GC good in all circumstances?

[Shemoves]

Just wondering how it does in motors not
spec'd for 0w30 (mine like something in the 5/10-30/40 range). Also, is it better for having an extended OCI and/or 'heavy duty' apps such as forced induction and/or high-output NA vehicles?

 

[FD777]

Might want to specify what car/engine you have + any mods.
As for turbo Subarus (WRX and STi being the most common), it does pretty well. These cars spec a 5w30.

I'll let other owners chime in for their respective cars.

 

[BillionPa]

well designed engines with tight tolerances seem to do the best, such as the Nissan VQ engines, and BMW engines late 90s on. older engines and those that exhibit piston slap, or just have sloppy design seem to benefit from thicker oil.

GC is full synthetic but has an "above average" flash point, so its good for engines that dont get hot as holy #@$%!, like in a 3000GT VR4. they do better with oils like Amsoil and Redline.

 

[bluesubie]

Quote:

---

Might want to specify what car/engine you have + any mods.
As for turbo Subarus (WRX and STi being the most common), it does pretty well. These cars spec a 5w30.

I'll let other owners chime in for their respective cars.

---

I recognize her screen name from nasioc.

Legacy GT maybe?
GC does very well for me in the summer at 7k mile OCI's, but I switched to Motul 8100 for winter due to my short daily trips (5 miles each way). My fuel dilution was very high with GC and the oil was still nearly a 40 weight. I have some UOA's posted here and on nasioc for my stock FXT. AndyH has some UOA's here for his modified STi (Cobb Stage I??).

There was a UOA posted here some time ago from an STi that made 45 drag passes and the oil was still in grade.

Here's my UOA from winter/spring '06 and shortly I should receive my results from summer/fall '06.

-Dennis

 

[AndyH]

GC seems to perform just fine in my COBB Stage 1 2005 STi, here is my latest UOA (which also shows data on all of my previous UOA's as well):
Castrol Syntec 0w-30, 6,883 miles, '05 Subaru STi

 

[Russell]

How about a 95 bmw m50TU engine with 135,000 miles?. Is this an appropiate oil?

I am currently using GC in my car. Seems to do very well this winter. For example, today's low twmp was about 7 degrees and it started prefectly.

 

[Stainless]

Russell:

I was looking into a 1998 328, so i did my oil research.

Honestly...with that BMW, GC is one of the FEW oils i would run in it. I don't trust Mobil 1 0W-40 any more. I would run Mobil Delvac 1 5W-40 in a pinch. I would also have done an Auto RX treatment using DELO 15w40, but i would have ONLY done that in the SUMMER time.

With a car that nice. I would do an oil analysis with whatever oil I decided on, just to be sure.

 

[Russell]

Stainless, I ran two auto-rx treatments prior to the GC. I quit using Mobil 1 0w40 as the car seemed noisy and two UOA showed fairly high lead and some fuel dilution with Mobil 1 0w40. I plan to to do a UOA in about 3,000 miles on the GC at blackstone. Thanks for the comments.

 

[Thatwouldbegreat]

Our 1995 BMW 325iC has had the ARX treatment and is running GC 0W-30. Seems fine, but oil consumption is a bit higher than I'd like. I added some VSOT to thicken a tad.

But I'n not convinced GC is the ideal oil for older [ 80's to mid 90's ] BMW engines.


I run Redline 10W-40 in our 530K miles 1986 325es with fantastic results , and I've decided I'll use Redline 5W-40 in the 1995 325iC from now on.

In a pinch, I might also consider Mobil Delvac 1 5w-40 or Mobil 1 Truck and SUV 5W-40 [ yes, I am still anti -Mobil 1 ], or Shell Rotella 5W-40, or Valvoline Synpower 5W-40.

The GC is still the oil of choice in our two 2005 Subaru Outback 2.5i's. GC may not give the lowest oil consumption, or the highest MPG.

But GC runs very smooth, should give low wear, and have a great match for viscosity requirements of the Subaru engine over a very wide range of temps....[ -35 F to 110 F ].

At 7K OCI's and mountain / desert and sustained WOT operation ...I think performing better than a GF3 or GF4 over a 6 month interval and a good HTHS is most important.

 

[BillionPa]

the new M1 0W40 has the same HTHS as GC, 3.6, and has pretty good wear results. although it is on the light side of 40wt.

the lighter the oil the more it flows, the heavier the oil the higher the film strength.

you need to find the healthy balance that is right for your engine. Redline oils have extremely high film strength for thier viscosity, the 5W30 is higher than M1 0W40.

if the GC sounds and feels good, doesnt burn oil, and shows a good UOA, stick with it.

if not.... try Redline 5W30, LubroMoly Vollsynthase 5W40, or Cosworth 5W40. they are all full synthetics with SL or higher additive packs. noack% for Redline and LM are 6 and 7, i dont have the number for Cosworth. HTHS for Redline and Cosworth are 3.8 and 4.0, dont have the number for LM.

 

[cavitating]

I have a 2006 Nissan Frontier V6, 4.0. I live in Orlando Florida and sometimes I tow a 24 foot sailboat. Nissan recommends 10w30 for temperatures above 20F.
What GC should I use?

 

[Stainless]

Russell. When you get tha UOA, would you IM me and let me know when you post it?

i will have forgotten about it by then... but i still would like to see it.

thanks a ton

EDITED TO ADD:

Cavitating... There is only ONE GC (in the US). It is Castrol Syntec 0W-30. But it MUST say "Made in Germany" on the back, & the newest bottles of GC say "European Formula" on the front. There aren't different weights of GC(in the US), just the 0W-30. And USUALLY the only place you can find it is Auto Zone, although I have heard reports of NAPA being able to order it for you... but i can't confirm that.

 

[Stainless]

Also. I have been doing some thinking... just THINKING mind you... so don't everyone kill me at once.

but...

The new Mobil 1 High Mileage 10W-40 *MIGHT* be worth a try for 90s BMW engines. It is SL rated, and i THINK it is A3 as well. It might be a good oil in these applications.

at least... it is worth checking out.