Yeah, I was going to leave it in for the winter when it isn't being driven and then change it in the spring to Castrol GTX 10W40 or something similar.
I'm generally in this camp. I plan to use 10w40 dino oil in my newly acquired 308 QV. Not really too concerned about the brand, although I usually get Castrol as it's readily available.
I only use Valvoline VR1 Racing 20W50. These old engines don't like the new synthetic stuff and I don't find there is a need for it. This is the best conventional motor oil around, although it is still just as pricey as the synthetic stuff.
I have filled my 308GTS '79 with : Engine : Castrol GTX Trans : REDLINE 75W90 NS !! Unbelievable wonder, fluid gold, for the gearbox and difflock, the difflock close much more erlier. This oil is not cheap, but the absolutely No1. Shifting is 3x quickly no different, when is cold or warm, absolutely the best.
20-50 or maybe shell rotella 15-40 was what has been recommended to me. The Brad Penn 20w50 is what I have been putting in lately because it has the extra ZDDP added in. Until I can rebuild the engine and get the proper size pistons to cylinders in, I am (like most) stuck pouring in a bottle of oil every couple of times I fill up.
As usual I do things different. I have been using Quaker State in all my cars Without any problems. I tried castrol in my pick-up for two years and sludge built up and clogged the oil pump which caused two inserts to spin. All oil meet's the min requirement while some claim to exceed the requirement. There is synthetic, paraffin base and sulfur base oil. Paraffin being wax will create sludge while sulfur will clean the engine but may break down under heat. To open a can of worms let's talk about filters. Haa..a. All filters meet the min requirement but the minimum does not trap everything and the maximum will restrict the flow and clog easily. So do you want good oil flow with some dirt or low oil flow with no dirt? If you change your filter more often can you go further between oil changes?
Does anyone know if Consumer Reports still does their testing of these things? It would be nice to see their test results on filters and oil.
Jonny Law, If you really want to know more about "WHAT OIL" than you'll ever need to know, start here: http://ferrarichat.com/forum/faq.php?faq=haas_articles#faq_motor_oil_basics Then search for all the ancillary articles from Dr. Haas on this site (Search the Technical Q&A section for Oil and user AEHaas). There is quite literally a few days worth of reading. Some very good information and some tedium for those who need that level of information. After a few hours you'll either know EXACTLY what oil you need to use or be so confused you'll never want to see your dipstick again. Rick
The factory manual lists 10-50 but I can't find it. Any hints on where to purchase it? Also is Agip even available in the US? I decided to go with 10-40 but I see some people are using 20-50 in the summer. That may keep the heat down but I think it protects a little less. I moved my oil cooler to the left vent and have additional air flow through the wheel well so I don't have to worry about that as much - great mod!
Yes, you can buy agip in the USA directly from agip. Friendly people and good prices. They now make 10-40 instead of 10-50.
Interestingly, when modern performance engine shops build US musclecar V8 motors, 5W30 is a very common recommendation. The lighter oil has much less frictional drag, carries heat better, and gets where it needs to go quicker. Of course, we are talking about engines that are essentially blueprinted, not production engines with clearances varying all over the place. Just curious, anybody know what oil is specified for a current (new) Ferrari?
"the Enzo runs on 10W60" Wow - I wouldn't think oil with that wide a viscosity range could maintain that range for more than maybe 1000 miles, if that. Seems like at the normal oil change interval it would probably be around 30 wt!
Now I'm curious about how close to "blueprint" 308 engines were when they left the factory. Any data around?
Well, the fact that Ferrari considered it "within specs" to burn a quart of oil in several hundred miles indicates that they were not built to particularly exacting standards - certainly not to blueprinting standards. Since some cars burned that much oil and others went 2k+ miles before being a quart low, it pretty much shows that the engine assembly tolerances/practices were actually on the rather sloppy side. It seems to me that they had exactly the same chance of a good (or bad) engine as any auto manufacturer - if you lucked out you got a motor where all the specs "came together;" if you didn't, you burned a quart of oil in less than 1k miles with the associated other issues (less power, carbon buildup on the valves/pistons, excessive blowby) and as far as Enzo was concerned, it was "in spec."
