Oil advice and recommendations here!

[opieoilman]

MGBV8 said:

Guy, Not far to look - Redline

Have never doubted Redline, great oils, just far too much money by the time they hit our shores, IMO.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

We have it in 1 litre bottles, min order 5x1 litres, just email me for a price list.

[e-mail]

Cheers
Guy

[opieoilman]

Bee_Jay said:

New question: What is the recommended oil for an Audi S4 (2.7 V6 twin Turbo), 6 years old, 90,000 miles? Apparently they have always put Mobil 1 in it. >> Edited by Bee_Jay on Wednesday 2nd February 11:24

The VAG group do everthing by codes, so you will need an oil that meets the VW code which will be listged in your handbook, it will look a little like VW505.00 then it is a case of finding an oil that meets these specs.

Let me know what code you have in your handbook, and I will give you a list of options.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

Alpineandy said:

Hi Guy, In case you haven't seen it, some more advice sought... www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=154088&f=66&h=0

Thanks Andy,

Im on it.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

Dont bother with Auto RX, I am sure some will disagree with me but they are a waste of money, if you want improvements use a better oil.

You can start by using a btter quality semi synthetic and drop the grade to 10w-40 to provide better cold start for the engine, something like the Fuchs Titan XTR 10w-40 would suit as it uses very good quality ingredients and stick to your normall drain intervals.

Or you could move on a to a full synthetic, the Silkolene Pro R 15w-50 has been well proven in air cooled engines and is a pao/ester blend with a few special addatives contained that older engines love! with an oil like this you are looking at a 10,000 mile oil change or once a year, which ever comes first.

Tech specs on these oils here www.opieoils.co.uk/lubricants.htm

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

hacksawbob said:

Thanks Is there a procedure for moving between mineral-semi or mineral-fully synth?

Not really,

Just drain the previous oil as much as you can, do this by warming the engine first to make the oil more fluid. The small amounts of old oil left will be cleaned up by the new oil.

If you feel your engine could do with a good flush, follow this proceedure.

Flushing Procedure (Don’t use flushing oils or additives)

1. Warm up engine to get oil circulating
2. Turn off engine and drain old oil
3. Fill with new oil to minimum (you will be wasting this)
4. Warm up engine to get oil circulating
5. Turn off engine, drain new oil and change filter
6. Fill to marker on dipstick

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

mongoose said:

hello Guy,ive a griff 500,6000 miles,t55 box,bta diff.im currently running the following:-mobil 1 15-50,redline mtl in the box,and redline heavy shockproof (75w/250ep)in the diff.have i made the right choices? i dont track the car so dont have much use for the lsd,which i was told was the only limiting factor with the heavy shockproof(loose about 50% of its ability apparently),and i cant tell the difference in this respect.i do like to put my foot down now and then and like most of us i want maximum wear potection.i cant get hold of silkolene oils very easily,but would the redline fully synth 15w-50 be better than my mobil1?-many thanks,mike v.

Mike,

Your doing well with your choices of oil.

The Mobil 1 15w-50 is a very good pao synthetic and well respected, only the ester based oils have the edge.

The Redline in the gearbox is again very good stuff, if a little expensive.

The Redline engine oil is on paper better than the Mobil 1 however it is so expensive in the UK I find it hard to justify the cost!

If you want to give the Silkolene ago, e-mail me through my profile and I will forward a price list on to you.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

It's been quiet in here for a while.

Feeling somewhat redundant!

Cheers
Guy

[opieoilman]

deltafox said:

Think i asked before but cant seem to find a response, so ill ask now! Currently running a Toyota Celica GT4 modified to produce around the 280 bhp mark. Current choice of oil is Castrol RS sae 0w/40. Engines into 100k territory and is due for a few extra mods before too much longer. Whats your recommendation? Thanks in advance!

For the Celica GT4 we recomend a 10w-50 full synthetic, brand wise we are keen on the Silkolene Pro S 10w-50 ester/pao synthetic as it is very high quality and has been well proven in the GT4.

Have a look on the GT4OC website and you will see all the advice we have given on these cars.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

DeltaFox.

Always discounts for felow PHers.

E-mail me through my profile for a price list.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

Frik said:

Guy, I noticed you mentioned that the gearbox of a Honda Fireblade was "tricky". What oil would you recommend for a Honda 600 FS Sport (F4i)? Cheers, Rich.

Rich,

Here is a lubricant report for you bike.

Vehicle Details 1987-90 4 str. Motorcycles CBR 600F, -FS (Motorcycles) All Lubricants Engine SF/SG 10W-40 4 litres v5.09 Assist
Gearbox From Engine From Engine - Final Drive - Fork ATF-D2 - Coolant AS 2 Brake and clutch fluid DOT 4/5 - Grease Points GrLi2 -
*Only 10W-40 is approved for use in 4-stroke engines and is essential under warranty

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

ajmac said:

What would you suggest? Jaguar XK8 4.0 litre V8 64k miles. I don't use the car too much, most of the time it is in the barn, thus I don't changed the oil on a timer basis, rather miles. Technical. I've rebuilt dozens on Rover V8s over the years and the differance in wear between engines with identical milages was amazing! I'm guessing the bad ones hadn't had the oil changed. V8s tend to build up thick tar like deposits that coat all engine internals, discusting stuff. If one uses a synthetic do you still get that type of build up inside the engine? Alastair

Alastair,

Depending on which year your car is it calls for a 5w-40 or a 5w-30.

From 1996 to 1999 the car calls for a 5w-40 full synthetic or a 10w-40 semi, the full synthetic would be the better option, and burn a lot cleaner so to prevent the sludge you have seen build up in various V8's over time.

From 2000 onwards they have taken on the General Motors oil recomendations of 5w-30. Most of these are semi synthetics, however some good quality 5w-30 full synthetics are available, Motul do some good ones.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

1stproject said:

Mazda Mx5 1997 1800 54,000 miles K&N Induction, Sports Exhaust System, Engine Remapped. Vauxhall Fully Synthetic 5-40w. Would be grateful for any reccomendations on brand too please? Also do you know anything about petrol, as im wondering if there would be any benefit to me running shell optimax over ordinary shell unleaded? >> Edited by 1stproject on Tuesday 3rd May 11:30 >> Edited by 1stproject on Tuesday 3rd May 11:39

You are using the right grade for the car, sadly the Vauxhall own 5w-40 synthetic is a hydrocracked mineral oil, not a true pao synthetic like Mobil, Castrol, Silkolene, Motul etc and one of these would be vastly better in terms of quality.

As for petrol, normally only cars that have been tuned to run on the higher octane level need it, many jap imports benefit from Optimax as it is similar to what they have out there, also a good idea if your car suffers pre-ignition, pinking etc.

Used for some time it can help increase MPG and it will burn cleaner.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

1stproject said:

Peugeot 206 GTI 180 2.0 2004 2,200 No Modifications Oil as left factory, due first service at 6 months, would like to specify my own oil at this service. Be grateful of any recommendations?

The recomended grades for the car is a 10w-40 semi syntheitc (cost option) or a 5w-40 full synthetic (quality option).

Some advantages to using a good quality 5w-40 fully is better cold start protection, better prtection against wear and extended drain intervals.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

flooritforever said:

Rover 620 Si 2.0 Petrol (non-turbo) 1994 51K miles No mods I know these can run to huge mileage if they are looked after, and I do a fair few miles in mine. Consequently, i'd like to know what would be the best sort of oil to put in it? Can you recommend any particular brand? So far i've been given a dozen conflicting opinions on whats good oil and what isn't. >> Edited by flooritforever on Saturday 7th May 11:57

Ok,

You can use a 10w-40 semi synthetic as a cost option, and change every 3k or so.

Or you can go for a 5w-50 full synthetic as a quality option, and change every 9k or so.

The full synthetics are better in every way over their mineral based cousins.

Brand wise, I would look at Castrol (but not Magnatec) RS 0w-40 or the Motul 8100 excess 5w-40, Fuchs Titan Supersyn SL 5w-40 or Mobil 1 0w-40, all these are top quality pao synthetics, if you wanted to go to the top or the range oils then look at the Silkolene Pro S 5w-40.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

Nickccc said:

Cerb 4.5 Red Rose,2001 14000 miles, curently using mobil 1, 0W40 Engine Mobile SHC ATF Gearbox Mobile SHC 80W 140 ID. Thanks Mr Oil. Nick

Nick,

Normally thicker oils are used on the 4.5 as they tend to find they will drink a bit at the 0w viscosity, does yours use much?

The Mobil 1 is great quality oil, a true pao synthetic and if the 0w-40 viscosity works for you then why change, the only improvement quality wise is to move upto an ester based oil. Esters assist the additive pack in a motor oil formulation because they are surface-active (electrostatically attracted to metal surfaces), so they help to reduce wear and friction.

They are fluid at very low temperatures and at high temperatures they are very chemically stable and have low volatility (don’t evaporate away).

They also help to prevent hardening and cracking of oil seals at high temperatures.

Grade wise, if you do burn a lot then it could be an idea to move one grade up, also if you do anyu hard driving or track work then you migh want to look at a 10w-50 grade.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

Steve_T said:

I'm about to put the Silkolene you recommended into my 4.5 Cerb, Guy. She seems to use ~ 1l / 1000 miles of mobil 1 0w40. Will report back on how we do on the Silkolene 10w50. Steve.

Steve,

Please do, I always like feed back.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

rustybin said:

Opie, There is some debate on the Alfa 164 Cloverleaf Registers forum at the moment. What are your recommendations for these cars? are they different for the 12 and 24 valve variants. These engines tend to loose oil pressure when warm at idle as they get older, down to around 1 bar or just below. It generally rises to 3 to 4 bar wih some revs. Is this something that you feel people should worry about and would you recommend a different oil for those whose engines are behaving this way. Finally what do you think of the Alfa recomended Selenia oils. Alfa certainly seem to feel they are worth a lot! Thanks in advance. I will pass your views onto the forum and make sure they know where they came from

Ok,

According to my records the recomended grades for the 164super 12v and 24v from 1993 onwards are 10w-40 semi synthetic or a 5w-40 full synthetic, as a quality option the 5w-40 is recomended.

With regards to oil pressure, usually this is not too much to worry about, as the pressure is a measure of resistance and not flow, ultimately flow is more important, its a bit like a hart, too much pressure is bad and too little pressure is bad so you need to find a happy medium. You may also find that the choice of oil will affect the oil pressure, most Selenia oils are mineral based, so after time they will shear down, so what was a 10w-40 after a few thousand miles could be functioning as a 10w-30 or lower, so when the oil gets hot it thins which would read a lower pressure.

Selenia is ok, its an average oil made for the Alfa market to be sold via Alfa, so of course you can get much better for less money by sourcing oil outside of the dealer, Alfas do not need Selenia to run on.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

love machine said:

Guy, My mates old TVR breathes like billyo and fills the cabin with the most toxic valvoline vapour which you can smell and then taste and is foul burning filth. I forgot how foul it was until a dropped a propshaft off the jeep and re-aquainted myself with "that evil smell". What in gods earth is it chemically? It must be seriously toxic if it smells that bad. It's generally a high pressure oil component MS2?

LoveMachine,

Here aree some thoughts from the mad scientist.

Well, for the TVR to be blowing out of its engine breather, it must be suffering from piston blow-by. (Worn rings/bores?)

This means that oil will be getting into the combustion chambers, and the vapour from the party-burnt oil will be escaping downwards into the crankcase.

Modern engine oil contains large amounts of sulphur-containing compounds, principally the antiwear/antioxidant ZDDPs and the detergent sulphonates. Although their odours are not offensive up to 200C or higher, when broken down by combustion temperatures much higher than this they produce a lot of very offensive sulphur and sulphur/phosphorus compounds. (Including the acidic sulphur dioxide and the ‘rottern egg’ hydrogen sulphide). Thermally degraded ZDDP is, from personal experience, particularly evil. For that matter, even pure hydrocarbon oil (medicinal paraffin) which is safe to eat breaks down to some dangerous compounds including the carcinogenic PAHs (Poly Aromatic Hydrocarbons) when partly burnt. This is one reason why even nicotine-free fags would be dangerous; it’s the strange chemicals that form when flammable stuff is not completely burnt that do the damage!*

So…..Tell him to fit a hose to the breather, and vent it under the car!



Au revoir, JR

* This is why I can’t stand barbecues. I can’t stop thinking about those clouds of PAH’s!

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.

[opieoilman]

anto69 said:

Hi, Just bought the following: Ford Mondeo 1999 2.0 Si 82,000 miles Don't know what's in it currently. What do you recommend? I also have a BMW Z3 1999 2.8 55,000 miles Always serviced by BMW in the past so not sure what's in it - I assume it's synthetic. Saw a previous post by you about Slick50 so I'll be saving my money there - can I assume all other additives are of similar (lack of) benefit? Is Molyslip 2001E just as useless? Many Thanks! Anthony. >> Edited by anto69 on Sunday 22 May 10:18

Anthony,

For the Mondeo you will idealy need a 5w-30 semi synthetic that meets the Ford WSSM2C913 A/B spec and there is plenty of good ones out there to choose from, Motul even do a Ford specific 5w-30.

For te BMW Z3 it is recomended for a 5w-40 full synthetic for all year round use, always a good idea to go for a BMW approved oil.

As for addatives, I have never seen one worth going for, if you want results, use good quality oil.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Guy.