Ultimate Motor Oil Thread or Why we hate CJ4/SM oils

[Milo2361]

well I've pretty much tried to read as much of this thread as i can, and now i'm a bit skeptical... The place i bought my car from says they used strictly Castrol Syntec Blend 20w50.... would it be good to keep using this? or should i switch to something better?

[dw1]

(I apologize if this has been posted elsewhere in this thread - I didn't see it, but at 50+ pages, I certainly could have missed it.)

Remembering that the classic BMW motorcycle engines are also air-cooled, here's some interesting and applicable information:

http://www.ibmwr.org/otech/oilreport.html

The info is dated (being from '99), but still worthwhile for technical background.

[cnavarro]

Steer clear of Castrol Syntec Blend 20w50 - it's an sm rated and has ~700 ppm Zn/P - it's on the lower end of the scale.

[afterburn 549]

Is there any way that this thread could be summarized once in awhile ?
Mainly - what is the best oil now a days ?

[Flieger]

"Best?" for what price?

Brad Penn is the economy model, Swepco is better, then ther are the guys using more expensive stuff that is better still but costs a lot more.

[cnavarro]

Thanks Max, you summed it up nice.

[HarryD]

Originally Posted by afterburn 549

Is there any way that this thread could be summarized once in awhile ?
Mainly - what is the best oil now a days ?

Read the first post of the thread. I believe it is pretty up to date.

[porsche930dude]

So would bp 15-50 be a good oil to use in a briggs & stratton engine that typicaly recommends straight 30 weight? Stupid question but hey...

[Flieger]

4-stroke? I would think so, although it is a waste of good BP. maybe use the stuff that comes out of your 911 after an oil change.

[porsche930dude]

Originally Posted by Flieger

4-stroke? I would think so, although it is a waste of good BP. maybe use the stuff that comes out of your 911 after an oil change.

thats what i do. just wondering if its ok after the fact I have a gokart that burns it like mad so i use it in there and to top off my other mowers and minbikes

[944S3]

Charles,

Thanks for your very informative thread and website. I feel very comfortable going with an oil recommended on your site. However, after doing research on my own (after reading your Oil FAQ but not seeing this extensive thread until now), I ordered Vavlvoline NSL Synth 20w50. It will be in to NAPA on Tuesday. I feel better about it after just now getting to page 18 in that thread, where you post your test results for this particular oil. But I'd like some advice:

Do I leave the order as is, or cancel it to go with Brad Penn or another you recommend?

Further, I see alot of the testing is on naturally aspirated 911s. Mine is a 930. From what I have read, the, with turbo charged cars, one should look to synthetics because of the extreme temperaturs that can occur inside the turbo. And that conventional oils do not have the ability to handle turbos in the same way synthetics can.

Should I stick with the Vavoline I ordered, or should I go with a conventional oil that you recommend, even though I have a turbo?

Thanks,
Matt

[cnavarro]

The non-street-legal Valvoline is a great oil, regardless of whether or not it is the syn or non-syn version. The only problem is that it's only good for about 1500-2000 miles tops, because of the very low level of detergents. That's what makes it so good.

That said, from the used oil analysis from multiple engines and cars, it just as good, and cheaper. It is up to you which you prefer to use, you can't go wrong with either.

Regarding syn versus non-syn, if you are using a very high quality fully formulated non-syn of a higher viscosity, it's just as good as a fully synthetic oil, again regardless of normally aspirated or forced induction. We've done high temp testing on normally aspirated engines with oil temps as high or higher than the typical turbo and had excellent UOA and teardown results with the Brad Penn and Swepco.

[nut11]

It's hard to argue w/customer satisfaction. Go w/ Brad and you won't be sad... A satisfied customer.

87 blk coupe - pumping 20-50 mean green

[944S3]

Charles, thanks alot. Very helpful, informative thread.

[richde]

Originally Posted by dan79brooklyn

I've never run race gas...The car does use a bit of oil, I probably added 5-6 quarts during the past year/8,000 miles. I know this was a long oil change interval, but didn't Porsche reccommend very long changes even prior to synthetic oils?

10K miles, isn't it?

Guys, there's 11 quarts of oil in the car, that's over twice what most cars hold. You don't have to change the oil that often.

As you could see from his oil analysis, there was nothing wrong with the oil that he pulled out after 8K miles.


BUT...

The real reason I bumped this thread:

Why did Pelican stop carrying engine oil?

[cnavarro]

The factory drain interval is too long - I recommend every 5-6k, some builders say even more often. Track cars, even more often. There's a method to our madness :-)

I'm probably figuring poor margins on lurbicants and people not wanting to pay for shipping would be why they don't offer it any more.

[teenerted1]

http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/ksearch/PEL_search.cgi?please_wait=N&forumid=&threadid=&command=DWsearch&description=swepco

still have lots of the swepco listed and not on the NLA list

[richde]

Originally Posted by cnavarro

I'm probably figuring poor margins on lurbicants and people not wanting to pay for shipping would be why they don't offer it any more.

That's not good, do you ship to APO addresses?

[diverdan]

CF, SJ fully synthetic 5 50 Fuch's is available here for about $6 or $7 per liter. Is this a good choice?

Dan

[kristoj]

I have always used Mobil 1 Extended Perfomance 15W-50. Exxon recommends this for flat tappet applications. See page two of their oil chart here: http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Files/Mobil_1_Product_Guide.pdf. It has 1,200 ppm ZDDP vs. 1600 ppm in the Mobil 1 motorcycle oils -- but it costs about half as much per quart. I have used this in my '89 BMW M3 for years with good results.