[TRFanatic]

Has anyone tried blending fossil and synthetic oil to sort of get the "best of both worlds" in terms of heat tolerance and value??
If so what percentage do you recommend--50/50??
I also wanted to know if anyone was thinking that 100% fossil oil is okay if using thicker than 10W30 and if so, what viscosity do you recommend??

thanks for the info

 

[Turbo_Tim]

JMO stay with the 10-30.

I know of one person that throws a QT of synthetic in every oil change. That little prolly won't seep through the seals (oil leaks) but should give a bit of extra protection as far as coating and not cooking off as it goes through the hot turbo.

It can't hurt, and if it gives you a little piece of mind - good!

 

[salvageV6]

They sell it blended already I believe. yup

That's what I would use rather than making my own blend up.

And yes I am assuming the companies that do it spend something on R+D and not just marketing.

Could be wrong on that part though....

 

[forzfed]

salvageV6:
They sell it blended already I believe. yup

Yes they do! It is called semi-synthetic, and is half the price of full. Go figure.

 

[Ormand]

Seems to me.. if you have ANY non-synthetic oil in the blend, then you still have most of the risk of coking up the turbo bearing, and much of the problem of varnish, etc, coating the engine internals. Yeah, it will be cheaper, but then, you gets what you pay for.

 

[Steve Wood]

I believe Castrol Syn-Tech is a blend...More than one brand on the shelf, tho.

I have never hesitated to mix the two, if that was what I had on the shelf.

Ormand is correct tho. The oil will perform to the lowest common denominator.

 

[TRFanatic]

Forgive me, I don't know much. What is "coking?" and how much harm can the "varnish etc" do? Does the driving habits matter here ie. my car is VERY rarely run hard and is run non boost for the vast majority of the time.

Thanks

 

[TRFanatic]

p.s. Turbo_Tim--what is JMO??

 

[Steve Wood]

None of us know very much if we were being truthful.

Coking is the black carbon material that is left when you cook oil hot enuf so that the oil is left behind. If a turbo is run really hard and then immediately shut down, there is a chance that the turbo shaft might provide enough heat to cook the oil and leave the carbon residue behind. This grit will chew up bearings and plug up passages.

In reality, with modern oils, it ain't too likely. Synthetics can take more temperature than regular oils so theoretically offer more protection. For 99% of us, I suspect the difference is more theoretical than actual as most of us abuse our cars in that manner...

In the olden days, castor oil was used in racing engines/gearboxes....it has a very high point of temperature before it burns. It is not carbon based, either. On the downside, once it gets hot and then cools, it tends to gel and leave a terrible mess behind. Had to be drained before it went cold. Still used frequently as a supplement, or straight, in model engines as it has a higher flash point than synthetics.

 

[b4black]

Steve Wood:
For 99% of us, I suspect the difference is more theoretical than actual

Great line.

Steve Wood:
It is not carbon based, either.

Castor oil is very much so carbon based. It is not however petroleum based. (More semantics, eh? )

<small>[ June 04, 2003, 02:20 PM: Message edited by: b4black ]</small>

 

[Steve Wood]

LOL OOPS!!!!!

I guess we are carbon based life forms as are castor beans! I was thinking petroleum based rather than realizing that plants are also carbon based

More a case of the dumb ass than semantics.

<small>[ June 04, 2003, 02:51 PM: Message edited by: Steve Wood ]</small>

 

[CaPPY]

It smells really great as the race cars go by. headbang

"I love the smell of castor oil in the morning." poon

 

[Silver 6]

Syn or fossil, they were both dirt cheap at my local Walmart yesterday. I went in for a new battery and there was a shelving cart in the aisle with oil products that must be going out of stock. They had Castrol Syntec for $2 and Castrol Syntec Blend for $1. Quaker State Type F was $.75. That was about $60 I hadn't expected to spend, but the Silver 6 is taken care of for a while. Now if they will do that with filers, I'd be really set.

 

[Turbo_Tim]

TRFanatic JMO = just my opinion. As a carbon based unit there are things I don't know for sure, so I put that little disclaimer in just to cover some bases.

Zap, on the other hand, (another member) is an intergalactic tumbleweed with unquestionable knowledge. We aren't sure if he is carbon based or not, but whatever it is I'm told it smells like feet..

 

[Steve Wood]

More like a purple disposed Dr. Scholl's odor eater from the combat boots of Rudoph. nono