I Know What You Told......We Are Talking Engine Oils Here.........Not Gear Oils...So Stick To POINT.....!!
I Am Asking Why 10w-40 Won't Work As You Say NEGATIVE....!!
The Way You Are Explaining Things Mean Something Like -10W-30 Will Make Your Engine Go Immortal 
No Mechanical Work Ever....
This Is Something Out Of Books And Logic............!! Increasing Viscosity Results In Engine Damage As You Explain Above
In Simple........The Old 80's And 90's Should Have Not Lasted 300k ....
Why Is That So....They Use 20w-50 ......No Fancy Stuff.....Clean And Simple.....And They Last 300k + KM...Depending On Maintenance....
So This Claim And Example Seems Improper To Me.........!! I Can Agree On Mileage You Get As Thin Engine Oil Will Put Less Stress On Oil Pump And Produce Less resistance But On Other Hand......If You Say It Can Dramatically Multiply Your Engine Life For Like 2 Times...Then Its NOT......!!
If Its That's So...The Owener Manual Should Have Deleted 20w-50 And 10w-40 Viscosity As They Will Make There Cars perform Less Than Expected.....!!
And Do Consider The Weather Conditions Here..........The Long Change Intervals Are Always Doubtful Due To Dust And Moist Weather Conditions We Go Through......!!
So Its Better To Stay On Mild Track And Use All Season Compatible OIL....And Why Spend Double When You Can't Go Above 5k Km Interval Change With Conditions Around........Those Fancy Expensive Oils Are Meant To Be Used For Better Performance Once But Can't Be Used As Miracle OIL.....!!