Clearing up all the oil info....

[Impatient]

Castrol Euro 0w30 and 0w40 are waay different from a domestic RC 0w30. I’m not sure they are “perfect” but they have v. good HTHS and higher viscosities at 40c and 100c than any “normal” 5w30, let alone any “normal 0w30 RC oils. Allegedly they are still P4, or more P4 than most others. M1 0w40 is well-regarded for our engines and I assume the Pennzoil Euro platinum 5w30 and Euro 0w40 are good as well. P4 may be a thing of the past though as mfgr’s have figured out how to get P3’s to do quite well. I’ve bought some Pennzoil GTL Platinum Ultra for my Ford Ecoboost turbo van, and could consider it for the Subaru, when I run out of Euro Castrol. I don’t race or cross.

[JF1GG29]

I figure this is as good a place as any: has anyone run 60wt for trackdays on a stock block? What kind of oil pressures do you see?

 

My mechanic told me to run 60wt., but that seems pretty unusual to me. I run a synthetic 40wt on the street -- is that too thin for a track weekend?

[Sgt.Gator]

I figure this is as good a place as any: has anyone run 60wt for trackdays on a stock block? What kind of oil pressures do you see?

 

My mechanic told me to run 60wt., but that seems pretty unusual to me. I run a synthetic 40wt on the street -- is that too thin for a track weekend?

 

I run Valvoline 20w-50 VR1 dino race oil in my race cars. I've never run 60wt. VR1 dino (or synthetic) is great stuff for the weekend, but not for a daily driver. But if you're specifically going to run the oil just for your track days then change it to your regular street oil, I recommend it.

 

It has no detergents or other additives a daily street car needs for long term reliable operation.

[Tronic]

No issues running 10W-60 in my Subaru as a daily driver. Basically 5W gives me 17psi of hot oil pressure at idle and 10W gives me 22psi of hot oil pressure in the MR2. Use the same oil in all 3 of my cars.

 

People are over complicating it. Use a genuine oil filter and a decent synthetic oil changed at at least 15,000km intervals or earlier and the engine will go forever.

 

The best advice I can give is for you to change your own oilbecause if you don't you do not know whats actually in the engine anyway so no point even talking about what the best oil to use is !

Edited September 11, 2018 by Tronic

[kzr750r1]

Because the internet. The debate and opinions are endless.

[Tronic]

Because the internet. The debate and opinions are endless.

 

Pointless to have an opinion unless you have kept the same car for at least 10 years and used the same oil in it.

 

Time is the only real test. Have run full synthetics and changed them on a regular basis and have not had to do any serious engine work at all in one of them thats been mine for 20 years now.

 

Decent oil is expensive and I stick to using it from only the major players like Castrol & Mobil.

 

The biggest problem is that people simply don't change their oil often enough or in some cases never. Even a much cheaper oil would probably see your car engine last a lifetime, but you would need to change it more often. personally I would rather put in a great oil, its much cheaper than an engine rebuild. If you have a turbo then the stress on the oil is increased significantly so I wouldn't be using anything other than a synthetic in it, if you plan to keep it for years that is.

[ehsnils]

No issues running 10W-60 in my Subaru as a daily driver. Basically 5W gives me 17psi of hot oil pressure at idle and 10W gives me 22psi of hot oil pressure in the MR2. Use the same oil in all 3 of my cars.

 

 

You should focus more on what's to the right of the "W" than to the left of it for a warm running engine. The quite small difference at idle is not really that significant and it's the oil film strength that matters there.

 

Here's a good article on viscosity difference Pay attention to the cSt value which is the real viscosity of the oil:

http://www.kewengineering.co.uk/Auto_oils/oil_viscosity_explained.htm

 

 

Also realize that if the viscosity is too high then your oil filter will open the bypass valve more and less oil will get filtered which isn't really a good in the long run. This matters a lot when you are running cold starts. A high cold viscosity also increases the wear on starter and makes the car harder to start. Even worse - the pressure may get too high for the pump to handle.

Edited September 15, 2018 by ehsnils

[Tronic]

10W-60 is good for -25C to +50C ambient temperature.

 

Not too many places in the world where the temperature drops below -25C

 

Reality is we never see below freezing here with a maximum of 30C.

 

Castrol EDGE 10W-60 allows you to thrash your car occasionally when your in the mood.

 

I would argue if you use a really good oil and change it often you don't even need an oil filter. Plenty of early motorbikes didn't have one and oil technology has improved dramatically over the years. Run a synthetic and change it every 10,000km and only change the oil filter every second or even third oil change.

Edited September 16, 2018 by Tronic

[TheLed0314]

I owned a new '05 WRX and ran Mobil1 5w30 from 8,000 miles on.

Changed every 4k miles.

Started to burn half quart between changes around 110k miles.

Spun a rod bearing, while bombing some back roads, after 10 years and 159k miles of a heavy right footedness.

 

Stock Turbo, CBE, slight tune, nothing crazy.

[Tronic]

I owned a new '05 WRX and ran Mobil1 5w30 from 8,000 miles on.

Changed every 4k miles.

Started to burn half quart between changes around 110k miles.

Spun a rod bearing, while bombing some back roads, after 10 years and 159k miles of a heavy right footedness.

 

Stock Turbo, CBE, slight tune, nothing crazy.

 

Wouldn't run the Mobil 1 5W-30 in a turbo. Ran the Mobil 1 5W-50 in a Turbo for 10 years, no problems and then switched to Castrol EDGE 10W-60 when it became available. Car has 236,000Km on it and it still runs like new. Its also been on the track a couple of times. The temperatures the oil experiences when it goes through a Turbo is a killer. You could get away with that 5W-30 in a N/A car.

[TheLed0314]

Wouldn't run the Mobil 1 5W-30 in a turbo. Ran the Mobil 1 5W-50 in a Turbo for 10 years, no problems and then switched to Castrol EDGE 10W-60 when it became available. Car has 236,000Km on it and it still runs like new. Its also been on the track a couple of times. The temperatures the oil experiences when it goes through a Turbo is a killer. You could get away with that 5W-30 in a N/A car.

 

I agree. Maybe my comment didn't come out right. Feel like I dumped a motor about 50k miles early.

[JF1GG29]

Fwiw, I ran Brotella T6 5w-40 in my WRX long term: track days, rally cross, autocross, trailered motorcycles with it, and beat the snot out of it on the regular. Had an uppipe, tbe, stock turbo, and basically a stage 2 pro tune.

 

It never burned oil. Spun a rod bearing at 185k miles at a trackday.

[ehsnils]

FYI - viscosity figures on gearbox oil is different from engine oils.

[Tronic]

So basically they are all very similar flow rates at working temperature.

 

What would be more interesting is extending the graph out to 150 Deg C.

 

This is where things start to go wrong for the cheaper oils.

 

Of course it only tells part of the story and has nothing to do with how good the lubrication properties are when it gets there.

 

4 strokes are blessed with oil pressure, my time with 2 strokes really showed up the difference in oils when its just "splashed about" inside the engine.

Edited January 28, 2019 by Tronic

[ehsnils]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2zS8MyvJxU]Is Royal Purple better than Amsoil? Let's find out! - YouTube[/ame]

[ssbtech]

Yum, give me some of that cooked RP!

[Max Capacity]

Here's the comments on the sample of oil from my 05 GT wagon that I just received from Blackstone. The oil had 7,700 miles on it. engine had 117,300 miles, the last sample was sent in when the engine had 19,000 miles. Amsoil 5w-40 European Classic oil.

 

BYRON: This engine is wearing roughly the same as it was at 19,000 miles, but that's not much a surprise.

We've found that an engine's wear characteristics really don't change as it ages. Instead, wear metals

should stay fairly steady until the engine just wears out. That's assuming no mechanical problems develop

along the way and we don't see any in this sample. The viscosity is thin for 5W/40, but just barely. There's

no fuel that might have contributed and a thin viscosity alone is not harmful. The TBN is fine at 5.2. Nice

engine and report.

[NORULZleggy]

Here's the comments on the sample of oil from my 05 GT wagon that I just received from Blackstone. The oil had 7,700 miles on it. engine had 117,300 miles, the last sample was sent in when the engine had 19,000 miles. Amsoil 5w-40 European Classic oil.

 

BYRON: This engine is wearing roughly the same as it was at 19,000 miles, but that's not much a surprise.

We've found that an engine's wear characteristics really don't change as it ages. Instead, wear metals

should stay fairly steady until the engine just wears out. That's assuming no mechanical problems develop

along the way and we don't see any in this sample. The viscosity is thin for 5W/40, but just barely. There's

no fuel that might have contributed and a thin viscosity alone is not harmful. The TBN is fine at 5.2. Nice

engine and report.

 

I run nothing but Amsoil in All my Subies, ran the Race dominator in my 09 WRX, SS in all my others. Being a dealer for so long helps with cost. Their PI for fuel system is great also. Even my lawn mowers run Amsoil lol:spin:

[ehsnils]

A bit of a fun video to watch when it comes to oil:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWuKvnCq1js]Amsoil or Pennzoil, which wins Championship? Let's find out! - YouTube[/ame]

 

 

And there's a whole series of videos leading up to this video.

[ehsnils]

Somewhat related since it's at least carbohydrates:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wvps2gF0Sdo]The Truth About Gas Station Fuel and Why It's So Bad For Small Engines - Video - YouTube[/ame]

[shububu]

I use Shell Rotella T6 5-w40 and live in Northern NJ. I've had no problems so far and use it all year.

[TimothyOnline]

In my '09 2.5i EJ253 (NA) SoA recommends dino 5W-30 SM.

 

I would run Rotella T6 but that isn't rated SM, SN or SN Plus (could damage the catalytic converter). Right now I'm running CARQUEST (Warren Distribution) Full Synthetic 5W-40 in it.

 

I refuse to run anything more than $5/qt as it's leaking profusely from the LH head at the oil control valve gasket. As it did well for a reasonably-priced oil in Project Farm's tests, once I'm out of the Warren stuff I'm going to try to unify the lubricant supplier across my vehicles and systems and go Valvoline MaxLife Full Synthetic 5W-30.

 

Unless you're an automotive engineer or engine builder, the starting point for any oil-related discussion is the manufacturer's recommendation. Keep the level topped off and change it regularly with an OEM or reputable aftermarket filter.

Edited June 18, 2019 by TimothyOnline

[mooselgt]

Rotella t6 has been running fantastic in a 148k

[ashwinearl]

One I haven't seen mentioned a whole lot is Pennzoil Euro Platinum 0W40. I've only been able to find it online through Walmart. Rarely have I seen it in the store.

 

It has Porsche, Audi, VW, and Mercedes Benz certifications.

 

Two crude metrics for me are butt dyno and oil consumption. It feels almost as smooth as Amsoil and the smoothness lasts as long. All oils feels smooth initially, but most others start to feel rough in a short time.

 

OCI 3000-5000 miles. I have not sent away for any oil analysis.

 

Oil consumption is always there with my 2005 Legacy GT wagon with 150k miles on original engine. It is noticeably worse with some other oils like Rotella. The best has been Amsoil, and this is as good.

 

There looks to be a 5W40 through Amazon, but I have only used the 0W40 so far.

[ashwinearl]

Has anyone tried Shell Rotella T6 Multi-vehicle 5W30?

This guy has a good UOA on a Forester XT