phil Dean Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 Probably open a bag or worms with this one but here goes. Whilst the car is up on axle stands with the diff out I thought I would drain the engine oil take the sump off see if it needs straightening and refit to again try and stop some more of my cars identity crisis. It thinks it's the Torrey Canyon. However what oil to use I have no idea whats in it or for how long. In the past I have used Valvoline 20W50 VR1 racing oil in the Avenger but it was a high revving semi comp engine. TRGB suggest Penrite 20w/60 but the problem is our engines need more than 5 litres and I am not sure you can get Penrite in 1 litre cans. I still have some Valvoline left from my last oil change on the Avenger so it might be the way to go. The engine on the TR as far as I know is standard. Anybody got any other suggestions dos or don't use. Phil. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nigel C Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 Have to say I've gone over to Valvoline 20/50 VR1, gives better oil pressure reading when hot (and very hot!) and for some reason burns less +1 from me...... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamish Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 8 minutes ago, Nigel C said: Have to say I've gone over to Valvoline 20/50 VR1, gives better oil pressure reading when hot (and very hot!) and for some reason burns less +1 from me...... Same here +1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nigel C Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 so, cheapest source this week? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TR4Tony VC Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 VR1 seems to be an excellent oil for our engines and I use it. I’ve had a bit of correspondence with Valvoline Technical and its composition is well suited to pre and post war cast iron engines. Regards Tony Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BlueTR3A-5EKT Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 5 hours ago, Nigel C said: so, cheapest source this week? Tanya Batteries. ? https://www.tayna.co.uk/engine-oil/valvoline/20w50-vr1-5l/?msclkid=41b13ac6479e11e7c1745cc104e28432 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nick Seber Posted March 30 Report Share Posted March 30 15 hours ago, Hamish said: Same here +1 +1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamish Posted March 30 Report Share Posted March 30 If you do eBay it’s less than £40 delivered in 2-3days I've used pipercross before and it’s been fine. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phil Dean Posted March 30 Author Report Share Posted March 30 (edited) Looks like its valvoline then Edited March 30 by phil Dean Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nigel C Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I've used Piper, Tanya and Opie oils and all been good on delivery. My next door neighbour converted me to this oil and I usually look for deals on 2 5ltrs cans and we split the cost and have a beer at the same time ! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 LOts of options for our cars, most 20W50's are fine as long as they have the required amount of ZDDP in them. Personally I have been using this for a while now: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/112846111470 Bob Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PodOne Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I could be missing it, but looking at the Valvoline data sheet I can see no mention of the levels of ZDDP. Bobs Westway suggestion seems good value for 5L and states the additive levels are these levels considered optimum for a road based car? Andy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Peter Cobbold Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 A rule of thumb: if an oil is stated to be safe for catalytic convertors, it does not have enough ZDDP for our engines' design. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
iain Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I have used Penrite 20/60 for quit some time now. Purchased in 20l drum. Performance is excellent, good oil pressure even in hot climates after hard days driving. I’m going to try Motul 20/50 at the next oil change and see how that fares. ZDDP levels are good with this as well. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
trchris Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I’m with Bob Westway 20/50 although it’s their mineral oil not semi synthetic good value as well especially when you buy 20lts no need to buy a designer brand it’s all the same in the grand scheme of things if you have low psi it’s not the oil causing it Chris Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andy Moltu Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I'm happy with Westway. I suspect their price reflects on the low market budget rather than low quality. Some of the big brands have big marketing budgets and price regulation to satisfy the classic cars vendors. Locally Millers used to have a depot with a very helpful manager who confirmed they sold identical oil under different names, depending on the market - retailers fleet operators, classic market. Product A is the same as product B but 30% cheaper. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Drewmotty Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I use the Penrite and like Iain buy it in a 20 litre drum. I find that the oil pressure varies less under various driving conditions. The formulation includes an inhibitor which thickens on surfaces exposed to air and protects them when the car is not in use for longer periods. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AndyR100 Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 I currently use (and have done for a while since VR1 prices escalated rapidly) Classic Oils Heritage mineral 20/50, still very competitively priced and the Zn as ZDDP stated correctly, but there is a shipping charge if spending less than £75 now (buying a 20l drum is even better value and free shipping) …… Andy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ctc77965o Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 These engines are a 1940s design, happy to work on dinosaur oil... you need some zinc, just like the oils in the '60s had. A hi-tech modern oil is wasted on these old engines. For all my cars i use branded diesel engine oils.. they are much cheaper, widely available in 5 litre and 18-20 litre sizes, lots of detergent and no 'catalyst compliance'. Search for API CF4/SG 20W50 oils, i see a variety in the UK - 65 UKP for 20 Litres Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andy Moltu Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 I was advised by a family member who used to work in the petrochemical industry that not all oils are the same size in spite of the same designation. Different base oils with different viscosity modifier and detergent packages. Poorer quality ones used cheaper base oil with a heftier modifier pack to meet the designation required. The concern is how the modifiers held up in use. Perhaps this isn’t that relevant for low mileage cars where oil changes are at lower mileages than when the cars were current. The theory behind synthetic engine oils is that they use base oils that are an optimal fit with the grade of oil required and that they are less dependent on the modifier package and are less likely to altered by ageing in use and the viscosity changing. Semi-synthetic is a tricky one- what proportion is synthetic and is it blended with a quality base oil? I used to use Valvoline until it’s price rose substantially & then went to Millers but when their local distribution centre closed, the deal the manager used to give the club went. Then went over to Westway, initially for their running in oil and then their mineral 20/50 when I rebuilt the 4a engine and then the semi-synthetic. The semi-synth seems to hold its pressure when hot better than the mineral. In the 6 the semi-synth gave the same pressures as Millers semi-synthetic did. They happily state their ZDDP contact and decent prices which is a factor when you have 3 classics and their deliveries are prompt. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Motorsport Mickey Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 I think maybe owners need to be careful. Westway market at least 2 oils at 20-50 (maybe more) and there's only 1 that I can find that says it has a high Zinc content (1500 Zinc by content ZDDP), Bobs using it. Indeed there is a statement on some 20-50 containers offered that it CAN be used on engines with a catalyst. As Peter states in an earlier post, a template used is if you can use it on a catalyst engine it's likely NOT got a high Zinc ZDDP content, which means I won't use it on my engines. Mick Richards Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Peter Cobbold Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 The reason I use the 'cat-safe' criterion for ZDDP content is because there are two ways of stating ZDDP content that superficially look the same but actually are very different. "ZDDP ppm" is a lot lower ( maybe 10-fold) than "Zn ppm as ZDDP". So look for "Zn ppm" 1000-1500 region, as Mick says above. "!500 ppm ZDDP" is not enough. Peter Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BlueTR3A-5EKT Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 15 hours ago, iain said: I have used Penrite 20/60 for quit some time now. Purchased in 20l drum. Performance is excellent, good oil pressure even in hot climates after hard days driving. I’m going to try Motul 20/50 at the next oil change and see how that fares. ZDDP levels are good with this as well. Me too. I have sufficient Motul 20/50 to do an oil change and will be doing so very soon. If it lunches my engine I will report back and also give Motul an earful. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james christie Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 For my 3A I’ve been using Motul ‘After 1950’ for the last two annual oil changes and thus about 3500km. So far so good, good oil pressure hot and cold. Good local availability in 2 litre tins james Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andy Moltu Posted April 1 Report Share Posted April 1 Just looked on Ebay and westway list high zinc 20/50s in mineral and semi synthetic forms. Whatever oil you get, it's worth checking it's got enough zinc. Morris lubricants market a classic oil but we're not willing to divulge, what the zDDP content was(if any). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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