426 HEMI: switch from Valvoline to Rotella T or ??

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Originally Posted By: triggerfish
Drew, what's your opinion of Delo (non synthtic)? I've read some negative opinions of Pennzoil & don't they make Rotella?
I don't want to go synthetic, so will probably get the Rotella dino 15/40.



Chevron makes Delo
Shell makes Rotella
 
Originally Posted By: triggerfish
Drew, what's your opinion of Delo (non synthtic)? I've read some negative opinions of Pennzoil & don't they make Rotella?
I don't want to go synthetic, so will probably get the Rotella dino 15/40.


I'd personally use Delo since it has a decent chunk of molybdenum in the additive package - Rotella does not. But I doubt you could discern any difference in performance from that.

If you'd ever get crazy enough to run that puppy in colder temps, I'd seriously consider the Rotella synthetic. In fact, most places still have a huge stock of the older CI-4 Rotella synthetic that still I believe has even a bit more zinc.

I bet your 426 would run a bit "freerer" with the 5w-40 since the oil will be much less viscous up to operating temp, but will still give equal or better protection at higher temps.

But in the end, Rotella or any 15w-40 I think would work great - much better than Valvoline 10w-40 which has GF-4 levels of zinc.
 
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Spoke to Norm Fisher w/ Brad Pann oil today & he said its exactly the same oil as Kendall GT1. Only the name changed when they were bought out. He's raced alcohol funny cars & has a big time Chevy Stroker & says he tests his oil all the time & highly recommends the Penn Grade 1 Racing oil. Says its got almost 1500 ppm of zink & mentioned a lot of racers who've used it over the years.
 
Triggerfish,

Thanks for the pics and stories. You have an awesome car, and thanks for caring enough to take good care of it. I absolutely love old muscle cars, but owning one of them is nothing but a dream for me.

Just out of curiosity, do you have an appraised value for that car? Hemi Challengers are extremely rare, and I've heard about Hemi 'Cuda's going for over $1 million...yours MUST be close to that! I'd have a 'hard time' driving something worth that much.... :P
 
Prices are down, thanks to the economy, & you could probably pick up a nice muscle car for an affordable price. Lots of people are selling their projects, too. I don't plan to ever sell mine. It stays in the family, hopefully. Anyway, thanks for the compliment.
 
Just got 2 cases of the Penn 1 from the local distributor who'se got a machine shop & races a Hemi nostalgia blown top fuel dragster. He loves the Penn grade 1 & uses it in his rail. Says the results are amazing. I'll try to post pics. Last nite, during Hot August NItes, an 08 orange SRT8 Chally pulled up next to Oh Mango & we drew quite a crowd. Anyway, thanks for all the input & will let you know how the penn performs in the hemi.
 
Put the B.Penn 10/30 in the Hemi & drove the heck out of it during Hot August Nights, showing the car & racing a few people. I was a little worried about using a partial synthetic & a lighter oil than its used to. I tightened all the pan bolts & even though the oil pressure read a little lower @ idle & lower speeds, no leaks that I can see. Car ran very cool, even during constant stop & go thru the crowds at the local cruises.
Do you think the lighter 10/30 will protect the bearings, etc, as well as the 10/40??
 
I'll look into the 40 wt. It gets pretty cold here in the winter, but I try to keep the garage heated a little, so the 40 wt should be ok. A friend also gets Kendall GT1 locally, but its the same as BP. How does the BP compare to the VR1?
 
Originally Posted By: triggerfish

Do you think the lighter 10/30 will protect the bearings, etc, as well as the 10/40??


Given that the HT/HS viscosity of the 10w-30 is 3.54 and it has 1500 ppm zinc, I'd say yes! I'd consider throwing a quart of the straight 40 weight in there just to get the kinematic viscosity up a tad.

Did your engine builder recommend a thicker oil because of large bearing clearances?
 
That's what I need to find out. I don't suppose he did, but will find out. What's the pluses of "partial" sythetic & is it thicker than full syn?
 
I believe it's only the Penn Grade 1 break-in oil that has 1500 ppm of zinc and 1410 ppm of phos. I think the Penn Grade 1 racing oils have about 1200 ppm of zinc and 1100 ppm of phos.Good oil nonetheless.
 
Originally Posted By: KA426
I believe it's only the Penn Grade 1 break-in oil that has 1500 ppm of zinc and 1410 ppm of phos. I think the Penn Grade 1 racing oils have about 1200 ppm of zinc and 1100 ppm of phos.Good oil nonetheless.


No, it has 1500 ppm zinc. Says so right on the data sheet.
 
I too have read ALL the data sheets. I know a B.P. salesman and the VOAs aren't backing up the talk. It's still a good oil but the additive levels are lower than advertised. I'm in the process of getting a VOA done on the straight 40 wt racing oil.
 
I couldn't open the link Drew posted, but do you think the actual levels are still good enough? Is Valvoline Racing oil a better choice?? Looking foward to the rusults of your test. Thanks, Buzz
 
Thanks for the link Drew. Is mixing viscosities a good thing to do? Will the two weights blend? Also, I think the VR1 is total dino & that may be better in the long run, too.
 
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