I've tried a search here on the subject but nothing came up. I'm driving my Buick down to Texas from Chicago and I want to change the oil. All I know is that the zinc/zddp in todays oil is low and not good to put in our classic engines. So I'm asking which oil do you guys use and recommend.
Alex, you searched V8Buick and found NOTHING??? It's got to be one of the most frequently recurring topics. For starters, just stick the term zddp into the search function. That alone gives you 158 threads to review. Devon
Yeah Devon I typed in oil in the search function and came up with unrelated topics. I'll try zddp, thanks. Thanks for the link 68, I'll see if I can find this product locally.
I know you probably need it sooner but you can get zddp on ebay the cheapest as long as you buy more than one bottle.
The biggest concern with zddp is VALVE SPRING PRESSURE. Stock springs = not much worry Stiff-ass springs = considerable concern What valve springs do you have?
In a pinch I use stp oil treatment, it is a high viscosity additive that contains zddp and you can find it at any autoparts store. I do want to check out that bradpenn stuff though it looks like good stuff especially since it contains plenty of additive right out of the bottle. My opinion on zddp is even if our engines don't NEED it it cant hurt to spend the extra $10-15 and pour some in, extra piece of mind and one less thing you can beat yourself up for if the unthinkable happens
Use 1/2 Mobile 1 10-30 and 1/2 15-50 Mobile 1 oil add some zddp if you want, (I have never used zddp) and you won't have any problems. I have been doing this for the past 10 years in my 350 I been down the 1/4 mile at least 450 times and all is good. 55 lbs oil pressure at 3000 rpm and 70 lbs at 6000 rpm. The 15-50 has more of the zddp in the oil. The motor is as clean as when it was built and that was in 1994. Tried and proven.
I am currently running Brad Penn 10W30 in my 425 Riviera and 1965 Jeep Wagoneer with its 230 OHC and solid lifters. They have been promoting it heavily in the muscle car magazines and I thought I'd give it a try. In the Riviera engine, I drained the old oil after it was first delivered to me from the previous owner and put Castrol Syn tec 10W30 in as a way to clean out any deposits that were in the engine. The oil turned dark quickly and was drained after 3 days of use. Then I put the Brad Penn 10w30 in and its been there for about 1 month now with satisfactory results. In the Jeep engine the OHC solid lifter design seems to appreciate the oil much more so than the conventional (Castrol 10w30) oil that was in it before. The lifters and valvetrain seem quieter. Spend the bucks and put the (partial synthetic) Brad Penn oil in and give it a try. Otherwise I would run a PARTIAL synthetic oil like Castrol or any of the other mfrs make. It cleans the crap-ola out of your engine while retain the "makeup" of the petroleum oil your engine knows. I have heard stories about placing full synthetic into older engines and getting leaks around oiling gaskets. I would think that there must be a lot of gunk in that engine in order for syn to remove it and start leaks. Does anyone have comments on running full syn like Mobil 1 or Amsoil in their older (not freshly rebuilt) Buick?
Thank you all for your input. This is all good stuff. I already went out and got the oil yesterday before I read these latest posts. It's funny, I went to 4 different stores before I found someone who knew what I was talking about. He told me that he was a mechanic for a Chevy dealer and has been keeping up on the latest tech. He said the oil that's out today should still have enough zddp in it and would be fine as is. I said to myself " yeah, o.k. for a Chevy." He then recommended Pennzoil. I went ahead and picked up five qrts. of 10w 30 with intention to get additive today and to see what else guys suggest. I would have gotten the Brad Penn but nobody carries it here locally. Fox, I'm going to try that combo on my next oil change. Schurkey, my 350 is all stock. Tricolor, I think I'll try that STP if I cant find that zddp additive.
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It's really that bad. It's a diesel formulation that will foam (aerate) in a higher rpm gasoline engine. Probably fine for a daily driver, though. Type the words rotella foam into google and read up. Devon
Good rule of thumb, run the thinnest oil that gives you acceptable oil pressure. Small blocks do well with 10 psi per 1000 rpm, big blocks like 11-12 psi per 1000 rpm. Devon
