North Idaho is the best kept secret, anyway, I think you will like it up here.

lawsoncl said:

I think I can answer this one! I happen to live in Spirit Lake which is about 20 miles north of CDA, and have an 89 MJ with 210k miles. I generally run 10W-30 in summer and 5W-30 in winter and don't have any issues. You're looking at mid 80's in summer with some peaks of mid 90s in August and getting maybe -5*F a few times in winter. Generally winter temps are 20-40 during the day.

Oh and when you get here, ignore all the locals bitching about the Californians coming up here and ruining the place.

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Thanks! We've been going up there for years and actually own a home there already (bought last year). We're changing our plates ASAP!

Can't WAIT to get out of Los Angeles.

XJ4PLAY said:

I run Mobil1 5W-30 in both my vehicles, 96 Cherokee and 2000 GMC Envoy.

Don't ignore the comments, respect them!!
If you are leaving California, then leave California there. It is a different place up here and let's keep it that way by respecting the way you are treated and not trying to change them.

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We're "country" Californian's. We own a 22 acre ranch and live the ranch life. We're NOT out to change anyone. It wasn't a mistake that we picked CDA (hmmm...red state, CCR's, good hunting/fishing, less idiot drivers, etc, etc).
We settled on that area a long time ago because it fits us....not the other way around.

We've already run into Californian's up there we don't like. I wish they would've stayed here.

XJ4PLAY said:

Don't ignore the comments, respect them!!
If you are leaving California, then leave California there. It is a different place up here and let's keep it that way by respecting the way you are treated and not trying to change them.

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My comment was a bit tongue in cheek. The major complaint about the emmigrants from California is that they assume that everything here works or should work like it does in CA. That includes buying property next to the praire and then filing suit when they burn the grass every year (gotta blame the real estate agents for not mentioning this though). It also includes folks who love draconian CCRs (I don't mind CCRs per se, but it's overkill when they spell out what color to paint the house). XJ4PLAY is right, if you move here please understand that things are different here and thats it's you who need to adjust and not the other way around.

Of course, I'm not native myself. I came here from the Wash DC area in 1995 and have loved the area since. It did take a bit of time to get used to people being friendly though. :} The place has grown quite a bit in the last 10 years. Heck, we're even getting our own Walmart (grumble, bitch, moan).

Biernuts said:

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We're "country" Californian's. We own a 22 acre ranch and live the ranch life. We're NOT out to change anyone. It wasn't a mistake that we picked CDA (hmmm...red state, CCR's, good hunting/fishing, less idiot drivers, etc, etc).
We settled on that area a long time ago because it fits us....not the other way around.

We've already run into Californian's up there we don't like. I wish they would've stayed here.

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Sounds like you'll fit right it. The drivers are a bit less agressive, but we tend to have just as many idiots and drunks. Just check the ditches during the first good snow storm. What part of CDA?

lawsoncl said:

Sounds like you'll fit right it. The drivers are a bit less agressive, but we tend to have just as many idiots and drunks. Just check the ditches during the first good snow storm. What part of CDA?

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We bought a little place in a tract off of Ramsey & Dalton Way last year. We bought it to use during our trips up there and for friends and family to visit. We didn't expect to move up there until our property sold down here but I was able to find a job in Spokane.
The proprty here won't sell for another year or two. Developers will buy it and mow down our house and put up 100 new ones....

Anyway, when that sells, we're looking at Cougar Gulch. Maybe a little closer in since we have 2 little ones that need friends to play with but we're used to having some space...our nearest neighbor now is 1/2 mile away. It'll be tough gettin' used to living in a tract!

lawsoncl said:

My comment was a bit tongue in cheek. The major complaint about the emmigrants from California is that they assume that everything here works or should work like it does in CA. That includes buying property next to the praire and then filing suit when they burn the grass every year (gotta blame the real estate agents for not mentioning this though). It also includes folks who love draconian CCRs (I don't mind CCRs per se, but it's overkill when they spell out what color to paint the house). XJ4PLAY is right, if you move here please understand that things are different here and thats it's you who need to adjust and not the other way around.

Of course, I'm not native myself. I came here from the Wash DC area in 1995 and have loved the area since. It did take a bit of time to get used to people being friendly though. :} The place has grown quite a bit in the last 10 years. Heck, we're even getting our own Walmart (grumble, bitch, moan).

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Like I said, I've been going up there for years and we picked it because it's NOT like CA. We make sure to tell everyone down here what a backwards, boring, depressing place it is so please don't come up... ;-)

Also,m my typo, I meant CCP as in carry permit not CCR . Not to be had in Kalifornia (where I carry illegally if I have to go to a bad area. I'd rather be in jail than dead).

Anyhow, we'll be good Idahoans.

Biernuts said:

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We're "country" Californian's. We own a 22 acre ranch and live the ranch life. We're NOT out to change anyone. It wasn't a mistake that we picked CDA (hmmm...red state, CCR's, good hunting/fishing, less idiot drivers, etc, etc).
We settled on that area a long time ago because it fits us....not the other way around.

We've already run into Californian's up there we don't like. I wish they would've stayed here.

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22 acre "RANCH' ?????..... LMAO ... "live the ranch life." How many cow units is that?..... still LMAO ... How much hay do you put up each year? How much grain do you grow. Do you sell any of your grain and hay? Are you done calving this year? How is your calf crop? That's barely a "RANCHETTE" ... ROTFLMAO

You might fit in.. But not calling 22 acres a RANCH!!!! and saying you LIVE THE RANCH LIFE. That's a pure Califorinia talking!

Now SHUTTUP!!! There might be Californians and Texans reading this forum. And 'urbanized west' is what has become of our good old western country with these 22 acre plots of land.. I mean RANCHES... You and your kind have inflated the market to the point local residents can't afford it anymore. I'm not knocking you, just pointing out some of the facts of life in rural America. If it's beautiful country, values skyrocket and locals loose. If it's not, the communites dry up and blow away.

Anyway, welcome to what the "urbanized west" is. It's not what it was 20 years ago before you 'transplants' came up here to "RANCH"

And I'm no transplant. I'm native born in Idaho. Okay, now I'm down off my soapbox.

Oh! What I was orginally going to say was that you might try running Valvoline 10-40 for the drive up. Several mechanics and I have found for some reason it slows oil comsumption of an engine way down from other brands of oil. We have no explanation as to why. Just that is usually does.

Good luck on the move!

Lloyd

lloyd said:

... You and your kind have inflated the market to the point local residents can't afford it anymore. I'm not knocking you, just pointing out some of the facts of life in rural America. If it's beautiful country, values skyrocket and locals loose.

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You are correct to a point. However, the locals gain in equity with the rise in real estate prices. The long term property owners are winning the most, but short term gains are substantial as well.

XJ4PLAY said:

You are correct to a point. However, the locals gain in equity with the rise in real estate prices. The long term property owners are winning the most, but short term gains are substantial as well.

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Not really. You might be gaining if you're playing the market, but there is risk of the prices crashing. Most people are bitching about the higher taxes and the fact that they can't afford a new home without going into serious debt. My house/property value doubled in 4 years, but that only helps me if I want to move somewhere else, which I don't.