Passenger side of the engine you won't be able to see it heh. It is fairly well hidden but with a few seconds of feeling around you will find it. Also don't do this when the engine is hot; then again I assume you know this.
oh yea i know... Ill see if i can find it..
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1986 300ZX Turbo White on Burgandy *Stock*
1992 Galant VR4 White on Black *Not Stock*
1992 Galant VR4 White on Black *Stock*
2001 Yamaha R1 *Stock*
I think everyone just likes putting the little spades by your name man! Maybe that is what is happening in my NX- I was going to pull the pan this weekend and see if the pickup is clogged
__________________ ONE OF THESE DAYS I'LL FIGURE OUT HOW TO CHANGE MY WIPER BLADES
I was thinking more along the lines of a gas/diesel oil but Mobil 1 has (historically) a lot of detergency and the 15W-50 weight in particular has a considerable additive package and is not subject to the EPA meddling that is so often found with the lighter weights.
For the last year or more, I'd been saying that one of the heavier (and cheaper!) oils I liked for high-performance applications was Pennzoil Long Life 15W-40. The dual-rated gas/diesel oils have greater amounts of detergents in them along with more barrier wear protection (zinc phosphate, moly and/or boron) if/when the hydrodynamic oil film fails. The engine should then wear less and remain cleaner (internally) longer.
But just when I thought I had found one of the best heavy-duty/high performance oils going, the fools removed the nearly 200ppm of molybdenum from the formula about 6-8 months ago. There had been some discussion within the industry that this stuff does more harm than good in certain diesel engines over tens of thousands of miles of use.
Cummins had a long standing service bulletin against the use of molybdenum in their engines. Of course this doesn't make any sense anymore as the oil Cummins now specifically recommends for their engines is Valvoline’s Blue 15W-40 ... which has moly in it.
Most of us at BITOG felt the anti-moly sentiment was directed to the suspended solid form molybdenum disulphide (usually found in gear oils, greases and some additives) and not the soluble/liquid moly found for many years in quality motor oils like Red Line and Schaeffer.
And this is contrary to the industry trend as nearly all motor oils have added soluble moly to their formula over the past 3 years … usually 50 to 100ppm.
Anyway, it looks like the good folks at Chevron have picked up the moly ball and are running with it. The latest version of Delo400 now has about 200ppm of the stuff!
Wow 15-50 is a bit much. The heaviest I would use on the VG30 would be 15-40, and I'm not convinced of the consequences of using that either. Remember, that oil has to be able to flow through the small passages in the turbo center housing at a respectable rate. You NA guys don't have to worry about that, but we do. 15-50, especially cold, I don't think has the right flow characteristics to keep the turbo properly oiled during warm up. I'm not sure how thick this stuff is at temperature either, but thicker is not always better. You could be masking an oil pump going out, in fact you may accelerate it's failure using the thicker oil. Also every seal and gasket in the engine will be stressed more by the higher oil pressure. Heck, I've seen 80 psi at idle from 15-40 when cold. Check what weight oil the car was supposed to use from the factory. For the VG30 I beleive it was either 10-30 or 10-40. Using the recommended weight oil and having a ticking problem should tell you something about your motors internal condition.
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1992 Yamaha FZR 1000. 145 Hp, all stock..
Wow 15-50 is a bit much. The heaviest I would use on the VG30 would be 15-40, and I'm not convinced of the consequences of using that either. Remember, that oil has to be able to flow through the small passages in the turbo center housing at a respectable rate. You NA guys don't have to worry about that, but we do. 15-50, especially cold, I don't think has the right flow characteristics to keep the turbo properly oiled during warm up. I'm not sure how thick this stuff is at temperature either, but thicker is not always better. You could be masking an oil pump going out, in fact you may accelerate it's failure using the thicker oil. Also every seal and gasket in the engine will be stressed more by the higher oil pressure. Heck, I've seen 80 psi at idle from 15-40 when cold. Check what weight oil the car was supposed to use from the factory. For the VG30 I beleive it was either 10-30 or 10-40. Using the recommended weight oil and having a ticking problem should tell you something about your motors internal condition.
I use Amsoil 20W-50 since I hit 100K and at 125K my compression tested at 160 across the board except for #6 which was at 150.
I use Amsoil 20W-50 since I hit 100K and at 125K my compression tested at 160 across the board except for #6 which was at 150.
My chassis is at 162k, I have my doubts about the age of the engine, it's very easy to remove any of the bolts on it. For example the P-side exhaust mani bolts came loose with nowhere near the effort I've seen on other high mileage cars. Compression was 130 across the board, at 5500 feet of altitude.
I just have my doubts about the effectiveness and useflulness of thicker oil like that in a car that probably won't see much high performance use. Simply to prop up a lifter tick problem, I don't think it's a good idea. Best to fix whatever causes that in the first place, IMO.
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1992 Yamaha FZR 1000. 145 Hp, all stock..
My chassis is at 162k, I have my doubts about the age of the engine, it's very easy to remove any of the bolts on it. For example the P-side exhaust mani bolts came loose with nowhere near the effort I've seen on other high mileage cars. Compression was 130 across the board, at 5500 feet of altitude.
I just have my doubts about the effectiveness and useflulness of thicker oil like that in a car that probably won't see much high performance use. Simply to prop up a lifter tick problem, I don't think it's a good idea. Best to fix whatever causes that in the first place, IMO.
I'll add more detail. I bought the car new in 1992 and after it's break-in with regular 10W-30 I used Amsoil 10W-30 til about 100K. My engine has never had a major break down and the turbos are still original. I think it goes to show how well made this Z is when all the maintaince and care is done right.
B@lliZtiK: " I just have my doubts about the effectiveness and useflulness of thicker oil like that in a car that probably won't see much high performance use. Simply to prop up a lifter tick problem, I don't think it's a good idea. Best to fix whatever causes that in the first place, IMO."
In general, I agree with you. High performance guys are often a bit too quick to go with a thick oil ... sometimes waaaayy too thick.
Many serious car people have figured out that thinner oils provide less drag on the motor and free up more horsepower. And if you load up the oil with additives like moly, boron and ZDDP, you can get protection which is just as good ... sometimes even better.
I've seen too many really good used oil reports from people using 5W-20 and even 0W-20 (and these had all thinned some!! ) to discount this method of engine protection.
But, for guys wanting a thicker oil, the 15W-40 fleet oils make a good choice ... better than the "racing" 20W-50s from Valvoline and others ... and waaayyy better than the straight 40 or 50 weight oils.
I also think the extra detergents in the fleet oils will (safely) help 'de-sludgify' an older motor which has been neglected. Trying one for a couple thousand miles is easier than tearing down a motor just because a lifter is sticking a little. That often happens because of sludge build-up in a critical area. gooey build up can restrict oil flow in certain places.
Then again, sometimes ANY oil change will free-up a sticky lifter because the additive package (including detergents) is that much fresher and better able to clean and lubricate.
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--- Bror Jace
Last edited by Bror Jace : Nov 22nd, 2004 at 09:57 PM.
B@lliZtiK: " I just have my doubts about the effectiveness and useflulness of thicker oil like that in a car that probably won't see much high performance use. Simply to prop up a lifter tick problem, I don't think it's a good idea. Best to fix whatever causes that in the first place, IMO."
In general, I agree with you. High performance guys are often a bit too quick to go with a thick oil ... sometimes waaaayy too thick.
Many serious car people have figured out that thinner oils provide less drag on the motor and free up more horsepower. And if you load up the oil with additives like moly, boron and ZDDP, you can get protection which is just as good ... sometimes even better.
My question to you would be, and you being the oil expert, you should have a good guess; at what point does oil become too thick or too thin to adequately protect. I know in part it relies on the clearances in the engine, but some size engines just simply shouldn't use above or below a certain weight oil due to hydrodynamic loads. I mean , can you conceivably cause excess bearing wear simply by using too thin an oil, or is that pretty much impossible. Is it also possible to cause wear by using too thick an oil and placing greater strain on the oil pump and bearings......
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1992 Yamaha FZR 1000. 145 Hp, all stock..
My question to you would be, and you being the oil expert, you should have a good guess”
I like the fact that people here hold my knowledge and opinions about oil/lubricants in such high esteem, but compared to some of the folks at BITOG, I’m a lowly noob. Still, I’ll try to address the questions you’ve asked with what I know.
“At what point does oil become too thick or too thin to adequately protect? I know in part it relies on the clearances in the engine, but some size engines just simply shouldn't use above or below a certain weight oil due to hydrodynamic loads.”
You are on the right track. Truth is, most automotive engines are OK with an oil in the mid 20 weight to mid 40 weight range in most conditions. Any differences in wear will probably not be noticeable … maybe not even with careful UOA monitoring.
“I mean, can you conceivably cause excess bearing wear simply by using too thin an oil, or is that pretty much impossible?”
Nope, that’s always been a concern … and I think I’ve seen some Chevy V8s using mass-market 5W-30 and even 10W-30 which had thinned and showed high lead levels. However, you are not likely to get into trouble using the factory recommended weights unless you push the interval too far. Current mineral 5/10W-30 oils seems to thin out … even the better ones like Pennzoil and Chevron. Castrol is/was worse than those two and Royal Purple synthetic 10W-30 will thin down to a 20 weight in 1,500 miles of typical street use.
“Is it also possible to cause wear by using too thick an oil and placing greater strain on the oil pump and bearings ...”
Again, we at BITOG (especially Terry Dyson) think we’ve seen examples of this. However, you’d have to be talking about using 15W-40 in a new/tight motor … or 20W-50 … or even a straight 40 or 50 weight.
But even then, some manufacturers like BMW recommend very thick oils (10W-60 ) for some of their higher-performance motors.
Nope, that’s always been a concern … and I think I’ve seen some Chevy V8s using mass-market 5W-30 and even 10W-30 which had thinned and showed high lead levels. However, you are not likely to get into trouble using the factory recommended weights unless you push the interval too far. Current mineral 5/10W-30 oils seems to thin out … even the better ones like Pennzoil and Chevron. Castrol is/was worse than those two and Royal Purple synthetic 10W-30 will thin down to a 20 weight in 1,500 miles of typical street use.
So what oil brand/type/weight would you recommend for occasional "untypical" street use, and the generally used 3000 mile interval. Since you've stated the above, I now feel somewhat unsafe driving on the normal low weight oils (5w30-10w30-10w40). What consequences might using 15w40 in an engine such as the VG30 have, and what would you recommend, a higher or lower weight oil, for the turbocharged applications, especially for those of us boosting higher than stock.
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1992 Yamaha FZR 1000. 145 Hp, all stock..
There had been some discussion within the industry that this stuff does more harm than good in certain diesel engines over tens of thousands of miles of use. 
Long live Delo400!
Still, I’ll try to address the questions you’ve asked with what I know.
Linear Mode
