Anyone running lighter weight than 20w50?

Anyone running lighter weight than 20w50?

Author
Discussion

Bobby Shaftoe

Original Poster:

905 posts

201 months

Wednesday 20th May 2015
quotequote all
Any recommendations for something lighter than 20w50. I've been running Valvoline VR1 for years but i upgraded the cam last year and now i've got 6000rpm peak power and a 6500rpm redline. Oil pressure is 65psi up there which is a little higher than i want seeing as it puts an extra strain on the dizzy oil pump drive gear.

jesfirth

1,743 posts

241 months

Wednesday 20th May 2015
quotequote all
I run 10 40 in my griff and it' seems fine

pwd95

8,382 posts

237 months

Wednesday 20th May 2015
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When I had my 4.5 Wedge with a J.E. Engineering motor I spoke to them about this & they said a good quality 10/40 semi synth would work well. Regular changes obviously.
My current Chim 450 has bin run on 5/50 fully synth all it's life............. It's on 151,000 miles now & still going strong, great oil pressure, reasonable oil consumption etc

Hope that answers your question. scratchchin

Boosted LS1

21,165 posts

259 months

Wednesday 20th May 2015
quotequote all
It's all about volume, not pressure. These are fairly basic engines that like volume. OP, the pressure you have is fine but if you want less, then weaken the pressure relief valve pressure. Your engine will still appreciate a 20/50 oil.

Wedg1e

26,760 posts

264 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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Fit a weaker pressure relief valve spring...?

Brap_Brap

753 posts

208 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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20/50 is too rare here in Kanuckistan to bother with. I have used it since my car crossed the Atlantic, but at the end of the day the most important thing is a thin oil film between metal, end of story. IOW as long as the oil provides that, the viscosity numbers merely indicate fluidity at a given temperature.

Since my car is not roadworthy atm I've kept it pumping 0W40 synthetic. I have to start it a few times a year, minus 30C Kanuckistani winters be damned.

adam quantrill

11,535 posts

241 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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>> Anyone running lighter weight than 20w50? <<

Not me.

gmw9666

2,734 posts

199 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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pwd95 said:
When I had my 4.5 Wedge with a J.E. Engineering motor I spoke to them about this & they said a good quality 10/40 semi synth would work well. Regular changes obviously.
My current Chim 450 has bin run on 5/50 fully synth all it's life............. It's on 151,000 miles now & still going strong, great oil pressure, reasonable oil consumption etc

Hope that answers your question. scratchchin
I second this........David O'Connor at JE Engineering in Coventry said = "We would normally recommend Castrol Magnatec 10w 40 for performance Rover engines and that is what we use here"

gacksen

680 posts

142 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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gmw9666 said:
I second this........David O'Connor at JE Engineering in Coventry said = "We would normally recommend Castrol Magnatec 10w 40 for performance Rover engines and that is what we use here"
have currently the 4.6 JE in the chim and had been running 10w40 magnatec first. switched then to motul classic 15w50 and after that
to penrite classic light 20w60. nice allround package with loads of additives in it. of course shorter change intervals but as a fun
care doesnt matter.

ElvisWedgely

2,714 posts

164 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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5 Litres 20w/50 + 450ml STP Oil treatment.

Tony. TCB.


griffdude

1,819 posts

247 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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adam quantrill said:
>> Anyone running lighter weight than 20w50? <<

Not me.
Valvolene VR1 20W50 from eurocarparts is a bargain.

Terence

175 posts

251 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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I am another who uses Castrol magnatec 10W 40, engine has good pressure, I also used this on a previous wedge with no problems.

350zwelgje

1,818 posts

260 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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Normally 20/50, tried 15/40 which was ok regarding oil pressure, used a bit of oil but not much, less than 2 litres in 5000km.
Back to 20/50 semi-synthetic but would like a 15/50rating for winter start-ups.
Seems we need to use classic type of oil as zinc content of modern stuff is too low.
Any tips on that? Use valvoline, so should be ok, or not?

Rob

mrzigazaga

18,534 posts

164 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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I had my oil changed recently and went for this stuff, I was going to use the Classic 20/50w oil from Howlfrauds but went with this instead...Not sure of the ZDDP content of the latter but its good to change the oil yearly anyway as the zinc will deteriorate ..More so on a higher mileage car....
http://www.classic-oils.net/Product-571/Products-b...
This was also cheaper than the latter...By almost £7...More money for petrol...smile

celcius

688 posts

254 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
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mrzigazaga said:
I had my oil changed recently and went for this stuff, I was going to use the Classic 20/50w oil from Howlfrauds but went with this instead...Not sure of the ZDDP content of the latter but its good to change the oil yearly anyway as the zinc will deteriorate ..More so on a higher mileage car....
http://www.classic-oils.net/Product-571/Products-b...
This was also cheaper than the latter...By almost £7...More money for petrol...smile
Im with ziga i use classic oils for all my cars , great service and they do the 20/50 .
Much cheaper than all the others and they stock everything.

mrzigazaga

18,534 posts

164 months

Thursday 21st May 2015
quotequote all
celcius said:
Im with ziga i use classic oils for all my cars , great service and they do the 20/50 .
Much cheaper than all the others and they stock everything.
They certainly do mate...Got the Diff oil from them as well..Also a flushing agent to clear any old cruddy oil out..I have checked it a few times since and every time it looks like honey on a stick...Im almost tempted to lick it..But i won't...biggrin

adam quantrill

11,535 posts

241 months

Friday 22nd May 2015
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I've been using the Comma Classic 20W/50 more recently , which has good ZDDP, and is around £16 for 5l delivered off the flea. I've been buying 4 gallons at a time.

Just turned 70k miles on the clock this week so it must be time for another glug.

350zwelgje

1,818 posts

260 months

Saturday 23rd May 2015
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Would not go lower than 10 rating, the old-fashioned oil pump doesn't work properly if the oil is too thin... and that during startup, which is most critical.
10, 15 or 20 w50 will do the trick as well.

Rob

Brap_Brap

753 posts

208 months

Saturday 23rd May 2015
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Wives tales and superstition I think.

I can take my old PoS 99 Dodge Ram 2500 V8 magnum and have it drag my 4900lbs 5th wheel camper (caravan) up and down the rockie mountains all day long without complaint. And that engine makes far more hp/lbft and HEAT than would an rv8 propelling 2400lbs.

If 10w30 suffices for that, surely my car.

GBinUSA

222 posts

123 months

Monday 25th May 2015
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It's important to consider that the modern lighter weight oils have lower ZDDP levels so they don't effect the performance and durability of the CAT. Lower ZDDP content will effect the service life of the cam lobs in older pre CAT engines.

Edited by GBinUSA on Monday 25th May 00:25