engine oil

[Toptech360]

Inevitably this topic comes up alot. I decided to share my choice as food for thought for those that may be interested in the topic.

Zddp protection was a concern for me seeing as G and R engines are an ohv flat tappet engine. As many know the new (myth?) debate is that modern sn rated oils do not have enough zddp in them to prevent excess wear on camshaft lobes and their mating tappets.

The opinion that i have come to is 1200 to 1700 ppm zddp is desired. Most new engine oils have around 800 ppm. mobil 1 high mileage is an SL rated premium oil that has 1000 ppm zddp. Walmart sells this in 5qt jugs for about $25. Lucas oil makes a zinc additive that comes in a 16 oz bottle. Full dose would be way too much, however after doing all the math i found that adding 2oz of additive to a 5qt jug of mobil1 high mileage would bring zddp levels to about 1400 ppm. The mobil1 oil is supposed to be an excellent oil from what I've read. It is a full synthetic but I'm gonna run it anyway. I will use 10-w30 as that is the recommended viscosity per the owners manual.

I just did my first oil change since the overhaul so that is why i decided to share what i have learned. As time goes on i will report back my results using m1+additive and at some point id like to have the oil analyzed in hopes it will give me an idea of what kind of wear is going on.

To each there own! Thanks for reading

[Linda]

So you ran 10-30 Mobil 1on your rebuild? I thought the recommendation was for conventional oil to allow the rings to set? Also is the 10-30 preferred to straight 30, though I am not sure that is as available. How long did you go before the 1st oil change?
Thx
Linda

[Toptech360]

Sorry I should have been more clear, for break in I actually used valvoline conventional 30 weight + 1 bottle of zddplus additive, per rec. Of delta camshaft. (the addive not the oil brand) put about 250 miles on and now am doing the 1st oil change after break in. Was planning on running this oil 250-500 miles dependant on how quickly the oil darkens. I dont know well enough as far a viscosity goes, so im sticking with what nissan says to use!

[fj20spl311]

Its my understanding that viscosity is mostly a temperature thing.

30W should be find if no "cold" starts or excessive heat (run hard on a hot day)

[FairladySPL]

Always a good discussion, Dan, thanks for your insight.

Mobil 1's marketing people have introduced a distracting array of sub-types now found on WalMart shelves.

For a given weight, you can get "Full Synthetic," "Advanced Full Synthetic," "Extended Performance," "Advanced Fuel Economy," "High Mileage" and what I guess is just plain oil.

(That last one could be an old jug, pre-marketing blitz. It was pushed way back, 15W-50 and the only one of its kind.)

So I guess the selection for best ZDDP content is the "High Mileage" sub-type, regardless of the actual mileage on your car.

Question -- How did you establish the ppm figures for comparison?

[Toptech360]

Mobil 1 has a chart listing zddp content of all of their oils.

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/Mot ... _Guide.pdf

Lucas oil also lists the zddp content and other specs here: http://lucasoil.com/images/documents/Zi ... cleOil.pdf

and here: http://lucasoil.com/images/documents/TD ... ditive.pdf

the zddp content listed when mixed with a given amount of oil (for example 4oz additive to 4.9qts oil) does NOT include the zddp already in the oil. so if you put 4oz into 4.9 qts of 800ppm oil you would effectivly have about 1800ppm zddp content. according to their info adding a full bottle to 4.5qts of typical engine oil would yeild about 5000ppm zddp.

what I did, was measure out 2oz of additive(~450ppm) and mixed with 5qts of mobil1 high mileage (1000ppm) to hopefully achieve somewhere around 1400ppm zddp.

If any math gurus out their see a flaw in my thinking say somthing please! math is not my strong suit.

[FairladySPL]

Ha!
Notice the 15W-50 specs?
Specifically says for FLAT TAPPET application, and the ZDDP is 1300 ppm !

The weight's off from what's recommended, but that only bottle of "just plain oil" that I saw among the marketing sub-types turns out to be tailored to the ZDDP issue.

Ya just never know.

[Skyman]

This is what i have been running. 2100 PPM. They make a 10W-30 as well.

http://lucasoil.com/products/hot-rod-hi ... -motor-oil" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Toptech360]

I had considered the lucas classic car oil, but nowhere local stocks it.

A quick side note, ive put about 150 miles on the mobil1 high mileage, and the small rear main drip i had stopped!...go figure.

[ncpi]

This is what i have been running. 2100 PPM. They make a 10W-30 as well.

http://lucasoil.com/products/hot-rod-hi ... -motor-oil" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thank you for that link. I was deciding what oil to run in my datsun and wasn't aware that Lucas made a classic car oil. I have been running Valvoline VR1 20W-50 in my MGTD as it has a high zddp rating and thats what many of the MG guys use. It looks like lucas puts a good corrosion protection package in their oil. Was always unsure about VR1 and its longevity.

Bill

[clydedog]

Used to run Kendall 20W-50 as that is what previous owner utilized circa 1983. Don't know what zddp rating was however, never any bearing, temp corrosion, etc. issues. Religiously changed oil & filter and drove it like I stole it, wasn't raced or abused but exercised!

Clyde

Looking for another Roadster

[Gregs672000]

Per Isky, the original Kendall was good stuff. That product is being sold under some new name now, and Kendall is no longer what it was. I'm running the Valvoline racing VR1 oil (not the full race, but what's available at local stores), and while not what Isky recommends, my research suggests it should be fine.

[mchattod]

FWIW

According to their info adding a full bottle to 4.5qts of typical engine oil would yeild about 5000ppm zddp.

what I did, was measure out 2oz of additive(~450ppm) and mixed with 5qts of mobil1 high mileage (1000ppm) to hopefully achieve somewhere around 1400ppm zddp.

If any math gurus out their see a flaw in my thinking say somthing please! math is not my strong suit.

If 16 oz in 4.5 qts yields 5000ppm zddp, then 5 qts would need 5*16/4.5= 17.78 oz

If 17.78 oz in 5 qts yields 5000ppm zddp, then 2 oz would yield 2*5000/17.78 = 562 ppm

Also, noticed "Not intended for passenger car use". Hmmm interesting..

[dbrick]

Brad Penn also gets raves, good price on Amazon. Apparently, Kendall used to make their racing oil in the same plant years ago, and it was also green. Considering I change mine once a year, and my 20+ yr old vintage stash of Valvoline Racing is almost gone, this will be next.
http://www.penngrade1.com/Zinc.aspx

[carlkaty]

I am also sold on Brad Penn oil. I first saw the oil at a sales booth at watkins Glen International. I was wearing a Kendall hat with the Petty #45 on it. The sales guy said the Kendall name had gone down hill with the new ownership. Brad Penn is stocked locally so its one of the many choices. I always thought oil is oil, change it religiously and one is as good as another. BUT on my way home from Shasta I overheated (badly). Hot day, big mountain, gauge not accurate, tired. Heard valve noise, saw oil gauge falling to about 0, shut it off. Towed it. At home retorqued heads (all bolts very loose), did comp. check,180 in all but one. That one is 75. I am going to credit the oil in saving the motor. Might be wrong, don't know, don't care. Brad Penn is all I will be using. Over the winter we will know what all the bearings tell me.