Introduction
If you are reading this then
you probably have some interest in the matter and therefore I trust I won’t
bore you unnecessarily.
The
site has been compiled to give the reader an overview to classic car oils, but
also provides some insight into modern car oils as background to the age old argument
of whether these are suitable for older style BMC A and B Series engines.
However, if you are of the
school of thought that says frequent oil changes with mineral 20W50 is the only
answer for your A or B Series then maybe this website isn’t for you and
you may find watching paint dry a more interesting pastime.
If you're looking
for a specific oil that
will give you an extra 10bhp, you won’t find any secrets in here, either.
No
matter what I say on here, I expect some doubting Thomas will still say it's all
a waste of time and frequent oil changes with some cheap oil will work
best. The trouble is, everyone has differing needs and uses their cars in
different ways so I hope that the website will give a clearer view of what is on
offer beyond the usual blinkered arguments from those not particularly qualified
in this field.
And lastly, I don’t make recommendations on specific brands to use as a
general rule. So don't ask.
Summary
It
might be worth summarising the situation regarding this article at the beginning
so that it saves you thirty pages of reading.
-
What oil you should use
will depend on how you use your classic car:
-
If you are a Summer only,
low mileage (<1500miles) classic car owner then use a low grade 20W50 -
Tesco does a 1L bottle of it for £1.65 (as of Sept 2009). Change
at the beginning and the end of the Summer show season.
-
If you want something a little better or do more than 3000 miles all
year round, go to a specially formulated 20W50, such as
Halfords Classic, Comma, Castrol 20W50, Millers or the imported
Australian Penrite.
The
Halfords 20W50 comes in a particularly retro look tin giving that feel of
nostalgia that classic car ownership is all about.
-
If your classic’s engine
is using a lot of oil owing to wear then stick with the Tesco 1L bottle as
they're easy to store in the boot.
-
If your classic is used
everyday as mine is and that means more miles per year in all weathers,
then to my knowledge there are only a few synthetic oils that will meet
the typical 20W50 spec and that is Mobil1 in its 15W50 form and Halfords
do a version, too.
However,
you might probably be as well sticking with the 20W50 mineral oils listed
above even if it means 3k mile service intervals.
-
If the engine was recently rebuilt and is properly bedded in then
there is a choice and a 0W40 synthetic blend will work. I am sure
there are those better qualified than me to say it won't work and
you will damage your engine but so far my experience has been ok
over 20k miles, albeit you will see lower oil pressure at idle but
still adequate.
There are a lot of myths out
there on the forums and BBS pages about what will and won’t work and I can’t
necessarily argue with the experience of worn cam followers as reported by some
owners/engine rebuilders, but, one must also ask whether the wear can be
attributed to the oil or to the quality of the components.
My experience within industry is that oil has improved many fold over
that of even 20 yrs ago, but sadly the quality of machine components has
similarly deteriorated as profits are continually sought in an ever toughening
market.
