actually knows.
So many posts of "I do this", or "I've never had a problem doing this, "It sounds like a good idea", etc.
Well, here's a guy who knows.

 

I love oil threads.

 

Not to disappoint you....
OK, I will take the first hit. Spoiler alert: I wasn't about to sit thru 15 minutes to find out the man's opinion. I have real world experience specifically with Shell Rotella T. . Probably 40 years ago, maybe even longer I had a fleet of Class 8 trucks, about 7 or 8 of them. I did all the servicing and used nothing but Rotella. Being cheap, I only kept one 55 gallon drum of oil at a time, and that oil was used in everything that we had, from Mack trucks, to Lincoln Continentals to C2 and C4 corvettes and even a few Mercedes thrown in. The International gas trucks got oil changes every 3000 miles, the cars went 5,000 and the big trucks went 8000-10,000 if I recall. Not sure but I remember that the Macks had 3 oil filters and took almost 55 quarts per change. In all that time we never had one engine failure that was related to lubrication. I actually get a laugh nowadays at what is going on with synthetic oils. My Nissan Frontier uses synthetic oil, and the mileage is 3,000 miles between changes. Only now I have to pay over $8 per quart. I understand the tolerances are much tighter today but I am not seeing much progress. I used to get over 150K out of my Dodge vans with a 3,000 mile oil change with no oil consumption. Diesel or gas made no difference. Maybe things change, like the additives, but it all comes out of the same hole in the ground. Boy, I really sound like a grumpy old guy tonight. Sorry, it's been a long week.

 

I don't hear of a lot of engine failures that are directly related to the specific oil used.

Low tension oil rings, and/or too small drain back piston holes, and running out of oil due to oil consumption? Yes.

Oil pumps that stop pumping or cam belts failing because of belts that run in oil? Yep.

Not changing the oil often enough leading to sludge related failures? Yep.

Cylinder deactivating systems causing cam/lifter failure or lubrication problems, uneven cooling and expansion problems, or excessive idling that leads to lack of splash lubrication? Yes.

How many NA engines have failures that are directly related to the use of the "wrong" type of oil?

It seems to me the type of oil used is the least of our problems these days. The differences in the oil quality is minimal in most oils, perhaps Redline and Amsoil being a couple standouts. But I would say the probability of an engine prematurely failing due to the oil used is much, much less likely vs poor engine engineering or over-complication of engine related systems.
Modern vehicles are so computerized now, that those systems likely dictate the life span of the car as much or more as does poor engine engineering does. In either case the oil itself is likely of little consequence.

 

Everything has changed because elected officials and unelected bureaucrats mandate what they perceive is good for us. As gale Banks said, Volvo built by people who hate cars for people who are afraid of cars.
Same mentality in government people who know nothing advocating against something they hate.

 

It's Trump's fault, tariffs will cause everyone to switch to Shell because it's cheaper than whatever other flavor you have been using....

Kanvasman, I had a part time job servicing trucks in the 70's, yup three filters and watch you don't have an O ring stuck up there from the old filter... Did that once and had the Exon VALDEEZE on the garage floor...LOL

60

 

Actually Trump is helping us a lot. Congress.is getting ready to hit the. CARB so they have no authority. To mandate anything.
Motoroil won't be affected by tariffs because it's not imported.

 

In the 55 years that I have been tinkering with gas, diesel, natural gas and propane engines I have never heard of an oil failure in a car's engine. I have heard of lots of engines that burn the oil until they get low and then they smoke like the devil until rebuilt. The motor oil we use today is a far better product that what we used to put into our engines. Shell Rotella is a great motor oil made for truck engines and has been used successfully in many cars as well. If I had a 55 gallon barrel of it I would use it in everything including the lawn mower. I have Rotella oil in my ISUZU 1.5 liter 3 cylinder diesel generator set. It keeps the Isuzu engine very happy and purrs right along.

There are better oils made specifically for high performance engines like the "Driven" brand oil products. These just have enough zinc for the engine components to survive without abnormal wear. A high enough price to ensure that oil changes are more painful than they need to be. I change the oil once a year or every 3000 miles.

I recently saw a guy add 3.5 quarts of fresh oil to a Honda Civic.... Reminds me of the days when we would fill the oil and top off the gasoline while out cruising around in an old Ford.

 

Ok folks I've read all posts sans the political rants SO with all that said can I ever use the Rotella Diesel oil in my 78??


JJ78

 

JJ78: Why would you want to? To save money over buying an oil formulated for our engines? Really the cost difference is moot, (4 Starbucks with tip over 1 or 2 years) and I'm no wealthy guy. (BTW, I order Driven from Summit where it's free shipping over $109.)


CTM: I use Driven HR4 in both of my cars -- but only change oil every 2 years, they just aren't driven enough to warrant more often. $10/quart, so $60 for a full change. That's 2x the Shell T4 but... we're talking a whole $30 difference which to my view isn't enough to go against the advice of oil formulators who know the stuff saying all oils are designed for application -- Rotella doesn't have the additives formulated for our engines. (The type of ZDDP is different.) I see this as similar to using a $16 K&N or WIX filter over a $7.50 Microgard. The expensive filter has better qualities for my use and I'm not going to quibble over this small price difference.

I also come at this after having spent north of $12,000 on two engine builds over the last 5 years where my machinist/builder recommended using Driven or Lucas hot rod oils.

 

If you didn't watch the video, how can you dispute what he says????

 

Of course you CAN, but why would you?
ACTUAL scientific tests prove that it isn't the godsend that some internet gurus tell us. It will work, just not as well, as oil formulated for your gas car.

 

Much ado about nothing, I think. Decent brands of oil will work just fine for the working life of THAT oil. Some oils are better than others; some oils protect wearing metal parts better than others. But all of them will do a decent job for THEIR working lives, if they have the additives needed by YOUR particular engine configuration and use.

 

That's the crux of the whole argument, so I don't see it as much ado about nothing. They are not equal formulations; if they were, you'd have diesel folks saying to just use regular oil -- and I've yet to see that stated anywhere. The long-chain ZDDP molecule in diesel oils does not protect to the same degree as short-chain for spark engines because it is not subjected to the same operating conditions.

Practically speaking, for most of us, will an ill-suited oil perform well enough that we won't see the downsides? Probably, but why use something not intended for our engines?

 

I've been using Diesel oil in my Corvette for 55 years, no problems yet.

In the video there is a lot of emphasis put on the detergent level of the diesel oil. My LT-1/Holley is FAR from running clean like a modern engine, I need all the detergent I can get.

I do not use Diesel oil in my other vehicles, I use Mobil 1 synthetic.

 

Interesting in the video,on the cam wear testing that the Mobil1 showed less wear than the VR1 oil.
Mobil 1 is cheaper oil, and synthetic. $33.75/5qt vs $40.79 for VR1 which is not synthetic. Both on summit racing.
Both have 1300 ppm zinc.

 

Mr Sayfoo, I didn't watch the video so I didn't know I was disputing what he said. But now that you told me yes, I dispute it. My experience tells me what works for me. JavaJolt, pour that Rotella in the 78. It's not like these are Formula 1 engines. Most were designed a long time ago to work with basic oil. They weren't designed for all the additives etc that is available now. I guess they are nice to have if you worry about that kind of stuff, so why do you need it? And Mr 1860 Army, thanks to you, I will be reliving that nightmare tonight. That is one of those mistakes that you only make once and will never repeat it! Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

 

That guy knows something, I'm just not sure its anything about engines.

 

Apology accepted.
What oil do you use in your C6?

 

Mobil1 as recommended. Not so much the Mobil brand part but the recommended type( synthetic), intervals and weight. But I don't think you can compare an LS3 engine to a 1978 SBC. And glad you accepted my apology but I wasn't aware that I said or did anything to apologize for. But thanks anyway.