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MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG MGA - Trivia 10X30 oil

I have a trivia question for all. You have a quart of oil on your shelf marked 10W30, what does the “W” mean? I’m 62 years old have a 1951 mg td, 1959 MGA, 1979 Corvette and didn’t have the correct answer. Also I am the Finance Director at a local Mercedes dealership and gear head for many years. The only technician that answered correctly was the youngest one. I only know the answer because I read one of the many awesome articles by the MGA Guru. You can find the answer by a simple “Google” search.

Dave
david kirkpatrick

I guess it wouldn't do any good for me to answer your question.
Barney Gaylord

Most people think it means "weight", but it actually means "Winter", referring to the properties of the oil in cold weather. 10W means it acts as a 10 weight oil would in cold temperatures. Viscosity modifiers are responsible for the multi-weight oils we have today that allow them to act like thinner or thicker oils as temperature changes. In the old days, it would get thick when cold and runny when hot. This made for slow cranking in cold climates, especially with the battery technology of the day. Batteries didn't like cold weather very much back then either!
Steve S

Oil pumps didn't like thicker weight oil either. I had a 59 ford with an external oil pump in upstate NY and blew a bolt out of the pump one morning.
Mike Parker

This thread was discussed between 06/08/2013 and 07/08/2013

MG MGA index

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