4AGZE Oil Type

[craigy]

hey guys,

I did a bit of a search on this topic and didnt come up with much, but if I have missed a previous thread or you can help me out.
Wondering what type of oil people are running in there GZE's.

I'm using Penrite 5w/40 semi synthetic at the moment, does this seem likre a wise choice?
It was a total stab in the dark after reading the back of the containers!

cheers
Craigy

[blacktop]

Motul Turbolight 10W-40 i would think is a good choice,

I personally don't like Penrite, no one in the racing industrie that i know of use it, and if its not good enough for them its not good enough for me

[YLD-16L]

I use and have been using for a while now the HPR10 in the Penrite range. Prior to that I used Mobil 1 which was a 5w-40w oil.

The only difference I noticed going to the HPR10 was a quieter startup. The Mobil one was very very thin in comparison.

I can't see a problem with using the oil you've chosen provided your engine is in a healthy state.

[legend]

synthetic seems the way to go like castrol,mobil1,gulf western,etc
i will be running mobil1 in mine after the engine's run-in

[abently]

I looked at a range of brands a while ago, looking for the best in the under $35 price range for the run-around Excel which still has perfect compression but seals, not so.....

Anyway, Mobil 1 10W-40 Semi-synthetic came on top followed very closely by Castrol GTX3. The price difference was only like a $1 also, but if it had been $5 more expensive to get the Mobil Semi-Synthetic, I would have got the Castrol instead.

This was done by comparing the cSt @ 40 & 100deg along with the HTHS values of the Oils that I could get info on. If a company doesn't list these standard Test values then they're hiding it for some reason.

Funnily enough a few brand name Oils don't like Fuchs & Elf............

[psychofox]

Motul Turbolight 10W-40 i would think is a good choice,

I personally don't like Penrite, no one in the racing industrie that i know of use it, and if its not good enough for them its not good enough for me

I think you'll find that most people in the racing industry use the oil that the are sponsored by - they don't really have a choice.

I have used Mobil 1 (5W50), Penrite 10/10ths Comp Synthetic (15W40), Castrol Edge Sport (5W30) in my 4As. The edge sport was a bit light and made the engine a bit rattly when it was hot. I probably would go with Mobil1 or the Penrite again.

[The Witzl]

i wouldnt be going the full synthetic oils unless your engine is pretty healthy and fresh.

If its an older, slightly more worn out engine, i'd stick to a semi synthetic around the 15W50 weight. I use it in my gf's worn out smallport 4A-GE and it works beautifully (never rattly)

[psychofox]

I can't see the logic for not using fully synthetic oils. They are better than semi synth - we're not talking about a pushrod 253 holden V8 here.

This is my experience of fully synthetic oils. I had a AE93 SX. I bought it at 120,000kms. I used 5W50 Mobil 1. I did oil changes every 5,000-8,000 kms with a new filter every time. It did another 230,000 hard kilometers until my sister drove it with a stuck thermostat - result cracked head. When I pulled the head off I could see the original hone marks in the block. Make of that what you will but I have used fully synthetic oils ever since.

[4agte]

I can't see the logic for not using fully synthetic oils. They are better than semi synth - we're not talking about a pushrod 253 holden V8 here.

This is my experience of fully synthetic oils. I had a AE93 SX. I bought it at 120,000kms. I used 5W50 Mobil 1. I did oil changes every 5,000-8,000 kms with a new filter every time. It did another 230,000 hard kilometers until my sister drove it with a stuck thermostat - result cracked head. When I pulled the head off I could see the original hone marks in the block. Make of that what you will but I have used fully synthetic oils ever since.

if the car sees any sort of track work/spirited drives or just driven hard then you should use nothing but fully synthetic oil they are alot more stabe at constant high temperatures the protection value alone as opposed to its other qualities is reason enough

psychofox is correct most race teams will use their sponsors oil not so much because its better than another oil but more becuase its free so why not plus it makes the sponsor happy its just one less thing you need to pay for and it can quickly add up.

For the most part there isnt much difference between true fully synthetic oils however some oils that claim to be fully synthetic are only shocked mineral oils such as a certian oil thats made from caster beans

I use mobil 1 5w 50 in my 4a's because of personal preference more than anything else

[blacktop]

I think most budget race teams use what they can afford (which is usually Motul) as most budget teams don't get oil for free, I'll almost bet my ass that most National level Drift Racers use Motul for the donk and Motul or Redline for the Box, the key word in that is MOST so don't flame me if you know that Bolger uses Castrol or some shit like that.

Fully Synthetic oil is better than Mineral oil for all modern cars as a fact

[The Witzl]

my problem with using a full synthetic oil like a 5W50 in a worn out old 4A is that it's pretty thin.

We are talking about an engine that was designed in the early 80s, when tolerances weren't that great and machining wasnt as precise as it is by modern standards. With that in mind i lean towards a thicker oil, especially on an engine that hasnt been touched since it was assembled by Mr Toyoda.

HOWEVER - if your engine has been rebuild with tighter tolerances/clearances, then i would certainly go for a fully synthetic oil. Especially if it were a performance engine.

Of course this is all my experience... and i've only ever played with thrashed 4As.

[craigy]

The car gets driven to the track and back (bout 500ks) plus a whole day of drifting once a month.
Engine has been freshly rebuilt, done about 2000ks

[abently]

my problem with using a full synthetic oil like a 5W50 in a worn out old 4A is that it's pretty thin.

That is not exactly true.

The weight of the Oil dictates it's thickness. The quality of the Oil will only vary its thickness by about 10%-15% at the extreme end of the scale.

A 5W50 Synthetic Oil in a old Engine would most likely not even use a drop. Tolerances since the late 80's have been set pretty tight by a lot of Manufacturers and Engine's built before then have generally under gone a rebuild in their lifetime as well with tighter clearances set as most old-school Mechanics learned a long time ago what clearances needed to be set for longevity.

[abently]

The car gets driven to the track and back (bout 500ks) plus a whole day of drifting once a month.
Engine has been freshly rebuilt, done about 2000ks

Depends how much you want to spend. Around the $60 mark, go the Castrol Edge 0W-40 Oil. Around the $80 mark Motul 300V 5W-40, above the $120 mark, Redline 5W-40.

If you don't care so much gaining that extra 1 tenth of a milli-second, Castrol Edge 0W-40 and just change it religiously after 5000K's or when you notice your Oil Pressure lower then usual (If you have an accurate after market Gauge)

[4agte]

I think most budget race teams use what they can afford (which is usually Motul) as most budget teams don't get oil for free, I'll almost bet my ass that most National level Drift Racers use Motul for the donk and Motul or Redline for the Box, the key word in that is MOST so don't flame me if you know that Bolger uses Castrol or some shit like that.

Fully Synthetic oil is better than Mineral oil for all modern cars as a fact

possibly not most australian race teams but motorsport in aus is crap anyways