| Author |
Message |
DesertSasquatchXploration
Samba Member
Joined: April 16, 2021
Posts: 1081
|
 Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2025 10:07 am Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
 |
|
| oprn wrote: |
I don't know if it has been covered here yet or not but for all you heavier is better folks I am seeing ads now for 60wt "racing" oil.
Not my cup of tea but some may want to try it. It's gotta' make your car faster... no? |
I cant believe AutoZone and O'Reilly here only carry 60W VR-1. I asked the counter and they thought I was speaking a different language asking for 10w-30 or 20w-50. I used to buy it from them only a year ago. Force me to go online yet they wonder why stores are empty. Screw'em |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
boburban
Samba Member
Joined: July 28, 2025
Posts: 2
Location: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
|
| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 9:06 am Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
I called Shell customer support and talked to one of their technical folks.
He told me that Shell Rotella T1 has 1100 ppm of Zinc. Shell Rotella T4 and above has 1200 ppm of Zinc.
Hope that helps as I could not find a definitive answer online. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
boburban
Samba Member
Joined: July 28, 2025
Posts: 2
Location: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
|
| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 8:13 am Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| DesertSasquatchXploration wrote: |
| I cant believe AutoZone and O'Reilly here only carry 60W VR-1. I asked the counter and they thought I was speaking a different language asking for 10w-30 or 20w-50. I used to buy it from them only a year ago. Force me to go online yet they wonder why stores are empty. Screw'em |
My Wal-Mart has 5 quart jugs of VR1 10W-30 and 20W-50 for about $5 per quart which is a really good price. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
vugbug68
Samba Member
Joined: June 25, 2006
Posts: 2701
Location: sacramento
|
| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2025 6:22 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| boburban wrote: |
I called Shell customer support and talked to one of their technical folks.
He told me that Shell Rotella T1 has 1100 ppm of Zinc. Shell Rotella T4 and above has 1200 ppm of Zinc.
Hope that helps as I could not find a definitive answer online. |
I'm sure someone will chime in and say diesel oil shouldn't be used in gasoline engines, but those ZDDP levels in Rotella look about the same as an oil analysis chart I posted in this thread 10 years ago. As far as the anti-foam agents, I can definitely understand not using it in a engine thats gonna be spinning high rpm.
Anyway I've been using Rotella 15-40 and 10-30 in my VW's for 20 years, I've used VR1 10-40 too with similar results, Rotella is just easier for me to get and is cheaper.
_________________
71 Super
66 Corvair
69 Baja Bug |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
vamram 
Samba Member
Joined: March 08, 2012
Posts: 8266
Location: NOVA
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 16, 2025 3:44 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
Not sure if this has been posted somewhere in this monster thread, but the guys goes thru a bunch of oil additives he says destroy engines. He's really down on the zddp additives and Marvel Mystery Oil, among others.
Link
_________________
"Men are qualified for civil liberty in exact proportion to their disposition
to put moral chains upon their own appetites. -Edmund Burke
'74 Super 9/16 - present, in refurb process.
'73 Super - 6/18 - Present - Daily Driver!
'75 Super Le Grande...we hardly knew ye. Sold 2025 for peanuts.
Click to view image
Save the Supers!! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 52768
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 16, 2025 6:51 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| boburban wrote: |
I called Shell customer support and talked to one of their technical folks.
He told me that Shell Rotella T1 has 1100 ppm of Zinc. Shell Rotella T4 and above has 1200 ppm of Zinc.
Hope that helps as I could not find a definitive answer online. |
What phone number did you use for their customer support? Rotella T6 5w40 was one of my chosen oils for years when it carried an "S" rating. If not having an "S" rating just means it is going to harm a catalytic converter without doing other harm, I would like to know as none of my aircooled engines have cats. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
HandOverFist
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2025
Posts: 13
Location: FL
|
| Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2025 9:05 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| vamram wrote: |
Not sure if this has been posted somewhere in this monster thread, but the guys goes thru a bunch of oil additives he says destroy engines. He's really down on the zddp additives and Marvel Mystery Oil, among others.
Link
|
540Rat https://540ratblog.wordpress.com/2013/06/20/motor-oil-wear-test-ranking/ documented these findings long ago. He found (specifically ZDDP type additives) that the introduction of these aftermarket additives to any established oil package resulted in a drastic reduction of that oil's protective qualities in nearly every oil he tested.
There was one additive (which will not be named) that actually improved the oil's protective qualities, but...this improvement did not hold true with every oil. The additive was also very corrosive and not recommended overall.
I find the ZDDP debate wearisome at best. Today's off the shelf oils average around 800 ppm of ZDDP. It just so happens that the same oils from 1960-1970 had the exact same ppm levels of ZDDP as today and this was during the heyday of high performance flat tappet engines coming from auto manufacturers. Prior to 1960 these levels were even lower...by a lot.
You won't find a conclusive recommended ppm of ZDDP simply because it does not exist and for good reason. The amount of ZDDP in any oil has nothing to do with added protection because the compound simply does not operate in that fashion. In other words, greater ZDDP content does not offer greater protection...it merely extends the depletion time. 800 ppm of ZDDP works exactly the same as 1200 ppm of ZDDP. If one ever takes the time to review used oil samples you will discover the depletion rates of ZDDP are rather miniscule...as it should be. The compound is just along for the ride inside oil doing nothing until it is called upon/activated by extreme heat/pressures. If you ever discover a serious depletion of ZDDP in your oil you have a serious problem with your engine and it is not long for this world no matter how much ZDDP you throw at it lol. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 52768
|
| Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2025 11:16 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| HandOverFist wrote: |
You won't find a conclusive recommended ppm of ZDDP simply because it does not exist and for good reason. The amount of ZDDP in any oil has nothing to do with added protection because the compound simply does not operate in that fashion. In other words, greater ZDDP content does not offer greater protection...it merely extends the depletion time. 800 ppm of ZDDP works exactly the same as 1200 ppm of ZDDP. If one ever takes the time to review used oil samples you will discover the depletion rates of ZDDP are rather miniscule...as it should be. The compound is just along for the ride inside oil doing nothing until it is called upon/activated by extreme heat/pressures. If you ever discover a serious depletion of ZDDP in your oil you have a serious problem with your engine and it is not long for this world no matter how much ZDDP you throw at it lol. |
The ZDDP in oils 25 years ago tended to be "consumed" by the engine and would end up coating the cat causing it to die an early death. Since then the producers of motor oil have gone to better refined ZDDP molecules which don't evaporate from the oil or degrade as readily, so less ZDDP is needed to provide long term protection.
25 years ago it was probably not too bad of an idea to increase your oil's ZDDP from 800 ppm to 1000 or 1200 PPM, however I wouldn't expect more than one in a hundred people to be able to do the math to know how much to add of a given ZDDP concentrate while one of the frequently recommend ZDDP boosters had so little ZDDP that adding any amount of it would lower the concentration of ZDDP in most anyone's crankcase. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
flatfour
Samba Member
Joined: August 23, 2003
Posts: 695
|
| Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2025 6:34 am Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
Maybe it was already posted and I missed it, but I saw VR1 lowered zinc levels in their oil. I have used this the last few years, so not sure what I will change to now. I used to use Brad Penn, maybe that's where I will go.
"Valvoline VR1 oil has seen reduced zinc (ZDDP) levels in some formulations, dropping from around 1400 ppm to 1100 ppm"
_________________
'68 Bug
'74 Ghia |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
HandOverFist
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2025
Posts: 13
Location: FL
|
| Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2025 9:06 am Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| flatfour wrote: |
Maybe it was already posted and I missed it, but I saw VR1 lowered zinc levels in their oil. I have used this the last few years, so not sure what I will change to now. I used to use Brad Penn, maybe that's where I will go.
"Valvoline VR1 oil has seen reduced zinc (ZDDP) levels in some formulations, dropping from around 1400 ppm to 1100 ppm" |
Really no need. All these engines rolled off the line with 800ppm or less in the crankcase. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
flatfour
Samba Member
Joined: August 23, 2003
Posts: 695
|
| Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2025 3:58 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| HandOverFist wrote: |
Really no need. All these engines rolled off the line with 800ppm or less in the crankcase. |
It's a completely different world from when they rolled off the line, if it was and if it didn't matter, then this thread wouldn't be 18 years old and 237 pages long. 
_________________
'68 Bug
'74 Ghia |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
HandOverFist
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2025
Posts: 13
Location: FL
|
| Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2025 4:02 pm Post subject: Re: Official "What oil / additives should I use" topic |
|
|
| flatfour wrote: |
| HandOverFist wrote: |
Really no need. All these engines rolled off the line with 800ppm or less in the crankcase. |
It's a completely different world from when they rolled off the line, if it was and if it didn't matter, then this thread wouldn't be 18 years old and 237 pages long. |
For the better...we have some of the best engine oils ever produced on the planet at this point in time.  |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
