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Oil questions?

Ryan40601

Ryan40601

Well-Known Member
Ok, i know this question comes up pretty often but im still alittle unsure of what oil is best ! Is it mobil1 10-30 and a bottle of zddp zinc additive or just plain old castrol gtx 10-30 none seem to have the api SF stamp but for all i know thats just an outdated spec! Please give me some feedback!
Thanks everyone!
 
All new oils sold in stores (5w-30 and 10w-30) have to adhere to the AN spec for street cars which is 800PPM zinc and 800PPM Phosphorus. There are exceptions, but they aren't seen at oreillys or wal-mart.

Run non synthetic oil like Castrol 10w-30 GTX and a bottle of ZDDP and you will be golden.
 
I run this in my GN's and TTA. One stop shopping! They have to call it "break in oil" so the general public does not run this stuff in their new car. The zinc levels are high and will cause cat issues in new stuff. But for the old cars it's loaded with everything your flat tappet cam needs. I change the oil in my cars usually once a year because I don't put many miles on them so it's worth the extra coin to run something that is going to keep your flat tappet cam happy for years to come!

http://www.compcams.com/Products/CC-%27Lubricants%27-1.aspx
 
PhillyTurboSix said:
I run this in my GN's and TTA. One stop shopping! They have to call it "break in oil" so the general public does not run this stuff in their new car. The zinc levels are high and will cause cat issues in new stuff. But for the old cars it's loaded with everything your flat tappet cam needs. I change the oil in my cars usually once a year because I don't put many miles on them so it's worth the extra coin to run something that is going to keep your flat tappet cam happy for years to come!

http://www.compcams.com/Products/CC-'Lubricants'-1.aspx
Click to expand...
Synthetic ? any leak's ?
 
I break mine in on rotella straight 30 and royal purple 10w 30 in every other car/truck i own

i had a problem with mobile 1 on startup an its very thin inmo
 
robert lee said:
Synthetic ? any leak's ?
Click to expand...

Don't they all leak with any oil? :whistle::rofl: I get a quarter size mark on the floor after the car sits all winter with any oil pretty much.

I did however post the wrong link.

http://www.compcams.com/Products/CC-'Lubricants'-1.aspx

That's the oil I use from them. Even though it says "break in oil" it's not. I mean why would they sell different viscosity on a break in oil. :whistle: Again they list it that way to keep people from putting it in their new Toyota!
 
your right Jim , they all leak oil, just a question of how much.... seems like everything i put synthetic in it gets worse (9 vehicles ) i think i will try royal-p syn in my hi-mil 01 GMC truck since it's due for a overhaul anyhow
 
robert lee said:
your right Jim , they all leak oil, just a question of how much.... seems like everything i put synthetic in it gets worse (9 vehicles ) i think i will try royal-p syn in my hi-mil 01 GMC truck since it's due for a overhaul anyhow
Click to expand...

my 02 8.1 has 298k miles royal purple
 
Dont want to burst anyone's bubble, but my car is tight-no leaks. I just looked underneath it the other day. Cant say the rest of them are leak free though. My 82 base car has a rear main seal leak, been that way since I bought it. Goes thru about 1/2 qt a season. IMO not worth messing with.
 
PhillyTurboSix said:
I run this in my GN's and TTA. One stop shopping! They have to call it "break in oil" so the general public does not run this stuff in their new car. The zinc levels are high and will cause cat issues in new stuff. But for the old cars it's loaded with everything your flat tappet cam needs. I change the oil in my cars usually once a year because I don't put many miles on them so it's worth the extra coin to run something that is going to keep your flat tappet cam happy for years to come!

http://www.compcams.com/Products/CC-'Lubricants'-1.aspx
Click to expand...

I thought about that too Jim. Comp Cam's should know what works... They have a lot of experience and research in this field. I bet they recieved many calls and complaints about the failure of the flat tappet's within the last 10 years due to the zinc levels in the oils.

I'd trust their stuff right now.


Joe
 
The problem with break in oils like the comp cams oil is that it doesn't have detergents and the additive package for longevity.

Racing oils and break in oils are only good for 500 miles.

If that is all you drive, go for it. Otherwise, it will break down (viscosity and the other additives) too fast.
 
my trailblazer ss had mobil 1 in it from the factory i broke it in 2k miles royal purple every since it has 100k miles now ... my camaro i did the same no leakes on either my tahoe also has no leaks 138k miles now
 
tta299 said:
my trailblazer ss had mobil 1 in it from the factory i broke it in 2k miles royal purple every since it has 100k miles now ... my camaro i did the same no leakes on either my tahoe also has no leaks 138k miles now
Click to expand...

Ls motors don't leak. However, we are talking about the LC2 here....
 
I run Castrol full mineral oil in mine with the STP addative ... however I got a full roller setup (cam, rockers etc).

However on this side of the pond Castrol now changed the oil to a mix of mineral and synthetic so full mineral can't be had anymore ... I did stock pile some so still good for another 2 years or so (I change once a year but drive very little), Not sure what to get next time around.
 
Sorry for digging up this old thread. Killing a little time on a Sunday morning before heading out to the garage to prep the car for next season and found this old oil related thread.

Quiky One said:
All new oils sold in stores (5w-30 and 10w-30) have to adhere to the AN spec for street cars which is 800PPM zinc and 800PPM Phosphorus.
Click to expand...

The API SN specification limit is only on phosphorus (at 800 ppm). There is no limit on zinc. However, for the anti-wear additive ZDDP, or zinc dialkyl dithio phosphate, as the zinc bonds with phosphorus, there is an effective limit on zinc at about 900 ppm.

Quiky One said:
Racing oils and break in oils are only good for 500 miles.
If that is all you drive, go for it. Otherwise, it will break down (viscosity and the other additives) too fast.
Click to expand...

While I agree that 500 miles is about right for a racing or break-in oil, I wouldn't characterize the reason as "break down". The main difference between a racing/break-in oil and a street oil in terms of longevity is the detergent/dispersant, primarily calcium. The detergent/dispersant allows an oil to resist acidic engine combustion by-products that get by the rings and into the oil. As the oil is used, it gets more and more acidic. Long life oils have lots of detergent/dispersant. "Normal" street oils have some detergent/dispersant. Racing/Break-in oils generally have little to none.

This can be seen in the oil's Total Base Number (opposite of acidic) which some oil companies report. Higher TBN is more basic, low TBN is more acidic. Scale is to 14. The higher the TBN the longer the oil can resist acidic buildup. Most oil analysis labs will state that running the oil until the TBN is 1.0 is okay, though in my opinion that is pretty acidic. Here are some examples from AMSOIL (all full synthetic):
- Signature Series 5w30: 12.6
(this is a 25k mile/one year oil, 15k in severe service)
- XL 5w30: 9.0
(10k mile/six month or per OEM)
- OE 5w30: 7.9
(OEM oil change interval)
- Break-In SAE 30: 6.6
(not to exceed 1000 miles)

On the topic of anti-wear additives in general for the OP:
From 94-97, the API SH spec allowed up to 1200 ppm phosphorus for 5w30 and 10w30 and didn't address other 30 grade viscosity like 0w30. In 97, API SJ dropped the limit to 1000 ppm, but still did not address 0w30. In 01, API SL kept 1000 ppm phosphorus, but added 0w30 to the spec. In 04, API SM further dropped the limit to 800 ppm, but for the first time set a floor at 600 ppm and advertised that oil's were better. Essentially they were capping how much phosphorus the better oils could have and mandating the lowest amount the cheapest oils must have. The current API SN spec still has the band 600-800 ppm phosphorus.

Unfortunately, phosphorus, along with zinc, in a compound called ZDDP, or or zinc dialkyl dithio phosphate, forms an oil's primary anti-wear additive. The reason behind this is that phosphorus slowly poisons the cats and prevent the catalytic exchange that allows them to function properly. To ensure auto companies could meet the EPA's 100k+ emissions requirements, the API has slowly been dropping the limit on phosphorus.

So, any oil labeled to meet the current API SN spec will be limited to 800 ppm max phosphorus. This impacts how well it will be able to perform in anti-wear, such as might be seen in your bearings under heavy load.

To see how this all impacts oil performance, the High Temp High Shear (HTHS) viscosity of these oils is a good indicator. The HTHS viscosity is a measure of the oil's viscosity at 300F under heavy shear, as might be seen in your bearings. Higher is better.

Mobil 1 10w30 - 3.0
Mobil 1 5w30 - 3.1
AMSOIL Sig Series 5w30 - 3.2
AMSOIL Sig Series 10w30 - 3.2
----------------------------------------------
Mobil 1 High Mileage 5w30: 3.3
Mobil 1 High Mileage 10w30 - 3.5
AMSOIL ZROD 10w30 - 3.6

The top four comply with API SN limit of 800 ppm phosphorus. The Mobil 1 High Mileage 5w30 and 10w30 have 1000 ppm phosphorus, 1100 ppm zinc. The AMSOIL ZROD 10w30 has 1320 ppm phosphorus and 1440 ppm zinc. As can be seen, the oils that comply with current API SN specs have the lowest HTHS. Step up to oils that do not comply with the current API SN spec, the Mobil 1 High Mileage and the AMSOIL classic car ZROD and you can see a jump in HTHS.
:cheers:
 
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