In The Shop with Driven Racing Oil - Viscosity

Lake Speed Jr., from Driven Racing Oil, is in the shop at Speedway Motors to talk about Viscosity. He dives in to what viscosity really means and helps answer the question “what viscosity grade should I run”.

At the basic level, viscosity is the resistance to flow. All oil gets thinner as it gets hotter, like pancake syrup. If you are looking at 20W-50 oil, the number after the W is the viscosity. The resistance to flow when the oil is at high temperatures.

There are some key factors to keep in mind when selecting the proper viscosity. Engines with high oil temperatures need a higher viscosity. Another factor is bearing clearance. The wider the bearing clearance the thicker the oil needs to be, which can mean a higher viscosity grade if the oil temperature is also high. Finally, if you are moving from race gas to methanol you need to go up one viscosity grade.

Viscosity is the most important characteristic of a lubricant. Below is a chart created to help you choose the right viscosity for your engine and application.