If your running an flat tappet style hydrulic cam you might want to read the article in June's edition of HOT ROD about how they are reformulating today's motor oil. They are removing some zinc and phosphorus that they claim can get blown by to the the cat and reduce its efficiency. Evidently these are 2 important pieces that provide lubrication between the cam lobe and the lifter. They say this will not impact the modern engines that use roller or overhead cams but could help wipe out cam lobes on older engines during break in procedures and in everyday use . If you read the article is says there is a printed type seal that states approved for Gasoline Engines on the bottles that have this new formulated oil. They also provide a chart giving the content of these elements based on the API Service ratings over the past couple years. The alternatives listed are oil used in diesel engines(although they say this too will change soon) ,racing oil, and possibly putting additives in the oil. I would assume this impacts solid lifters too? If this helps this much with lubrication I would think it still would have a minor impact on friction points in modern engines but I guess they are not worried about how long your car will last today?? I have not seen anyone on here mention it and thought I would give a heads up. I switched to a racing style oil myself as I do not have a roller cam just roller lifters. I know many of our older engines use these types of cams.
adding the thicker stp style oil additive with each change should compensate, still makes you mad though.
I use Lucas, and am very happy with the performance (increased oil pressure, better stickiness, etc.). I have assumed that this would fix the zinc issue, but according to the article, it is the mineral content that is eating the lifters, not lack of viscosity nor lubrication. Does anyone know if Lucas has the extra minerals, or if the extra viscosity overcomes the zinc/phosphorus deficiency? If I am not mistaken, my cam installation instructions recommended to use a cheap, and NON Xw-Y oil (use 30 wt, not 10w-30) and I just assumed that the installation lube had the extra minerals the oil did not have.
I think its Bogus, Since most imports are OHC engines they have no way of running roller, this just wouldnt make sence. By the way less zink doesnt mean its bad. There are many brands of oil which have NO zink. Quaker state, havoline formaula 3, red line, amsoil. More zink doesnt give you better protection it gives you longer protection for metal on metal(no oil pressure, air cooled motors, turbocharged) Also adding oil additives is about the worse thing you can do. Oil companies are multi-billion dollar companys with more money for research then just about anyone. Dont you think if they could do something to their oil to make it better then someone elses, they would. Lucas, slick 50, and others can do more harm then anything by upsetting the oils balance. Its all mental, just makes you think your doing something to help. A far better choice would be to change oil every 1500 miles. SAE says 3000, but this is based on tests inside a lab with simulated highway miles.
Don't get me wrong, I am NOT advocating using "Slick 50"... However that blanket statement you made and included this product is wrong. Slick 50 (since that is the brand brought up) is composed of 75% basic, everyday 30w motor oil. The other 25% is teflon 'beads'. Teflon does not harm your engine. The 'beads' of teflon in the product in this discussion are large enough that a good oil filter can catch much of it, negating any positive affect they could have in the engine. Personally I use 100% uncut, liquid teflon in my engines. Have done this to ALL my engines since 1991, when introduced to the product. It has a positive affect on fuel economy, wear, and cleanliness of the engine. I know a lot of folks see all additives as 'snake oil', but in my experience, I know teflon worked for me. Dave
i was sent to a 1 day class at work on oil...the most stressed point of the class was...never use any type additives...they upset the oil balance ...frank...
I have had good luck with that engine restore stuff. My dad told me about it originally. It has made everything from the F.E. 360 in my '71 F250 to my grandpa's '85 Honda Civic run 100% better. You can see little particles of something in it. Don't know what it is, but the stuff works wonders on old worn out engines. I think all the rest of them are crap though. My grandpa ran Slick 50 in his 350 Chevy powered motor home for years and it's smokeing like crazy with 144,000 on it.
Bullcrap. I would safely say that over 95% of the OHC engines presently made have some sort of "rollerized" set-up in them. Either roller tips on the valve stem side or roller tips on the cam side of the rocker. Sometimes both ends have some sort of roller device not to mention the probability of the "fulcrum" also be a roller something or other.
hmmmm, when i was working at a refinery that recyceled oil and coolant i was told the temperature it flashed off and seperated in the fractioning column was how you determined what chemicals were left in the oil. and the weight/grade of oil determined the pressure and temperature that the oil would "break down" losing its adhesion to the metal surface. additives put in at the refinery are there as a surfactant to hold the surface tension of the molecules longer. much like soap does for water to make it able to bubble(which can be used to form mycels for a polymer) the reason i suggested stp is that it is designed to add surface adhesion under temperature and stress. this will protect the lifter surface enough to make up for the loss of some other surfactants.ratio hit it correctly about slick50. it was designed with a good idea, but the teflon molecules they use are too big and get removed too quickly to be worth the effort. each additive is designed to work in certain conditions, read the directions before using them and get the ones for your engine. I try not to use any besides the stp because i have seen bad chemestry in practice as well as good. a lot of the surfactants that are supposed to help your engine will clog a lot of the oil channels and prevent good flow. i only would use it on my truck because the oils i use have up until now been formulated correctly. if they do change the formula, i may start using it or i may just use motorcycle oil for a 4 stroke. that is designed to last under the pressures of a wet clutch and will hold up to metal on metal really well. sorry if the shortness of my first post came across as uninformative.
Not to hi-jack the thread, but it made me think of something. I was reading somewhere to use a high zinc content oil when breaking in an engine. Which oils would this include ? Or, is there an additive to use ? Darrel
The race specific oils have not been changed. That's what we use in the sprint car with flat tappet cam and nearly 8000 rpm.
OHC engines presently made have some sort of "rollerized" set-up in them. Really??? I guess cadillac quit making its northstar engine then. There are still more cars made today with conventional OHC then rollerized. Honda, Nissan, dodge, Ferrari, many many..... ... .. . Sierra, your right, they burn off the oil to see whats left thats called Ash content. Pennzoil has high Zinc but also has alot of ash content, so typically motors with pennzoil end up having more sludge and buildup. It also seems that as zink increases so does its ash content. Pennzoil has .17% zink Valvoline Race .20%zink
