Oil selection (10/2009)

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by fastd

I don't know where I saw comparison report (I thought I found it here). Check it out; Royal Purple crushes Mobil 1.

http://www.qmi.no/teknisk/Norway%20p...odorecover.pdf

They used a Falex Lubricity Tester? Man, RodKnock will have a field day with that one.

[Bob In Ct]

I saw a demo on that machine years ago where the best results were achieved with Clorox bleach.

Bob

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by Bob In Ct

I saw a demo on that machine years ago where the best results were achieved with Clorox bleach.

It must have just barely eased out "Snake Oil" for that first place finish.

[DAVID GAGNARD]

Originally Posted by Gunner

I know, OMG, not another oil thread... but after reading a good selection of the previous threads, the last of which was around April this year, I thought I'd throw out some questions and comments.

707 has 5,700 miles on it and according to the prior owner, is due for a change about now (once a year, just before winter hibernation - although there will be less of this hibernation stuff here on the sunny end of the country). He's been running Castrol GTX 10W-40, which appears to have been a good choice until recent reduction of ZDDP.

So for a well-broken-in FE, relatively mild build with hydraulic flats, mostly street driving but in temps from mid-50s part of the year, 100+ part of the year, and maybe 65-80 about half the year... I get the impression that oil selection is not too critical. I want high zinc, good detergent levels and protection from the time I start it at 50 degrees until I run it street-hard at 105. It's got a Canton pan, remote oil filter and cooler, so I'd guess capacity at around 9 quarts. Slow to warm up, but I will be adding a Canton thermostat to even out the temps.

Joe Lapine recommended Honda motorcycle oil, 10W-40. The most articulate voice in the recent oil threads seems to be patrickt, who was running a funky blend in April because Brad Penn didn't have a 10W-40. They do now. The only comment I have is that both these gents live in a cooler climate, and I couldn't find any definitive posts from anyone in the Southwest arc.

Climate here tends to be warm to hot much of the driveable year, and I can say that driving in temps below 50 would be very rare - am I better off with a 20W-50 than a 10W-40? (Side note: I've always avoided 10-40's because I read a very solid technical article a number of years ago claiming that this was the hardest viscosity spread to create and prone to early breakdown - comments?)

So, knowing that any of these is probably a good a choice as any other, comments on:

• Honda GN4 10W-40
• Brad Penn 10W-40
• Brad Penn 20W-50
• Joe Gibbs 15W-50 Hot Rod Oil

?

JMHO, for your mild motor/temps and useage, any name brand dino oil in 10-40 or 15-50 would be just fine, you really don't need synthetic, but it's your money.......

I use 15-40 Shell Rotella T in everything I own form my lawn mower to my 65 Fastback street car and it works fine, my last company car (Toyota) had nothing but that in it since the first oil change and was totaled last month, it "only" had 431,610 miles on it!!!!!!!!!!

For my race car, I use Mobil 1 in 15-50............

David

[autobody prof.]

Here's a link for the test's used to determine how oils perform. www.amsoil.com/comparison/motor-oil.aspx. Note, I am not an Amsoil dealer but I did my research for the best oil on the market today. I wanted the best engine oil and tranny fluid I could find for my diesel p/u that hauls heavy loads. I plan on using it in my cobra engine after break in.

Autobody prof

[Ralphy]

patrickt,

I plan to add an oil accumilator, I think any motor can benefit. I have not decided if I will buy a 2 or 3 qt. unit.

I will be using Shell Rotellla, if a 22 to 1 compression ratio motor uses it, seems good to me.


http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CTR-24-006/#

[fastd]

Originally Posted by autobody prof.

Here's a link for the test's used to determine how oils perform. www.amsoil.com/comparison/motor-oil.aspx. Note, I am not an Amsoil dealer but I did my research for the best oil on the market today. I wanted the best engine oil and tranny fluid I could find for my diesel p/u that hauls heavy loads. I plan on using it in my cobra engine after break in.

Autobody prof

Royal Purple not included in the test
To me that suggests that Royal Purple may have outperformed since it was a Amsoil sponsered test...

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by Ralphy

patrickt,

I plan to add an oil accumilator, I think any motor can benefit. I have not decided if I will buy a 2 or 3 qt. unit.

I will be using Shell Rotellla, if a 22 to 1 compression ratio motor uses it, seems good to me.


http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CTR-24-006/#

Rick Lake swears by an accusump. I think he's told me that it has saved his engine at least once, maybe twice. And that's in addition to the pre-pressurizing before you start it up after it has sat for a while. On the first start up of the spring, after my engine has been sitting still for 5 months, I crank the engine with the ignition disabled until I get a little pressure, and then I fire it up. My thinking is that if I only do that once a year I doubt it's adding much wear, and I'll consider myself really, really lucky if I get to do it 25 times.

[Ralphy]

Some have asked where should they mount the container. Wanting to move it to the rear.. However myself thinks, that is not a good idea. The length of lines and lack of heat makes for slow moving oil when needed. Putting it under the hood on the passenger side seems more logical.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by Ralphy

Some have asked where should they mount the container. Wanting to move it to the rear...

I have never seen an Accusump mounted in the trunk of a Cobra. There's almost always a spot to stash one in under the hood.

[bobcowan]

Shell Rotella was used by diesel engines for quite a while. It was a CI-4 oil, and had lots of ZDDP. That was good for diesels, because a lot of them still use flat tappets. The '07 Cummins in my truck has flat tappets. Also, diesel's didn't have cats. The whole point of removing the zinc was to protect the cats.

That made oils like Shell Rotella very attractive to older engines. I used it in my '66 Mustang up until I sold it just for that reason.

Fast foreward to 2009. Many diesels now have a cat. Shell Rotella is now a CJ-4 oil, and has cut it's zinc content by 25%. It's slightly better than standard oils, like M1. But not the panacea it used to be.

If you want the additional ZDDP for engine wear, you'll have to use an additive from GM or Comp Cams. I have heard that STP oil treatment adds a huge dose of zinc. But I have not been able to prove it.

My car has an accumulater. I added it after spinning a rod bearing on the track one day. I use the Canton Accusump, 2qt. I didn't have room for the three qt. It's mounted in the engine bay, just in front of the engine.

I have seen race only cars with the Accusump mounted in the trunk. It's out of the way, protected from damage and heat, and helps balance the weight. The hose is longer, but that doesn't really matter. That just means a longer column of oil, but it will still move back and forth according to the pressure at the head of the column.

I'v also seen dry sump tanks mounted in the back for the same reasons.

[Ralphy]

Bob,
Thanks for the informative post. I also have a space issue. The 2 qt. makes a nice fit behind the wheel-well on the right.

[wanab5150]

I only write this because there are people out there that are fearful of using the wrong oil because of what they hear and read. Somebody out there is just starting out in hot rods and can easily be confused with all the opinions. Nothing wrong with opinions!

Test after test has been done on just about every oil synthetic and dino. Show me the person that will state that ANY of the current synthetics or dino oils mentioned CAUSED any more or less wear, or failure, and I'll show you a know-it-all-moron. If anyone KNEW FOR A FACT which oil is better than the other they would be living on their 150 ft. yacht somewhere in the Caribbean.

Run any oil that meets the manufacture or engine builders recommendations and you can’t go wrong.

By the way…Royal Purple is $86.50/case of 12 on Ebay delivered to your door. Same oil at Kragen is $118 a case……It has a good reputation and I like the color purple!

[Gunner]

Castrol, because I like the color GREEN!

(Green... Purple... obscure reference. Doubt anyone here will get it...)

[undy]

I've been wrestling with switching from the Rotella T to the Mobil 1 15w40 myself. I really could care less about ZDDP levels as I'm running a hydraulic roller. I just want the best lubricity possible. What has me holding back is the reported smaller molecular size of the synthetic oils. They tend to have the propensity to leak a little more. I've read it but quite frankly knowingly have never experienced it. It still gives me concern. I don't want to give my leak prone FE a reason to leak any more.

It's not just Rick that's the fanatic ... I run an Accusump accumulator system too. It's a 2 quart and it's mounted on the passenger side firewall. It is setup solely for cold-start duty as I don't track my Cobra. It's really great having 30 lbs of oil pressure coursing through the FE's veins before the ol' crank starts 'a spinnin'.

Pat, you're still spinning a dry crank against a dry journal till the system builds oil pressure. Suspended solids tend to stay behind when the oil goes away from the journal, too abrasive for me..

[zrayr]

Originally Posted by undy

I've been wrestling with switching from the Rotella T to the Mobil 1 15w40 myself. I really could care less about ZDDP levels as I'm running a hydraulic roller. I just want the best lubricity possible. What has me holding back is the reported smaller molecular size of the synthetic oils. They tend to have the propensity to leak a little more. I've read it but quite frankly knowingly have never experienced it. It still gives me concern. I don't want to give my leak prone FE a reason to leak any more..............."

if leaking is your only concern, I'd give it a try. You can always drain it if you find it not to your liking. The greatly reduced wear is what sold me on synthetic oil. I can put up with a little leaking if thats my tradeoff. But when I had an FE powered Ford, it didn't leak using Mobil 1 15-50 (and neither does my 289, even with some nasty crankcase pressures.

Z. Ray

[Tom Kirkham]

Some interesting food for thought on choosing your oil viscosity:

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/art...lippery-slope/

[Got the Bug]

Originally Posted by Tom Kirkham

Some interesting food for thought on choosing your oil viscosity:

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/art...lippery-slope/

Thought I'd re-post the link for Tom as I was getting a page error.

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/art...lippery-slope/

[RodKnock]

Gunner, did you make any decisions on oil. I'm getting "mentally prepped" to change my oil very soon and I'm leaning towards the Joe Gibbs Hot Rod 15W-50 conventional oil.

[patrickt]

Good stuff. Remember to fill the new filter up with oil before you screw it back on. It holds almost a quart and if you don't do that you'll starve the engine while the pressure fills it up.