oil recommendation

[Vin Man]

I'm looking for a recommendation for which type and weight oil to run in my car. I live in the Phoenix area and drive the car year round. Engine was rebuilt about 3000 miles ago. 0.040 over with mild cam, OZ-250 head, DUI ignition, 2bbl carb. It runs hot - 215-225. If there is an oil choice that would help run cooler, let me know.

 

[rbohm]

8) i would run a 20w-40 oil, a good synthetic works nicely. i would also consider running an air dam as well to prevent air from going through the radiator and going out under the front of the car and back through the radiator.

 

[Vin Man]

8) i would run a 20w-40 oil, a good synthetic works nicely. i would also consider running an air dam as well to prevent air from going through the radiator and going out under the front of the car and back through the radiator.

Thanks. I've got the air dam project already planned for this weekend. My neighbor suggested the same thing earlier today.

I worry about the synthetic in a newly built engine. Afraid I'll find all the leaks. But I'm willing to try if it will help with cooling.

 

[bubba22349]

I don't know about the syn. in a fresh motor they use to not recommend it below certain mileage like maybe 10,000 or 20,000, better check on that. Don't think is going cool engine that much more its less friction though think you would have to add an oil cooler too.

 

[rbohm]

8) i would run a 20w-40 oil, a good synthetic works nicely. i would also consider running an air dam as well to prevent air from going through the radiator and going out under the front of the car and back through the radiator.

Thanks. I've got the air dam project already planned for this weekend. My neighbor suggested the same thing earlier today.

I worry about the synthetic in a newly built engine. Afraid I'll find all the leaks. But I'm willing to try if it will help with cooling.

8) at 3000 miles it is fine to switch to a synthetic oil. as for leaks, unless they are already there, you wont find any. and if they are already there you should see evidence of them now.

 

[CobraSix]

A lot of these sayings are myths these days.

Many new high end cars (volvo, bmw, etc) come from the factory with synthetic oil.

Also, The whole leak issue isn't the same as it used to be. Most oils, even cheapo dino brands, have detergents in them these days, so the leaks would be the same no matter what variation of oil you use, regardless of mileage. I just changed over a car with 100k miles on it from dino to synth and not a leak in sight.

As to weight, I love 10w40 for hot weather climates. I'm not a fan of going to 20w anything unless I absolutely have to. The oil is just acting too heavy on cold start ups with 20w versions. In my turbo volvos, I actually run a 0w40, to ensure good flow at cold start ups (key in New England) but still has plenty of thermal protection at high temperatures. My one volvo has 210k miles and still has the original turbo and doesn't burn a drop of oil still.

 

[powerband]

Rotella "HD" 15/40 is affordable and has some of highest levels of good stuff for older engines used in warm weather situations



Oil recommendations - here it comes,,, waiting,,, ...

PB

 

[Lazy JW]

Anyone obsessing about oil should run synthetic. It performs better at both extreme hot and cold; Rotella 5w-40 RTS will fit the bill quite nicely in Arizona. There are many other suitable oils but none will be any better and Wally sells it cheap.
Joe

 

[Gene 64 2dr]

There are many differing ideas about what type of oil to run in and older engine.
I was told by the machinist that did all my work that you should never run synthetic oil in an older engine that uses the old style lifters. The only oil you should be using should be oil that has the ZDDP additive.
Most conventional oils don’t have the additive but can be purchased and added to the oil

I run Valvoline 20-50 racing oil. Some high end diesel oils can also be used but even a lot of them don’t have the additive, you just have to check the label.

Gene

 

[aribert]

I became *real* interested in the ZDDP reduction discussions on the web after I discovered multiple wiped cam lobes on my Triumph engine. ZDDP is the *good* anti-wear additive that has been in motor oil since the '30s. One of the key ingrediants can foul catalitic converters on engines with high oil consumption. Consequently the OEMs worked with the oil industry to reduce ZDDP - and suddenly owners of older vehicles started suffereing cam lobe failures - especially during & shortly after break-in. Current passenger car oil is at API spec SM but even SL from a few years ago already had reduced ZDDP levels. Diesel oil has always had a greater level of ZDDP due to the needs of those types of engines. So I switched over to diesel spec oil. THen they reduced the ZDDP in diesel oils since on of the ZDDP ingedients fouls the newly mandated particulate traps. The latest spec on diesel oil is CJ-4. I was caught be surprise by this last diesel oil reformualtion change and began scouting for new old stock when ever I visted a new store. I scored 3 gal of Shell Rotella at a K-mart last year and bought 10 gal of house brand oil at Tractor supply this past winter. Even that has now been reformulated. And if you are really interested in the oil composition and a discussion there of, this link is to a discussion where I posted the results of an oil analysis that I had done on the house brand Tractor Supply oil: http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ub ... ost1897586


My recomendation: 15w40 API CJ-4/SM rated oil from you local auto parts store in what ever brand you like and they carry. This oil typically comes in gallon jugs.

 

[rbohm]

8) a good synthetic oil is fine for use in any engine, remember that zddp is being eliminated slowly from all oils, not just synthetics. for older engines like our i recommend adding a can of stp in the blue can at each oil change. it has the zddp as well as other anti wear additives. if you dont think there is enough zddp in the blue can, use the red can that has more zddp in it. the stp additives are a lot less expensive than other zddp additives.

 

[fraso]

ZDDP is NOT being eliminated from all oils but rather, limits are placed on the maximum amount of phosphorus in the oil. The latest spec for Heavy Duty Engine Oils (API CJ-4) limits phosphorus to 1200 ppm, which is still plenty to protect flat tappet cams.

The cheapest oil to put in your engine is a 15W-40 HDEO but lower viscosity oils tend to run cooler. You should not have any problem using a 10W-30 CJ-4/SM oil in your engine but 5W-30 and 0W-30 HDEOs will generally not thin-out as quickly with high temperature because these are typically synthetic engine oils with a much higher viscosity index than dino oils.

 

[Broncitis]

Oh no, not the oil question again, heres my brief opinion again if you obsess use Joe Gibbs are Brad Penn oils especially for these engines, are go down and buy autozone brand oil and put a good quality zddp additive in it and don't worry about it and do good interval changes, the diesel oils have higher levels of additive, but they are designed for soot carring ability and have less sheer qualities compared to gas oils, hence the large bearing surfaces of diesels compared to gas engines, ZDDP is sacrificial and will not sustain long oil change intervals, my 200 blown bronco uses Brad Penn, my 350 chevy I'm still breaking in uses Autozone 5w30 with a can of ZDDP, ROHM was talking about STP, if it has the neccessary levels it will work just as well. Don't drive yourself crazy like I did with all the research. Truly I don't think I will ever know the difference between the two oils I use, one runs in a 10 grand setup and the other in a 2 grand set up so far, so go figure. My personal opinion is I think alot of money is wasted on certain oils and when you have rows and rows of oil in stores, it can make myself a little dizzy, more than usual.

 

[aribert]

One minor point to clarify fraso's statement. THe latest diesel oil CJ-4 has a maximum of 1200 (.12%) Phospherous. Oil manufacturers are permitted to have less - a few apparently have a fair ammount less. I agree that somewhere above 1000 on P is adequate for flat tappet cams.