What oil and weight for my motor
 

I know there's probably a lot of threads on this but i have pretty detailed specs on my build and figured maybe I can get more detailed advice from the experts here.

BP4W built bottom end (mains .020 rods .017)
BE street/strip oil pump, unshimmed
EFR6258 turbo (you guys mutually talked me out of FM2)
FM Oil Cooler
FM Coolant reroute

The motor right now has 522 miles on it and so far has been behaving well.

The initial start was done with conventional oil (10w30) and after we let the car warm up and tested certain things it went for a short 10 mile drive and was drained.
At a total of about 60 miles of driving and tuning the start we drained oil and re-filled with conventional (10w30).
At the 250 mile mark we drained the oil again and re-filled with Amsoil Signature Synthetic 10W30. I had my buddy follow me as I did some 6psi pulls and he said there's no smoke from exhaust so things are going well.

Next week I have an appointment with the well known Ken Hill to have the car tuned for it's ultimate goal which is around 325whp which I aim to hit on 15psi (have some headwork).

The car is a pleasure vehicle that will be driven about 3000-4000 miles per year, often in a spirited fashion, but also just for commuting to work on nice days, taking trips to Atlantic City (about 80 miles one way) etc. It may see track time, but not on any kind of regular basis.

My question is knowing my engine setup, bearing clearances, etc. what weight oil would you recomend. I am basically a tossup between Amsoil Signature Synthetic (although they have a few other alternatives) and Shell Rotella T6 which is available locally only in 10w-40.

Any help appreciated!

No Walmart nearby? They all have T6 in 5w40 around here. M1 Turbo Diesel Truck 5w40 on the shelf too.

T6 in e'er'thang!

Lots of Wally Worlds, but I wasn't sure on weight. I believe they stock on the shelf either 5W40 or 10W40. Why is it called diesel oil? Safe to run in the BP?

It's because of delicious nutrients and additives. High zinc content. BP loves that shit. Turbos love that shit. You love that shit.

You put it in everything.

The answer is always: Rotella, Amsoil Dominator Grease, and Frank's Red Hot.

I noticed Amsoil had the Zinc Enriched "hi-z" oil as well. How's their Dominator oil line for street use?

I do love me some franks red hot, but I tend to keep it out of the car haha

Maybe I'm showing my Fountain Square hipster-ness, but Sriracha > Franks Red Hot.

Dunno.... i'm a dealer, but i'm pretty sure i can still get Rotella for cheaper than my cost for the Amsoil unicorn jizz motor oil. Basically... i haven't used the motor oil yet.

I will in the DD when it runs again, since i run 20w-50 in that. If you can wait a couple months for an update, i can give one to you.

They're both just barely edible, just depends if you want a double dose of salty, or a sweet chemically tang.

Both of them are pretty much the worst hot sauces known to man.

I can't cause I have to drain the oil on the morning of the 20th so tuner has a fresh start for his work.

Sometimes I worry that the practical use of "race" oils and "race" bearings is actually a bad thing for street use, but I got ACL Race bearings anyway :loser:

T6 is $21 at walmart.... its delicious shit... i put it on, and in everything....
Im sharpening a knife using T6 as a stone lubricant right now as we speak..... i keep a jug in the trunk of the miata, 3 jugs in my closet, a jug in the garage, and a jug split up between 3 dispenser bottles for parts lubrication, skate bearings, and knife sharpening.... lmao

You're overthinking this. Go to Wally World, get an ego boost from looking at all the dregs of society hanging out there, and grab a couple blue jugs of that Grade A slippery shit.

And 5w-40 is OK for me to get? If so I'm gonna get a jug on way home today

This is a very true statement... although i have multiple bottles of both in my fridge.... accompanying about 40 other bottles/brands of hotsauce.

Blairs is delicious.... until you get up into the HOT hot stuff... then its just spice with no flavor, but their hot and sweet, and jalapeno, and honey sauces are amazing

It's what we all use when we refer to T6, yes. Might want to grab two if you have any more capacity than stock. It only comes in gallons.

Good idea, I've gotta make sure the cooler and lines have enough as well. I think last time it took ~4.5qts.

Thanks for everyone's help! :noob:

Better make it 3. 2 for the car, one for more... personal use.

Diesel oil is high in Zinc, which is a great anti-wear additive, but it "contributes to heavy metal pollution" so it got banned from auto-rated oils back in the 90's IIRC. Diesel oil is also high detergent, as diesels have lots of blowby, so it cleans your internals as well. For me, the 40 is nice as it gets hot here in summer. Older BMW's (the ones that actually have a range of oil weights in the manual depending on ambient temperature ranges) spec a summer oil for my climate at 20w50.

Aside: Dude. I have at least six bottles of hot sauce in my fridge. Tapatio, Frank's Red Hot, Sriracha, Cholula, Chipotle Tabasco, Green Tabasco, some hot shit I got from Trader Josè... all of them have different uses.

Most definitely. Im pretty sure thats all Rotella T6 comes in, but almost all of us on here use that magical shiz. That Notorious NA lifter tick sound was gone instantly after startup with T6, and never came back.... NEVER... lol

I wonder what it will do to my oil pressure. I can somewhat monitor it via my center gauge since I have the real-time sender in the side of the block.

I don't really have any ticking but I went ahead and bought the proper valve shims when I rebuilt my head so everything is in spec (I think intake was .008 exhaust was .009) across the board. It's a very quiet motor.

It'll be fine. Your oil pressure will be a little higher, but nothing to worry about. I run 5w40 in everything I've owned (SBC Camaro, I4 DOHC Miata, V6 DOHC Taurus SHO) and everything has liked it.

Was talking to a fleet manager for a local business, and he runs 5w40 in e'rything. He replaced a few engines sub 100k when he was using 10w30, and hasn't replaced an engine since he switched. Some of them have over 250k.

The new engine oils (0W20 junk) are like water. HATE them. GM actually replaced the cam and lifters in my 2009 G8. Now I run Rotella in that car. I've never had a car wipe its cam before.

EPA mandated. Now answer me this . . . do the green nutjobs at EPA like your car? That's all you need to know.

wow, one of the nurses i work with had the same issue with her G8. there is absolutely no protection in those watered down oils

Would I be stupid to put the same T6 into my 97 Civic VTEC daily? It currently runs Mobil 1 5w30 with no issues and with additives I use I have lost a lot of the ticking over time but some is still there. I don't want to sacrafice too much MPG as it's my DD though

Ive heard lots of guys running D16, B16, and B18 engines on T6, and they swear by it just like we do. Im not sure what it will do to your gas mileage though... i cant imagine it dropping more than 1-2 mpgs though honestly

I lost about 1.5mpg on the G8 going from EPA-Water to Rotella.

But, I now have oil (with zinc and phosphorus) in my engine! The G8 will live a long, spirited life of gas-guzzling. The folks at EPA are beside themselves. Luckily, I live in TX and they can't get me!

I just saw somewhere that the T6 is now available in a 0w-40

Got 2 jugs at Wally World. $5 rebate on each good till the 31st of may. Limit 2 per household. Also saw it in quarts now too for 6.97 ea, big bottle was 21.97

I put T6 on my toast and in my oatmeal. I put it in gasoline vehicles starting with 50k miles that have gone over 330k miles without a single internal engine issue. I jizz T6. It is the top oil I know of for the right additives in the right amounts. Just go on bobistheoilguy.com if you have questions. Everybody who knows oil knows it is the best.

What kind of change intervals do you recommend with the Rotella on mildly boosted DD?

:bowrofl:

We need a smiley for that.

I would recommend 3 thousand miles in a turbo vehicle, just like any regular oil. I change mine every trackday or so, just because trackdays are really tough on everything due to the extra heat and increased forces due to high load and high RPMs. In my naturally aspirated vehicles I go 5 or even 8 thousand if I am too busy to get free time on the weekends due to traveling out of town. The oil itself doesn't break down, per se, but rather the additive package gets used up over time causing the oil to be less effective at controlling acid formation, controlling particulates, and protecting surfaces. The viscosity extending polymers break down during use as well. T6 uses better long chain polymers to resist breakdown better and uses more and often times better additives than conventional automotive oil so that during the time it is used the engine will be better protected. That can be translated into longer intervals if you like but I prefer to let it mean better protection during the regular length intervals.

I wrote this up for a local forum when a similar question was brought up so please excuse the redundancy if someone has mentioned these items - Honestly I have done very extensive research on oil and attended training's from one of a handful of Certified Lubrication Specialist in the world. Having a 1.8L produce nearly 5 times what it was it's intended for means I need to run the right fluids. A couple of things that are extremely important and are often overlooked.

1. Don't change your oil weight without a reason. Your choice on oil weight should be based on bearing clearances or temperature extremes (depending on the viscosity index rating of the oil you choose). Think of it this way - Too thick of oil and it won't make it into the bearing surfaces. Too thin and it will not properly protect the surface.

2. Oil base is also really important. Things have changed in the last few years and Oil technology is not the same as it used to be. The oil base to look for is "mPAO". Viscosity index is key. Viscosity index shows how much the thickness of the oil will change at different temperatures. For example, I want my 5w30 oil to be the same thickness at 30 degrees as it is at 220 degrees. mPAO base means better viscosity stability. This basically means it's got a great viscosity index, it holds the proper viscosity at lower and higher temps which equates to the oil getting to the bearings sooner at start-up and it staying as thick as it should when I'm beating the piss out of the car on a track.

3. Additives - ZINC vs Detergent ratio. ZINC and ZDDP are polar molecules that are chemically attracted to metal surfaces. This is AWESOME because that's exactly what we want. Detergent is added to keep surfaces clean. Consequently these two chemicals fight each-other. Zinc coats your bearing surfaces and Detergent cleans it off. You do need a mix of both to keep things happy and clean but for most of us who perform regular oil changes, detergent levels don't need to be so high.
A number of other things come into play but for the most part they are covered in the oil base (shear strength, breakdown life...). If you have any questions please let me know.

The only other question is knowing my bearing clearances, if you'd recommend anything besides teh T6. I did buy two jugs of it already lol

T6 is not a bad off the shelf oil. It's important to remember that shelf oils are still heavily regulated. After a ton of homework I decided to run and sell Joe Gibbs Driven oil. LINK

One of the only companies to actually list the ratios of additives and show a viscosity index rating. Plus the use the mPAO base.

My flat tappet cam TruckBeast runs Rotella T 20w50 dino lube and everything else I touch runs Rotella T6 5w40. It's the bees knees. Its about the only thing thats readily available OTS that won't break the bank. My other favorite is Pennzoil Platinum for things that don't seem to like a 5w40.

Back when I was maintaining equipment I used Chevron Delo 400 in everydamnthing. Then they reformulated it for "lower sulphur emissions" or some bullshit. 450~500ish hours after switching to the "new" Delo 400 I had the cam go flat in a propane fired generator set. I was not amused.

Right the sulfur additives is what makes Rotella a good choice for the turbo cars. A much harder oil to burn with the sulfur content they use even though it was reduced in the last few years. I believe that's how Rotella got their start - Diesel truck oil? They just happened to make it in a couple of usable viscosity ratings for smaller gas engines.

Rotella has always been marketed as a diesel oil and has a lot of detergency because of that. But I run it in all my cars that have flat tappet cams. My wife's '81 380SL (interference engine) just loves the stuff.

Unfortunately, you just can't rely upon a consistent formulation in any of these oils, and the EPA regs are affecting diesel formulations as well. Still way better than gasoline formulas at this time.

Once upon a time, you could count on new formulations being improvements for engine protection. Not anymore. Now, they are trying to improve catalytic converter life and fuel economy. Engine wear be damned.

That's because they still think global warming is a real thing...it only increases when populations increase, which uses fuels faster. If they really want to stop global warming they should just go to some places around the world (I can't name them but plenty of uselessness going on) and start :fael: *********kers.

/rant. Filling with T6.

The EPA would rather your car eat itself so you are forced to buy a new one every 7-10 years that gets better mileage with lower emissions. Automotive manufacturers play this game as well. They don't make money from you driving that 14 year old Honda.

Does your jizz ever ruin your cats? :party:

I remember hearing rumors that the goodies in T6 accelerate catalytic converter wear but some more recent posts on BITOG.com say otherwise.

ZDDP is supposed to affect the newer 3-way catalytic converters which is why EPA mandated removal of those additives. Obviously, they don't affect older design catalytic converters (as installed since 1975) nearly as much since we've been driving those cats with the older oils for decades. I'm not sure what model years started using the 3-ways. My '09 G8 had a 3 way before I put on the high-flow cats. I don't think any NAs ever had them. Some later NBs might. NCs almost certainly do.

If it were me personally I would use royal purple HPS 10w30

According to my research, 3-Ways have been used in US since 1981. I know that my 1999 used the tic-toc of AFR between 14.2 to 15.2 which is used for 3-Ways. The major difference between OBD1 and OBD2 is the efficiency of the converters. Both should be 3-Way.

Seems that the OBD1 style should be OK with the T6, which has around 1100ppm phosphorus.

From Scorpion:
"Caution: For good catalytic converter life, vehicles produced from 1992 through 1996 (API SH) can use oil with phosphorus levels of 1200 ppm maximum. Vehicles produced from 1997 through 2003 (API SJ and SL) can use oil with phosphorus levels of 1000 ppm maximum.† Vehicles produced from 2004 and newer (API SM) are limited to 800 ppm phosphorus"

For once, Canadians get something that is not in the US yet: Rotella T6 in a 0W-40 with an API-SN rating. I saw it recently in a Canadian Tire store and it looks like I may be making the switch as soon as the cars (a 2001 Miata and a 2009 Legacy wagon) finish digesting the two fresh jugs of Pennzoil Platinum 5W-30 in my garage.

I used to run Mobil 1 5W-30 in the Miata but it seemed to be a little too thin for its taste and Mobil 1 is near the low viscosity limit for the oil. If you want a good assay of many new oils, this chart:

March 2013 - Test Results for AP

gives you the reality that replaces the hype we are all subjected to.

FWIW, T6 has SM on the label.

Ice Road Truckers FTW!!

I use T6 5/40 and have no oil pressure issues. We've started using rotella (conventional) in our dirt bikes and it's going in the f150 next oil change.

It's the quality of the super expensive oils, at a much better price point.

A new store opened up near us at the Dixie Value Mall in Mississauga that was selling Pennzoil Platinum for a discount of 40% under the $28.88 jug price. This store was the old Sears clearance outlet. That would be $17.33 plus tax. The Miata loves the stuff (but it hated Mobil 1). The name of the store is Treasure Hunt. It just might live up to its name. My car hated Mobil 1 but loves Pennzoil Platinum.

That's nice.

Here's a cookie:


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