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Oil Preference


JamesHigdon

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Our business has just setup with LSSZ to advertise and I am interested in what oils the racers out there are using. We are working on contracts with different suppliers for both Valvoline and Amsoil products but am curious as to what racers are currently using?

 

Personally I have always run Valvoline and in some cases use either a quart of Lucas (for loose or older engines) or a small amount of Marvel (for tight or newer engines). When breaking in motors I typically run Rotella T with a quart of GM EOS but that is the only time I don’t use Valvoline. We have run Valvoline in everything from basic street engines to sport bike motors in formula cars and have never once experienced a failure or oil related issue and have actually used some of their high detergent products to clean motors out. We’ve had street motors go 200+k miles on it, race motors hold together against all bets and…well it just flat works. It’s easy to sell what you believe in and because of that all we have ever sold is Valvoline products.

 

My question is what does everyone else use? I know some folks swear by Amsoil but having never used it I am only relying on (very good) marketing data and info. If we start stocking large amounts of Amsoil (or bringing it to the tracks with us) what do racers use or prefer?

Thanks for any info., beyond stocking what will sell I want to know if people think they are on to something better or if they know what doesn’t work!

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WE HAVE RAN NOTHING BUT CASTRO IN OUR MOTORS FOR 25 YEARS OR MORE .OVER THE LAST 8 YEARS WE ADDED IN SOME LUCAS .......SEEMS TO BE A GREAT COMBO.....BEARINGS AND OTHER PARTS LOOK GREAT AFTER A SEASON OF 7500 .TO 8200 plus rpm/s .....i have customers who swear by amsoil....but we don't carry it ....

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I recommend Joe Gibbs racing oils, BR oil for break in and xp oil after most drivers prefer xp5. this stuff still has zinc in it and is designed for flat tappet race engines after many customers had issues with cams going flat we recommended the switch as we had done with all the shop owned engines and the flat cam problem has faded away. pretty economical compared to amsoil or royal purple.

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I use the rotella for break in and then Brad Penn for weekly races. Broke a crank in Nebraska and when I tore the the motor down the bearings looked new with 25 nights on the motor, the price is also nice, around $60.00 per case, cheaper than many off the shelf oil. I think this is probably the choice of most dirt track guys.

Joe

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I've used Joe Gibbs as well - not sure about their "plan" - I still like changing a bit more often than they recommend...

agreed they are a bit proud on their oil change schedule. I run xp11 because of excessive oil temp 315-320 sometimes on a hard long race. but change the filter before the third night and oil after the fifth. so far second complete season for that engine I'm gonna freshen up before this season so well see shortly how bearing wear is though it should be very good since it's still 52lbs idle 80@ 8100

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Have run Royal Purple, Amsoil, Brad Penn, and Mobil 1. Currently run RP because it's easy to get locally.

 

You guys running 50 wt oil - unless you just like giving away horsepower, talk to your engine builder to see if your clearances can handle a thinner oil. That molasses oil is not horsepower friendly.

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I guy I used to work with always swore by Justice Brothers Oil Treatment OTC6 - said using it you could run water in the case if you really needed to. He kinda proved it one night when his dry sump car bounced through the infield on lap 10 of a 30 main - two weeks left in the season and he was leading points. It threw the pump belt so he ran the next 20 under green with the big red light on the dash telling us 0 oil pressure. Still running at the end (finished second) and in tear down very little damage - none to the crank although did have signs of running real hot (starting to blue in the radii). The cam was grooved a bit, the bores glazed, the bronze guide sleeves were opened about .0025 and the rocker fulcrum rollers were all toasted. But surprisingly - the damage looked like an overheat - not an oil starve!

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These are just a few of the oil brands we recommend and keep in our inventory:

 

-Comp Cam's Engine Break-In Oil 15W-50: $6.99 qt

 

-Kendall GT-1 20W-50 Racing: $5.99 qt

 

-Joe Gibbs XP8 5W-30 and XP4 15W-50: $7.99 qt

 

-Amsoil Z-Rod 10W-30 and 20W-50: $10.99 qt

 

We also carry these oil filters: MOROSO, Amsoil, and K&N

 

We have had great success with these products

 

Greg Spreen - (830)-249-2235

Spreen Racing Engines

 

fyi stay away from oil filters that begin with the letter "W"

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The flow rate of the filter is too low and causes a major oil flow restriction.

 

Is this based on analysis you've performed, or read, or ...? Not trying to be argumentative or discount what you're saying, but just curious.

 

And while we're on the subject, what analysis/info do you have on K&N filters?

 

Thanks

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These are most definatly 30 years of first hand experiences.

At the end of every racing season when all enigines come back to be freshened and updated, rebuilt etc...

It doesn't take long to figure out what products are good and what products are not so good.

Proper tear down inspection is one of the most critical steps in engine rebuilding.

This is how we learn and get better every year. All of these filters have been tested in house on our own flow machine.

Please Feel free to call me if you have any questions.

Greg

(830)249-2235

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The flow rate of the filter is too low and causes a major oil flow restriction.

 

Is this based on analysis you've performed, or read, or ...? Not trying to be argumentative or discount what you're saying, but just curious.

 

And while we're on the subject, what analysis/info do you have on K&N filters?

 

Thanks

I've seen this on many of the other technical forums I frequent as well. The amount of restriction starve the engine of oil.

Joe

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All I know is we have always had good/decent motors but we always went through severe rebuilds. Not with Spreen, everything and I mean everything he helps us with is a step in the right direction. We attempt to give him every bit of information possible so he can always put forth his best effort. He is a valuable member of our race team, no other way to look at it!

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