Not the most exciting question in the world, but I bet there are some of you with strong opinions.... Car sees a couple thousand miles a year, never anything much lower than 45 degree air temp, certainly never freezing. Temps do hit the mid 90's frequently in the summer (with 100% humidity, brutal NYS summers) So what brand and what weight oil would you guys go with. I've always gone with Mobil 1 in my other cars.

 

I have been using Mobile 1 5w30 my whole life... South Florida, Tennessee & now Virginia where I'm stationed... works great for me!

 

mobile 1 5-30 here also, seems to be a pretty standard answer around here

 

I use Pennzoil 10-30 high mileage or Pennzoil Platinum 10-30. The high mileage oils are on the thick side so it really helps quiet the engine. The Platinum is on the thin side but offers longer oil change intervals.

 

Amsoil 10W-40 in the Camaro
Amsoil XL 5W-30 in the 2002 Expedition

 

I'm thinking about changing to Royal Purple 5w30... any good feedback on this from anyone who has or currently using it?? I don't think there is much difference or a "better" synthetic oil out... be pretty hard to beat Mobile 1... but hey, I'll take that chance in being proved wrong!

 

10-40 huh? That seems a bit thick, no? I use that on my 2000 Silverado (5.3, 260,000 miles) just because of the mileage and lifter noise that has been there for 10 years. What made you go with that?

 

Aftermarket performance parts, higher zinc levels, drive it about 1500 miles per year, and run it fairly hard when I do.

I wouldn't put RP 5W-30 in my weedeater.

 

Valvoline VR1 or Joe Gibbs

 

I too would be interested in the differences between something like Royal Purple and Mobil 1, thank Bad2theBONE.

And SS, I think I may go with something a little thicker as well. I thought when car manufacturers started switcing to 5-30 it was for fuel economy reasons... I dunno.

Alvin, what weight do you recommend?

 

Valvoline VR1 here....black or Silver bottle

 

In the huge What's wrong with Comp Cams thread, oil repeatedly cam up.

In summation: Valvoline VR1 10W30 or Amsoil Z-Rod 10W30 is what you should be running. If you're running anything else with a modified engine, you're playing with fire. Why?

Two reasons: First, EPA requires oils meet the SI specification, which includes less ZDDP anti-wear additives for pollution concerns and most have much less "cushion" protection than you need on a modified motor. The LS1 was designed when the SL specification was around and there were much higher levels of ZDDP. I'll come back to that in a moment.

Second: Oil acts as a shock absorber in the engine and need to be able to withstand tons of shearing force to protect cam lobes, lifters, bearings, etc. VR1 and Z-Rod have both been tested to provide around 100k PSI of shock force. Regular Mobil 1 comes in around 60k PSI. Most of the other high-dollar synthetics are in the 70-80k range. Anything over 90k is considered to be a good oil when running aftermarket parts. Keep that in mind. It's more than just ZDDP levels, tho VR1 has plenty of that as well. Stay away from the VR1 NSL formula, it is the best, but includes no detergents and cannot be run on the street. The VR1 Conventional is $5/qt at AutoZone and Amazon. It is also a pretty thick oil. Z-Rod is closer to $10-11/qt and is a full synthetic. VR1 also comes in as a full synthetic at the same price.

Now for near stock motors, or mildly modified engines, you can still find SL oils at AutoZone. German Castrol Syntec 0W30 is made in Germany and meets the older EPA guidelines for oil. It's a terrific oil for your engine and can be had for $5/qt. It's a thick oil despite the 0W30 rating - thicker than Mobil 1 5W30 - and increases oil pressure in your motor.

Btw, Rotella is not nearly as good as what I just listed based on sheer performance. It's marginally worse than Mobil 1 despite having a higher ZDDP content.

 

Castrol Syntec 0w30. If I'm in a pinch and it's not on sale in an oil change special I will run Pennzoil Platinum.

changes vary between 5k and 7k miles depending on how the car was used, how it looks/feels, and if I need to "top it off" anyway for the non-sale price of $9/qt (versus a $30 oil change kit)

 

M1 10w40 in old z06 and now z28.

 

m1 0w40

 

how many of you have UOA in this car to back up your purely marketting based opinions?

 

What I posted is based on the UOA and sheer testing that was done on Bobistheoilguy...

 

We used to run Mobil 1 in the truck and Vette. Both always had a tapping noise. The truck did it from day 1. Recently switched both to Royal Pyrple and quieted them both up.

Frank

 

5-30 in the winter, 5 or 10-40 in the summer. 30 weight is too thin for sustained higher temps and rpm. You need viscosity to protect the bearings and heat lowers a 30 weight to a 20 weight in no time! SAE numbers are gathered at 210 degrees!

http://www.elephantracing.com/techto...emperature.htm



I don't begin hating on my engine until it's fully up to temperature. I'm the guy you don't want to get behind as I'm pulling out of my driveway with a cold engine as I'll take 20-30 seconds to even get to the speed limit if I didn't let it warm up first. Once the temp gauge is where it should be I start to ease into party time.

 

Run any quality oil you want....Mobil 1, Pennzoil P, RP, Joe etc...It doesnt matter! Just change your oil regualray based on your driving habits.

I run Royal Purple HPS 5W-30 personally, but do not clain anything from it except it has zinc!