What oil for my engine?

Well Theodore I'm no expert on oil but I've been using 20/50 Castrol with a quart or two of Lucas oil treatment with superb oil pressure. Perhaps others know more on this topic than I can offer. BTW you didn't mention mileage which might be a factor in choosing. Regards, Dana

 

I am currently running on 5W40 because I need to break in my rebuilt engine. In a month or so (after 3 hours run-in, and 50kms/30miles) I will switch to 20W50 from Agip.

 

I've been very happy with Mobil 1 synthetic 15W-50 for the last several years. The only drawback is that it is up to about $8/qt these days and so the 19 quarts needed for a change is on the expensive side.

 

I just switched back to a synthetic 20/50 AMZOIL in my 1980 400i and I just love it.It has all of the proper Zinc formulations and the tappets quiet down almost immediately at start-up, and she revs very freely..the oil and water run consistantly 10 degrees cooler, and in Florida, that's a really good thing...and no ..it does NOT leak oil from anywhere at all. Also, I now use AMZOIL ATF into my automatic transmission, after hte recent rebuild, and the difference is amazing,and it shifts like never before..I am a true believer that oil leaks with synthetics are a thing of the past with the new formulations...if you leak with the new synthetics, you will probably leak with dino oils. Sure, they're expensive..but who cares? Truly, not me..cheaper than any repair that I can personaly think of.." Used to hate it till I ate it" (Snake meat, that is)....Jacques.

 

I use 'Total Quartz Racing' oil it is a Synthetic oil and comes in the Ferrari recommend viscosity rating of 10w /50.
No additives needed.
no US reduced zinc for cats. and the price is right.
Being a French company it should be easy for you to get.

 

The guy who rebuilt the engine on my 400i wrote on the filler cap "Use Mobil 1 15W50 ONLY!"

So that's what I'll stick with. Cause he used an exclamation point and CAPS...must be important.

 

I used Mobil 1 15W-50 (except for dino oil for the break in period) in my vintage race engines and I always had very good results and no engine failures, so that is why I switched to that for my 400i.

 

agreed its a great site, Theo how about posting up a pic of your car?

 

Theodore:

Thank you for posting the photos of your "Frankenstein". While it obviously needs some work, I have seen much worse and I offer you best wishes as you bring your car back to the appearance that you would like.

Please keep us up to date on your progress and feel free to ask this very knowledgeable group here if you have any questions about sources for parts or methods of repairing your car.

 

You want to use constant type of oil

 

Theodore, consider changing the o-rings under the oil filters. Search this forum for directions. Also see this post on replacing the oil line.
http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/365-gt4-2-2-400-412/414868-oil-line-fail.html

 

I use any good oil available when required.
I think is is far better to change oil and filter more often, than to choose an expensive oil and leave it.

 

In general I agree with you but oil technology has improved dramatically over the years and it makes economic and environmental sense to use the best oil possible for the application and also to utilize the full life of that oil before returning it to the waste or recycling stream. Oils from years ago that used to be worn out after 3,000 miles have been replaced by new synthetics and even dino source technology that safely extends the life of motor oil to 5,000 miles or even more.

With newer technology plus oil analysis services to confirm oil condition, there is no need to change it more frequently than required, regardless of whether it is expensive or cheaper.

BTW, Walmart here in the U.S. sells 5 quart jugs of Mobil 1 for about $25, a significant discount compared to the $8-9/qt prices charged in the auto part supply stores. This is full of win!