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Old Aug 10, 2008 | 10:23 AM
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Default Oil Question

Is one engine oil better than the others for the additives needed? I know a lot of guys are using Rotella. Does that still apply or has Shell taken the additives out of that also? I will be re-doing the 32 and the vette.

Steve
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Old Aug 10, 2008 | 10:33 AM
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in central ohio the rotella is cj i believe. meaning the zddp is less. i just use rotella in the vette and nailhead and put a bottle of zddp in. next year
i plan to go with brad penn or amsoil. good luck jim

if you have a roller cam don't worry.
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Old Aug 10, 2008 | 10:51 AM
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no need for any bottled additive!
just look for an oil that has CI-4 or CJ-4 rating as the first service category under the API listing
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Old Aug 10, 2008 | 02:20 PM
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OK. Thanks. Will look for the necessary code on the oil. Been using Valvoline but I know that they supposedly took out the additive. So am going to change.

Steve
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Old Aug 10, 2008 | 03:09 PM
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Default Oil with enough zddp

Just find a WalMart near you, and buy their "Super Tech Universal" motor oil. It's 15W-40 CI-4 rated Diesel Motor Oil. It has more ZDDP than the latest "CJ-4" classification oil, and it's made by Quaker State. I always keep at least 10 gallon jugs on hand.


RON
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Old Aug 10, 2008 | 08:18 PM
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I recently had a nice long talk with a college friend of mine now working with the big wheels at Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company about the proper grades of lubricants for an older vehicle that I had totally rebuilt.

If I wanted to use conventional motor oil I should go with Castrol and a zddp additive.

I should never use a higher viscosity oil than was spec. for obvious reasons or one rated for diesel engines because of the different additives for different seal types, soot etc, etc.

If I was going to use synthetic, make sure that I had compatible engine seals and pick any decent brand. He loathed Mobil 1 and thought Castrol was the best because they have the largest R&D dept. of any of the oil companies.

I did go synthetic and now with no leaks and a flat tappet engine at 40k miles I have no problems at all. The advantage that I see is that there is no rattle when the engine is started cold. Synthetic has better adhesion properties and sticks around better is why.

My 2 cents. Jason
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Old Aug 11, 2008 | 03:13 PM
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Originally Posted by Jay1
I should never use one rated for diesel engines because of the different additives for different seal types, soot etc, etc.
Nope. Seal compatibility isn't an issue, and oil has nothing to do with soot; the soot reduction results from the new low-sulphur diesel fuel and high-pressure electronically-controlled injection, not the oil. CJ-4 or CI-4 diesel oil of the recommended viscosity will work just fine, without any extra additives.

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Old Aug 11, 2008 | 08:25 PM
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Originally Posted by JohnZ
Nope. Seal compatibility isn't an issue, and oil has nothing to do with soot; the soot reduction results from the new low-sulphur diesel fuel and high-pressure electronically-controlled injection, not the oil. CJ-4 or CI-4 diesel oil of the recommended viscosity will work just fine, without any extra additives.

If you could clear up one thing on this and that is the weight range. The only CI/CJ oil I can find is int the 15W40 wieght. Will the winter weight be too high for a 66 327 stock engine?


Thanks......
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Old Aug 11, 2008 | 08:43 PM
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Originally Posted by RMBLROAR
If you could clear up one thing on this and that is the weight range. The only CI/CJ oil I can find is int the 15W40 wieght. Will the winter weight be too high for a 66 327 stock engine?


Thanks......
I e-mailed shell with basically the same question, and their response was that 10W30 was suitable for up to 60deg and below, so I stuck with 15W40.
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Old Aug 11, 2008 | 09:19 PM
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The August issue of CE discusses the various oil options for flat tappet engines.
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Old Aug 12, 2008 | 01:51 AM
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Well it kind of made sense to me because there is always blow by in an engine and diesel fuel is a different deal than gas. Consequently it seemed logical that there would be different additives. Diesels still have EGR valves and soot and other things are still present in blow by gases.

As for the seals I didn't explain right. He said that if you have a regular car with older seals, don't switch to synthetic because it contains seal sweller and cleaning/conditioning additives that will muck things up and cause leaks more likely than not.

What it came down to was that the blow by gases are different and so there are different additives to counteract what those gases do.

as for 15w its alright in the summer but its a couple of seconds at cold start for every change in weight to get it circulated fully.
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Old Aug 12, 2008 | 02:42 PM
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Originally Posted by RMBLROAR
If you could clear up one thing on this and that is the weight range. The only CI/CJ oil I can find is int the 15W40 wieght. Will the winter weight be too high for a 66 327 stock engine?


Thanks......
Viscosity choice is predicated on the lowest anticipated starting temperature and the highest outdoor temperature. 15W-40 is okay down to 15*F starting and over 100* F outside temp. Higher viscosity oils are only necssary for loose clearance engines. 5W-40 CJ -4 oil is available in synthetic mode and is okay for starts of -10* F.
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Old Aug 12, 2008 | 02:48 PM
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Originally Posted by skids
I e-mailed shell with basically the same question, and their response was that 10W30 was suitable for up to 60deg and below, so I stuck with 15W40.
Is that Fahrenheit or Celius degrees?
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Old Aug 12, 2008 | 03:29 PM
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Originally Posted by RMBLROAR
If you could clear up one thing on this and that is the weight range. The only CI/CJ oil I can find is int the 15W40 wieght. Will the winter weight be too high for a 66 327 stock engine?


Thanks......
For the last quart add a quart of Marvel Mystery Oil. It will lower the viscosity and does a great job in keeping everything inside nice & clean. It's been around since the 1920s and I have never read or heard anyone who had a problem with it. I've used it for years in all my old cars and it does a superior job in keeping the insides of the engine - lifters, valves and pistons clean and free of any deposits.
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Old Aug 12, 2008 | 08:27 PM
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I had a '55 Ford in HS with a 292 that was in bad shape, but the 90w oil I put in it worked wonders. For some reason it started hard in winter.
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