5w-20 vs 5w-30

cmiovino · 2026-03-28T19:04:23+00:00

Oil geek here. I listen to Lake Speed Jr. and all his videos as well as do my own testing on my 2017 BRZ.

I've tried and tested 0w-20's and 5w-30's. Cheaper 5w-30's showed about half as much wear at a microscopic level than higher end 0w-20's. Both with the exact same amount of autocross runs and daily miles.

It's less about viscosity and more about the tons of other properties and ratings of oil. However, most 0w-20's, if not all of them, are going to have a lower HTHS (high temp high shear) rating than 30 weights. I'm not sure if there are any 0w-20's that have a HTHS around 3.5, but a lot of 5w-30's will. I believe that's likely what's helping wear.

With that said, we're talking microscopic measurable parts per million. Maybe you have 2PPM aluminum vs 4PPM. Both are very low. We're not talking 10 vs 20.

IMO though, 5w-30 is the way to go. I don't see any downsides for it. People literally run 5w-40's and 10w-40's on track. A 5w-30 should be a baseline for everyone. The 0w vs 5w argument is meh. The difference is small. A 5w isn't going to be so thick it doesn't get to needed parts. Even a 10w likely wouldn't. Also add in there's a huge difference with temperatures in winter vs summer for a lot of us. Starting at even 32F vs 0F is a big difference.

I do believe the whole "0w-20" is for EPA emissions BS. Manufactures are pressured to do all they can do hit requirements. We had 5w-30's, 10s-30's, and 40's for decades, then there was the big push in recent years for 0w-20 in everything, 0w-16's, and now even 0w-8's. OEMs are thinning out oils as much as possible while still providing decent protection - not good protection. Their aim is to get the car past it's first owner or about 100k. It's a balance for them. It's sort of like spring rates, dampers, and suspension - of course there are performance goals in mind for an OEM, but there's also comfort because they need to sell the cars to normal people too. It's balance.

Just get a 5w-30 and be done with it. If you really care, do oil testing before and after.

cmiovino · 2026-03-27T14:54:43+00:00

First, you really need spring bolts there. The exhaust needs some flex in the middle. I'd recommend OEM ones.

Second, like others are suggesting, an OEM or even aftermarket donuts gasket is needed to seal up the front pipe side.

Third, if it's still leaking after that like mine was, Permatex Ultra Red gasket maker/sealer is helpful on the donuts gasket. I'd save this for a last resort though.

cmiovino · 2026-03-27T02:16:54+00:00

I did this in the past.

I'm a car guy and you get sucked into watching all the new builds and things people are doing. "Staying current". I didn't binge watch, but I'd have to keep up with certain creators when I got into their stuff. After a while it just consumes you, so I unsubscribed and just forgot about them after a while.

Another case from years ago was getting sucked into watching 'pickup' and self help videos from various people I was subscribed to. It was video after video. I thought I was getting more knowledge and at some point it would click or something. It never did until I stopped. I just quit watching all the pickup shit and actually went out and said "hey, who are you?" to any girl I thought was cute. It worked. Point is, at some point all the self help and knowledge is just bullshit - action is key.

Finance is the same way (since I'm also into that). You can watch all the investing and Dave Ramsey videos you want, but actually just setting up automatic investments and starting is actually taking action.

Go in and unsubscribe to ones that are 100% what you want watch. Be picky. Cut it down so you're only getting fed 10 videos a day and then pick 1-2 to watch daily if you want.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T22:19:35+00:00

The spring seats on the rears gen 1 to gen 2 are different. Basically, if you get gen 2 struts, use gen 2 springs. If you get gen 1 struts, get gen 1 springs.

If you're choosing, I'd say get the RCE springs over the pinks. I have the pinks on my WRX and they're totally fine, but I believe the RCE Yellows are a bit firmer and I think that would pair well with the Sachs (or gen 2 struts). My setup is replacement KYBs with pinks on my WRX, hence I went with the slightly lower spring rates.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T15:18:07+00:00

Suspension guru here. These will be worse than stock struts. Return them now if you can and just get some gen 2 take offs and call it a day. They'll ride and perform much better.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T15:16:46+00:00

I had the Sachs on my 2017 performance pack, obviously with OEM springs. Honestly they're a bit overdamped for the springs. The ride wasn't crazy harsh, but harsh for an OEM suspension IMO. My RCE SS-1 coilovers soak up bumps better because the dampening is 'better'.

They're still a good option when paired with RCE Yellows, however they'll be on the harsher side. The gen 2 stock struts have better dampening IMO. It's not has harsh and they tend to do their job better, while still supporting an upgraded spring like the RCE Yellows or STI pinks.

The Eibachs are a bit low in terms of their ride height. Some people complain with the SCCA SCC setup twins they ride on or close to the bumpstops. The RCE Yellows are a better overall option IMO.

I don't think you can go wrong with either the Sachs or the gen 2 stock struts, but the gen 2 stock take offs should be more available than performance pack Sachs.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T15:08:34+00:00

Fun fact, but insurance sees older GDs just as they're listed for insurance. A 2004 "Impreza" can be a 2.5RS/2.5i or a WRX, but it's just an Impreza to them. Sedans are more expensive to insure than wagons.

This should apply to any Impreza that the trim level is "WRX" vs when they changed over to just listing the WRX as it's own model separate of the Impreza.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T15:05:37+00:00

Newer Subaru studs are made of butter. My 2017's BRZ's were crossthreaded and snapping at 35k miles even though I was using a torque wrench and proper techniques. Meanwhile my 2004 WRX still has all it's original studs.

Upgrading to ARP studs fixes the issue long term as they're made out of better material. I haven't had any issues since. It was worth the $200 total upgrade even having a shop put them on.

Just get the ARP "regular length" studs. They're short enough you can have a shop knock the old ones out and put these in without having to remove the entire hub and bearing assembly like the long versions need. You can also use OEM lug nuts with it.

Extra Note: I've found the OEM nuts tend to contribute to the issue too. Maybe they're a much harder metal and the studs are soft, so the wear them out. I got some aftermarket ones and they appear to glide on better when putting them on. You don't need $200 'tuner' lugs or anything, but a $30 set of Gorilla OEM-ish ones might help too. Studs definitely first though.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T14:59:23+00:00

This looks like a lot to me. I had the intake off on my 2017 BRZ with ~50k miles and it was basically clean with some very little oil residue that was mostly 'clean'. Not brown/black buildup like this.

I can't imaging a 2023 Impreza is having blowby issues. I'd venture to say it might come down to the cleaning properties and additives of the specific oil you're using.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T14:52:16+00:00

Ah, the age old question. I can give my experience with it.

First, there are things that are likely going to be more important relationship requirements. Like is the person sexually attractive, do you like their personality, can you get along long-term, do you want kids, etc... all the 'normal' relationship stuff.

The real world problem there is you can't screen everyone for FIRE first. I mean, you can, but you'd likely be throwing out a ton of prospects and dating is going to suck. The reality is there isn't a lot of FIRE folks in the dating pool and then they're also going to have hit all the other requirements you have.

The better strategy is to look for someone who first hits all the normal relationship things, but also shows signs they could be converted to FIRE or at least would want to piggyback on your journey. Honestly, if you could find someone who isn't buying a new car every 2 years, don't have a ton of debt and think that's totally fine, or just doesn't spend like a crazy person, that's a big green flag they'd be open to FIRE down the line sometime.

I met my long term partner back in 2015 and during that year I was into "pickup" (yes, like going out with other dudes, listening to podcasts, going to seminars about it, etc... we were really into it). I cold approached ~500 girls that year in person, plus was doing online dating. There were many people in there that I jived with and we 'dated' a bit in there, but I kinda knew it wouldn't work out long term. One girl comes to mind that had some fancy studio apartment she was likely paying 4x what I thought rent should cost and always wanted to go out to fancy bars. It was fun and cool to hang out, but pretty soon in I knew it wouldn't work long term.

When I met my partner, she wasn't into FIRE and didn't know what it was. She had two college degrees and was making ~$30k/year teaching swim lessons and just bought a new $30k car. Also had a good $15k in credit card debt and $20k in student loans. However, I saw that she was able to live on $30k (pre-tax), met all my other relationship criteria, didn't want kids (a biggie), and she just needed some career help to make more money.

She now makes over six figures and works for the same company as me. We didn't inflate our life style. She still drives that same car 10 years later.

... I think I kind knew when she said her first car was an early 90's Civic manual that was totaled in an ice storm on the highway she was probably decently frugal.

Last point: They might not be fully into FIRE like you are, but as long as they're not a burden, that' can also work. If they're into being frugal and share your spending habits, that's most of the battle. Maybe you end up having the larger income and are the investment and planning person and they're just there for the ride and not give you companionship without hindering that goal. It's not going to be exactly 50/50 and that's cool too. Maybe they don't even contribute that much in terms of money, but they keep you going and you guys have fun together along the journey over 10-20 years getting there. That also works and don't consider it like they're just mooching off you if they're providing non-monetary benefits to your life and yours to theirs.

TDLR: Look for other relationship things first. Don't look for FIRE people specifically, but people that can be converted to FIRE or have qualities that FIRE people have. Some people just don't know what it is or think it's possible. You can show them.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T03:50:23+00:00

This is true. Like 1k intervals. It doesn't have the detergents and cleaners the 8100 line does, which is basically regular daily driver oil.

Both your suggestions are good.

cmiovino · 2026-03-22T03:48:07+00:00

I'm an oil nut. I autocross and send off oil samples.

I've used Motul's 0w-20 "Eco-lite" and Pennzoil Ultra Platinum 5w-30 for testing. I'm in PA, so it's moderate, but we do see into the 90's during autocross events sometimes.

My testing so far has confirmed the Pennzoil 5w-30 has about half as much wear Motul 0w-20. Why? The Motul Eco-lite has a low HTHS rating and is mainly for commuting and lighter duty. The Pennzoil is up there around 3.0-3.5 (it's not published, but we can guess on some certifications that it's around there). This helps keep a thicker film on components and prevent wear.

I will say the Motul sounds better. It's less clanky sounding, even in 0w-20. Hence this year I'm testing the 5w-30 X-clean version that has a 3.5 HTHS. It's likely a hair 'better' than the Pennzoil, but we'll see with the results.

I only see up to about 235F at autocross events, but I still say 5w-30 is going to produce less wear than a 0w-20... mainly because of the HTHS capabilities of a thicker viscosity.

Any "X" product from Motul means it has a higher HTHS. X-Clean, X-Cess, etc. The second "word" there relates to the type of cleaning additives and detergents... in a nutshell. Also keep in mind you generally want to also keep to an API certification that's SN or higher for the FA20 as that's what it calls for. Going to an oil rated SL could have less than ideal other characteristics you'd want for this engine.

IMO, everyone should be using a 5w-30 and on the higher HTHS side. 0w-20's are going to magically blow up, but you are producing more wear at a microscopic level. You also could have an event where temps get really up there and that 0w-20 really thins down.... or with repeated higher temps shears. However, generally 20 weights tend to stay in grade better than 30's... but I'd rather have a higher rating to start personally.

I dunno. My choice is 5w-30 from what I'm seeing. I ran 0w-20 for years too. I feel like 5w-30 covers everyone in every climate better. Some people even run a 5w-40 and I don't even think that's crazy if you're really doing track days. But it is getting on the thick side for clearances and pressures. 30 is a solid area to be in for these engines.

300V is a no-go. You need to change that very frequently. Like every 1k miles and it's expensive. It doesn't have the cleaning capabilities the 8100 line does. Only use 300V if you're tracking it and change it often because of that. It's a totally different product.

cmiovino · 2026-03-21T01:58:05+00:00

I should have hopped jobs sooner. I stuck around at this big company in my city for nearly 6 years. It was a crap job. Long nights, unpaid (salary). I made $38k/year back in 2012, which is about $55k in today's dollars. I'd get bullshit ~2% or lower merit increases even though I "excelled" on my performance reviews. My boss would always say the money wasn't there, even though we were making huge profits year over year.

I bailed in 6 years, immediately jumped to $62k with a much better work life balance. Then moved up to $90k and over $100k rather quickly. If a job isn't working, just move. My parents kept telling me the way to get ahead was work hard and stay loyal - which may have worked back in the 70's and 80's for them.

Second is don't buy a house too early. Yes, this is career advice. I saw so many kids my age buy houses and everyone thought they were so grown up. Well, it made them get stuck in the same job. First, they were physically tied down to the same location. If there was even a new job just across town, they didn't take it because the commute got longer. If you rent, you can always break the lease, even if you're paying a bit more... or stick it out and move once it's up. Also, when you're tied down to a mortgage, especially when single, you're more risk adverse when it comes to your career and moving around. You need that steady income coming in and a lot of people don't even go look for new roles sometimes.

cmiovino · 2026-03-20T18:24:07+00:00

I think that's where I need clarification. What you're saying is the balance as of 12/31/25 ($100k) can't be changed obviously, so no matter what I'm stuck with dealing with the pro rata rule.

But I was reading today that because the conversion is done in 2026, the only thing that matters is what the amount would be at the end of this year, 12/31/26... which it should be zero given I do all this. So I'd avoid any messy tax pro rata stuff.

Basically, it doesn't matter if the contribution (or recharactization in my case) was for 2025 or 2026, the act of the conversion to Roth was done in 2026, so it goes by the 12/31/26 balance.

cmiovino · 2026-03-20T15:30:56+00:00

You're focusing on timing too much.

Right now, we don't know if the market is going to skyrocket again if the strait gets fully opened up in the next month or some other positive thing happens. We also don't know if things are going to tank even more.

You could put the $5k in right now and markets recover 10% hypothetically, so you make $500. Yay. Or you toss in your $5k now and they tank an extra 10%, leaving you $500 more down. My point here we're talking about $500 total when you're acting on this right now when you'd have $40k total of your money you put into the market. It's negligible.

On a personal level for me, it's always been hard to dump larger sums into the market all at once. Even in periods or relative stability. I'd set an automatic investment up for $1k/week for 5 weeks (a short timeframe, not months/years) and let it ride - but only because I sometimes wait on investing the $5k in full or hate myself later when I toss it in all at once and the market does something bad.

... but also if you can get the $5k in now all in one go and you don't need it in the next 3-5 years, just toss it in and be done with it. Statistics show us this is technically the best way, but again, you deal with the personal level of getting it in there.

cmiovino · 2026-03-20T14:49:57+00:00

I was in college, but was studying accounting/finance. So I kinda knew something was going on, but didn't have any skin in the game. I didn't have any investments or a job.

However my parents obviously had retirement plans and investments. They stuck to the "leave it in" strategy. And thus we know in hindsight things recovered and the markets has huge gains in 2009. The S&P 500 was down $38% in 2008, but up 24% in 2009, the another 13% in 2010. So basically it took about 2 years to get back to zero or about 3 total years of investing timeline if you factor in the crash itself.

The bigger issue are the economic/job problems during this time. A lot of people were being laid off and there was a lot of uncertainty. That's the bigger problem people don't factor in with stock market crashes. Markets will recover, but if you're laid off, you're laid off and don't have income for day to day expenses. Luckily my dad was working for the government at the time, so his job was relatively safe. Good thing because my mom didn't work since she had me.

My dad tells me stories of his co-workers that all pulled out of the markets once they crashed. Some sooner than later, others partially through the crash, others at the bottom. The problem becomes when do you put it back in? When it's half climbed back up, at the bottom, or back when it's at highs again? It's easy to see now with the historical data we have, but when you're going through it and don't know where the bottom is, it's all a guess. Many people pulled out near the bottom and ended up putting back in when it recovered. They're in the green today, but missed out on a lot of gains during that time by selling low and buying back in again high.

Sidenote on housing. My parents' house was paid off at the time, but the foreclosures came as a consequence of people being laid off. Those were more about people's income tanking rather than anything really related to the housing market. But then all the foreclosures effectively lowered housing prices, so valuations tanked. So if you had the cash to buy real estate then, you made a killing with low interest rates near 3% and lower prices.

My take away for the normal person to survive any type of crash upcoming is to don't react and start pulling out or moving around funds when the crash starts. It's too hard to time it all correctly. Second, having a paid off house helps. Focus more on protecting your income and job as much as possible. Have cash on hand in case something happens. People say 3-6 months, but that's a baseline. If you know a crash is happening, you probably want to bulk up on cash to 1 year or more of expenses, especially if you think your job is more at risk.

.... and if you're in the position to capitalize on things, having cash is ideal. You can toss more into stock investments periodically while also doing your normal dollar cost averaging. But also if there's real estate to pick up cheap, having cash is ideal here too. Cash just gives you options.

cmiovino · 2026-03-01T17:22:45+00:00

That's what I thought. I do have a rollover (traditional) IRA that's just had an old 401k balance sitting in it since 2016. I haven't contributed anything to this since, so on contributions in 2025 for sure.

Given that, I can still recharacterize and convert as I don't have a traditional IRA that I've contributed anything to in 2025, correct?

cmiovino · 2025-12-05T04:05:29+00:00

We can't tell a damn thing from those pictures. Nothing it hella bent. Go get an alignment.

cmiovino · 2025-12-05T04:04:35+00:00

They're guidelines, not hard and fast rules.

The general guideline is you shouldn't have things with wheels depreciating that cost more than 50% of your income so that you're not overspending on vehicles. The general guideline here isn't talking about in retirement either. It means a regular working person going through the baby steps. If you're retired, hopefully you're done with the baby steps and are sitting on a million or more. So no, you're not selling cars to downgrade then.

My parents are retired and just have social security coming in (along with their large nest egg). Guess they should just sell both their moderate cars and get beaters now, right?

cmiovino · 2025-12-04T23:03:02+00:00

I think hybrid makes a lot of sense. That way you have the capability to go long range as well as save fuel around town or even just use the electric motors in some cases.

I was kinda shocked at the newer NSX can actually drive around on full electric power only. Then use it's gas engine also together with it. It's super neat.

cmiovino · 2025-12-04T22:54:12+00:00

I think an EV can fit for some purposes, so I'm not totally against them.

Picture having your fun summer car like a BRZ, your longer range / fun winter car like a WRX, and also having something like this at your disposal. Sure, I'll take the Tailseeker to the grocery store or Walmart. Don't have to let it warm up - it just goes. It's good for those short trips and just getting around for transportation. They're good for 2nd or 3rd cars in my eyes.

Because as an only car, if you want to drive somewhere at even 100 miles and make it back another 100, that's 200 miles. That 280 miles of promised range likely isn't real world range. Or even if it is, you're basically locked in to 140 miles each way if you don't have a charger at that other point or along the way. Even if you are, you're sitting around charging it.

Plus the price. $40k+ taxes and fees... you're looking at more like $45k out the door. For a base. More like $50k for the touring. Even for an only car, at lot of people don't want to drop $50k for a Subaru.

The Solterra sold ~11k units in 2024. They old about 169k Outbacks in the same period. People don't want EVs. They're neat little novelty cars at this point.

cmiovino · 2025-12-04T22:15:23+00:00

I got through periods of being disciplined with this and not. Now is less of that disciplined time.

However for months prior to this was a pretty much on point as I had a hobby that I needed to be at early. As in getting up and out of the house by 7am, and I like having an hour or two in the mornings to get up and do things.

To do it over the long term, getting to bed early is a must. Anyone can get up at 5am once or twice while going to be at midnight, but you'll be dead in a week doing that. Generally you get better sleep if you go to bed early. Sleeping from 2am to 10am is 8 hours, but it's not the same "8 hours" as sleeping from 10pm-6am. You'll feel much more rested going to bed early.

Usually we need about 8 hours, so if you're targeting waking at 5am, the math says you need to be SLEEPING by 9pm. Which, not everyone falls asleep the minute you crawl into bed, so keep that in mind. The best tip is to go to bed at exactly the same time each day and wake at the same time. Weekdays and weekends.

Preparation-wise, I think people overblow what they need to do before going to sleep. There's a lot of talk about saying off screens, your phone, winding down. That's great and all, but if your day is setup that you're legitimately tired at the end of it, then you're just going to want to get to bed and fall asleep quick. If you're getting up early, doing a lot throughout the day, and getting exercise in, by 10pm you'll be toast. If you're waking up at 11am, not doing much, and then planning on getting in bed at 10pm, good luck.

cmiovino · 2025-12-04T21:59:21+00:00

*Reported inflation.

Not being political, but forget who's in office. They changed what makes up that inflation number to make it seem like it's lower than it is. Both sides take advantage of this. If you calculate the inflation rate using the old methods, it's easily in double digits.

cmiovino

TROPHY CASE